When considering how city governments evolve and how they address their needs for infrastructure, public safety and other services, it’s critical to understand municipal annexation.
To help explain how the process works under South Carolina law, the Municipal Association of SC offers an “Annexation in South Carolina” information hub on its website, found online.
This resource contains materials such as a one-page summary of annexation processes that can help municipal officials and legislators understand annexation. It includes a podcast and video series in which the Association’s advocacy team explain how annexation works in South Carolina, as well as common misconceptions about the process.
The materials also delve into the technical aspects of the three annexation methods in South Carolina — the 100% freeholder petition annexation method, the 75% petition annexation method, and the 25% petition and election annexation method. Most annexations in the state use the 100% method, which involves individual property owners requesting annexation of their property.
The information hub includes links to the annexation webpages of a number of South Carolina cities and towns. These municipalities have developed materials to explain commercial and residential annexation in their areas, including the specific services they offer to residents, how to get a petition to annex started and calculators to illustrate the financial considerations of annexing into a city.