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.
No South Carolina opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
Did temporarily living outside Fort Mill make a town council member lose municipal residency?
Not automatically. The Attorney General said domicile depended heavily on intent to keep or return to a fixed home, but could not decide the council member’s actual residency. Fort Mill Town Council…
Could South Carolina’s Mitigation Trust Fund give money or land to a local nonprofit land trust?
No. The Attorney General concluded that the fund’s trustees lacked general authority to grant money or property to a local nonprofit land trust. The statute expressly authorized one named…
When did South Carolina’s 2008 misdemeanor courtesy-summons rule apply, including victim and merchant cases?
The Attorney General said the 2008 rule required a courtesy summons for qualifying misdemeanors when nonlaw-enforcement personnel signed the warrant, including victim cases and eligible merchant…
Could a South Carolina lawyer serve on both the Lawyer Conduct Commission and a technical college commission?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the Florence/Darlington Technical Center Area Commission seat counted as a public office, but membership on the Commission for Lawyer Conduct did not.…
Could South Carolina prisons deny cafeteria meals to inmates who refused the grooming policy?
The Attorney General found no South Carolina law specifically barring denial of cafeteria access, but did not decide that SCDC’s practice was lawful. Its constitutional analysis turned on whether…
Did a South Carolina courtesy summons need a local magistrate’s endorsement for service in another county?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that a courtesy summons issued in one county or municipality had to be endorsed by a magistrate with jurisdiction where the defendant was located before service…
How could Cheraw determine whether a council member with two homes still lived in town?
The Attorney General said residency depended on domicile and the member’s intent, judged from all the circumstances; owning town property or having a spouse elsewhere was not conclusive. Cheraw Town…
Can South Carolina and North Carolina draw a straight border when the original 1772 survey markers are lost?
The Attorney General concluded that the boundary commissions had to make an extensive effort to retrace the 1772 line using the best available evidence. They could not replace it with a straight…
Could Florence County pay to repair a church-owned building leased to a Boys and Girls Club?
The Attorney General said support for the Boys and Girls Club’s youth programs could serve a public purpose, but could not decide whether the roof payment primarily benefited the club or private…
Does a South Carolina county library director report to the library board or the county administrator?
The Attorney General concluded that the chief librarian reported to the library board, not the county administrator or a county division director. The board held supervisory, hiring, and likely…
Should a South Carolina magistrate or circuit judge hear bond requests after a youthful offender violates conditional release?
The Attorney General found no clear statutory bond procedure for a youthful offender returned to custody after violating conditional release. Comparing that release to parole, he recommended…
Could a South Carolina homebuilder sell online raffle tickets for a chance to win a house?
No, under the law the Attorney General analyzed in 2008. A paid ticket for a chance drawing to win a house supplied a prize, consideration, and chance, making the builder’s proposed scheme a…
Does a South Carolina disabled parking placard waive a flat event parking fee?
The 2008 Attorney General opinion said a placard did not automatically waive a fee charged during an entertainment event. The statutory exemption applied if the space was metered or timed, such as…
Did Chester County repeal its public auction rule for forfeited land when it adopted the general state law?
The Attorney General concluded that statewide Title 12 provisions had not themselves repealed Chester County’s 1945 forfeited land law. It said a court could find that a later county ordinance,…
Did South Carolina bankruptcy and homestead exemption amounts need an inflation adjustment on July 1, 2008?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that the amounts listed in the amended exemption statute, including the homestead amount, had to be adjusted for the Southeastern Consumer Price Index on July 1,…
Which establishes a person’s age in South Carolina when a Georgia birth certificate conflicts with a driver’s license?
The Attorney General concluded that South Carolina courts would treat the Georgia birth certificate as controlling proof of the person’s birth date in the situation presented. A contrary date on a…
Could Anderson County fund another provider’s water system with sales tax revenue without a separate utility referendum?
The Attorney General concluded that a county merely appropriating capital projects sales tax proceeds to another water provider generally did not need the separate constitutional water-utility…
Do Dorchester County nuisance and littering ordinances apply outside its zoned areas?
Yes. The Attorney General concluded that Dorchester County’s nuisance and littering ordinances were general county rules regulating conduct, not zoning ordinances, and therefore applied throughout…
What cause and procedure did South Carolina require to remove a county veterans affairs officer?
The Attorney General concluded that a majority of the county’s senators and a majority of its house members could remove its veterans affairs officer for cause. Cause depended on the facts, and the…
Could a South Carolina sheriff’s deputy serving as a school resource officer also sit on a town council?
