People are always at the core of every COG program. Throughout the state, more than 1,200 citizens are actively involved n volunteering with COG-related work. This includes 342 South Carolinians who serve on the Boards of Directors of the ten COGs. Of that number, 245 – or 72% — are elected officials; 210 are county or municipal officials; 35 are members of the South Carolina General Assembly. More than 900 state residents are involved with COG committees or affiliated entities.
In addition to the local Boards of Directors who govern the individual COGs, the South Carolina Association of Regional Councils also has a separate Board of Directors composed of local COG Board members.
| SCARC BOARD MEMBERSHIP 2011 | |
| MEMBER NAME | COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS |
| Mr. Ed Elliott | Appalachian COG |
| Ms. Renee Cariveau | Appalachian COG |
| Dr. William Gilchrist | Upper Savannah COG |
| Mr. Wes McAllister | Upper Savannah COG |
| Mr. A. King Dixon, II | Upper Savannah COG |
| Ms. Diane B. Anderson | Upper Savannah COG |
| Mr. Eldridge R. Emory | Catawba COG |
| Ms. Polly C. Jackson | Catawba COG |
| Ms. Dora T. Martin | Catawba COG |
| Mr. L. Hodge Harmon | Central Midlands COG |
| Ms. Sarah B. Watson | Central Midlands COG |
| Mr. Pat G. Smith | Central Midlands COG |
| Mr. Danny Covington | Lower Savannah COG |
| Ms. Alzena Robinson | Lower Savannah COG |
| Mr. Roger Hill | Lower Savannah COG |
| Alexander Boyd | Santee Lynches COG |
| Dr. Bill Painter | Santee Lynches COG |
| Dwight Stewart | Santee Lynches COG |
| Mr. G. O’Neal Hamilton | Pee Dee COG |
| Ms. Evelyn Guile | Pee Dee COG |
| Ms. Anne C. Warr | Pee Dee COG |
| Mr. Murray Vernon | Waccamaw COG |
| Mr. James Kirby | Waccamaw COG |
| Senator Yancey McGill | Waccamaw COG |
| Rev. Robert Reid | Berkley-Charleston-Dorchester COG |
| Mr. Tim Mallard | Berkley-Charleston-Dorchester COG |
| Mr. Lester Dempsey | Berkley-Charleston-Dorchester COG |
| Mr. Charles Phillips | Lowcountry COG |
| Ms. Mary Beth Heyward | Lowcountry COG |
| Dr. Joe Flowers | Lowcountry COG |