COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - A bill to consolidate how business licenses are issued in South Carolina into one place instead of about 240 cities and counties unanimously passed the House this week.
The proposal sets up a website where businesses can fill out one application and pay for licenses. The 231 cities and towns and nine counties in South Carolina with the licences can all still set their own rates,
Under the current system, a business has to apply for a licence individually in every place that requires one. In the Charleston area alone, a company or contractor might have to go 30 different places in the region.
“Small businesses have been calling on policymakers for years to fix the most business-unfriendly thing we do in South Carolina,” said Ted Pitts, president of the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce.
The bill received a key 104-0 vote in the House Wednesday and was sent to the Senate on Thursday. Gov. Henry McMaster also backs the proposal.
Supporters of the bill said continuing to allow local governments to set their own rates for business licenses was critical to getting the bill passed. The fees provide about $400 million a year to those governments.
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