South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office

What South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office does

The South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office (RFA) is a state government agency headquartered in Columbia, SC, established to provide independent research, analysis, data, and mapping services to the South Carolina General Assembly, Governor's Office, state agencies, constitutional officers, and local governments. The agency operates through four primary divisions: Fiscal Analysis, Data Integration and Analysis, Geodetic Survey, and Precinct Demographics and Redistricting, supported by administrative and program staff. Core deliverables include revenue forecasts, fiscal impact statements on proposed legislation, integrated health and demographic data analysis, statewide aerial imagery, geodetic control and the SC Real Time Network (RTN), and official maps of election districts and voting precincts. RFA also convenes the SC Geographic Information Council, coordinating GIS activity across 17 state organizations, and serves as the state's Census State Data Center.

RFA's technology stack is centered on GIS and GPS/GNSS infrastructure (including RTK-based centimeter-level positioning and GPS Height Modernization at ±2cm vertical accuracy), a SC Integrated Data System ingesting health, education, and employment data from multiple agencies, and Tableau-based business intelligence dashboards such as the SC Population Dashboard (covering 2010-2042) and the Education Funding Dashboard (K-12 longitudinal analysis). The agency operates statewide across all 46 counties, with centralized offices in the Rembert Dennis Building in Columbia, and relies on contracted partners (Kucera International, NV5) for aerial imagery collection and NOAA's National Geodetic Survey for standards and tooling.

RFA is funded through South Carolina state government budget appropriations rather than commercial revenue. Most services are provided free to government customers and the public, with fees charged only for complex data requests to cover staff time and computing costs. There is no private-sector sales motion, no pricing tiers for external customers, and no venture or private equity ownership. The Executive Director, Frank Rainwater, leads the agency, with governance provided by the Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Board, Board of Economic Advisors, and the SC Geographic Information Council.

Name

South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office

Legal name

South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office

Website

https://rfa.sc.gov

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office (RFA) is a state government agency providing independent fiscal analysis, integrated health and demographic data, geodetic survey services, and redistricting mapping to the South Carolina General Assembly, Governor's Office, and other state and local government entities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Data Analytics and Geospatial Services

NAICS

Public Finance Activities (92113), Public Finance Activities (921130), Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support (921), Administration of Economic Programs (9261)

akta.pro primary industry

State/Provincial Treasury, Budget & Fiscal Management (BPAIABAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Budgeting & Fiscal Planning (BPAIAEAA), Government Accounting & Financial Reporting (BPAIAEAD), National Statistics & Census Administration (BPAIAAAF)

Keywords

• State fiscal analysis
• Government data analytics
• Geodetic surveying
• Geographic information systems
• Legislative fiscal impacts

Headquarters

HQ city

Columbia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. State Government Appropriation: Funded through South Carolina state government budget appropriations as a state agency
2. Fee-based Data Services: Requestors may be charged to cover staff time and computing costs for data requests. Turnaround time may vary depending on complexity and receipt of approvals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office is a state government agency that provides independent data, research, and fiscal analysis to the General Assembly, Governor's Office, state agencies, and local governments. Its core offerings include legislative fiscal impact statements, revenue forecasts, population and education funding dashboards, an integrated multi-agency data system, statewide geodetic surveying, the SC Real Time Network for precise GPS positioning, official election district mapping, and the State 9-1-1 Program.

Product overview

South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office (RFA) is a state government agency offering a portfolio of data, analytics, and geodetic services. The core offerings include population and education funding dashboards for public transparency, a Data Integration and Analysis Division processing health and demographic data, a Fiscal Analysis Division providing revenue forecasts and legislative fiscal impacts, and a Geodetic Survey Division maintaining statewide aerial imagery and GPS positioning infrastructure. The SC Real Time Network enables centimeter-level GPS positioning, while the Precinct Demographics section maintains official maps of election districts. These products and services support informed policy decisions and administration of services for South Carolina.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SC Population Dashboard Interactive business intelligence dashboard providing population estimates and projections for South Carolina, with charts and graphs showing population counts by age group, race, and county for 2010-2042. Actual data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau; projections provided by RFA. Used by state agencies, local governments, researchers, and the public.
• Education Funding Dashboard Dashboard summarizing K-12 education funding and expenditures to inform the public and provide transparency on school district finances in South Carolina. Allows users to analyze and compare revenues, expenditures, academic achievement, and other data by district, with downloadable data.
• SC Geodetic Survey Establishes horizontal and vertical geodetic control within South Carolina to provide land and land-related records referenced to national coordinate systems. Includes the County Boundary Program, SC Real Time Network (RTN), Statewide Aerial Imagery, and GPS Height Modernization services. Used by surveyors, agencies, and the public.
• Precinct Demographics & Redistricting Digital Cartography section maintaining official maps of election districts and voting precincts in South Carolina. Provides technical assistance for digital mapping and development of legislative plans for voting precincts, county councils, municipal councils, school districts, state house, state senate, and US Congress.
• Data Integration and Analysis Division Receives, processes, distributes, and interprets health, demographic, and census data. Provides statistical and GIS infrastructure for health, socio-economic, and demographic analysis. Supports an integrated data system linking client data across state health and human service agencies.
• Fiscal Analysis Division Supports the General Assembly and state agencies by providing economic indicators, revenue forecasts, and fiscal impact statements on proposed legislation. Prepares analytical and historical budget reports and statistical information for the budget process.
• SC Geographic Information Council (SCGIC) Interagency council coordinating GIS activities within South Carolina. Publishes reports on state outreach, strategic planning, and needs assessments for geospatial data coordination, and coordinates the statewide aerial imagery program.
• State 9-1-1 Program Statewide 9-1-1 emergency services program managed by the South Carolina Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office.
• SC Real Time Network (RTN) Real-time GPS/GNSS positioning network enabling centimeter-level accuracy for construction staking, machine control, topographic surveys, precision agriculture, and other precise positioning applications.
• Statewide Aerial Imagery Program Statewide aerial mapping initiative for collecting standardized imagery used by local, state, and federal agencies for land management, land tax assessment, change detection, and emergency operations.
• GPS Height Modernization Program providing accurate height information by integrating GPS technology with existing survey techniques, following ±2cm vertical specifications for GPS Height Modernization projects.
• Beach Erosion Research and Monitoring (BERM) Program Annual monitoring of beach erosion and deposition along South Carolina's coast using survey monuments and beach profile data collected via RTK-GPS and vessel-based bathymetric systems.
• Legislative Fiscal Impacts Fiscal impact statement system providing expenditure and revenue effects of proposed legislation, informing the General Assembly's budget process.

