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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Can a South Carolina county election board member run for or serve as an officer of a political party?
Filing to become an officer of a political party does not, by itself, subject a county election board member to removal under § 7-13-75. Serving in that party office, whether elected or appointed, does.
Can a Georgia local government rename the South Carolina half of an interstate bridge, and does the SC Heritage Act protect the SC side from being renamed without legislative approval?
No. Georgia has no legal authority to rename the South Carolina portion of the Jefferson Davis Memorial Bridge. Under SC's Heritage Act, only the South Carolina General Assembly can rename a bridge…
Who controls the Hampton County School District budget and millage rate, the Board of Trustees or the County Council, and what happens when the local act conflicts with the statewide millage cap?
The Board of Trustees adopts the budget, and the Board (not the County Council) is the 'local governing body' that levies the school tax. County Council has discretionary approval over the millage,…
If I'm a transfer-on-death beneficiary on a South Carolina boat title, can the DNR refuse to issue me a new title because there's still a lien on it?
No. Once the owner dies, DNR's job is ministerial: it must issue the new title to the named TOD beneficiary even if a lien is still recorded. The lien stays valid against the boat, but the agency…
When a South Carolina school district declares surplus and decides to sell or lease vacant land with no building on it, does the charter school right-of-first-refusal in § 59-40-170 apply?
No. The AG concluded that § 59-40-170 does not apply to public school property without a building. The opinion does not decide how the statute applies to a parcel containing a small or damaged structure.
Does Santee Cooper have legal authority to sell electricity directly to the City of Rock Hill, given that S.C. Code § 58-31-320 lists specific customers Santee Cooper has 'the right' to serve and doesn't mention municipalities?
Yes. AG Wilson concluded that § 58-31-320 does not prohibit Santee Cooper from selling electricity to Rock Hill. The statute's 'electric utility' carveout covers municipal utilities like Rock Hill…
Under South Carolina law, is a vape shop classified as a 'tobacconist'?
The SC Code does not define ‘tobacconist.’ The AG says a vape shop selling electronic smoking devices is a ‘tobacco retail establishment’ under § 16-17-501. It cites SCDOR website guidance saying…
Can a South Carolina municipal council limit a speaker to a single three-minute slot at public comment, even if the speaker holds power of attorney to speak on someone else's behalf?
Yes. The AG concluded that a municipal council may prevent an attorney-in-fact from stacking another person's speaking time onto the speaker's own allotment. The opinion reads the described rule to…
If a member of a South Carolina town planning commission resigns, can the remaining members still meet and vote, or must business halt until a replacement is appointed?
Yes. A South Carolina planning commission lawfully formed with five members may keep meeting and voting with three members present (a simple majority). The resigning member is also treated as…
When a South Carolina consolidated school district sets its annual tax levy, does the county council have the final say on the millage, or can the school board set it independently?
The county council has approval authority. Under Section 5(B) of Act 184 of 2020, the Hampton County School District Board of Trustees can propose a tax levy and a millage increase of up to two…
Can a South Carolina city, county, or state agency reject a nonprofit's application for tax incentives on a taxable economic-development project just because the nonprofit is tax-exempt?
No. South Carolina funding authorities cannot reject a nonprofit's tax-incentive application solely because the nonprofit is tax-exempt. They must look at the actual incentive statute and apply its…
Can a South Carolina AG opinion order a state board to take a specific action, or is it only advice?
The AG says its opinions interpret the law but do not direct parties to act. Its March 27 Corn Board opinion remains unchanged, yet it orders neither the board nor the Agriculture Commission to take…
Is South Carolina's statute making it a misdemeanor to disturb religious worship (S.C. Code § 16-17-520) constitutional, and can it be enforced against protesters who use blasphemous, profane, or obscene language near churches?
The Attorney General concluded that § 16-17-520 does not violate the cited federal or state constitutional provisions. The opinion notes that courts have invalidated some blasphemy statutes, but…
Do local South Carolina Foster Care Review Board volunteers get mileage and per diem for community events, virtual trainings, or driving across town to attend a virtual case review in person?
