State Preemption | South Carolina Concealed Carry

South Carolina State Preemption of Firearm Regulations

South Carolina has a strong state preemption law that prohibits local governments from enacting firearms regulations that conflict with state law. The preemption framework is established primarily under S.C. Code Ann. §§ 23-31-510 and 23-31-520.

Preemption Statute — S.C. Code Ann. § 23-31-510

Section 23-31-510 provides, in relevant part:

No governing body of any county, municipality, or other political subdivision in the State may enact or promulgate any regulation or ordinance that regulates or attempts to regulate: (1) the transfer, ownership, possession, carrying, or transportation of firearms, ammunition, components of firearms, or any combination of these things.

This statute broadly prohibits counties, municipalities, and other political subdivisions from passing local laws that regulate firearms ownership, possession, carrying, transportation, or transfer.

Limited Local Authority — S.C. Code Ann. § 23-31-520

Section 23-31-520 provides narrow exceptions to the preemption:

• Local governments may regulate the careless or negligent discharge of firearms.
• Local governments may regulate the public brandishment of firearms.
• Local governments may regulate the public brandishment of firearms during times of, or demonstrated potential for, insurrection, invasions, riots, or natural disasters.
• The article denies any county, municipality, or political subdivision the power to confiscate a firearm or ammunition unless incident to an arrest.

Attorney General Opinions and Interpretation

The South Carolina Attorney General's Office has consistently and repeatedly interpreted Sections 23-31-510 and -520 as establishing complete field preemption of firearm regulation by the state. Key points from multiple Attorney General opinions include:

• The General Assembly intended that state law expressly occupy the entire field of South Carolina firearm regulation and preempt any local ordinance on the same subject, except where local regulations are expressly permitted by those same statutes.
• Local ordinances that purport to criminalize or otherwise regulate possession of a firearm conflict with Section 23-31-510 and are preempted.
• The AG's Office has noted that under the South Carolina Constitution, Article VIII, § 14, general law provisions applicable to criminal laws and penalties shall not be set aside by local governments. Therefore, local governments may not criminalize conduct that is legal under state criminal law.
• In a December 2, 2019 opinion, the AG concluded that the City of Columbia's Ordinance 2019-063 (a gun-free school zone ordinance) was most likely preempted by § 23-31-510 because it facially regulated possession of firearms, which is expressly prohibited by the preemption statute.
• The AG's Office has stated: "Unless Section 23-31-510 is substantially revised in the future, a firearm policy decision like that sought by the City is a matter for the State Legislature exclusively and cannot be set at the local level."
• A prior 2009 AG opinion that had found a county park firearms ordinance valid was expressly reversed and superseded by a December 7, 2010 opinion, which found the 2009 opinion to have been in clear error. The AG characterized the 2009 opinion as "an aberration" that should not detract from the otherwise unbroken line of opinions concluding local ordinances are preempted.

Constitutional Basis

The preemption framework is further supported by the South Carolina Constitution:

• Article VIII, § 14 of the South Carolina Constitution requires that general law provisions applicable to "criminal laws and the penalties and sanctions for the transgression thereof" shall not be set aside by local governments.
• The South Carolina Supreme Court has interpreted this to mean that local governments may not criminalize conduct that is legal under state criminal law. (Foothills Brewing Concern, Inc. v. City of Greenville, 377 S.C. 355, 660 S.E.2d 264 (2008); Connor v. Town of Hilton Head Island, 314 S.C. 251, 442 S.E.2d 608 (1994)).

Practical Implications

• Local ordinances cannot impose additional restrictions on the carrying, possession, or transportation of firearms beyond what state law provides.
• Individuals should follow state law regarding where and how they may carry firearms, as local ordinances purporting to regulate firearm possession are preempted by state law.
• Local governments can regulate negligent discharge and public brandishment of firearms, so individuals should be aware of any such local regulations.
• While local ordinances purporting to regulate firearm possession may still exist on the books in some jurisdictions, the AG's Office has consistently opined that such ordinances are preempted and would likely be found invalid by a court.

Key Statutes