The Attorney General concluded that simultaneously serving as a sheriff’s deputy assigned as a school resource officer and as a town council member would most probably violate South Carolina’s…
Did the South Carolina AG consider a government display including the Ten Commandments and Lord’s Prayer constitutional?
In 2008, the Attorney General predicted a court would likely uphold the proposed display of thirteen historical documents, including the Ten Commandments and Lord’s Prayer. He based that prediction…
Which felony convictions involving dishonesty or breach of trust affected work in the insurance business under federal law?
The Attorney General identified South Carolina felony breach of trust with fraudulent intent as relevant to the federal insurance restriction. He found no complete definition of felony “dishonesty”…
Who counted as a resident freeholder for a South Carolina petition to reduce city limits?
The Attorney General could not conclusively decide whether a property owner without lawful immigration status qualified as a resident freeholder. He predicted a court would likely exclude that…
What happened to a South Carolina county election when an unopposed party nominee died before the general election?
The Attorney General concluded that the unopposed candidate had already become his party’s nominee without appearing on a primary ballot. After his death, each party registered with the State…
Would a South Carolina bill barring regional councils from choosing water providers conflict with federal wastewater planning law?
The Attorney General concluded that the proposed state provision did not conflict with the Clean Water Act’s area-wide wastewater planning requirements. Regional councils could still develop plans…
Which South Carolina convictions did the AG identify as comparable to federal Tier III sex offender offenses?
The Attorney General supplied SLED a best-effort list of South Carolina offenses he considered comparable to federal Tier III categories, including specified criminal sexual conduct offenses and…
Did a South Carolina coroner regain office after acquittals and a prescription-drug possession conviction?
The Attorney General concluded that York County’s suspended coroner regained office after acquittal on the other charges because his remaining conviction for unlawful prescription-drug possession…
Could stores sell beer and wine on Sunday in Columbia’s portion of Lexington County despite the state blue law?
Yes, under the law the Attorney General analyzed in 2008. He concluded that the later, more specific off-premises beer-and-wine permit provision controlled over the earlier general Sunday business…
Could Greenwood’s public works commission give unused water-plant land to the city, county or a private buyer?
The Attorney General predicted the commission could likely re-title the land to Greenwood without compensation because it functioned as a city agency. He said transfers to the county or another…
Could a South Carolina regional career and technology center borrow or issue bonds for building improvements?
The Attorney General concluded that the R.D. Anderson center board lacked express or implied authority to borrow or issue general obligation debt for capital improvements. A lease-purchase contract…
Could Richland County add a special-purpose sales tax on top of its existing local option tax?
The Attorney General concluded that Richland County’s existing one-percent local option tax did not itself prevent an additional transportation tax or a capital-project tax under the provisions he…
Could a relative enroll a South Carolina child in school using only a parent-signed temporary guardianship document?
The Attorney General concluded that the parent-signed temporary guardianship document in the request did not make the relatives legal guardians for the enrollment rules he analyzed. He said the…
Could the public reach a South Carolina navigable stream from a highway right-of-way and stand on its bed?
The Attorney General said a court could find access from a public road right-of-way to a navigable stream, but the scope of a particular right-of-way depended on facts for a court. He also concluded…
Could a South Carolina regional council ban private sewer providers or deny their permits?
The Attorney General concluded that the Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester Council of Governments could study water and sewer issues and recommend plans, but had no state-law authority to choose…
Could a South Carolina school district require a returning teacher to accept a contract before April 25?
No. The Attorney General concluded that a school district could not require a teacher offered reemployment to accept before the April 25 date in the statute he analyzed. District boards had to allow…
Could police obtain treatment-facility patient information, and did an out-of-state juvenile have to register locally?
The Attorney General did not approve a blanket release of patient information to police; he said any disclosure had to fit a HIPAA law-enforcement exception and its information limits. For the…
Could two convictions from one South Carolina court appearance both be expunged?
Yes, potentially. After a South Carolina Court of Appeals decision, the AG said separate offenses resolved at one court appearance could each be expunged under the statute discussed, provided its…
When could Hardeeville vote again to change its city government, and when would the new mayor take office?
The AG said Hardeeville could not hold another form-of-government election until 2010, four years after its 2006 change. For a later vote, the city had to give at least three weeks' notice; the…
Could South Carolina DMV reject a qualifying Choose Life S.C. specialty plate because of its message?
The AG predicted a court would likely require issuance if DMV found the organization met the nonprofit specialty-plate law and policy. He said DMV could not deny that qualifying application because…
Could Lexington County add a road sales tax on top of its school tax?
No, under the law analyzed in 2008. Although the AG said the school-tax and transportation-tax laws generally allowed both kinds of tax, Lexington County's existing one-percent school levy exhausted…
Could a defendant demand a jury at a South Carolina magistrate's restraining-order hearing?
