Commitment 25 is a “living document” in that it will continue to evolve as the Wendell Jones Political Committee continues to learn more about the changing needs of the residents of District 25 in light of the political climate of our state. Candidate Jones is committed to representative legislation meaning that, if elected, it will be his sole responsibility to represent the needs of District and not any personal agenda of his own.  This plan is a 10-year vision based on the feedback that our committee was able to gather from the residents of the District along with our plan to address those needs. 

The Ultimate Objective

The District has to be placed in a position of power so that it can determine its own future within Greenville. This “power” is a byproduct of economic strength. Over the next ten years, we have to focus on making the district a major source of economic growth within the county.  With the right kind of leadership, the growth of Greenville will not be forced UPON us but, instead, we can decide HOW we grow.

As we grow economically, the city, the county and even the state will have to reserve a seat for us at the table where decisions are being made on all levels.  We have the resources (i.e., land that’s prime for development, prime locations contingent to major highways, work force, etc.) to become this powerhouse, but we need the leadership that can provide clear vision, build consensus within the District and Columbia, and the conviction to execute the plan.  Wendell Jones is that leader.

Two-pronged Approach

This vision will require a leader who can fight/build on two fronts at the same time consisting of a legislative approach and a grassroots approach.

Columbia Legislative Agenda

Given the fact that Democrats are outnumbered by the Republicans 2:1, the District needs a leader who can navigate that fine line between building consensus across the aisle while not sacrificing the need to introduce legislation that can benefit the District and districts like it.  In an effort to do this, Wendell Jones will not rely solely on emotional appeal given the Republicans’ resistance to that but will more often utilize his ability to build “business cases” that demonstrate with data the benefits of taking care of ALL residents of South Carolina.  Here are a few of those legislative items that the District has revealed that it would like its legislator to fight for:

• Protect voting rights – Republicans are consistently passing legislation that aids them in winning elections while destroying the democratic belief of “one man, one vote.”  Below are legislative options for Candidate Jones:
• Introduce or support legislation that promotes automatic voter registration. Each time a citizen of South Carolina interacts with a government entity, they will be given the opportunity to register to vote.  Presently, South Carolina has hundreds of thousands of its resident who are not registered to vote, making us neither a true red or blue state but a non-voting state.
• Fight to maintain absentee voting and resist any measure presented to make it more difficult to do.
• Fight for budgets that provide ample funding for poll workers and voting machines so that long lines don’t continue to be a hindrance for elections.
• Introduce or support legislation that restores voting rights to ex-offenders.
• Introduce or support legislation that states that in the event of redistricting, the newly formed districts have to represent the same ethnic makeup as the district that was divided.
• Affordable Housing
• Introduce or support legislation that challenges the definition of “affordable housing” and its dependency on average median income data. Given the range of incomes that can span over a few blocks, it still puts lower income earners in danger of being priced beyond what’s affordable to them.
• Introduce or support legislation that provides tax incentives for builders willing to construct homes in the $150,000 price range.
• Fight to continue to secure funding for organizations such as Habitat for Humanity who provides single family housing.
• Fight to secure continual funding for the construction of multifamily housing geared to lower income earners within the district.
• Challenge legislation that focuses on zoning prohibitions in regard to building affordable multifamily housing.
• Criminal Justice Reform
• Continue to support legislation to “ban the box” allowing ex-offenders a better chance at re-entry into the job market upon completion of sentencing.
• Support efforts to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes while continuing to explore the economic and societal benefits of legalizing marijuana for recreational use.  IF marijuana is legalized, then introduce or support legislation to expunge the records of those convicted of minor possession charges.
• Livable Wage/Minimum Wage
• Introduce or support legislation that calls for a minimum wage of $15/hour for large employers of 100 employees or more and a three-year phase in period for smaller companies.

These concerns were the most frequently discussed amongst the residents of the District while others such as teacher salaries, equitable funding of our schools, expansion of Medicaid, etc., all deserve our attention as they presently impact the living conditions of the residents of District 25.  Given that Commitment 25 is a living document, we will continue to expand our findings and legislative solutions.

As stated before, this plan is two-pronged consisting of a legislative approach that we just discussed and a grassroots approach.  The grassroots approach plays a major role in presenting the District as worthy of both public and private investments.  It will require a leader that can build consensus amongst the residents of the District, local leaders, city and county councils, and Greenville’s business community.

Local allies

Wendell Jones has taken the initiative to meet with local business leaders to discuss their views of District 25

• Upstate SC Alliance – This organization is instrumental in recruiting major businesses to the 10 county Upstate region. The goal of the meeting was to shine a spotlight on the District and it’s potential for private investment.  The leadership of Upstate SC Alliance agreed that the next phase of growth will likely occur in District 25.  Knowing this, the legislative leadership and local leadership should be present at those discussions.  The District needs a leader who has the business background to intelligently participate in those conversations with the goal of getting the best deals for the District.  This should include:
• Infrastructure improvements
• Recruitment of companies that provide a livable wage
• Recruitment of companies who support apprenticeship programs for high school students as well as ex-offenders
• Commitment from these companies to participate in job fairs targeting the residents of District 25

This is an example of what can be negotiated with the proper leadership in place because it makes “business sense” to democrats and republicans, alike.

It is obvious to Candidate Jones that the business community has the loudest megaphone when it comes to the direction of our county and partnership with them is essential.  Meetings with SCTAC and others are also on the calendar prior to the primaries to further these discussions.

• Public Education Partners (PEP) – PEP does an outstanding job at lobbying for teacher pay and equitable funding for Greenville County schools.  This is a partner that Candidate Jones will engage for its data, research and lobbying capabilities.
• Local churches – Candidate Jones has created an ancillary plan to Commitment 25 for local churches within the District known as 3R.  3R stands for Reclaim, Rebuild and Repeat.  Utilizing the collective resources of the churches, Candidate Jones would like to direct the churches in an active role in the economic growth of the District by created a CDC for funding a small business incubator, purchasing and rehabilitating homes in the District and utilizing their facilities for financial literacy training. This approach will allow churches to reclaim, rebuild and then repeat these efforts throughout the District.  These efforts will further show those outside of the District that there is a unified effort in positioning the District for growth.

This list of partners will have likely grown by the time this plan is shared and that is the aim of Candidate Jones.

This packet only frames the beginnings of an ever-evolving plan that will further capitalize on the potential of the District, making it the envy of the county.  With the right leadership, the plan is indeed doable.  Wendell Jones is that leader.