Local Foster Care Review Board volunteers can receive mileage, per diem, and subsistence only for attending board meetings, not for community events. Virtual trainings may or may not qualify…
After the 2025 amendment, does the Clarendon County School District board still set its own budget and millage, or does county council have to approve them?
The district must submit its proposed budget to Clarendon County Council for approval. Council may decline it; if council approves it, it must first hold a public hearing and then adopt the budget…
Do South Carolina magistrate's constables count as 'law enforcement officers,' and does the magistrate's office have to comply with LETC minimum standards for law enforcement agencies?
No. A magistrate's constable is not a 'law enforcement officer' under S.C. Code § 23-23-10(E)(1), so the magistrate's office is not a 'law enforcement agency' subject to LETC minimum standards under…
Does dividing a Surfside Beach lot, by itself, end the property’s nonconforming status under the town’s zoning code?
The AG says a court is unlikely to find that subdivision alone ends the property’s nonconforming status because the reviewed Surfside Beach ordinances do not expressly say it does. The opinion does…
Can a South Carolina commodity board hold its producer assessment funds in its own outside bank account against the Agriculture Commission's instructions, and what can the Commission do about it?
No. A South Carolina commodity board may not hold assessment funds outside the Agriculture Commission's oversight against its instructions. The Commission can seek court relief. Criminal prosecution…
Can a South Carolina city hire a law firm (rather than a single attorney) to be its city attorney on a contract basis, and if a lawyer at the firm also sits on a school board, does that violate dual-office-holding rules?
Yes to both. Under S.C. Code § 5-7-230 and Home Rule, a SC municipality can contract with a law firm to serve as outside city attorney for civil matters only. Because the retention is by contract…
Can South Carolina ETV claim the revenue from a National Guard cell tower lease under a budget proviso that gives it general authority to coordinate state tower operations?
No. Budget Proviso § 8.4's general directive that SC ETV 'coordinate' state tower and antenna operations does not give ETV the revenue from the Adjutant General's Fort Mill cell tower lease. The…
Does South Carolina's Family Privacy Protection Act force a state licensing agency to hand over licensees' personal email addresses to a trade association that wants to promote continuing-education classes?
No. South Carolina's Family Privacy Protection Act does not require the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation to release licensees' personal email addresses, even when a third party says it…
Can a South Carolina county put a transportation sales tax referendum on the ballot in an odd-numbered year, or does the 'time of the general election' language in § 4-37-30(A)(2) limit it to even-numbered federal election years?
Either is allowed. The county transportation sales tax referendum required by S.C. Code § 4-37-30(A)(2) to be held 'at the time of the general election' can take place in an odd-numbered November as…
Do members of a South Carolina county library board of trustees have to take the constitutional oath of office?
Yes. Members of the Charleston County Library Board of Trustees hold public office under the South Carolina Constitution, so they must take and subscribe the oath of office prescribed by Article VI,…
Can a South Carolina county stop a city from annexing nearby land, and do cities have to coordinate annexation with the county's comprehensive plan?
The AG did not decide whether the county could challenge a particular annexation; its standing and claimed harm were unclear. It advised identifying the harm with counsel and asking whether courts…
Can a car manufacturer like Scout Motors sell vehicles directly to consumers in South Carolina, bypassing franchised dealers?
No. South Carolina's franchise law (S.C. Code Ann. § 56-15-45) makes it unlawful for a manufacturer to sell vehicles directly to consumers in the state. New cars can be sold only through a licensed…
Can a South Carolina state agency or public university agree to indemnify or 'hold harmless' another party in a contract?
No, not without express statutory authority. The Attorney General reaffirmed its longstanding position (dating to 1966) that a state agency has no authority to enter indemnification or 'hold…
In a South Carolina mayor-council town, can the mayor hire a deputy administrator without council approval, and can the council cut the budget to block it?
