H*2186 Session 105 (1983-1984)
H*2186(Rat #0347, Act #0316 of 1984) General Bill, By H.H. Keyserling,
W.D. Arthur, B. Campbell, W.N. Cork, V.L. Crocker, M.L. Eargle, H.E. Pearce,
A.V. Rawl, J.H. Toal, Washington, M.H. Westbrook and J.M. White
Similar(H 2315)
A Bill to amend Chapter 35 of Title 12, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
relating to retail license sales and use taxes, by adding Article 6 so as to
levy a sales tax of two percent of the gross proceeds on the rental of
transient accommodations, to provide the manner in which the funds generated
by the tax may be expanded and provide a formula by which the funds are
distributed to the municipalities and counties of this State.-amended title
01/12/83 House Introduced and read first time HJ-294
01/12/83 House Referred to Committee on Medical, Military,
Public and Municipal Affairs HJ-294
03/03/83 House Committee report: Favorable with amendment
Medical, Military, Public and Municipal Affairs
HJ-1283
03/10/83 House Objection by Rep. Blackwell, Ogburn & Sheppard HJ-146
03/16/83 House Special order, set for after consideration of
H-2657 (under H-2684) HJ-1526
03/16/83 House Amended HJ-1549
03/16/83 House Debate interrupted HJ-1564
03/17/83 House Amended HJ-1585
03/17/83 House Read second time HJ-1589
03/23/83 House Read third time and sent to Senate HJ-1644
03/23/83 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-779
03/23/83 Senate Referred to Committee on Finance SJ-780
04/20/83 Senate Committee report: Favorable Finance SJ-1063
05/03/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1200
05/11/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1321
05/12/83 Senate Debate adjourned SJ-342
05/17/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1373
05/18/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1395
05/19/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1425
05/24/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1439
05/25/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1441
11/08/83 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-5
01/11/84 Senate Debate adjourned SJ-342
02/01/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-533
02/02/84 Senate Debate adjourned SJ-544
02/07/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-590
02/08/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-608
02/09/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-615
02/14/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-650
02/15/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-653
02/22/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-719
02/23/84 Senate Amended SJ-757
02/23/84 Senate Read second time SJ-761
02/23/84 Senate Ordered to third reading with notice of
amendments SJ-761
03/01/84 Senate Special order SJ-844
03/14/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1006
03/15/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1054
03/20/84 Senate Debate interrupted SJ-1092
03/21/84 Senate Amended SJ-1108
03/21/84 Senate Read third time SJ-1116
03/21/84 Senate Returned SJ-1116
03/27/84 House Concurred in Senate amendment and enrolled HJ-2009
03/28/84 Ratified R 347
04/03/84 Signed By Governor
04/03/84 Effective date 07/01/84
04/03/84 Act No. 316
04/11/84 Copies available
(A316, R347, H2186)
AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 35 OF TITLE 12, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976,
RELATING TO RETAIL LICENSE SALES AND USE TAXES, BY ADDING ARTICLE 6 SO AS TO LEVY
A SALES TAX OF TWO PERCENT OF THE GROSS PROCEEDS ON THE RENTAL OF TRANSIENT
ACCOMMODATIONS, TO PROVIDE THE MANNER IN WHICH THE FUNDS GENERATED BY THE TAX MAY
BE EXPENDED AND PROVIDE A FORMULA BY WHICH THE FUNDS ARE DISTRIBUTED TO THE
MUNICIPALITIES AND COUNTIES OF THIS STATE.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Findings
SECTION 1. The General Assembly finds that areas of the State which have a high
concentration of tourism activity may also be required from time to time to
provide additional county and municipal services including but not limited to law
enforcement, traffic control, public facilities, and highway and street
maintenance, as well as the continual promotion of tourism. The purpose of this
act is not to provide an additional source of revenue for counties and
municipalities required to provide services normally provided by the county or
municipality but to promote tourism and enlarge its economic benefits through
advertising, promotion, and providing those facilities and services which enhance
the ability of the county or municipality to attract and provide for tourists.
