The Greater Cayce West Columbia Chamber of Commerce received an inquiry, in September, from (TERC) the SC Tourism Expenditure Review Committee, that oversees the use of accommodation tax revenue by municipalities. TERC initiated the request based on an anonymous and unsupported allegation against the Chamber.

The Charleston-based Post and Courier newspaper published an article under the headline: “State investigating claim Greater Cayce West Columbia Chamber is misspending accommodation tax funds.” 

The Chamber Board or leadership was not contacted or allowed adequate time to respond to the story, according to a Chamber press release. The Chamber did express, in the press release, its commitment to transparency, accountability, and lawful financial stewardship. 

On Thursday, the Chamber was exonerated by TERC, and the Chamber released the statement (Below) Friday morning.

On Thursday, Oct. 23, the Greater Cayce-West Columbia Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Programs received correspondence from the State of South Carolina, Tourism Expenditure Review Committee (TERC) stating that the complaint filed against the Chamber has been reviewed and closed.

The complaint was anonymous and spurred an investigation by SC TERC, where documents were then requested from the CWC Chamber in early September – the requested documents were compiled and immediately sent to TERC. The expeditious response to the closure of this case not only speaks to the professionalism of TERC, but also to the professionalism of the Chamber for having all requested documents readily available upon the request from SC TERC. 

In addition to citing the closure of the case, the correspondence from SC TERC also applauded the Chamber for their prompt attention to the matter and the Chambers cooperation in ensuring the responsible stewardship of public tourism funds.

The Chamber is an accredited organization, and values accountability, and therefore happily cooperated with the inquiry from TERC, recognizing that TERC has a duty to react to even the most indiscriminate and anonymous allegations, said Tim James, Chamber CEO/President.

While the inquiry resulted in a closed case, the Chamber is however saddened that such a disingenuous complaint only resulted in a misuse of state investigative resources, all because of someone’s attempt to discredit an organization that works hard to promote business and tourism for the Greater Cayce West Columbia community.

“On behalf of the more than 400 businesses that make up the Chamber and Visitor Programs, as well as our committed Board of Directors, we are thankful for the expeditious findings by
TERC”, said Lindey Miles, Chairlady.

The Greater CWC Chamber and Visitor Program continues to thrive through its mission of supporting businesses and tourism and look forward to continuing to work hard for our communities.