Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Property Tax topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Assessor: rising legal-residency exemptions have implications for school operations funding
Summary
Beaufort County assessor Ebony Sanders told the finance committee that the number of property owners claiming the legal-residency (4%) special assessment has increased, reducing the pool that pays the school operations mill; Sanders outlined application windows, process changes and refund rules and warned applicants of a Jan. 15 deadline.
Beaufort County's assessor presented countywide data showing a notable increase in property owners receiving the legal-residency special assessment (sometimes called the homestead exemption in other states) and explained how that shift affects school-operations tax revenues.
Assessor Ebony Sanders told the Finance, Administration & Economic Development Committee that staff have seen an increase in the number of legal-residency exemptions for 2024 and that county staff are currently vetting applications submitted through mid-November. "They have until January 15 to apply for the exemption," Sanders said, noting that applications filed before that date and approved will result in adjusted bills or refunds without penalty. She described changes made in assessor's office procedures intended to reduce the application burden, such as accepting the taxpayer's full-year SC-1040 in some cases instead of asking for an entirely new packet of documents.
Sanders stressed the difference that matters most for many taxpayers: the county does not collect school operations mills from 4% legal-residency accounts. County staff and committee members explained that, under South Carolina law and Act 388-related rules discussed in the meeting, the school-operations portion of property tax is allocated to non-legal residents and certain property types, so expansion in the 4% class shifts the tax burden onto the remainder of taxpayers. "The 4% property owners are exempt from [school operations], completely," Sanders said.
She also described the county's refund process: taxpayers who paid a bill and then submitted an application before Jan. 15 may receive an adjustment and refund; late applications (after Jan. 15) require the taxpayer to pay the bill and then seek a refund through a formal refund-review process that can involve the auditor, assessor and treasurer. Sanders emphasized that penalties and interest may not be waived except in cases of a county error. "Penalties and interest cannot be waived because of delay in applying for the legal residency ... In order for an adjustment or to a penalty or interest to be waived, it must be a county error," she said.
The committee asked for district-level breakdowns and clearer budget-category reporting; Sanders said staff will provide district and time-series charts and that outreach events and postcards are being used to encourage proactive applications.
Next steps: staff will provide requested district-level charts and a two-page executive summary for committee members; taxpayers seeking refunds or help with applications are directed to the assessor's office before Jan. 15.
