COLUMBIA, SC (WBTW) – State lawmakers are looking for a new way to help tourist areas recover from future flooding.
A bill in the state House of Representatives would allow accommodations or hospitality tax money to be used on projects for tourist areas damaged by floods. The bill passed 43-2 in the state Senate on Wednesday and several Lowcountry senators sponsored it.
If it becomes law, a-tax and hospitality tax money could be spent on drainage projects designed to eliminate or decrease flooding from storms or recurring tidal floods. That includes tidal flooding attributed to sea-level rise.
Rep. Lee Hewitt, R-Murrells Inlet, says he wants to take a closer look at the bill because he doesn’t want a-tax revenue to be redirected.
“That concerns me that we create a tax, we tell the public this is why we’re doing it, then we go in and we start tinkering and changing what that can be used for,” said Rep. Hewitt. “Is it good policy to use a tax to do a lot of improvements that are susceptible to storms?”
The bill also says a-tax revenue couldn’t be used to pay claims or settle lawsuits resulting from flood damage.
The bill must also pass in the state House before heading to Gov. McMaster’s desk.