Accommodations tax levied
SECTION 2. The 1976 Code is amended by adding to Chapter 35 of Title 12:
"ARTICLE 6
ACCOMMODATIONS TAX
Section 12-35-710. (1) In addition to the tax levied in Sections 12-35-510,
12-35-810, and 12-35-1120 and Article 11 of Chapter 35 of Title 12, there is
levied and imposed an additional sales tax of two percent of the gross proceeds
from the rental of transient accommodations, including campgrounds, which are
subject to the state sales tax.
The tax provided for in this section shall be collected by the Tax Commission
in the manner that the sales tax prescribed in Chapter 35 of Title 12 is
collected. All provisions of law other than Section 12-35-520 applicable to the
sales tax must apply with equal force and effect to the additional sales tax on
transient accommodations, including the requirement that all persons subject
to the tax must acquire the necessary sales tax license provided for in Section
12-35-320. The proceeds of the tax, less the Tax Commission's actual incremental
increase in the cost of administration, must be remitted quarterly to the
municipality or to the county in which it is collected. Procedures for
collection of the tax shall be established by regulations promulgated by the Tax
Commission. In addition to other regulations the commission considers necessary,
the commission's regulations must prescribe that the customers paying the sales
tax on transient accommodations must have the regular four percent sales tax and
the additional tax on accommodations billed and paid in a single tax item listed
as 'tax', without itemizing the two taxes as separate items. When any business
is subject to the accommodations tax and such business has more than one place
of business in the State, the licensee shall separately report in his sales tax
return the total gross proceeds derived from business done within and without the
corporate limits of municipalities.
(2) The two percent transient accommodations tax provided for by this section
may not be increased except upon approval of two-thirds of the membership of each
House of the General Assembly. However, the tax may be decreased or repealed by
a simple majority of the membership of each House of the General Assembly.
Section 12-35-720. (1) The funds received by a municipality or a county must
be allocated in the following manner: (A) The first twenty-five thousand
dollars must be allocated to the general fund of the municipality or county and
shall be exempt from all other requirements of this article. (B) Twenty-five
percent of the remaining balance must be allocated to a special fund and used for
advertising and promotion of tourism so as to develop and increase tourist
attendance through the generation of publicity. To manage and direct the
expenditure of these tourism promotion funds, the municipality or county must
select one or more organizations, such as a Chamber of Commerce, Visitor and
Convention Bureau, or Regional Tourism Commission, which have an existing,
ongoing tourist promotion program or, if no such organization exists, to create
an organization with the same membership standard as put forth in paragraph (3)
of this section. To be eligible for selection the organization must be organized
as a nonprofit organization and must demonstrate to the municipality or county
that it has an existing, ongoing tourism promotion program or that it can develop
an effective tourism promotion program. Prior to the beginning of each fiscal
year, any organization receiving funds collected pursuant to the provisions of
this article from a municipality or county must submit a budget of planned
expenditures. The organization must receive the approval of the municipality or
county which distributed the funds prior to expenditure of the funds. At the end
of each fiscal year, any organization receiving funds must render an accounting
of the expenditure of the funds to the municipality or county which distributed
them. (C) The remaining balance received by a municipality or county must be
allocated to a special fund and used for tourism-related expenditures.
The term 'tourism-related expenditures' includes the following types of
expenditures: advertising and promotion of tourism so as to develop and increase
tourist attendance through the generation of publicity; promotion of the arts and
cultural events; construction, maintenance, and operation of facilities for civic
and cultural activities including construction and maintenance of utilities for
such facilities; the criminal justice system, law enforcement, fire protection,
solid waste collection and health facilities when required to serve tourists and
tourist facilities; public facilities such as restrooms, dressing rooms, parks
and parking lots; tourist shuttle transportation; control and repair of
waterfront erosion; and operating visitor information centers. Provided,
however, that in the expenditure of funds, county councils are required to
promote tourism and make tourism-related expenditures primarily in the
geographical areas of the county in which the proceeds of the tax are collected
where it is practical. Any person or political subdivision which determines that
the expenditure of accommodations tax proceeds by the county is not substantially
in compliance with the provisions of this paragraph may seek relief to obtain
compliance in the Court of Common Pleas of the county concerned.
