What are South Carolina's state and county per capita income figures used for tax incentive eligibility (per SC IL #19-1)?

Plain-English summary

This Information Letter publishes South Carolina's per capita income and the per capita income of each of its 46 counties, so taxpayers can test whether an incentive's income threshold is met. The statewide figure is $41,633. County figures range from $27,111 (Dillon) to $57,281 (Charleston).

Several South Carolina tax incentives depend, in part, on state or county per capita personal income. The letter names three examples: the job tax credit (§ 12-6-3360), the sales-and-use-tax exemption for computer equipment for technology-intensive facilities (§ 12-36-2120(65)), and the corporate-headquarters credit (§ 12-6-3410). The Department publishes county figures (generally in November) and state figures (generally in March and September) each year as it receives them from the South Carolina Board of Economic Advisors.

The letter does not decide any specific taxpayer's eligibility — it supplies the underlying income data used in the eligibility formulas.

What this means for you

If you are claiming an income-based incentive

Use the figure for the relevant county (or the state figure) as published here when applying an incentive's per capita income test. Because the amounts are updated when new data arrives, verify you are using the figure that applies to your incentive year.

If you are comparing counties for a project

The county figures let you see how a location compares to the statewide $41,633 — relevant where an incentive is keyed to below-average income.

Common questions

Q: What is South Carolina's statewide per capita income in this letter?
A: $41,633.

Q: Which counties are highest and lowest?
A: Charleston is highest at $57,281; Dillon is lowest at $27,111.

Q: What are these figures used for?
A: Testing eligibility (or the amount) of incentives that require associated jobs to meet a state or county per capita income requirement, such as the job tax credit, the technology-facility computer-equipment sales-tax exemption, and the corporate-headquarters credit.

Subject

Per Capita Income Figures for South Carolina and South Carolina Counties

Source

• Landing page: https://dor.sc.gov/advisory-opinion-search
• Original PDF: https://dor.sc.gov/sites/dor/files/policies/IL19-1.pdf

Original ruling text

STATE OF SOUTH CAROLINA

DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
300A Outlet Pointe Blvd., Columbia, South Carolina 29210
P.O. Box 125, Columbia, South Carolina 29214-0575

SC INFORMATION LETTER #19-1

SUBJECT:

Per Capita Income Figures for South Carolina and South Carolina
Counties

DATE:

January 2, 2019

SUPERSEDES:

All previous documents and any oral directives in conflict herewith.

AUTHORITY:

S.C. Code Ann. Section 12-4-320 (2014)
S.C. Code Ann. Section 1-23-10(4) (2005)
SC Revenue Procedure #09-3

SCOPE:

An Information Letter is a written statement issued to the public to
announce general information useful in complying with the laws
administered by the Department. An Information Letter has no
precedential value.

A number of South Carolina income, sales and use, and property tax incentives require jobs
associated with the incentive to meet certain state or county per capita personal income
requirements to determine qualification for, or the amount of, the particular incentive (e.g., the
job tax credit under Code Section 12-6-3360, the sales and use tax exemption for computer
equipment for technology intensive facilities under Code Section 12-36-2120(65), and the
personal property corporate headquarters credit under Code Section 12-6-3410).
The county per capita income figures are generally published in November. The state figures are
generally published in March and September. In order to aid taxpayers in determining whether
the per capita income requirements of an incentive have been met, the Department publishes
both the county and state per capita income amounts each year when it receives the figures from
the South Carolina Board of Economic Advisors. Below are the most recent figures.

Chart 1: State Per Capita Income
State
South Carolina

Per Capita Income
$41,633

1

Chart II: County Per Capita Income
County

Per Capita Income

Abbeville

33,044

Aiken

40,656

Allendale

30,946

Anderson

38,271

Bamberg

31,881

Barnwell

32,428

Beaufort

52,763

Berkeley

37,483

Calhoun

36,787

Charleston

57,281

Cherokee

31,313

Chester

32,667

Chesterfield

29,559

Clarendon

32,037

Colleton

34,345

Darlington

35,764

Dillon

27,111

Dorchester

37,847

Edgefield

34,913

Fairfield

36,198

Florence

40,411

Georgetown

44,782

Greenville

46,066

Greenwood

35,829

Hampton

30,861

Horry

35,520

Jasper

27,762

Kershaw

39,842

Lancaster

47,505

Laurens

33,390

Lee

31,616

Lexington

44,497
2

County

Per Capita Income

McCormick

35,465

Marion

30,157

Marlboro

29,861

Newberry

36,846

Oconee

41,424

Orangeburg

32,668

Pickens

36,936

Richland

43,863

Saluda

33,164

Spartanburg

41,709

Sumter

36,887

Union

31,858

Williamsburg

31,735

York

44,343

3