The Attorney General concluded that in a mayor-council form of government, the mayor has broad authority under § 5-9-30(1) to appoint municipal employees, and because no statute governs a…
Can a South Carolina county bill a city for 911 dispatch and for housing the city's inmates, even though the county already collects 911 fees and taxes residents?
It depends on whether there is a cost-sharing agreement. The Attorney General said it cannot decide whether a particular county bill is authorized because that turns on facts. But the Constitution…
Does South Carolina's Procurement Code apply when a private developer builds student housing and a university foundation manages it for a fee?
Probably not. The Attorney General agreed that, on the facts presented, a court would most likely find the South Carolina Consolidated Procurement Code inapplicable. A private developer builds and…
Does a written trespass notice turn later shoplifting into third-degree burglary in South Carolina?
A trespass warning does not by itself void the 'without consent' element of third-degree burglary, but it can be used as evidence that a person who later entered a store did so without consent. In…
Can you drive a golf cart on a US highway like Main Street (US 178) in South Carolina?
No. Under § 56-2-105, a permitted golf cart may be driven only on a secondary highway or street with a posted speed limit of 35 mph or less, within set distance limits. Because the Main Street…
Can a South Carolina city hire a private company to write and collect parking tickets?
No, in the AG's view. Enforcing parking ordinances is an exercise of a city's police power, and South Carolina local governments cannot delegate police powers to a private entity without…
Can South Carolina police still charge students who fight at school under a city disorderly conduct ordinance?
Probably yes for the 'fighting' part, in the AG's view. Federal courts struck down South Carolina's disorderly conduct statute (§ 16-17-530) as unconstitutionally vague as applied to students, but…
Can South Carolina keep its inmate phone-call surcharge that funds cell phone interdiction under the new FCC rule?
The AG would not answer directly, because interpreting the federal FCC rule and the Martha Wright-Reed Act is outside the scope of its opinions. It noted that if the FCC or a court treats South…
Can a South Carolina county sponsor a private dam owner's FEMA grant if it means spending public money to maintain private property?
Probably not without a real public purpose, the AG concluded. If Oconee County sponsors the privately owned Chattooga Lake Dam's FEMA HHPD grant, it must commit to operate and maintain the dam, and…
Can South Carolina police use a search warrant form other than the state's official SCCA 513 form?
Only if it matches the official form exactly. Section 17-13-160 requires all search warrants to use the form approved by the Attorney General, which is SCCA 513. The AG confirmed police may create…
Do you pay the Infrastructure Maintenance Fee or sales tax when you buy a trailer in South Carolina?
It depends on whether the trailer must be registered with the DMV. The AG agreed that 'for hire' means hauling someone else's property for pay, not just any business use, so a privately owned…
Who enforces the rules when a South Carolina rural telephone cooperative ignores its own bylaws?
The AG concluded that bylaw and corporate-formality problems at a rural telephone cooperative generally fall outside the Public Service Commission and Office of Regulatory Staff, whose authority…
How must the SC High School League apply the new 2024-25 budget provisos on appeals, forfeit fines, and private-school enrollment?
The AG concluded that under Proviso 1.49, an appeal stays all sanctions pending the outcome, even minimum sanctions, because the language draws no distinction. For forfeited-game fines, the League…
Are hemp-derived THC drinks legal to sell in South Carolina?
Yes, as a matter of statute. The 2018 federal Farm Bill and South Carolina's 2019 Hemp Farming Act make non-alcoholic beverages legal if their delta-9 THC concentration is 0.3% or less on a dry…
Can you drive a UTV (utility task vehicle) on public roads in South Carolina?
Not as the law stood in 2024, in most cases. The Attorney General would not rule on the specific person's situation because that turns on facts, but it explained that SCDMV may refuse to register or…
How is the 50% farm-income rule for South Carolina's Working Farmland Protection Fund measured?
Across all the owner's farmland, not parcel by parcel. The Attorney General read § 48-59-150(B) so that a landowner meets the requirement to derive at least fifty percent of his income from farming…
If I move before a primary runoff, can I still vote in it in South Carolina?