No. The AG said the specific restraining-order procedure called for a hearing before the magistrate, and the general statute allowing jury trials in magistrates' suits did not change that result.
Could an off-duty South Carolina deputy run private drug sweeps and ignore suspected crimes?
The AG said a deputy could not avoid his law-enforcement obligations by calling a paid drug sweep private work. Although deputies had discretion to investigate and assess facts, the opinion said…
Could a South Carolina city reserve a disability parking space only during certain hours?
The AG distinguished two issues. He said a sign could not time-limit the statutory parking privileges of an eligible driver, but a municipality appeared able to reserve an individual disability…
Could a police officer write a ticket solely for South Carolina's general traffic misdemeanor provision?
No. The AG said the provision classified violations elsewhere in the traffic chapter as misdemeanors unless another rule applied; it did not itself define a separate offense that could be ticketed…
Could Savannah Lakes Village use district taxes for private security instead of police protection?
The AG said a private security contract did not satisfy the district's police-protection purpose, and he viewed spending district tax funds on that private security as inappropriate. He recognized…
Could a South Carolina defendant receive a longer sentence after winning post-conviction relief?
Yes, a longer sentence was possible if a successful post-conviction case led to a new trial and conviction. The AG said due process barred increasing the sentence to punish the defendant for having…
Could Anderson County Council directly hire and supervise its internal auditor?
No. For Anderson County's council-administrator government, the AG said the administrator had to employ and supervise the internal auditor. The council could create the position and define its…
Did South Carolina's 2006 school property-tax exemption cover homes assessed at six percent?
No. The AG said the school operating-tax exemption under the 2006 reform law was limited to owner-occupied homes receiving the four-percent legal-residence assessment ratio. A home assessed at six…
Could a South Carolina school board remove a trustee for ethics filing violations?
The AG said ethics filing violations did not automatically remove the trustee. The board could consider them as potential cause, but removal required cause, notice and an opportunity to be heard;…
Must Rock Hill release police officers' names and badge numbers under South Carolina FOIA?
Yes, generally. The AG said Rock Hill should provide the names and badge numbers of officers who worked openly with the public when requested, subject to any applicable restriction in the state's…
Did South Carolina's refusal to implement REAL ID stop private companies from seeking federal exceptions?
No. The AG said South Carolina's statutory refusal to participate in REAL ID implementation applied to the state, not private industry. A private company could request an exception for its…
Could South Carolina seek a federal REAL ID deadline extension without agreeing to implement REAL ID?
The AG said South Carolina law barred the state from implementing REAL ID, but the governor could describe existing license-security measures to federal officials in seeking an extension. That…
Did using a 17-year-old informant for an undercover drug buy violate South Carolina's delinquency law?
The AG said the described law-enforcement use of a 17-year-old in an undercover drug buy did not violate the statute against contributing to a minor's delinquency. He relied on the statute's knowing…
Who could resolve a dispute over a South Carolina party's precinct-club reorganization?
The AG said the Election Commission had a statutory decertification role when a certified party failed to organize as required, but whether the Spartanburg clubs complied depended on facts his…
Did a defendant have a right to a jury in a South Carolina stalking or harassment restraining-order hearing?
The South Carolina Attorney General concluded in 2008 that a defendant in a restraining-order hearing under the cited stalking and harassment statutes had no right to a jury trial. The opinion…
Could someone with a felony or domestic-violence conviction hunt with a muzzleloader in South Carolina?
The 2008 South Carolina AG opinion found no state ban on possession of a muzzleloading rifle or shotgun based on the handgun restriction it examined. It did not resolve whether federal firearms law…
Could a nonprofit association get reduced-price criminal background checks for its for-profit home-care members?
The South Carolina AG concluded in 2008 that the reduced charitable-organization fee did not have to be offered when the checks were used by paid caregivers or for-profit member companies. The…
Was Allendale County's per-acre fire-rescue fee a valid service charge on all land?
The AG said in 2008 that a county could impose fire-protection service charges, but it could not decide whether Allendale's acreage-based fee met the four-part validity test without factual findings.
Could Denmark-Olar school trustees collect a per diem in addition to their annual compensation?
The AG concluded in 2008 that the later, district-specific act providing annual compensation controlled over the general per-diem statute, so trustees could not receive both. It left proposed…
Could a South Carolina forestry law-enforcement technician also serve on county council?
The AG concluded in 2008 that a Forestry Technician III with continuing law-enforcement duties held an office, as did a county council member, so simultaneous service violated dual-office rules.…
Browse South Carolina opinions by topic
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.