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 South Carolina’s millage cap apply to a county fire service area tax?
The AG concluded that county fire protection was a general operating purpose, so an increase in the fire service area millage was subject to the general millage limit unless a statutory exception…
Could South Carolina approve voting software tested before its lab received federal accreditation?
The AG concluded that the lab had to hold federal Election Assistance Commission accreditation when it certified the system, so later accreditation did not qualify earlier testing. The opinion…
Could the Comptroller General stop Revenue Department payments to a county with a late audit?
The AG said the Comptroller General could withhold only funds that the Comptroller distributed. After tax relief reimbursements moved to the Revenue Department, the Comptroller could not direct it…
Could a South Carolina city condemn vacant land for transfer to a private developer?
The AG said economic benefit alone did not satisfy the public use requirement and doubted that the described private development qualified. Blight takings had additional constitutional limits; the…
Could a rural water district director also serve on South Carolina’s environmental certification board?
The AG concluded that both positions were public offices exercising state power, so one person could not hold them at the same time under the state constitution.
Could a volunteer firefighter serve on the board overseeing the same fire service area?
The AG said the constitutional dual office ban exempted firefighters, but the board’s oversight of firefighter appeals, policies, and stipends likely created a master servant conflict. If a court…
Did South Carolina’s 2006 tax reform end school funding effort rules or let Fairfield exceed millage caps?
The AG said the maintenance of effort requirement remained and was calculated from the prior year’s effort adjusted for inflation, with specified reimbursements counted. Neither the general nor…
Did South Carolina forestry protection law invalidate Charleston County’s tree preservation rules?
The AG concluded that the county’s tree preservation and removal restrictions did not make forestry operations a nuisance, so they did not violate the cited forestry nuisance protection statute. The…
Did escort advertisements in a South Carolina telephone directory prove illegal prostitution solicitation?
The AG identified the prostitution and procuring statutes but declined to decide whether any particular advertisement violated them. It said that factual determination belonged to local law…
Who recommended and appointed directors of the Lower Florence County Hospital Board?
The AG concluded that the Florence legislative delegation recommended candidates and the Governor appointed them. The Florence County Council had neither power, and the opinion expressly departed…
Could off duty and reserve police officers carry concealed handguns on South Carolina school property?
The AG concluded that the then existing school firearm prohibition did not apply to law enforcement officers, including reserve officers. It read the general handgun exception as having no off duty…
Could town employees work the polls in a municipal election involving their council employers?
The AG found no state law barring municipal employees from serving as poll managers or clerks, even when council seats were on the ballot. A town ordinance or personnel policy could impose a…
Did moving a town election and extending council terms count as an unlawful council pay raise?
The AG said municipalities could change election dates even if doing so extended terms. Continued payment at the same rate during the extension was not a pay raise, but a new salary ordinance still…
When did South Carolina have to make a formal veterinarian complaint public?
The AG said the Department had to give the veterinarian a copy before making a filed formal complaint public. It could not wait for an answer; any answer later filed also had to be available for…
Was a real estate agent practicing law by filling blanks in an attorney prepared sales contract?
The AG thought merely inserting transaction facts in the described prefabricated contract, without giving legal advice, probably was not unauthorized practice. It emphasized that the South Carolina…
Could Woodruff require planning commissioners to own city land and destroy council meeting tapes?
The AG said local officials could set commission qualifications and change terms, but the land ownership requirement might violate equal protection depending on its justification; only a court could…
When could a South Carolina coroner order an autopsy, and did a county have to fund unlimited autopsies?
The AG said coroners had broad discretion to order an autopsy to determine cause of death, with specific mandatory requests in child and vulnerable adult investigations. A county had to fund a…
Could South Carolina’s state canvassers certify election results by conference call?
The AG said the Board of State Canvassers had to meet physically because its statutes specified a meeting location. The general permission for public bodies to meet electronically did not override…
Could a South Carolina municipal officer routinely ask for a driver's Social Security number during a traffic stop?
No. In this 2007 clarification, the Attorney General said a municipal officer should not routinely request a driver's Social Security number during a traffic stop because doing so could intrude on…
Could a South Carolina volunteer fire department bill homeowners or their insurers for fire response?
The AG said the private Teal's Mill volunteer department could contract with residents to charge for responding to fires if its bylaws allowed it and state law did not prohibit it. Whether an…
Did South Carolina's Department of Mental Health need court approval to sell five acres near Bull Street?
Yes, in the AG's 2007 view. Although the five acres were outside the Bull Street property addressed directly by the state Supreme Court, they were part of a tract the court reviewed and were subject…
Could an Abbeville city school resource officer arrest someone at an assigned school outside city limits?