No, not in the race you moved out of. The Attorney General concluded that a voter who was eligible in a primary but changes his residence to a spot inside the same county yet outside the runoff's…
Does a city police department have jurisdiction at a county detention center in South Carolina?
Generally no, the county sheriff does. The Attorney General would not answer the exact question because jurisdiction depends on the facts, but it explained that a municipal officer's authority…
Who has to update voter records after a South Carolina town redraws its ward map?
The town's municipal election commission. The Attorney General concluded that when a South Carolina municipality with its own election commission adopts a new redistricting map, that commission is…
Is South Carolina's Robert Smalls Monument Commission a state agency, and is the monument a public purpose?
Yes on both. The Attorney General confirmed that the Robert Smalls Monument Commission, created by Act 183 of 2024, is an agency of the State of South Carolina, and that its job, designing a…
Does a South Carolina town have to accept a subdivision's roads, and who maintains them?
A town does not have to accept them, but if it does, it has to maintain them. The Attorney General concluded that accepting a proposed dedication of subdivision roads is discretionary; a…
Can the SC Ports Authority sell land held under a deed saying 'for exclusively public purposes'?
Yes, in the office's view. The Attorney General concluded that the phrase 'for exclusively public purposes' in the 1957 deed conveying Charleston waterfront land to the State was ambiguous and, on…
Can a religious-affiliated organization be denied public funding just for being religious?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the Free Exercise Clause of the U.S. Constitution prevents a government from denying a religiously affiliated institution generally available public funding…
Can a city council get legal advice outside a public meeting and bind future councils to a city attorney's term?
On the open-meetings question, yes; on binding future councils, no. The Attorney General concluded the Freedom of Information Act does not restrict a city council or its members to requesting legal…
Can a special-purpose district's executive director also serve as a soil and water conservation commissioner in South Carolina?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that serving at the same time as Executive Director of the Chester Metropolitan District and as a commissioner of the Chester Soil and Water Conservation District…
Can a South Carolina county use a special tax district to pay for private road maintenance?
It can set up the district, but not to pay for private roads. The Attorney General concluded that a county may create a special tax district to fund road construction and maintenance if it follows…
Can a school board close a school by quietly defunding it in the budget?
Maybe not without proper notice. The Attorney General agreed a board of education has authority to close and consolidate schools, but flagged a real FOIA problem with how the Berkeley County board…
Under South Carolina's 2023 bond reform, can a defendant pay a bail premium in installments?
The AG says a bondsman may choose to accept at least $100 down and make a payment agreement for the rest of the minimum premium, subject to § 38-53-170(e)'s terms and an eighteen-month limit. The…
When is a nonprofit a 'public body' subject to South Carolina's FOIA because it gets public money?
It depends on how the public money flows. The Attorney General concluded the Uptown Greenwood Local Development Corporation is not a FOIA public body just because it gets accommodations-tax (A-Tax)…
Are police body camera videos and cleared misconduct records public under South Carolina's FOIA?
Mostly no. The Attorney General told the Criminal Justice Academy that video and audio recordings can count as public records in general, but body-worn camera footage is specifically not a FOIA…
Can South Carolina school staff move budget money mid-year without board approval?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a school board cannot let district employees make mid-year budget transfers without the board's approval. Setting and maintaining the budget is a…
Can a South Carolina county spend tax money to maintain private dirt roads?
No, and a workaround through a charity won't fix it. The Attorney General reaffirmed that public funds, including ad valorem taxes, cannot be used to maintain private roads because that serves no…
Are lottery ticket delivery (courier) services legal in South Carolina?
The law doesn't say, and it's the Lottery Commission's call. The Attorney General concluded that the South Carolina Education Lottery Act neither expressly prohibits nor authorizes lottery courier…
Can someone become a South Carolina probate judge without a college degree or four years' experience in a probate office?
Yes. The 1988 amendment to S.C. Code § 14-23-1040 that added a four-year-degree or four-years'-experience requirement for probate judges was objected to by the U.S. Justice Department under the…
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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.