In 1999, Bill Rauch was elected to the first of three terms as Mayor of Beaufort, South Carolina. As Mayor, Bill Rauch enacted a number of significant improvements for the city, including the expansion of city business through tax incentives and the growth of the city’s land mass through limited property taxes and high-value home construction. Dedicated to fiscal responsibility, Mayor Bill Rauch successfully upgraded Beaufort’s bond rating twice and freed up millions of dollars for public use by settling seven lawsuits in his first year as mayor. <br/> <br/>Bill Rauch’s public service career began in New York City where he was a member of the administration of Mayor Ed Koch. Bill Rauch first joined the Koch Administration in 1978 during Ed Koch’s first term. Initially, Bill Rauch served as Mayor Koch’s advance man. During Ed Koch’s second term as mayor and for his first 18 months of Koch's third term, however, Rauch took on the more prominent role of Press Secretary, where he frequently managed public crises. <br/>Before entering the Beaufort political area, Bill Rauch leveraged his years of experience as a journalist and businessman toward the establishment of The Lowcountry Ledger. Unique among other newspapers, The Lowcountry Ledger was Beaufort’s first Sunday newspaper. In the beginning of his career, Bill Rauch worked as a Reporter and Editor for a diverse array of newspapers, including Harbor Light, Indianapolis Star, Village Voice, Fire Island News, and The Real Paper. As an undergraduate student at Harvard College, Bill Rauch earned his Bachelor’s degree in American History. He graduated with honors.