Quantifiable outcome

• South Carolina ranked as fastest growing state by percent change and 5th fastest by numeric change (2023)

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• SC Geographic Information Council (SCGIC) - Member OrganizationscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006Interagency council comprising 17 state organizations (SC Department of Public Health, SC Department of Natural Resources, SC Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office, SC 811, SC Department of Revenue, SC Department of Transportation, SC Emergency Management Division, SC Forestry Commission, Santee Cooper, SC Law Enforcement Division, SC Department of Public Safety, SC Army National Guard, SC Department of Environmental Safety, SC Office of Resilience, SC Department of Education, State Election Commission, SC Office of Regulatory Staff) established to coordinate GIS activities, spatial data collection, standards development, and data sharing across state agencies.
• South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC-OCRM)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBeach Erosion Research and Monitoring (BERM) program partnership where DHEC-OCRM contracts with SC Geodetic Survey to establish and maintain survey monuments along South Carolina coast for beach profile monitoring. SCGS provides geodetic control, coordinates, and elevations for approximately 400 survey monuments used in annual beach erosion monitoring.
• NOAA National Geodetic Survey (NGS)coreTechnology or IntegrationGPS Height Modernization program within NGS providing accurate height information by integrating GPS technology with existing survey techniques. SCGS follows +2cm vertical specifications for GPS Height Modernization Projects. Data from NGS data explorer and monument datasheets used for survey monument discovery.
• NOAA National Geodetic Survey (NGS)coreTechnology or IntegrationExternal resources including Geodetic Tools, Coordinate Conversion and Transformation Tool (NCAT), Monument Data Sheets, and National Geodetic Orthometric Height Conversion provided by NOAA/NGS for survey and mapping work.
• Kucera International Inc.majorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerContracted aerial imagery provider. Kucera completed statewide aerial imagery collection between January 7 and March 7, 2020 (leaf-off, cloud-free conditions) and again in 2023. Contract awarded to NV5 for 2026 collection to continue 3-year cycle of statewide updates.
• U.S. Census BureaucoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRFA serves as the Census State Data Center for South Carolina. Sources population data from Census Bureau for population estimates and projections dashboard. Provides decennial census data, 2020 census redistricting data, and annual population estimates for incorporated places.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• California Department of Finance: California's state fiscal agency providing demographic research, revenue forecasting, and fiscal impact analysis for the legislature and Governor. Most directly comparable to RFA given its analogous statutory mandate, demographic projection function, and legislative fiscal impact role, but operates at much larger scale.
• U.S. Census Bureau: Federal agency providing decennial census, population estimates, and demographic data that RFA's Census State Data Center relies on and republishes. Strong upstream dependency and partnership relationship for RFA's demographic products.
• NOAA National Geodetic Survey: Federal agency providing national geodetic control, coordinate systems, and GPS Height Modernization standards. RFA's Geodetic Survey division explicitly partners with and aligns to NGS specifications, making it the parent technical authority for RFA's geodetic work.
• Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts: Texas's state fiscal agency responsible for revenue estimation, economic forecasting, and biennial revenue estimates. Comparable to RFA's fiscal analysis and revenue forecasting functions, with comparable geographic focus on a single large state.
• New York State Division of the Budget: New York's state budget division providing fiscal analysis, revenue forecasting, and budget development to the Governor and legislature. Comparable to RFA's core fiscal functions, though operating at significantly larger scale.

Direct peers

• Maryland Department of Budget and Management: Maryland's state budget agency providing budget analysis, fiscal planning, and management services to the Governor and legislature. Comparable to RFA's fiscal analysis and budget support functions within a single-state government context.
• North Carolina Office of State Budget and Management: North Carolina's state budget and management office providing revenue forecasting, fiscal analysis, and demographic data to the Governor and General Assembly. Closely comparable to RFA in scope, services, and customer base, serving a neighboring fast-growing state.
• Georgia Governor's Office of Planning and Budget: Georgia's state budget office providing budget development, fiscal analysis, and planning services to the Governor and General Assembly. Comparable in mandate and structure to RFA, serving a neighboring Southeastern state.
• Florida Office of Economic & Demographic Research: Florida's state-level research office providing revenue estimates, demographic projections, and fiscal analysis to the Florida Legislature. Closest functional peer to RFA given its tightly-similar mandate, single-state legislative support role, and demographic projection responsibilities.

Regional players

• Tennessee Advisory Commission on Intergovernmental Relations: Tennessee's state research office providing fiscal analysis, demographic research, and policy studies to the General Assembly and Governor. Comparable to RFA's research and fiscal analysis functions, but focused on Tennessee rather than South Carolina.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/south-carolina-revenue-and-fiscal-affairs

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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