South Carolina Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in South Carolina, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Did the Charleston County Aviation Authority have to pay local building-permit fees?
The AG predicted that the authority, as a special purpose district, was generally exempt from taxes but still subject to building-permit fees and construction rules in the local jurisdiction unless…
Could James Island use local-option sales-tax credit funds to reduce county taxes and pay for district services?
The AG predicted the town could arrange to use its property-tax credit funds to reduce county property taxes owed by town residents and use excess funds for public services from a special purpose…
Could a Colleton County school trustee continue serving after also becoming a deputy sheriff?
The AG said dual office holding vacated the first office by law, but only a court could remove the trustee. Without court action, the trustee could keep serving as a de facto officer until a…
Could South Carolina make highway median tree removal depend on approval from a regional council of governments?
The AG concluded that the 2013-14 budget proviso giving the regional council a veto over transportation spending for that work was invalid. It also said a shared-decision reading exceeded the…
Did the Heritage Act protect the Confederate battle flag displayed in The Citadel's Summerall Chapel?
The AG concluded in 2014 that the flag was a protected memorial on state property under the Heritage Act and could not be moved or relocated. The opinion applied the statute as it then stood to the…
Were the speeds on yellow advisory road signs enforceable in South Carolina?
The AG predicted that speeds on properly placed yellow advisory speed signs were enforceable under the traffic statute it identified. It said the best charge was for violating the posted altered…
Could a South Carolina county put stormwater or waste fees on a tax bill and collect fee-only debt through a tax sale?
The AG predicted that applicable stormwater and solid-waste fees could appear on a county tax bill. A tax sale to collect those fees without unpaid property tax required specific statutory…
For a South Carolina expungement in 2014, did “first offense” mean the earliest conviction or the first conviction of each crime?
The Attorney General predicted that it meant the earliest conviction in time, regardless of the offense category. In its example, a 2003 fraudulent-check conviction prevented expungement of a later…
Could South Carolina higher-education regulators deny a private school license using unwritten criteria?
The Attorney General said the Commission on Higher Education could use only criteria in the governing statutes and properly adopted regulations. An applicant meeting those criteria could not be…
Could a South Carolina city charge water customers outside its limits more than city residents?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that Anderson could charge nonresidents higher water rates. The rates arose from contract, and the office said the difference did not itself violate state…
Did a pre-2001 arson conviction bar firefighting work under South Carolina’s 2014 law?
The Attorney General predicted that the arson bar applied even when the conviction came before the law took effect. It read the law as regulating firefighting duties after the effective date using…
Could a South Carolina school board trustee also serve as a sheriff’s deputy?
The Attorney General predicted that holding both posts would violate the state’s dual-office rule. On taking the deputy position, the person would be deemed to vacate the earlier trustee office,…
Could Lexington County define pets “at large” more broadly than South Carolina law?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the county’s dog-and-cat restraint definitions were not superseded by state law. The Legislature had authorized local animal-control ordinances, and the…
Did a College of Charleston trustee’s seat become vacant when legislators did not reelect him?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the trustee would remain in his seat as a lawful holdover after his term expired. The seat would not become vacant merely because the General Assembly…
Was an official’s misuse of public property for personal gain a crime of moral turpitude?
The Attorney General predicted that a court would likely regard the misconduct described in the indictment as a crime of moral turpitude. It emphasized that misconduct in office is not automatically…
Could a county or fire authority restrict volunteer firefighters’ emergency lights and sirens?
The Attorney General said state law controlled which vehicles qualified as emergency vehicles and that local authorities could not adopt conflicting restrictions. It also read the then-current law…
When could a South Carolina city council salary increase take effect after an election?
The Attorney General predicted that a council salary ordinance would take effect when the terms of at least two members elected at the next general election began. It read that date as mandatory for…
Could a university president’s nephew serve on that university’s board of trustees in South Carolina?
The Attorney General identified no general state nepotism ban still in force, but declined to decide whether the proposed Winthrop trustee appointment violated ethics law. The opinion said the…
Could a South Carolina county election commissioner also serve as a town mayor?
The Attorney General concluded that serving at the same time on the Williamsburg County Election Commission and as mayor of Greeleyville violated the state constitutional prohibition on holding two…
Could an Orangeburg planning commissioner also serve on the city aviation commission?
