Municipal law expert outlines home‑rule origins and mayoral powers for Kiawah Island council

Eric Scheidel, general counsel for the Municipal Association of South Carolina, told the Kiawah Island council that "the federal constitution is silent on local government," and that South Carolina's modern home‑rule framework grew from 1960s court rulings and constitutional amendments.

Scheidel framed the legal baseline the council should use: under the Local Government Act municipalities in South Carolina operate as political subdivisions of the state and generally have whatever powers are not expressly denied by state law. "In home rule," he said, "you have all those powers that are not expressly denied to you." He contrasted that presumption with Dillon's Rule, which limits local governments to powers expressly granted by the legislature.

Why it matters: the distinction determines how far the council can delegate tasks, set personnel rules, or adopt local policies without running afoul of state preemption. Scheidel recommended that the council adopt written policies to resolve ambiguities — for example, precisely how an administrator reports to the mayor and what functions must be referred to council.

Council members asked detailed questions about staff appointments and the timing of reappointments after elections. Scheidel explained that some positions (the municipal clerk, town attorney and treasurer) have statutorily defined duties and are council appointments, while an administrator "serves at the pleasure of council" and may be governed by a contract. To avoid disputes over so‑called "binding future councils," he recommended reappointing administrators after general elections or adopting clear contract language.

On executive duties, Scheidel said the mayor in a mayor‑council form "acts as the chief administrative officer" by statute and retains certain powers (presiding over meetings; appointing and removing employees except for those appointed by council). He cautioned that the statute gives limited guidance on how those powers operate in practice and said the most practical remedy is local written policy that sets out who prepares the agenda, who prepares the budget, and which staff reports go to council.

The workshop closed with Scheidel offering sample personnel and litigation‑management policies and with staff and council agreeing to follow up with draft policies and memos for council consideration.