Construction fees in South Carolina
This state has a general impact fee enabling act. Local governments here charge under a statewide statute, which means there are written limits on what can be charged, how it must be calculated and when it must be refunded.
S.C. Code Ann. § 6-1-910 et seq.
Guiding standard in the act: proportionate share; reasonably relates. That phrase is the ceiling on what may be charged, and it is the cheapest argument a fee payer has.
Your fee stack in South Carolina
Answer four things and get the list of every body that can bill this project, what each one is allowed to charge for, and the rights your state's law gives you before you pay.
What South Carolina says about your project
School impact fees were added in 2016, along with an exemption for public schools and volunteer fire departments from paying fees themselves.
The refund trigger is worded differently from other states: money must come back if it has not been spent within three years of when it was scheduled to be spent.
The act states plainly that a developer may not be required to pay more than a proportionate share, or to oversize facilities for others without compensation.
What the fees may pay for
10 of 10 facility categories are eligible here. A charge for anything not on this list is resting on some other authority, and that is a fair question to ask.
| Facility type | Eligible for impact fees |
|---|---|
| Roads and transportation | Yes |
| Water facilities | Yes |
| Wastewater and sewer | Yes |
| Stormwater and drainage | Yes |
| Parks and recreation | Yes |
| Fire | Yes |
| Police | Yes |
| Libraries | Yes |
| Solid waste | Yes |
| Schools | Yes |
What the jurisdiction had to do first
These are the homework requirements in the act. Where one is required and missing, that is a procedural defect you can raise without a lawyer.
| Planning requirement | In the act |
|---|---|
| Written analysis required | Yes |
| Service areas required | Yes |
| List of projects required | Yes |
| Growth projections required | Yes |
| Level of service standards required | Yes |
Timing, credits, refunds and waivers
| Provision | What the act says |
|---|---|
| When the fee may be collected | building permit |
| Waivers expressly authorized | affordable housing |
| Waived fees must be backfilled | yes |
| Notice before a new or increased fee | 30 days |
| Spend-or-refund window | 3 years past the scheduled expenditure date |
| Required update frequency | review every 5 years, update every 10 |
What to do next in South Carolina
- Confirm whether your parcel is in a city or unincorporated, then pull the taxing district list from the assessor's record. Why that list is the real fee list.
- Request the current adopted fee schedule and a written fee estimate for the address. The six-step sequence.
- Call each utility separately. Tap fees usually sit outside the act, and are often the largest line.
- If you are dedicating land or building improvements, request the credit in writing before assessment. How to ask.
- Calendar the refund date. Unspent fees here come back after 3 years past the scheduled expenditure date. Almost nobody claims these.
- Pay under protest if you intend to dispute anything at all. What that preserves.