Florence County, SC Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)

Article VII of Chapter 11 of the Florence County Code creates the county's accommodations fee, the local equivalent of a hotel occupancy tax, on gross proceeds from renting rooms, lodgings or sleeping accommodations to transients within unincorporated Florence County. Section 11-183 lists hotel, inn, condominium, motel and 'bed and breakfast' among the covered operators, and Section 11-184 sets the rate at a uniform three percent per unit per night. Section 11-185 places legal liability for the fee on the guest, but the hotel or operator collects it at the time services are delivered and files a sworn return calculating the amount due; the return and payment are due to the Florence County Finance Department, 180 North Irby Street, City-County Complex, by the twentieth of each month following collection.

Section 11-186 restricts use of the proceeds to tourist-related purposes: capital improvements, debt service, parks and recreational facilities, and the Florence City-County Civic Center, with the county council responsible for confirming the money is spent that way. Section 11-187 authorizes the county administrator or a designee to enter a hotel's premises, inspect records and audit its books on 24 hours' written notice, and inspection records are exempt from public disclosure. This accommodations fee applies only within unincorporated Florence County; hotels located inside the City of Florence or the county's other incorporated municipalities are governed by those municipalities' own ordinances, not this article.