A young woman shops at Area 57 at Columbia Place Mall on April 24, 2020, in Columbia, South Carolina. Richland County is among 18 counties with a sales tax question on the general election ballot in November 2024. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images)
COLUMBIA — Beyond electing officials this November, voters across South Carolina are also deciding how much they’ll be paying in sales taxes within their county.
Voters are being asked in 18 of South Carolina’s 46 counties — 40% —whether they approve increasing their local sales taxes or continuing to pay an extra penny on the dollar for construction or, in one county, to reduce property taxes. In several counties, voters are answering questions about two extra pennies.
That’s a higher-than-usual number of sales tax questions on general election ballots, according to Tim Smith, public information officer with the state Department of Revenue.
South Carolina has a 6% sales tax for state coffers. (A long list of items exempt from sales taxes in South Carolina includes groceries and prescriptions.)