McMaster teases automakers interested in SC business, mulls letting Tesla sell in state
Gov. Henry McMaster says he’s open to allowing electric vehicle maker Tesla to sell its cars in South Carolina even though state law requires auto companies, like Tesla, to have an in-state physical location first.
Because of the law, residents have to shop out of state for a Tesla and have to send it out of state to get it fixed. Tesla’s nearest stores and service centers are in Matthews and Raleigh in North Carolina, Atlanta and Savannah in Georgia, and in Knoxville, Tennessee.
McMaster, speaking to The State newspaper Oct. 14 in his State House office, said he would be open to considering a change in the law.
“Anything to open up commerce I’m for,” McMaster said.
McMaster, who is running for reelection against Democrat Joe Cunningham, made his comments a day after he issued an executive order to help facilitate the development of the electric vehicle industry in the state.
In that order, he directed the state Department of Commerce to set up a “one-stop shop” to serve as the primary point of contact for electric vehicle manufacturers and for seven state agencies to develop a plan to set up electric vehicle charging stations across South Carolina.
“South Carolina is in a good or better position than any state in the country to to meet the initiatives and the new things that are coming into the power is behind this electric vehicle endeavor,” McMaster told The State Oct. 14.
McMaster’s spokesman has said as the industry shifts toward making more electric vehicles, the administration wants to ensure vehicles are manufactured in South Carolina.
There are prospects, but McMaster remained mum about who they are.
“We’re trying to get all great companies to come to South Carolina and we’ve been very successful,” McMaster said. “We have some great companies that we’re speaking to, right now. I’d love to tell you (who) because you would be very excited.”
Lawmakers have tried to let Tesla to sell in SC
Lawmakers in recent years have proposed allowing electric carmakers without in-state locations to sell in South Carolina in recent years. None of those efforts have gained any traction.
Tesla sells vehicles directly to motorists, but South Carolina requires car sellers to have brick-and-mortar locations within the state. So a person would have to go to another state to buy a Tesla.
Tesla nor its lobbyist in South Carolina responded to requests for comment. But state ethics filings show the automaker spent $64,500 on lobbying in South Carolina from January 2021 through May 2022.
The automaker also spent also spent more than $89,000 on lobbying in the state in 2016 and 2017.
State Rep. Mike Burns, R-Greenville, filed a proposal last year to remove the requirement for electric vehicle makers to have physical dealerships in South Carolina. The legislation, stuck in the Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee, never got a hearing.
Burns said he filed the bill after voters in his district complained they had to find dealers outside the state to buy a Tesla, costing them extra money and forcing buyers to make other purchase arrangements.
“It’s a lot of trouble to buy from out of state and, if you have trouble, it’s even more because you don’t have a presence here to complain to if you’ve got a problem, to complain to for help and then possibly you have to go out of state,” Burns said. “That’s where they were getting upset.”
Without traction on his bill, and the fact that the industry has grown in South Carolina, Burns said he doesn’t “feel the need” to propose similar legislation for now.
“I don’t feel the need to do that right now,” Burns said. “The other dealerships are coming up and offering an alternative electric vehicle.”
By the numbers
The number of plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles in the state has grown in recent years, according to an Office of Regulatory Staff electric vehicle report. Here are the current number of registered hybrid and electric vehicles in the state as of Aug. 29, 2022, according to the S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles. Specific numbers on Teslas in the state were not available.
▪ Electric: 11,383
▪ Electric and Diesel Hybrid: 1
▪ Hybrid Electric and Gas: 65,281
▪ Hydrogen Fuel Cell: 11
This story was originally published October 19, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
