Orangeburg County, SC Hotels & Lodging: Transient Occupancy Tax (2026)
Key Facts
- County tax rate
- 3% of gross accommodations proceeds
- In-municipality cap
- 1.5% without municipal consent
- Cumulative countywide cap
- 3% combined county + municipal
- Effective date
- January 1, 2024
- Revenue use
- Tourism facilities, roads, promotion only
Summary
Orangeburg County has charged a 3% local accommodations tax on hotel and transient lodging stays since January 1, 2024, capped at 1.5% inside a municipality unless that town consents, with revenue locked into a tourism-only fund.
(a)Beginning on January 1, 2024, the county shall impose a local accommodations tax of three percent. A local accommodations tax means a tax on the gross proceeds derived from the rental or charges for accommodations furnished to transients as provided in S.C. Code, § 12-36-920(A) and which is imposed on every person engaged or continuing within the jurisdiction of the county in the business of furnishing accommodations to transients for consideration. However, the county's local accommodations tax shall not exceed 1½ percent within the boundaries of a municipality unless the municipality consents.
Full Breakdown
Orangeburg County Code § 38-192(a), adopted by Ord. No. 2023-06-05-18 on June 5, 2023, imposes a local accommodations tax of three percent beginning January 1, 2024. C. Code § 12-36-920(A), and it is imposed on every person engaged in the business of furnishing those accommodations for consideration, language that covers hotels, motels and other transient lodging operators countywide. 5 percent unless the municipality consents to the full rate, and the combined county-plus-municipal rate anywhere in the county is capped at three percent, unless a higher combined rate already existed before December 31, 1996.
All proceeds are kept in a fund segregated from the county's general fund under § 38-192(b), with interest credited back to that same fund. C. Code § 12-36-920, up to all of that revenue can also cover operation and maintenance, including police, fire and EMS, tied to those tourism facilities. Remittance follows § 38-195's tiered schedule keyed to the average monthly tax collected.
Violations & Fines
A hotel or lodging operator that collects rental charges from transients without remitting the 3% local accommodations tax under § 38-192 is out of compliance with division 2 of chapter 38, and the county's remittance schedule in § 38-195 requires payment monthly, quarterly or annually depending on the average amount owed.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Orangeburg County's hotel occupancy tax rate?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Orangeburg County
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