Yes. The AG said South Carolina law gave an assigned school resource officer statewide authority to arrest someone committing a crime connected to a school activity or sponsored event, so the city…
Could someone serve on Spartanburg's planning or hospital board and its higher education commission at the same time?
The AG said no under the South Carolina Constitution's dual office rule as applied in 2007. It treated the planning commission, higher education commission, and regional hospital board positions as…
Could a South Carolina police officer require a driver to give a Social Security number at a routine traffic stop?
The AG said a municipal officer should not routinely require a driver's Social Security number at a traffic stop. The office found no applicable law making disclosure mandatory and said an officer…
Could Beaufort County's sheriff enforce Hilton Head's smoking ordinance if violations carried only a civil fine?
The AG said it appeared the sheriff's department could enforce the 2007 no-smoking ordinance and initiate a civil action to collect its fine. The letter relied on an earlier opinion and acknowledged…
Could the Citadel Board of Visitors member appointed to lead SCDOT keep both positions?
The AG said no. It treated the SCDOT executive director, including an interim director, as a public officer because the position exercised state power; accepting that role while serving on the…
Could MUSC's trustees add sexual orientation to the university's nondiscrimination policy?
Yes, according to the 2007 AG opinion. The trustees had broad authority to set university policy, and the AG found no state or federal law barring them from adding sexual orientation as a protected…
Who had to approve a principal working at a second Charleston County school in 2007?
The AG said the answer depended on whether the second school assignment was a transfer between constituent districts or a new principal appointment. A transfer between districts required the…
Could a South Carolina firefighter work full time for two fire departments?
The AG found no South Carolina law prohibiting a firefighter from serving two departments. The law contemplated multiple departments and required each one to register the firefighter, but the…
Could Springdale’s planning commission chair also serve on the Lexington Medical Center board?
The AG said the overlap likely violated South Carolina's dual office rule. It treated a planning commission seat as a public office and found that the Lexington Medical Center board also exercised…
Could Mount Pleasant make a restaurant and bar smoking ban a civil offense enforced in municipal court?
No, in the AG's 2007 view. It said the proposed civil smoking ban conflicted with South Carolina's statewide Clean Indoor Air Act and its criminal fine, so the town could not authorize that…
Did South Carolina's 2006 property tax reform repeal the school funding index of taxpaying ability?
The AG said no. Although the reform reduced the connection between property values and school districts' ability to raise revenue, the office found the tax reform and Education Finance Act could…
Was a charity poker tournament legal in South Carolina if admission was voluntary and no prizes were awarded?
The Attorney General concluded that the advertised charity poker challenge appeared to be an unlawful card game under South Carolina law, despite the absence of required donations or prizes. He…
Did South Carolina require computer forensic examiners gathering evidence for clients to hold private investigator licenses?
The AG concluded that the better reading of South Carolina law required private investigator licenses for paid computer forensic examiners who extracted information for clients and court…
After an arrest on a bench warrant, could a South Carolina municipal judge other than the sentencing judge accept the fine?
The AG said it appeared that a defendant arrested on a bench warrant would have to return to the original sentencing judge to pay a fine or have imprisonment imposed, even if that judge was…
Did a South Carolina TERI participant’s employment end when the program period expired, even at a county affiliated agency?
The AG concluded that the requester’s employment ended when his TERI program period ended, even though he was not a state or county employee. The employer could choose to rehire him if the…
Which Greenville County office was responsible for acting on a returned check first received by the register of deeds?
The AG concluded that Greenville County’s deed office was responsible for initiating action on a returned check because it was the office that first received the check, even though it later…
Could South Carolina’s Department of Mental Health use appropriated funds to market the Bull Street property for sale?
The AG concluded that the Department of Mental Health could use legislatively appropriated funds to prepare and market the Bull Street property for sale. He read the charitable trust recognized by…
Could a South Carolina legislator rent property to a tenant using Section 8 housing assistance?
The AG found no South Carolina law barring the legislator from renting to a tenant receiving Section 8 assistance, while noting state ethics restrictions. He read the federal conflict rule as…
Could a South Carolina fire commissioner also serve as a volunteer firefighter in the same department?
The AG concluded that South Carolina’s constitutional dual-office rule did not itself bar a fire commissioner from serving as a volunteer firefighter. If the commission supervised firefighters,…
Could a South Carolina school district employee be appointed to the State Board of Funeral Service?
