S*1240 Session 107 (1987-1988)
S*1240(Rat #0789, Act #0666 of 1988) General Bill, By J.M. Waddell
Similar(H 3712)
A Bill to amend Section 12-37-220, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
relating to property tax exemptions, so as to provide that all new corporate
headquarters, corporate office facilities, distribution facilities, and all
additions to existing headquarters, office facilities, or distribution
facilities, if the cost is fifty thousand dollars or more and seventy-five or
more new full-time jobs are created in South Carolina, are exempt from county
ad valorem taxes for a period of five years from the time of establishment,
and to provide that corporations establishing corporate headquarters in this
State or adding to an existing headquarters, which establishment or addition
costs fifty thousand dollars or more and results in the creation of
seventy-five or more new full-time jobs at least forty of which are staff
employees, are allowed a corporate income tax credit equal to twenty percent
of certain development or construction costs.-amended title
02/25/88 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-9
02/25/88 Senate Referred to Committee on Finance SJ-9
03/29/88 Senate Committee report: Favorable with amendment
Finance SJ-11
04/07/88 Senate Amended SJ-48
04/07/88 Senate Read second time SJ-54
04/07/88 Senate Unanimous consent for third reading on next
legislative day SJ-54
04/08/88 Senate Read third time and sent to House SJ-17
04/12/88 House Introduced and read first time HJ-2617
04/12/88 House Referred to Committee on Ways and Means HJ-2617
05/11/88 House Committee report: Favorable with amendment Ways
and Means HJ-3665
05/31/88 House Amended HJ-4371
05/31/88 House Read second time HJ-4371
06/01/88 House Read third time HJ-4493
06/01/88 House Returned HJ-4493
06/02/88 Senate Concurred in House amendment and enrolled SJ-86
06/20/88 Ratified R 789
06/27/88 Signed By Governor
06/27/88 Effective date 06/27/88
06/27/88 Act No. 666
08/01/88 Copies available
(A666, R789, S1240)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 12-37-220, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976,
RELATING TO PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT ALL NEW CORPORATE
HEADQUARTERS, CORPORATE OFFICE FACILITIES, DISTRIBUTION FACILITIES, AND ALL
ADDITIONS TO EXISTING HEADQUARTERS, OFFICE FACILITIES, OR DISTRIBUTION
FACILITIES, IF THE COST IS FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS OR MORE AND SEVENTY-FIVE OR
MORE NEW FULL-TIME JOBS ARE CREATED IN SOUTH CAROLINA, ARE EXEMPT FROM COUNTY AD
VALOREM TAXES FOR A PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS FROM THE TIME OF ESTABLISHMENT, AND TO
PROVIDE THAT CORPORATIONS ESTABLISHING CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS IN THIS STATE OR
ADDING TO AN EXISTING HEADQUARTERS, WHICH ESTABLISHMENT OR ADDITION COSTS FIFTY
THOUSAND DOLLARS OR MORE AND RESULTS IN THE CREATION OF SEVENTY-FIVE OR MORE NEW
FULL-TIME JOBS AT LEAST FORTY OF WHICH ARE STAFF EMPLOYEES, ARE ALLOWED A
CORPORATE INCOME TAX CREDIT EQUAL TO TWENTY PERCENT OF CERTAIN DEVELOPMENT OR
CONSTRUCTION COSTS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Property tax exemption for corporate headquarters, office facilities, and
distribution facilities
SECTION 1. Section 12-37-220(B) of the 1976 Code is amended by adding an
appropriately numbered item to read:
"( ) All new corporate headquarters, corporate office facilities,
distribution facilities, and all additions to existing corporate headquarters,
corporate office facilities, or distribution facilities located in South
Carolina, established or constructed, or placed in service after the effective
date of this item, are exempt from county ad valorem taxes for a period of five
years from the time of establishment, construction, or being placed in service
if the cost of the new construction or additions is fifty thousand dollars or
more and seventy-five or more new jobs which are full-time are created in South
Carolina.
