Problems persist in South Carolina's secretive system for taxing vehicles - Charleston Post Courier
Not all vehicles are subject to annual property tax in South Carolina. For starters, government-owned vehicles and those owned by nonprofit institutions including colleges, hospitals, housing corporations, churches and charitable groups are tax-exempt. There also are tax exemptions that apply to small numbers of private citizens, generally military veterans who were held prisoner, permanently disabled, or awarded the Medal of Honor. In Charleston County, for example, nine residents receive vehicle tax exemptions because they are disabled veterans. South Carolina's Medal of Honor tax exemption, allowing for up to two tax-free vehicles, applies to just one person: the only living recipient of the medal in the state, retired Marine Maj. These are a few examples of flaws that persist in South Carolina's car-tax system, 15 years after an audit concluded nearly half of the cars and trucks in the state were improperly taxed. The Post and Courier was able to analyze a representative sample by using the Freedom of Information Act to obtain Charleston County's 344,759 car tax records — more than 8 percent of vehicles registered in the state in 2014. The analysis revealed... A car-rental company received a more-than-$6,000 tax bill for one of. Source: www.postandcourier.com
