Opinions Archive -

Sep 19, 2022

Opinion considering whether real estate professionals, other than licensed appraisers, can use the term "value" regarding a real estate transaction and whether a REALTOR RPR Report meets the requirement for exemption from the South Carolina Real Estate Appraiser License and Certification Act.

Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Roger K. Kirby, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Sep 07, 2022

Opinion addressing applicability of FOIA discovery statutes to cast vote record data, as well as related constitutional considerations in Article II, section 1 of the Constitution of South Carolina.

Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Josiah Magnuson, James M. Burns, Victor M. Dabney, Stewart O. Jones, Robert J. "RJ" May, III, and Steven Wayne Long, Members, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Sep 07, 2022

Opinion addressing applicability of FOIA discovery statutes to cast vote record data, as well as related constitutional considerations in Article II, section 1 of the Constitution of South Carolina.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Thomas Corbin, Member, South Carolina Senate, The Honorable Dwight A. Loftis and James M. Burns, Members, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Aug 31, 2022

Opinion addresses the ability of a broker-in-charge to disburse funds held in trust upon the termination of a real estate transaction.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Chip Huggins, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Aug 25, 2022

Opinion on the role of a mayor in presiding over town council meetings under a council form of government.

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Requested by: Requested by Mr. Kenneth A. Davis, Attorney for the Town of Allendale.

Aug 19, 2022

Opinion addressing the parameters that a school board of trustees may establish regarding interviews of children on school grounds by employees of the Department of Social Services.

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Requested by: Requested by Andrea E. White, Esq., Counsel for the Cherokee County School District.

Aug 15, 2022

Opinion on certain questions related to the lawfulness of carrying a firearm with a concealed weapons permit in South Carolina State Parks.

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Requested by: Requested by Emily Johnson, General Counsel, South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation & Tourism.

Aug 08, 2022

Opinion on the County Greenspace Sales Tax Act.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Tom Davis, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Aug 02, 2022

Opinion on the authority of the Mayor for the Town of Sellers.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Frank Jones, Mayor, Town of Sellers.

Aug 01, 2022

Opinion addressing funding allocated for county coroner's offices according to S.C. Code Section 17-5-140.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Bobbi Jo O'Neal, President, South Carolina Coroner's Association.

Jul 22, 2022

Opinion regarding signs placed at all Charleston County parks prohibiting the carrying of concealable weapons.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Shane Martin, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Jul 19, 2022

Opinion addressing whether a county may charge businesses different business license tax rates based on domicile.

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Requested by: Requested by Mr. W.K. Taylor, Esquire, Beaufort County Attorney.

Jul 19, 2022

Opinion addressing the South Carolina Procurement Code and limited exceptions to using a competitive sealed bidding procedure.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Shane Massey, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Jul 13, 2022

Opinion on dual office holding.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Robert Stamper, Member, Andrews Town Council

Jul 08, 2022

Review of a Horry County Ordinance that limits where people who are on the Sex Registry can work.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Jimmy A. Richardson, II, Solicitor, Fifteenth Judicial Circuit.

Jun 30, 2022

Opinion addressing whether a person whose name is on a joint account may be held criminally liable for improperly withdrawing funds from that account.

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Requested by: Requested by Detective Mikhail M. Mironenko, Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office.

Jun 30, 2022

Opinion addressing whether certain investment statutes apply to a charter school if its sponsor is an independent institution of higher learning.

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Requested by: Requested by William J. Condon, Jr., Esq., Deputy General Counsel, Office of the State Treasurer.

Jun 28, 2022

Opinion regarding gambling laws and the Real Estate Settlement Act ("RESPA"), 12 U.S.C. 2601 et seq.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable W. Brian White, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Jun 22, 2022

Opinion on whether Act 149 of 2022 addressing paid parental leave for eligible state employees applies retroactively.

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Requested by: Requested by Marcia S. Adams, Executive Director, South Carolina Department of Administration.

Jun 16, 2022

Opinion addresses the disclosure of construction documents under FOIA and whether a court would view such documents as exempt under Section 30-4-40 of the South Carolina Code.

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Requested by: Requested by Mark Tollison, Esquire, Attorney for Greenville County.

Jun 08, 2022

Opinion regarding the probate court's appointment of an examiner pursuant to Sections 62-5-303B and 62-5-403B of the South Carolina Code of Laws.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Anne Thayer, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Jun 06, 2022

Opinion addressing whether the language "determine and declare what persons have been duly elected" in S.C. Code Sec. 7-17-250 requiring the State Board of Canvassers (the "Board") to determine whether a person is qualified to hold a particular office.

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Requested by: Requested by Mr. Howard Knapp, Executive Director, South Carolina Election Commission.

May 31, 2022

Opinion on whether a municipality or county can create a nonprofit organization that has or is capable of developing an effective tourism promotion program.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Edward W. Riggs Sr., Chairman, Tourism Expenditure Committee.

May 31, 2022

Opinion on surety bonds.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Stewart Jones, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

May 09, 2022

Opinion on whether the purchase of small amounts of nonferrous metals for a hobby requires a permit as a secondary metals recycler pursuant to section 16-17-680 of the South Carolina Code of Laws.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Micah Caskey, Member, South Carolina house of Representatives.

May 09, 2022

Opinion on whether the House of Representative Delegation Member for Hampton County has the authority pursuant to Section 55-1-80 of the South Carolina Code of Laws to appoint an additional member to the Hampton County Airport Commission.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Shedron D. Williams, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

May 05, 2022

Opinion considering the allocation of fees in lieu of taxes for property located in a joint county industrial or business park to local taxing entities.

