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South Carolina has the Twenty-Fifth Lowest State and Local Tax Burden in the Nation for FY 2016

Key Policy Data

Feb 11, 2015



In Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, South Carolina collected $16.9 billion in state and local taxes—or $3,416 for every man, woman, and child. While this is an impressive sum of money, it tells us little about whether or not the average South Carolina taxpayer can afford this level of taxation?

To better answer this question, this analysis will calculate South Carolina’s Tax Burden relative to the private sector. Ultimately, it is the private sector that creates new wealth and income. A high tax burden means a state is hobbling its private sector relative to other states and reducing their long-run economic growth potential.

Click here to view tax burden data by state, type of tax, and for years 1950 to 2016

As shown in Chart 1, South Carolina’s state and local tax burden (tax collections divided by private sector personal income) was the twenty-fifth lowest in the nation for FY 2016 at 13.8 percent—or -3 percent below the national average of 14.3 percent.

#SouthCarolina state and local #taxburden in FY 2016 was the 25th lowest in the nation at 13.8%— -3% below US average of 14.3% http://bit.ly/2FX9C8F @keypolicydata #SCpolitics #SCpol #SCleg #SCgov #PolicyData (click to tweet)

 

As shown in Chart 2, South Carolina’s tax burden has increased over time by 65 percent to 13.8 percent in FY 2016 from 8.4 percent in FY 1950.

#SouthCarolina state and local #taxburden has increased 65% between FY 1950 (8.4%) to 2016 (13.8%) http://bit.ly/2FX9C8F @keypolicydata #SCpolitics #SCpol #SCleg #SCgov #PolicyData (click to tweet)

Click here to view tax burden data by state, type of tax, and for years 1950 to 2016

To put South Carolina’s tax burden into perspective, let’s compare it to size of major industries in the state (as a percent of private sector income). As shown in Chart 3, South Carolina’s 13.3 percent tax burden is greater than these combined industries: retail trade (7.4 percent) and wholesale trade (4.9 percent).

#SouthCarolina state and local #taxburden > retail and wholesale http://bit.ly/2FX9C8F @keypolicydata #SCpolitics #SCpol #SCleg #SCgov #PolicyData (click to tweet)

South Carolina’s lower than average state and local tax burden is not driven by a particular tax, but by having lower than average tax burdens across a number of taxes: individual income tax burden (3.1 percent, 20th lowest), corporate income tax burden (0.4 percent, 20th lowest), and sales tax burden (3.1 percent, 17th lowest).

Of course, the tax burdens for local government can vary just as much as they do among the 50 states. As such, we have also calculated the local government tax burden for every County in South Carolina—this includes every taxing jurisdiction within the geographic county borders whether it is a city, a special district, or county government itself.

The 20 South Carolina counties with the highest local government tax burden include:

  • Horry County, SC (11.3 percent)
  • Fairfield County, SC (10.8 percent)
  • Union County, SC (10.7 percent)
  • Jasper County, SC (10.6 percent)
  • Hampton County, SC (9.3 percent)
  • Allendale County, SC (9.2 percent)
  • Clarendon County, SC (9.2 percent)
  • Orangeburg County, SC (9.0 percent)
  • Barnwell County, SC (8.7 percent)
  • Charleston County, SC (8.3 percent)
  • Georgetown County, SC (8.3 percent)
  • McCormick County, SC (8.2 percent)
  • Beaufort County, SC (8.0 percent)
  • Colleton County, SC (7.9 percent)
  • Richland County, SC (7.6 percent)
  • Williamsburg County, SC (7.4 percent)
  • Cherokee County, SC (7.2 percent)
  • Bamberg County, SC (7.0 percent)
  • Sumter County, SC (6.8 percent)
  • Greenwood County, SC (6.6 percent)

The 20 South Carolina counties with the lowest local government tax burden include:

  • Abbeville County, SC (5.8 percent)
  • Marion County, SC (5.5 percent)
  • Pickens County, SC (5.4 percent)
  • Calhoun County, SC (5.4 percent)
  • Florence County, SC (5.2 percent)
  • Lexington County, SC (5.2 percent)
  • York County, SC (5.1 percent)
  • Chesterfield County, SC (5.1 percent)
  • Laurens County, SC (5.1 percent)
  • Spartanburg County, SC (5.0 percent)
  • Anderson County, SC (4.7 percent)
  • Aiken County, SC (4.3 percent)
  • Dorchester County, SC (4.2 percent)
  • Edgefield County, SC (4.1 percent)
  • Kershaw County, SC (4.1 percent)
  • Saluda County, SC (3.9 percent)
  • Lancaster County, SC (3.8 percent)
  • Greenville County, SC (3.7 percent)
  • Darlington County, SC (3.6 percent)
  • Berkeley County, SC (3.3 percent)

 

Click here to view tax burden data by state, type of tax, and for years 1950 to 2016

Finally, don’t forget to watch our exclusive time-lapse video of state and local tax burdens over the last 66 years! See if your state has been above or below the national average?

 

 



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South Carolina has the Twenty-Fifth Lowest State and Local Tax Burden in the Nation for FY 2016

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