The AG found no statute automatically barring government employees from the State Board of Funeral Service. He thought the requester’s school district purchasing job was likely employment rather…
Could South Carolina’s Commission on Higher Education release student-level data under FOIA and FERPA?
The AG concluded that the Commission on Higher Education was a public body under South Carolina FOIA, with records generally subject to disclosure unless an exception applied. He said statistical…
Could one person serve on Cayce’s accommodations tax committee and the Lexington County Recreation Commission?
The AG concluded that serving on both bodies did not violate the dual-office rule because Cayce’s tax committee was advisory, while the recreation commission was a public office. He said possible…
Could South Carolina First Steps require families to provide Social Security numbers to receive its services?
The AG thought a court would likely find First Steps was not a government agency covered by Section 7 of the federal Privacy Act, so the Act would not bar requiring participants’ Social Security…
Could a registered South Carolina lobbyist serve on a county transportation committee?
The AG concluded that the state law barring lobbyists from state boards and commissions did not prevent a legislative delegation from appointing a registered lobbyist to a county transportation…
Did a pardon end South Carolina sex offender registration and re-registration duties in 2007?
The AG concluded that the registered person still had to re-register under the law then in force despite receiving a pardon. The opinion identified exceptions where the pardon specifically stated a…
After Cannon, which South Carolina parolees could be required to provide DNA samples, and could SLED retain earlier samples?
The AG concluded that Cannon barred requiring samples from people released on parole before July 1, 2000 who had not already provided one. Under the 2004 amendment, new demands applied to qualifying…
Could a South Carolina municipal judge hold a bond hearing outside city limits for a hospitalized or transferred defendant?
The AG said a municipal judge generally lacked authority to travel outside city limits to hold a bond hearing without a special grant of authority. He suggested State Court Administration guidance…
How soon after arrest did a South Carolina defendant have to receive a bond hearing in 2007?
The AG concluded that a defendant charged with a bailable offense had to receive a bond hearing within twenty-four hours of arrest, a limit for law enforcement as well as magistrates. For…
Could South Carolina legislators elect a transportation commissioner by circulating a letter instead of holding a public meeting?
The AG concluded that Section 57-1-325 required a written call, notice to every eligible legislator, and a physically convened public meeting to elect a district transportation commissioner. He…
Could Hilton Head Island fund youth sports travel or pay a nonprofit to organize a holiday parade?
The AG said recreation and civic events could serve a public purpose, and a town could contract with a nonprofit to run a qualifying event. Whether paying a youth team’s travel costs benefited the…
Could Sumter County exceed South Carolina’s millage cap to buy development rights near Shaw Air Force Base?
The AG concluded that the proposed purchase of residential development rights near Shaw Air Force Base did not fit the cited exceptions to South Carolina’s millage increase limit. He suggested the…
Were South Carolina restaurants taxed when buying napkins, straws, forks and spoons from wholesalers?
The AG concluded that a wholesaler’s sale of napkins, forks, spoons and straws to a restaurant was taxable at the time of sale. He found no difference between supplies used by dine-in customers and…
Could South Carolina Workforce Investment Board members attend, count toward quorum and vote by telephone?
The AG believed South Carolina FOIA permitted a properly noticed telephone conference meeting, with remote members counting and voting if the meeting was valid. Because the board also had a federal…
Was a South Carolina court required to notify a crime victim’s attorney of every hearing after the attorney appeared?
The AG found no absolute statutory requirement for a clerk or summary court to notify a crime victim’s attorney of every hearing. He concluded that, after a formal notice of appearance, providing…
Could a local jail prisoner convicted of failing to register as a sex offender earn good time credit?
The AG concluded that a person sentenced to a local correctional facility for failing to register as a sex offender could earn statutory good-behavior credits. He treated the ban on suspending the…
Could a South Carolina school board require a political party to show liability insurance for a precinct meeting?
The AG concluded that school boards could require proof of liability insurance for political parties using school buildings for precinct meetings. He said the requirement had to be applied equally…
Was a McCormick County magistrate paid above base salary entitled to the state employee cost-of-living raise?
The AG concluded that the magistrate was not entitled to the four percent cost-of-living raise for classified state employees. A magistrate earning above the statutory base was instead entitled to…
Could First Steps require client data for services, and could teenage parents consent to release their children’s data?
The AG read First Steps’ state enabling law as allowing collection of client data needed to evaluate its programs, while pointing to state privacy requirements. He found no law barring minors from…
Could a District Seven technology center employee serve on the neighboring District Three school board?
The AG concluded that Section 59-19-300 did not bar a District Seven employee from joining District Three’s board. Based on the described employment and supervision structure, he also saw no likely…
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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.