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Requested by: Requested by Alexander Sherard, Esquire, Attorney for Greenwood School District 52.

Apr 29, 2022

Opinion on the legality of booking at a local police department without a magistrate involved for certain things.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable John N. Rebolj, Chief of Police, Pelion Police Department.

Apr 29, 2022

Opinion addressing who is responsible for enforcing specific statutes in the Claims Practice Act.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Donald R. "Ryan" McCabe, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Apr 28, 2022

Opinion addressing impact of Act 117 of the 124th General Assembly on senate election districts prior to the 2024 General Election.

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Requested by: Requested by Mr. Howard Knapp, Executive Director, South Carolina Election Commission.

Apr 26, 2022

Opinion addressing service of judges in the unified judicial service after age seventy-two.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Katrina F. Shealy, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Apr 22, 2022

Opinion addresses whether county code commissioners can receive second commission in an adjacent county in furtherance of an agreement for the joint administration of services.

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Requested by: Requested by Brittany L. Ward, Esquire, Deputy County Attorney for Beaufort County.

Apr 22, 2022

Opinion addresses whether someone may simultaneously serve as both a member of the Irmo-Chapin Recreation Commission and as Superintendent for the Lexington-Richland School District 5 without violating the constitutional prohibition on dual office holding.

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Requested by: Requested by Dr. Akil E. Ross Jr., Superintendent, Lexington-Richland School District 5.

Apr 20, 2022

Opinion on whether candidates are permitted to file a Statement of Intention of Candidacy/Party Pledge (SICPP) forms by mail or other remote methods.

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Requested by: Requested by Mr. Howard Knapp, Executive Director, South Carolina Election Commission.

Apr 11, 2022

Opinion on whether a vacancy was created on the Clarendon County School District Board of Trustees when the Vice Chairperson was recently elected to the position of Mayor of a local municipality.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Kevin L. Johnson, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Apr 01, 2022

Opinion on whether a circuit’s Solicitor’s Office or the Department of Juvenile Justice is the proper party to present a probation violation in family court.

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Requested by: Requested by Isaac McDuffie Stone, Chairman, South Carolina Commission on Prosecution Coordination and Mr. L. Eden Hendrick, Director, South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice.

Mar 31, 2022

Opinion addressing a county's ability to use excess funds from a prior Capital Projects Sale Tax for projects listed in the ordinance reimposing the tax.

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Requested by: Requested by Francenia B. Heizer, Esquire, Attorney for Lancaster County.

Mar 31, 2022

Update of the September 28, 2015 opinion regarding The Greenville Health Authority and its power to delegate functions to a private corporation.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Garry R. Smith, Chairman, Greenville County Legislative Delegation and The Honorable Mike Burns, Chairman, Committee on Municipal Affairs, Medical Affairs and Special Purpose Districts.

Mar 28, 2022

Opinion on infrastructure maintenance fees on short-term rentals.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Scott F. Talley, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Mar 28, 2022

Opinion addresses questions related to reduction in State Aid to Subdivisions under Section 8-15-65 of the South Carolina Code.

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Requested by: Requested by Shelly Kelly, General Counsel, Office of the State Treasurer.

Mar 25, 2022

Opinion addressing student eligibility for sports offered at the public school for which the student is zoned to attend under Proviso 1.85 of the 2021-22 State Budget.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Ross Turner, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Mar 23, 2022

Opinion addressing whether a non-profit corporation that receives state and federal funding is a "public body" according to the S.C. Freedom of Information Act.

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Requested by: Requested by W. Eric Emerson, Ph.D., Director and SHPO, South Carolina Department of Archives and History.

Mar 07, 2022

Opinion addresses the expenditure of local hospitality tax revenue to purchase land for tourism-related recreational facilities and control flooding and drainage within or on tourism-related lands or areas.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Todd M. Harrelson, Mayor, City of Loris.

Mar 02, 2022

Opinion addressing the South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority's role in administering South Carolina housing tax credits.

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Requested by: Requested by Tracey Easton, General Counsel, South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority.

Feb 28, 2022

Opinion addresses the compensation prohibition in S.C. Code Section 5-31-220 and whether it applies to all commissioners on boards of commissions of public works in cities of fifty thousand inhabitants or more.

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Requested by: Requested by Jennifer C. Blumenthal, attorney for the Commissioners of Public Works for the City of Charleston.

Feb 16, 2022

Opinion on a proposed City of Columbia ordinance which prohibits professional therapists from offering any form of therapy that attempts to change the sexual orientation of LGBTQ minors which violates the First Amendment.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Josh Kimbrell, Member, South Carolina Senate.

Feb 11, 2022

Opinion on the use of "off-label use medications" by treating physicians at hospitals.

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Requested by: The Honorable Shane Martin, Member, South Carolina Senate and The Honorable Bill Taylor, Member, South Carolina House of Representatives.

Jan 28, 2022

Opinion regarding prohibition against SC DNR Dep Law Enforcement Officers holding "another public office" in S.C. Code Section 50-3-315(A).

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Requested by: Requested by Colonel A. Chisolm Frampton, Deputy Director for Law Enforcement, S.C. Department of Natural Resources.

Jan 18, 2022

Opinion regarding a proposed "joint hearing" between the Public Service Commission of South Carolina and the North Carolina Utilities Commission.

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Requested by: Requested by The Honorable Bill Sandifer, Chairman, Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee.

Jan 04, 2022

Opinion addressing limitations on what material may be attached to meeting minutes by a single member of a public body.

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Requested by: Requested by Anne Marie Green, Board Chair, Lexington County School District One.