The Attorney General predicted that the same person could hold both positions. County planning commission membership counted as a public office, but the city aviation commission’s advisory role did…
Could Florence use local-option sales-tax revenue for a medical teaching facility?
The Attorney General predicted that Florence could use its share of the County/Municipal Revenue Fund for the proposed facility if it served a public and city purpose. It distinguished that flexible…
Could James Island replace a service-district tax with a new town millage without exceeding the cap?
The Attorney General said a literal reading of the statutory millage cap made a town increase from zero to 51 mills exceed the limit, even if the service district lowered its rate by the same…
Could a Winthrop adjunct professor also sit on the university’s board of trustees?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the candidate could not hold both positions because the board supervises the university that employed the professor. The opinion said the conflict could…
Could a Criminal Justice Academy instructor run a private security-system business off duty?
The Attorney General knew of no state law that absolutely barred the described off-duty business. The short opinion did not decide whether the employee’s particular arrangement complied with ethics…
What training did a South Carolina magistrate’s constable need in 2014 to carry a pistol on duty?
The Attorney General concluded that the constable then had to complete the Criminal Justice Academy’s 12-week Class 1 course because it was the only course available to magistrates’ constables. The…
Did a South Carolina expungement require police to erase news posts, investigations, or traffic-stop video?
The 2014 opinion distinguished official arrest records from independent news, investigative material, and evidence of underlying conduct. It did not require deletion of news reports or stop video,…
Did South Carolina’s 2010 and 2013 approval extensions pause a Beaufort development agreement?
The Attorney General concluded that both resolutions applied to the Beaufort County–Del Webb development agreement because an approved agreement carried associated vested development rights. On the…
Did Georgetown need a referendum to switch city elections from partisan to nonpartisan?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that South Carolina law did not require a referendum for that switch. It read the referendum rule for a changed “method of election” as addressing whether…
Could Gaffney spend local hospitality-tax revenue on pothole repairs and road resurfacing?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the tax could fund repairs to roads providing access to tourist destinations. The office left whether specific Gaffney roads met that test to factual…
Who did Beaufort County’s library director and library board report to?
In 2014, the Attorney General concluded that the library director reported to the library board. It predicted that a court would find the board accountable to the county administrator, given the…
Could West Columbia put its mayor pro tempore in charge of council meetings while the mayor was present?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that it could not. In the council form of government considered, the mayor pro tempore could act for the mayor during the mayor’s absence or disability, but an…
Could a South Carolina tax collector use USPS electronic signatures to document tax-sale notices?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that electronic signatures and electronic copies retained by USPS could satisfy the signature aspect of delinquent-tax notice, if all other notice requirements…
Could a new owner appeal a South Carolina property-tax assessment for a year before the purchase?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that a current owner had standing to appeal an assessment even if the property was purchased after the previous December 31. It did not decide whether the…
Could a South Carolina fire marshal also hold a law-enforcement commission without violating the dual-office rule?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that a fire marshal or arson investigator who belonged to a lawfully organized fire department could also hold a law-enforcement commission without violating…
Did a company brokering off-duty police security jobs need a South Carolina security-business license?
For the described company, the Attorney General concluded in 2014 that brokering approved off-duty officers did not itself require a contract-security license. The opinion limited that result to…
Could a South Carolina alcohol seller get a new license at another location while its existing license was suspended?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that a person or entity whose alcohol license or permit was suspended or revoked at one location could not obtain a new one at another location during the…
Could Gaffney’s public works board donate utility money to a private college?
The Attorney General said in 2014 that an outright donation to Limestone College without a return benefit did not appear to further the board’s utility purpose. It also predicted that receiving the…
Did South Carolina’s county-by-county election-board law violate the state constitution?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that a court would find the county-by-county law unconstitutional special legislation, even though it addressed every county. The opinion stressed that the law…
After the 2013 ballot law, who certified or nominated South Carolina county-office candidates?
