Georgetown County, SC Public Conduct: Loitering Rules (2026)

Adopted by Ordinance No. 95-11 in 1995, § 5.5-20 sets hours of use for every public beach access area under Georgetown County's jurisdiction, covering the Waccamaw Neck accesses outside the Town of Pawleys Island and the county's other beachfront access points, so nearby residents get quiet enjoyment of their homes alongside public beach use. Subsection (b) opens the accesses one hour before sunrise each day and closes them at 10:00 p.m. from April 15 through October 31, or at 8:00 p.m. from November 1 through April 14.

Subsection (c) is the operative conduct rule: it is unlawful to use the beach access areas for gatherings, loitering, or loud and boisterous behavior, a broader public-order standard than the separate general beach prohibitions in § 5.5-17(a)(9), which bars obstructing free access to the public beaches or loitering in the accesses themselves. Subsection (d) confines parking to designated spaces during hours of use only and bars overnight parking, and subsection (e) asks users to protect beach dunes, vegetation and crosswalks. Enforcement under subsection (f) falls to the Georgetown County Sheriff's Department, which can order anyone violating the chapter to leave the park or recreation area outright rather than simply issuing a citation.

A separate § 5.5-17(a)(9) prohibition on obstructing free beach access or loitering in accesses to the wider public beach carries the article's general penalty under § 5.5-19: a misdemeanor fine up to $200 or up to 30 days in jail, with each day of continuing conduct a separate violation.