Ben H. Davis Jr. of Greenwood was named Chairman of the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT) Commission at the Commission’s Jan. 18, 2018, meeting in Columbia. He has served as an SCDOT Commissioner for the 3rd Congressional District since 2015. Davis retired in 2014 as President/CEO of Connie Maxwell Children’s Home, where he previously was Vice President for Business and Development from 1993 to 2002.
He has degrees from Furman University, Christian Bible College and North Greenville University. After graduating from college, he served as a sales representative for WFBC in Greenville; owned and operated WFIS Radio in Fountain Inn and WCKM Radio in Winnsboro; owned and operated the Tribune-Times newspaper; owned and operated Four Seasons Travel Agency.
Davis served on the City Council in Fountain Inn for three years and was Mayor there for 12 years.
He is married to Polly Davis, and they have two married children and two grandsons. With service on the SCDOT board since 2015, Davis said he is excited about the opportunities to continue serving South Carolina as Chairman. “It’s the first time we were able to come up with a long-range 10 year plan to fund highway infrastructure. With the added gas tax or user fee in place, the Department of Transportation can better project how much they will have to spend.” The legislature calls this fee the maintenance infrastructure fund and was part of a compromise that allowed for the user fee as well as a change in the way highway commissioners were appointed. The governor now has the opportunity to appoint members to the commission with the approval of the legislature. “We are policymakers”, continued Davis, “Our transportation secretary is responsible for operations and decisions on a daily basis”.♦
