$4M authorized for downtown flooding

The city of Charleston is expected to get $4 million from the federal government to alleviate constant flooding in the area known as the Fishburne/Spring drainage basin. Flooding in this area occurs during heavy rains and is made worse during high tides, at which times much of the area between Spring and Fishburne Streets, including the stretch of U.S. Highway 17, can be impassable.

Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. credited state lawmakers in Columbia for securing the government funds for Charleston. Congress has also authorized stormwater improvement funds for other areas around the state under the Water Resources Development Act of 2007.

Riley said once the $4 million is appropriated, more could follow. Drainage problems in the Fishburne-Spring Street area are expected to be the most costly to fix among flood-prone areas addressed by the city's 1984 master plan for drainage projects.

By Daily Journal Staff

S.C. homeowners to get big tax cut
Residents soon won't pay for school operations because of sales tax boost

WHAT THE TAX SWAP MEANS TO YOU

A recent study by the Strom Thurmond Institute at Clemson University analyzed how the tax swap a 1-cent-a-dollar increase in the state's sales tax to pay for property tax relief on owner-occupied homes would affect homeowners and renters. Here's what the study concluded:

Most homeowners will pay less in taxes. The increase in the amount of sales tax for most homeowners will be less than the property tax relief they'll get.

All renters will pay more in taxes. Rental housing does not qualify for property tax relief under the bill. But everyone, renters included, will pay more in sales taxes.

Homeowners in school districts with higher property tax rates will receive more tax relief than those with lower tax rates.

Homeowners with modest incomes and modest homes will benefit less than homeowners with higher incomes and more expensive homes.

S.C. residents likely will get a larger-than-expected cut to their home's tax bills "possibly totaling $88 million" according to state economists.

Beginning this fall, homeowners will no longer pay for school operating taxes for the home in which they live, typically 50 percent to 60 percent of their property tax bill. Statewide, school operating taxes total $500 million.

The additional windfall, the result of a 20 percent increase to the state sales tax this year, means homeowners will not pay about a fifth of their county and city property taxes as well.

However, those savings won't appear until next year, when tax bills are sent out in fall 2008.

The Board of Economic Advisors said two weeks ago that a recession could loom in South Carolina's near future. But Bill Gillespie, the state's top economist, said sales tax revenues should continue to grow despite that possibility.

Historically, Gillespie said, the sales tax has grown about 5.5 percent a year. Slower growth could cut into the amount of sales tax money available to pay property taxes, he said, but the sales tax surplus still would be at least $70 million, based on current data.

According to state projections, residents will pay a total of $372.9 million in city and county property taxes in 2007. After paying homeowners school taxes, any sales tax revenues left over from the additional penny sales tax would help pay city and county bills.

The windfall also likely means the state will collect enough money from the increased sales tax to pay in full the growing cost of homeowners school operating taxes for the next few years.

The money raised by the penny-a-dollar increase in the state's sales tax is placed in a separate account. It can only be used to pay homeowners property tax bills.

"That is great news,"� said state Sen. Larry Martin, R-Pickens, a skeptical supporter of the property tax relief plan. "(But) we're not out of the woods if the economy were to peak out on us."

Martin said the sales tax surplus gives lawmakers a chance to see how well the new property tax relief plan is working and make adjustments. Historically, Martin said, school taxes have increased faster than state tax revenues have grown.

School districts and local government also are worried the growing cost of education and services might lead to future budget cuts, because their ability to approve tax increases is capped by the new law. However, Martin said a surplus would give lawmakers a chance to address those concerns, if needed.

Emerson Read, whose NoHomeTax.org group helped lead the charge for tax relief last year, said the surplus is good news. But Read still wants all home taxes eliminated.

In addition, Read said, the property tax relief law did nothing to address years of overtaxing or taxes on other properties, including rental property, second homes or businesses.

Read said his group likely will propose eliminating taxes on the homes of senior citizens and the disabled next year.

"I feel very sorry for (them)"� Read said. "The taxes are still too high in many cases."� Reach O'Connor at (803) 771-8358.

By JOHN O'CONNOR - joconnor@thestate.com

5 things you may not know about LIGHTNING:

Lightning kills about 100 people in the United States each year, more than hurricanes or tornadoes do, and claimed the life of a South Carolina man this week.

Another 300 people are injured by lightning, often suffering long-term, debilitating symptoms, including brain damage.

It's not sissy to be afraid of lightning, it's just smart.

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No. 1

Survivors suffer: The electricity flowing within a lightning bolt can reach 200 million volts. Lightning kills about 100 people a year in the United States, but it inflicts severe, debilitating injuries on many more. It injures 1,000 people in the United States each year. Symptoms may not occur until a month after the strike and could include memory loss, sleep disturbance, chronic pain, dizziness and personality changes.

