Santee Cooper finally addressed its generous corporate-giving policy in a recent board meeting, at the request of Gov. Mark Sanford, who has appointed a majority of the board's membership since taking office. Unfortunately, the board made the wrong decision. That might be good news to the recipients of the utility's largesse, but maintaining a flawed donations policy fails to address the longstanding question about its propriety.
The board reportedly received a great deal of advice and gentle pressure from the many recipients of Santee Cooper's donations, which annually total more than $1 million. So perhaps there is some hope in the fact that the board only narrowly voted to continue playing Santa Claus to a host of community groups and causes. Given Gov. Sanford's focus of fiscal responsibility, the board and the public can expect continued demand for further reconsideration.
Despite the debate, there still is no clear-cut policy on how the contribution of public funds reflects the agency's mission. That fundamental flaw was noted in a 1995 critique of Santee Cooper's donations by the Legislative Audit Council. Good will and expectations of an improved economic development climate, cited by one board member, just don't meet the test.
We like Gov. Sanford's proposal that money now donated by the utility should be returned to the state's general fund and distributed through the budget process.
It is possible that the donations will be curtailed in some minor way, since board members expressed interest in examining its support of golf tournaments, which the governor specifically cited in his complaints. Maybe the golfing events will be deemed less worthy than the other causes to which Santee Cooper contributes. But cutting them out still won't resolve the accountability question raised annually when an appointed board gives away public dollars.
A spokesman for the governor says he will persist in attempts to change the board's donation policy. Santee Cooper's decision early this year to give the state $13 million from the sale of surplus property suggests that the governor's persistence eventually may pay off.
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