Economic development incentives are needed in South Carolina to help counties attract and retain manufacturing companies that generally increase wages in an area and spawn other businesses.

But a comprehensive study shows that laws creating such incentives have serious loopholes in reporting requirements and have been watered down to the point that it's fair to question whether such tax breaks accomplish the original purpose.

The state should set the requirements for reporting these deals and maintaining a database accessible to the general public. Of even greater urgency, the legislature should review the ridiculously low thresholds for some of these incentives.

Across South Carolina, property taxes are being shifted to other classes of taxpayers at least in part because economic incentives have not remained true to their original purpose. And in many counties, local school districts are being deprived of tax revenue. Reviewing and changing these special tax incentives should be at the top of the legislature's long to-do list next year.