No. 2

The 30/30 rule: When you see lightning, count the time until you hear thunder. If it’s 30 seconds or less, the storm is close enough to be dangerous, so seek shelter, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. A house or fully enclosed structure is the best shelter. Stay away from telephones, appliances and plumbing. Don’t watch lightning from windows or doorways. A car with a metal roof and sides is your next-best protection. It’s the metal shell that protects you, not the rubber tires. After the last lightning flash, wait 30 minutes before leaving the shelter.

No. 3

We live in a hot zone: South Carolina ranks 13th in the nation in the number of lightning deaths. According to the National Lightning Safety Institute, 19 people died from lightning in the state from 1990 through 2003. You’re at highest risk in Florida, where lightning killed 126 people in the same time frame.

On Monday, a Hilton Head man was struck and killed by lightning as he walked along the beach. The last reported lightning fatality in the Charleston area was a year ago in July, when an 82-year-old man died after being struck while gardening outside his James Island home. The National Weather Service in Charleston recorded 214 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes within the hour he died.

No. 4

It’s unpredictable: In June, a Florida landscaper died after being struck by lightning outside a home even though it wasn’t raining. Although lightning always originates from a parent thunderstorm cloud, the storm can be more than 10 miles away from the lightning strike. Lightning from a seemingly clear sky is referred to as “a bolt from the blue.”

No. 5

Are iPods and cellphones safe? There have been several reports of people struck by lightning while talking on cellphones or listening to iPods, but these objects do not increase your chances of getting struck, according to the Lightning Research Center at the University of Florida. Lightning tends to strike taller objects. Most reported injuries are due to the fact the people struck by lightning were the tallest items around, not because of the portable electronic devices they were using. Still, it’s probably not a good idea to leave ear buds in your ears during a storm due to metal wires that conduct electricity, the center advises.

as provided by Charleston Post & Courier

Homeowners' Insurance Legislation

The House LCI Subcommittee on Insurance gave a favorable report on Thursday to H. 3820, the Omnibus Coastal Property Insurance Reform Act of 2007. The bill contains provisions that would: create catastrophe savings accounts, force insurers to give mitigation credits, establish incentives for insurance companies to write additional policies in the wind and hail pool zone, clarify the practices and procedures of the Wind and Hail Underwriting Association, establish a mitigation grant program, expand the cancellation notice period to 60 days, and force insurers to reveal catastrophe models used to the Department of Insurance. Working with the Department of Insurance and the Subcommittee members, SCAR was able to successfully amend several sections of this legislation to make it more meaningful to more homeowners. The bill now moves to the full LCI Committee for consideration next week, and SCAR will continue to work to make insurance reform a reality. The Senate gave third reading this week to S. 499, the South Carolina Coastal Captive Insurance Act. The bill would allow for the formation of captive insurance companies to write primary and excess wind and storm surge property insurance coverage, essentially allowing large commercial projects to self-insure by holding capital reserves in excess of $1 million. Companion legislation to H. 3820 was also introduced in the Senate on Wednesday by Senators Campsen, McConnell, McGill, Rankin, Grooms, Elliott, Ford, Ryberg, Scott and Pinckney.

Allstate will renew 2,300 coastal policies These and other homeowners’ coverage had been slated for cancellation

Citing changing market conditions, Allstate Insurance Co. said Monday it is renewing 2,300 homeowners’ policies previously slated for cancellation.

In December, Allstate announced it would cut about 12,000 policies in the eight counties east of I-95 as it tried to limit its risk nationwide.

Another 8,000 policies along the coast were not renewed by insurers State Farm and S.C. Farm Bureau.

Allstate officials say the change is due to improving market conditions, such as expanding the S.C. wind pool.

The wind pool is a fund insurers can dip into when they suffer catastrophic losses in a particular area.

Wind and hail will be excluded from policies of Allstate customers renewing in the wind pool region. This protection can be written into the S.C. Wind and Hail Underwriting Association. Allstate will contact the policyholders being offered renewals.

More than a quarter of all homeowners’ policies in the state are along the catastrophic storm-prone coast. Those coastal policies cover about $150 billion worth of property.

By BEN WERNER - bwerner@thestate.com

My Recent Insurance story
by: Thea Riley

"Great news for local homeowners!  As Charleston saw wild weather with high winds this weekend, a tree in my yard landed on my neighbor's minivan and our shared fence.  Our Insurance Companies are hashing out the details and we are trying to see this as a great learning experience.  Hopefully one that will help me better serve my clients in similar situations.  I advise that all policy holding homeowners review the details of your wind & hail coverage before this year's hurricane season.  Good luck!"  Thea Riley, Realtor The AgentOwned Realty Co.