The Attorney General read the 2013 law as letting state parties choose state or existing county parties to certify local candidates, but cautioned that the statute did not expressly settle the…
Could South Carolina officers extend a traffic stop or jail detention to check immigration status?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the state law allowed immigration questions during an otherwise valid stop but did not authorize extending the stop for that inquiry. It likewise said the…
Did DACA status qualify a person for a South Carolina professional license in 2014?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that a court would deny a state professional or occupational license to a person with DACA status under the law and federal position the office described then.…
Could a South Carolina town charge residents a stormwater utility fee?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that a municipality could impose a stormwater utility fee under the state statute, provided the charge was reasonable and equitable.
What would Daniel Island’s proposed move to Charleston County have changed in 2014?
The Attorney General predicted that a county transfer would not automatically move Daniel Island out of the Berkeley school district, though it called that issue uncertain and recommended a…
Could a South Carolina judge reduce a sentence without notifying or hearing from the victim?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that the state constitution required notice to a crime victim and an opportunity to speak or submit an updated statement on a sentence-reduction motion, even…
Could private security officers use radar to enforce speeding rules on property they patrolled?
The Attorney General said in 2014 that authorized private security officers could use radar when entitled to enforce traffic laws on the assigned property, although they could not obtain the state…
Could an Allendale council member also work for the county’s economic-development contractor and sit on its commission?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the council member’s paid Alliance job did not itself create dual office holding. It could not determine whether he also held a commission seat, but…
Did South Carolina nonprofit resignation and expulsion rules apply to a homeowners association?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that the nonprofit corporation rules on membership resignation and termination applied to a homeowners association incorporated and registered as a South…
Did a remote safety-video app need a South Carolina private-security license?
For the app described in 2014, the Attorney General concluded that remote responders who appeared by phone to speak with users were not private security officers, and the app developer was not a…
Could a South Carolina probate court keep its index electronically without a paper index book?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that a probate court could use an electronic index if it could print a paper copy, kept a backup, and met state archive standards. The office limited the…
Did Spartanburg County have to keep letting election-board members buy health insurance through its plan?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that state law did not compel continued county insurance benefits for election and registration board members. It said the county could decide the policy if it…
Could Spartanburg County stop paying insurance benefits for election and registration board members?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that state law did not require the county to continue supplemental insurance payments for those board members. The answer assumed no ordinance, contract, or…
Could school crossing guards or state constables direct traffic near Horry County schools?
The Attorney General said in 2014 that adult crossing guards could stop cars to let children cross safely, but could not direct road traffic simply to relieve school pickup congestion. Whether state…
Could Greenville County charge tax-exempt property a fire fee for a separate fire district?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that the county could not use the cited fire-fee statute to levy on behalf of a special purpose district. The opinion said that provision named counties and…
Did Charleston’s airport authority have to follow the state procurement code when hiring outside counsel?
The Attorney General predicted in 2014 that the Charleston County Aviation Authority was a political subdivision outside the state-agency procurement code. For a contract with independent legal…
How were seats on a South Carolina regional transportation authority board allocated?
The Attorney General concluded in 2014 that board representation followed population in the service area, not each government’s financial contribution. It also said eligible cities and counties…
Did a South Carolina dog hunter violate the Renegade Hunter Act just because a dog crossed onto another property?
The Attorney General said in 2014 that the dog’s entry alone was not the violation described. For a hunter in the covered locations, the offense arose from continuing to hunt after a dog entered…
Could Aiken release a police incident report involving two children after removing their names?
The Attorney General concluded in 2013 that an incident report generally had to be released with identifying information about the child accused of the offense redacted. Police could confirm whether…
Could South Carolina’s governor use state resources for campaign activity, and who decided ethics complaints?
The Attorney General declined to give a definitive answer in 2013 because the Ethics Commission had jurisdiction over ethics-law questions and the alleged events required fact-finding. The opinion…
Could a temporary H-2A farm worker drive in South Carolina with a valid Mexican license?
The AG concluded that a valid Mexican license and H-2A visa supplied prima facie evidence for the nonresident licensing exemption, assuming the driver was at least 16. It advised officers to stop…
Can a South Carolina mayor also serve on a county planning commission?
The Attorney General concluded in 2013 that a mayor could not also be appointed to a county planning commission. Both posts would likely count as public offices under the state constitution's…
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Attorney general opinions in South Carolina are written by the South Carolina Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.