CHARLESTON, S.C. - House members and senators representing the coastline of South Carolina hope to leverage their numbers to persuade their colleagues that what's good for the coast is good for the whole state.

The lawmakers, which account for about a quarter of the General Assembly, met Tuesday to discuss priorities for their newly formed caucus.

"This is not about us versus the rest of the state," said Sen. Scott Richardson, R-Hilton Head Island, who serves as the group's chairman. "This is so we can talk about issues important to us."

At its meeting Tuesday, the group determined that property taxes were considered a top priority. Education took a back burner even though school funding was a driving issue for forming the caucus.

Richardson and Senate President Pro Tempore Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, said a change in the formula for school funding based on property values left Beaufort and Charleston counties with less money for education.

A $14 million budget provision was added to correct the issue, but Richardson said it was necessary to get the region's lawmakers together to do it.

"Lexington and Greenville walked away with bags of cash, and we were told we're rich counties," McConnell said.

Other key issues for the lawmakers were preserving the eroding shoreline and improving coastal evacuation plans in case of a natural disaster.

The lawmakers said they needed to do a better job explaining how projects are important to the entire state and deserve priority in the next legislative session.

"We have a responsibility to communicate that it is not just a coastal issue," McConnell said.

Upstate lawmakers said they don't have a problem with the caucus but added that they likely wouldn't create other regional groups.

"I'm not going to deny there aren't some geographic tensions from time to time," said Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-Laurens. "But honestly it's not that difficult to work through."