Horry County advances plan to add RIDE IV tax proposal to November ballot
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — Horry County Council is one step closer to passing the proposed RIDE IV sales tax and potentially adding it to the November ballot for voters to consider.
The council approved the second reading of an ordinance Tuesday night that would put the proposal on the ballot. RIDE IV would continue a 1% sales tax that would be used to pay for various infrastructure and transportation projects across the county.
Horry County has collected a penny sales tax for the RIDE program since 2007. The current RIDE III tax went into effect on May 1, 2017, and will expire on April 30.
During public input Tuesday night, some residents said RIDE IV would help address the growing population; others said it should be focused on improving current roads instead of building new highways.
“We can’t sit around and wait for the state and federal government to come pay for these needs that we know need to be addressed right now,” RIDE IV committee member William Goldfinch said.
The tax would be collected for no more than 25 years or until $6.3 billion is collected. Goldfinch said two-thirds of the tax collected would be from Grand Strand tourists and not residents.
While many residents at the meeting were in favor of RIDE IV, others expressed concerns about the environmental impact of the proposed Interstate 73 highway project. One person said it would impact local residents and bring more development.
“That have to work to provide the services for the tourists that you want to impose a small one penny tax [on] and you’re chasing them out,” a Waccamaw Indian People representative said.
Councilmembers pointed out that even if the ordinance passes on third reading, it will still ultimately be up to the voters to decide if they want the tax. Some said because the county has not received state or federal help, officials have had to take matters into their own hands through the RIDE program.
Councilman Al Allen, spokes in favor of RIDE IV, saying he’s lived in the county all his life and raised his kids here.
“Nobody loves this county as much as I do, and don’t tell me that we’re not trying to help because we are,” ” Allen said.
In other action, the council deferred the third reading of a plan to relocate Coastal High School to an area off River Oaks Drive until June 4. The school is currently in Socastee but officials want to expand and eventually want to build a new middle school.
Councilman Dennis DiSabato said he supports the school and thinks that 90% of resident concerns have been addressed. However, he wants to hold a community event on June 2 to hear any final concerns.
“Maybe some of the things that they’ve expressed concerns about can be answered in a way that makes them a little bit more satisfied with what the project is,” DiSabato said.
The county 2024-2025 fiscal year budget also passed third and final reading. The new budget increased $55.7 million from 2024 to $833 million. It adds 99 county positions.
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Adrianna Lawrence is a multimedia journalist at News13. Adrianna is originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and joined the News13 team in June 2023 after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in May 2023. Keep up with Adrianna on Instagram, Facebook, and X, formerly Twitter. You can also read more of her work, here.
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