COLUMBIA, S.C. (WBTW) — A former Horry County executive easily won confirmation on Wednesday to become the state’s next transportation chief, but his selection could bring consequences for commissioners who selected him.
Justin Powell, an Horry County administrator from 2015 through 2019, will take over next month as South Carolina’s next transportation secretary to replace the retiring Christy Hall.
“To me, there is no higher calling to serve the people of South Carolina than at the Department of Transportation,” Powell told a Senate panel in Columbia. “SCDOT is an amazing team.”
The Senate Transportation Commitee said Powell’s credentials and history of shrewd financial management made him the right person for the job, but criticized the process that ended with his selection.
That’s because commissioners didn’t conduct a nationwide search and barely spent any time considering other candidates before deciding on Powell.
“One of the concerns we had is, you had three secretaires within a period of two years, and we’ve tried to bring people from out of DOT and it hasn’t worked,” commission chairwoman Pamela Christopher said. “If we brought someone in from the outside, they would have to learn all the counties, the cities, leaders and the way we work. We’re moving at such a trajectory, we need someone who has that experience.”