South Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: In Committee

S 538 — Agricultural Property

Last action — Referred to Committee on Finance

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced April 03, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Stalled 14% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 1 sponsor

    1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 12-37-220, RELATING TO GENERAL EXEMPTION FROM TAXES, SO AS TO DEFINE FARM BUILDING AND STRUCTURES QUALIFYING FOR THE EXEMPTION TO BE BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES LOCATED ON PROPERTY THAT RECEIVES THE AGRICULTRUAL ASSESSMENT RATIO; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 12-43-220, RELATING TO TAX CLASSIFICATIONS SO AS TO ALLOW FOR A TAXPAYER TO APPLY FOR A REFUND OF PROPERTY TAXES OVERPAID BECAUSE THE PROPERTY WAS ELIGIBLE FOR THE AGRICULTURAL ASSESSMENT RATIO.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

39 added · 10 removed

Plain-language change summary

The recent amendment to Bill S 538 in South Carolina specifies that tax exemptions for farm buildings and structures will now only apply to properties that qualify for the agricultural assessment ratio. Additionally, the bill now allows taxpayers to apply for refunds on any property taxes they overpaid if their property was eligible for this same agricultural assessment. These changes are significant because they aim to clarify eligibility for tax exemptions, helping farmers by potentially reducing their tax burden and providing a way to reclaim overpayments.

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2025-2026 Bill 538 Text of Previous Version (Apr.
03, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online South Carolina General Assembly126th Session, 2025-2026Bill 538Indicates Matter StrickenIndicates New Matter(Text matches printed bills.
Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)                 A bill   TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 12-37-220, RELATING TO GENERAL EXEMPTION FROM TAXES, SO AS TO DEFINE FARM BUILDING AND STRUCTURES QUALIFYING FOR THE EXEMPTION TO BE BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES LOCATED ON PROPERTY THAT RECEIVES THE AGRICULTRUAL ASSESSMENT RATIO;
AND BY AMENDING SECTION 12-43-220, RELATING TO TAX CLASSIFICATIONS SO AS TO ALLOW FOR A TAXPAYER TO APPLY FOR A REFUND OF PROPERTY TAXES OVERPAID BECAUSE THE PROPERTY WAS ELIGIBLE FOR THE AGRICULTURAL ASSESSMENT RATIO.
  Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
  SECTION 1.  Section 12-37-220(B)(14) of the S.C.
Code is amended to read:
      (14)(a) all farm buildings and agricultural structures owned by a producer in this State used to house livestock, poultry, crops, farm equipment, or farm supplies and all farm machinery and equipment including self-propelled farm machinery and equipment except for motor vehicles licensed for use on the highways.  For the purpose of this section "self-propelled farm machinery and equipment" means farm machinery or equipment which contains within itself the means for its own locomotion.
For purposes of this item, farm equipment includes greenhouses;
       (b) farm buildings and structures qualifying for the exemption allowed pursuant to subitem (a) must be located on property that meets the requirements set forth in Sections 12-43-220(d), 12-43-230, and 12-43-232 and must be receiving the agricultural exemption provided for in Section 12-43-220(d)(1);
  SECTION 2.  Section 12-43-220 of the S.C.
Code is amended by adding:
      (h) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a taxpayer may apply for a refund of property taxes overpaid because the property was eligible for the agricultural assessment ratio.
The application must be made in accordance with Section 12-60-2560.
The taxpayer must establish that the property in question was in fact used for agricultural purposes.
  SECTION 3.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
----XX---- This web page was last updated on April 03, 2025 at 11:38 AM
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Action History

  1. Referred to Committee on Finance

  2. Introduced and read first time

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 169 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (169)

169 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 169 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

taxation agriculture
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 538 do?
A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 12-37-220, RELATING TO GENERAL EXEMPTION FROM TAXES, SO AS TO DEFINE FARM BUILDING AND STRUCTURES QUALIFYING FOR THE EXEMPTION TO BE BUILDINGS AND STRUCTURES LOCATED ON PROPERTY THAT RECEIVES THE AGRICULTRUAL ASSESSMENT RATIO; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 12-43-220, RELATING TO TAX CLASSIFICATIONS SO AS TO ALLOW FOR A TAXPAYER TO APPLY FOR A REFUND OF PROPERTY TAXES OVERPAID BECAUSE THE PROPERTY WAS ELIGIBLE FOR THE AGRICULTURAL ASSESSMENT RATIO.
Who sponsors S 538?
S 538 is sponsored by Senator Russell L. Ott.
What is the current status of S 538?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced April 03, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 538?
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