SOUTH CAROLINA REVENUE AND FISCAL AFFAIRS OFFICE
S
TATEMENT OF ESTIMATED FISCAL IMPACT
WWW.RFA.SC.GOV • (803)734-3793
This fiscal impact statement is produced in compliance with the South Carolina Code of Laws and House and Senate rules. The focus of
the analysis is on governmental expenditure and revenue impacts and may not provide a comprehensive summary of the legislation.
Page 1 of 3
H. 3165
Fiscal Impact Summary
This bill requires a county to report to a city any residential development plan that is located
within a one-mile radius of the bordering city on a monthly basis. Additionally, any municipality
increasing its territory must file notice with the county where the property to be annexed is
located before the first reading of the proposed annexation. The bill also revises requirements
related to ordinances required to impose and collect developmental impact fees; revises
requirements for ordinance passage procedures, ordinance contents, and related reporting
requirements; and makes changes to notice publication and content requirements for capital
improvement plans. Lastly, the bill changes the number of years after which an impact fee must
be refunded to the owner of the property if the fee has not been expended from three years to
seven years.
The Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office (RFA) contacted all county governments and the
Municipal Association of South Carolina (MASC) regarding the impact of this bill and received
responses from three counties and MASC. Based on the responses, we do not anticipate a
significant expenditure impact on local governments. The three responding counties indicate that
the bill will have no expenditure impact. MASC indicates that requiring county governments to
report to municipalities any residential development plans within a one-mile radius of the
bordering city may foster improved urban planning and growth management, potentially
resulting in enhanced efficiency in service provision and better planning for future growth trends.
Additionally, MASC notes that the bill will require municipalities to incorporate the additional
step of filing a notice with the county when they annex property. MASC indicates that if
municipalities are required to mail or deliver the notice, this will result in additional postage
and/or courier costs to municipalities. However, if electronic submission of the required notice is
acceptable, MASC anticipates that the administrative burden will be negligible.
Further, MASC indicates that removing certain requirements related to the implementation of
developmental impact fees may lead to broader adoption of such fees across municipal
governments, providing for increased revenue generation to offset the costs of high growth, such
as increased system and service demand. MASC also anticipates that changing the number of
years after which an impact fee must be refunded from three years to seven years will allow
municipalities to more easily accommodate all phases of large-scale municipal projects,
including site location/acquisition, engineering and design, permitting, and construction.
Bill Number: H. 3165 Introduced on Januar
y 14, 2025
Subject: Development Impact Fee
Requestor: House Medical, Military, Public, and Municipal Affairs
RFA Analyst(s): Bryant
Impact Date: February 20, 2025
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H. 3165
Explanation of Fiscal Impact
Introduced on January 14, 2025
State Expenditure
N/A
State Revenue
N/A
Local Expenditure
This bill requires a county to report to a city any residential development plan that is located
within a one-mile radius of the bordering city on a monthly basis. Additionally, any municipality
increasing its territory must file notice with the county where the property to be annexed is
located before the first reading of the proposed annexation. The bill also revises requirements
related to ordinances required to impose and collect developmental impact fees; revises
requirements for ordinance passage procedures, ordinance contents, and related reporting
requirements; and makes changes to notice publication and content requirements for capital
improvement plans.
RFA contacted all county governments and MASC regarding the impact of this bill and received
responses from three counties and MASC. Based on the responses, we do not anticipate a
significant expenditure impact on local governments. The three responding counties indicate that
the bill will have no expenditure impact. MASC indicates that requiring county governments to
report to municipalities any residential development plans within a one-mile radius of the
bordering city may foster improved urban planning and growth management, potentially
resulting in enhanced efficiency in service provision and better planning for future growth trends.
Additionally, MASC notes that the bill will require municipalities to incorporate the additional
step of filing a notice with the county when they annex property. MASC indicates that if
municipalities are required to mail or deliver the notice, this will result in additional postage
and/or courier costs to municipalities. However, if electronic submission of the required notice is
acceptable, MASC anticipates that the administrative burden will be negligible.
Local Revenue
This bill revises requirements related to ordinances required to impose and collect developmental
impact fees; revises requirements for ordinance passage procedures, ordinance contents, and
related reporting requirements; and makes changes to notice publication and content
requirements for capital improvement plans. The bill also changes the number of years after
which an impact fee must be refunded to the owner of the property if the fee has not been
expended from three years to seven.
RFA contacted all county governments and MASC regarding the impact of this bill and received
responses from three counties and MASC. MASC indicates that removing certain requirements
related to the implementation of developmental impact fees may lead to broader adoption of such
fees across municipal governments, providing for increased revenue generation to offset the
costs of high growth, such as increased system and service demand. MASC also anticipates that
__________________________________
Frank A. Rainwater, Executive Director
DISCLAIMER: THIS FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT REPRESENTS THE OPINION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE
AGENCY OFFICIAL WHO APPROVED AND SIGNED THIS DOCUMENT. IT IS PROVIDED AS INFORMATION TO
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSIDERED AS AN EXPRESSION OF LEGISLATIVE INTENT.
Page 3 of 3
H. 3165
changing the number of years after which an impact fee must be refunded from three years to
seven years will allow municipalities to more easily accommodate all phases of large-scale
municipal projects, including site location/acquisition, engineering and design, permitting, and
construction.