(2) A municipality or county may issue bonds or enter into other financial
obligations or create reserves to secure obligations for the purposes of
financing all or a portion of the cost of constructing facilities for civic
activities, the arts, and cultural events which fulfill the purpose of this
article. The annual debt service of indebtedness incurred to finance such
facilities or lease payments for the use of the facilities may be provided from
the funds received by a municipality or county from the accommodations tax in an
amount not to exceed the amount received by the municipality or county after
deduction of the accommodations tax funds dedicated to the general fund and the
advertising and promotion fund as provided for in this article. Provided,
however, that none of the revenue received by a municipality or county from the
accommodations tax may be used to retire outstanding bonded indebtedness incurred
prior to July 1, 1984.
(3) A municipality or county receiving revenue from the accommodations tax
must appoint an advisory committee to make recommmendations on the expenditure
of revenue generated from the accommodations tax. The advisory committee shall
consist of not less than five members with a majority of the committee members
being selected from the hospitality industry of the municipality or county
receiving the revenue.
Section 12-35-730. For the purposes of this section 'county area' means a county
and all municipalities within the geographical boundaries of that county. There
is hereby created an account to administer the accommodations tax as authorized
by this article. It must be administered by the State Treasurer in the following
manner:
(a) At the end of each fiscal year and prior to August first a percentage, to
be determined by the State Auditor, must be withheld from those county areas
collecting four hundred thousand dollars or more from that amount which exceeds
four hundred thousand dollars from the tax authorized by this article and that
amount must be distributed to assure that each county area receives a minimum of
fifty thousand dollars; provided, however, that the amount withheld from those
county areas collecting four hundred thousand dollars or more must be apportioned
among the municipalities and the county in the same proportion as those units
receive quarterly remittances as provided in subsection (1) of Section 12-35-710;
provided, that if the total collections as a result of the tax imposed by Section
12-35-710 in any fiscal year after 1984 exceed such collections for fiscal year
1984, this fifty thousand dollar figure shall be increased by seventy-five
percent for that fiscal year. The difference between the fifty thousand dollar
minimum and the actual collections within a county area shall be distributed to
the eligible units within the county area based on population as determined by
the most recent United States census.
(b) At the end of each fiscal year and prior to August first, the State
Auditor must distribute to each county area collecting more than fifty thousand
dollars but less than four hundred thousand dollars an additional fifteen
thousand dollars; provided, that if the total collections as a result of the tax
imposed by Section 12-35-710 in any fiscal year after 1984 exceed such
collections for fiscal year 1984, this fifteen thousand dollar figure shall be
increased by seventy-five percent for that fiscal year. This amount must be
distributed in the same manner as the fifty thousand dollars provided in item (a)
of this section. The amount paid those qualified county areas under the
provisions of this item must be paid from the account created under the
provisions of this section.
(c) Any amount withheld in excess shall be distributed to the county areas
whose collections exceed four hundred thousand dollars based on the ratio of the
funds available to the collections by each county area.
(d) Any county areas receiving fifty thousand dollars under the provisions of
this section or from the provisions of Section 12-35-710 are excluded from the
requirements of Section 12-35-720, except that the fifteen thousand dollars paid
to those county areas collecting more than fifty thousand dollars but less than
four hundred thousand dollars as provided in item (b) of this section must be
allocated to a special fund and used for the purposes as required in item (B) and
(C) of subsection (1) of Section 12-35-720 and an advisory committee must be
appointed as provided in subsection (3) of Section 12-35-720."
Severability clause
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, or part of this act shall be declared
unconstitutional, it shall be severed from the act, and the remaining provisions
hereof shall remain in full force and effect.
Time effective
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 1984. |