For the purpose of this exemption, the term:
(1) 'new job' means any job created by an employer in South Carolina at the
time a new facility or an expansion is initially staffed, but does not include
a job created when an employee is shifted from an existing South Carolina
location to work in a new or expanded facility;
(2) 'full-time' means a job requiring a minimum of thirty-five hours of an
employee's time a week for the entire normal year of company operations or a job
requiring a minimum of thirty-five hours of an employee's time for a week for a
year in which the employee was initially hired for or transferred to the South
Carolina corporate headquarters, corporate office facility, or distribution
facility and worked at a rented facility pending construction of a corporate
headquarters, corporate office facility, or distribution facility;
(3) 'corporate headquarters' means the location where corporate staff
members or employees are domiciled and employed, and where the majority of the
company's financial, personnel, legal, planning, or other business functions are
handled either on a regional or national basis and must be the sole such
corporate headquarters within the region or nation;
(4) 'staff employee' or 'staff member' means executive, administrative, or
professional worker. At least eighty percent of an executive employee's business
functions must involve the management of the enterprise and directing the work
of at least two employees. An executive employee has the authority to hire and
fire or has the authority to make recommendations related to hiring, firing,
advancement, and promotion decisions, and an executive employee must customarily
exercise discretionary powers. An administrative employee is an employee who is
not involved in manual work and whose work is directly related to management
policies or general business operations. An administrative employee must
customarily exercise discretion and independent judgment. A professional
employee is an employee whose primary duty is work requiring knowledge of an
advanced type in a field of science or learning. This knowledge is characterized
by a prolonged course of specialized study. The work must be original and
creative in nature, and the work cannot be standardized over a specific period
of time. The work must require consistent exercise of discretion;
(5) 'region' or 'regional' means a geographic area comprised of either:
(a) at least five states, including South Carolina, or
(b) two or more states, including South Carolina, if the entire business
operations of the corporation are performed within fewer than five states;
(6) 'corporate office facility' means the location where corporate
managerial, professional, technical, and administrative personnel are domiciled
and employed, and where corporate financial, personnel, legal, technical, support
services, and other business functions are handled. Support services include,
but are not limited to, claims processing, data entry, word processing, sales
order processing, and telemarketing;
(7) 'distribution facility' means an establishment where shipments of
tangible personal property are processed for delivery to customers, but the term
'distribution facility' does not include an establishment which operates as a
location where retail sales of tangible personal property are made to customers.
A distribution facility includes establishments which process customer sales
orders by mail, telephone, or electronic means, if the establishment also
processes shipments of tangible personal property to customers. The terms
'retail sale', and 'tangible personal property', for purposes of this definition,
have those meanings as contained in Chapter 35 of Title 12.
Certification of the required investment and the number of new jobs which are
full-time and which are created must be provided by the South Carolina Tax
Commission to the appropriate local tax officials."
Corporate income tax credit for corporate headquarters
SECTION 2. A corporation establishing a corporate headquarters in this State,
or adding to an existing corporate headquarters, is allowed a credit against any
tax due pursuant to Section 12-7-230 or Section 12-19-70 of the 1976 Code in an
amount equal to twenty percent of the (1) costs incurred in the design,
preparation, and development of either establishing or expanding a corporate
headquarters, and (2) direct construction or the direct lease costs during the
first five years of operations for the corporate headquarters. This credit
applies to all qualifying costs incurred to establish or expand a corporate
headquarters which add at least seventy-five new jobs which are full-time in
South Carolina with at least forty of the new jobs classified as staff employees,
and the cost of the new construction or additions is fifty thousand dollars or
more. This credit only applies to facilities established for the direct use of
the headquarters staff employees. This credit is nonrefundable but an unused
credit may be carried forward for ten taxable years.
For purposes of this section, the terms "corporate headquarters",
"new jobs", and "full-time" are defined as provided in
Section 12-37-220(B).
The amount of any credit allowed under this section must be reduced by the
amount of any past-due debt owed to the State of South Carolina by the taxpayer.
Time effective
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor. |