S0815 is a proposed constitutional amendment that would revise Article X of the South Carolina Constitution, which governs property taxation. The bill’s core purpose is to give the General Assembly broader authority to determine by law the classifications of property and the assessment ratios applied to those classes for ad valorem taxation. It preserves the concept of equal and uniform taxation within each classification, but shifts more of the detailed policy choices from the constitution itself to future legislation.
The amendment restates and reorganizes the existing property-tax framework, including categories for manufacturers, utilities, mining operations, transportation companies, legal residences, agricultural property, other real property, business inventories, farm machinery and equipment, and personal property. It also retains the special declining assessment schedule for titled passenger vehicles and pickup trucks, and it allows the General Assembly to establish administrative procedures for property owners to qualify for classifications. In addition, the bill provides that the General Assembly may change assessment ratios only with a two-thirds vote of each house, and it directs that the proposed amendment be submitted to voters at the next general election for representatives.
Impact
If adopted, the measure would amend the state constitution and expand legislative control over property-tax classifications and assessment ratios, reducing the degree to which those rules are fixed in constitutional text. It would affect state and local property taxation, including how real property, business property, agricultural land, farm equipment, and motor vehicles are assessed for tax purposes. The amendment would also preserve existing statutes on property assessment unless they conflict with the revised constitutional language, and it would require future ratio changes to meet a supermajority threshold in the General Assembly.
Sentiment
Based on the bill text and the absence of committee transcripts or recorded votes, there is no documented public debate in the provided materials. The measure appears to be a structural tax-policy proposal rather than a partisan or highly controversial bill on its face. Its inclusion of a voter referendum suggests an effort to secure public approval for changing the constitutional property-tax framework.
Contention
The main point of contention is likely to be the shift of authority from the constitution to the legislature, especially because that change could make property-tax classifications and assessment ratios easier to adjust in the future. Property owners, local governments, and tax policy advocates may differ on whether this flexibility is desirable or whether it creates uncertainty or opens the door to higher taxes. Another possible area of concern is the effect on agricultural, business, and residential taxpayers, since the bill preserves existing categories but authorizes the General Assembly to redefine them by law.