Facts & Figures 2024: How Does Your State Compare?
Facts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min readHow does South Carolina’s tax code compare? South Carolina has a graduated state individual income tax, with rates ranging from 0.00 percent to 6.40 percent. South Carolina has a 5.0 percent corporate income tax rate. South Carolina also has a 6.00 percent state sales tax rate and an average combined state and local sales tax rate of 7.50 percent. South Carolina has a 0.46 percent effective property tax rate on owner-occupied housing value.
South Carolina does not have an estate tax or inheritance tax. South Carolina has a 28.75 cents per gallon gas tax rate and a $0.57 cigarette excise tax rate. The State of South Carolina collects $4,375 in state and local tax collections per capita. South Carolina has $7,260 in state and local debt per capita and has a 60 percent funded ratio of public pension plans. Overall, South Carolina’s tax system ranks 29th on our 2024 State Business Tax Climate Index.
Each state’s tax code is a multifaceted system with many moving parts, and South Carolina is no exception. The first step towards understanding South Carolina’s tax code is knowing the basics. How does South Carolina collect tax revenue? Click the tabs below to learn more! You can also explore our state tax maps, which are compiled from our annual publication, Facts & Figures 2024: How Does Your State Compare?
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SubscribeFacts & Figures serves as a one-stop state tax data resource that compares all 50 states on over 40 measures of tax rates, collections, burdens, and more.
2 min readIn recognition of the fact that there are better and worse ways to raise revenue, our Index focuses on how state tax revenue is raised, not how much. The rankings, therefore, reflect how well states structure their tax systems.
111 min readTax burdens rose across the country as pandemic-era economic changes caused taxable income, activities, and property values to rise faster than net national product. Tax burdens in 2020, 2021, and 2022 are all higher than in any other year since 1978.
24 min readIndividual income taxes are a major source of state government revenue, accounting for more than a third of state tax collections. How do income taxes compare in your state?
8 min readGraduated corporate rates are inequitable—that is, the size of a corporation bears no necessary relation to the income levels of the owners.
7 min readRetail sales taxes are an essential part of most states’ revenue toolkits, responsible for 32 percent of state tax collections and 13 percent of local tax collections (24 percent of combined collections).
9 min readA marriage penalty exists when a state’s income brackets for married taxpayers filing jointly are less than double the bracket widths that apply to single filers. In other words, married couples who file jointly under this scenario have a higher effective tax rate than they would if they filed as two single individuals with the same amount of combined income.
3 min readHowever well-intended they may be, sales tax holidays remain the same as they always have been—ineffective and inefficient.
43 min readWhile many factors influence business location and investment decisions, sales taxes are something within policymakers’ control that can have immediate impacts.
12 min readAmong the 46 states that held legislative sessions this year, structural state tax reform and temporary tax relief measures were recurring themes.
13 min readIf the policy goal of taxing cigarettes is to encourage cessation, vapor taxation must be considered a part of that policy design.
4 min readAlthough the majority of state tax changes take effect at the start of the calendar year, some are implemented at the beginning of the fiscal year. Fourteen states have notable tax changes taking effect on July 1.
7 min readThe Kansas experience is so infamous that “what about Kansas?” is almost guaranteed to be a question—sometimes as a retort, but often a genuine expression of concern—any time any state explores tax relief. But what about the other two dozen states that have cut their income taxes since then?
6 min readWhich states have the highest property taxes in 2022? See how your state compares in property taxes across the United States
5 min readThe sales tax is too important a part of states’ revenue toolkits to be permitted further erosion, making sales tax modernization a vital project of the 2020s.
17 min readRanking unemployment insurance tax codes on the 2022 State Business Tax Climate Index. Learn more about state unemployment insurance tax code and systems.
4 min read