JOINT BASE CHARLESTON, S.C. –
Communities across the country with significant industrial, manufacturing, educational, tourist or military footprints periodically will have studies done to determine their economic impact. The state of South Carolina and, more specifically, Joint Base Charleston, are no different.
The methodology used by the two studies cited below was the structural input-output model of the South Carolina economy containing specific information on economic linkages between more than 500 of the state’s industries. The input-output modeling software IMPLAN was used to calculate estimates.
In 2015, the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business conducted a study entitled, “The Economic Impact of South Carolina’s Military Community: A Statewide and Regional Analysis.” This study determined the state-wide economic impact of JB Charleston, which included mission partners such as the 841st Transportation Battalion, the Army Strategic Logistics Activity, and the Space and Naval Warfare System Command Atlantic (SSC Atlantic), as $11.1 billion – the largest military presence in the state.
An updated version of the previous study, with the same name, was published by the South Carolina Military Base Task Force and the University of South Carolina’s Darla Moore School of Business in April 2017. This study calculated the state-wide economic impact of JB Charleston, again including the 841st Transportation Battalion, the Army Strategic Logistics Activity and the SSC Atlantic, as $10.6 billion – still the largest military presence in the state.
The slight change in economic impact numbers is attributed to the fact that the 2015 study included SSC Atlantic numbers from outside the state of South Carolina. SSC Atlantic also has facilities in Norfolk, VA, New Orleans, LA, and Stuttgart, Germany.
Air Force Col. Rob Lyman, JB Charleston commander, said, “Although the numbers in the two studies differ slightly, the fact remains, JB Charleston has an enormous economic impact in the Lowcountry, as well as the state of South Carolina. An economic impact of $10.6 billion is an extremely large footprint that speaks to the vast scope of missions our service members and national security professionals support.”
JB Charleston is “The Launch Point for the Nation’s Resolve” because it comprises the strategic mobility triad. Uniquely, JB Charleston has air, land and sealift capabilities to support the nation’s warfighters. It is comprised of 23,000 acres and provides installation support to more than 60 mission partners representing all military services (Air Force, Navy, Army, and Marine Corps) as well as Federal Law Enforcement Training agencies. Overall, JB Charleston services a total population of 90,000 active duty, reserve, civilian, dependent and retiree members while maintaining and operating $7.8 billion of physical infrastructure spanning three seaports, two civil-military international airfields, 22 miles of coastline, and 38 miles of rail.
“We are proud to remain the largest military presence in the state and understand the important role each military service here plays in continuing our world-wide missions supporting national security,” said Lyman. “We are grateful for our Lowcountry community and their continued support and partnership. They enable us to continue our missions every day.”
Resources: http://www.scmilitarybases.com/sites/default/files/u7/SC_MilitaryImpact_ExecSummary_2015.pdf.
http://www.scpalmettopartners.com/sites/default/files/u95/2017_SCMBTF_Economic_Impact_Study_v2.pdf