Horry neighborhoods that don’t want fireworks may end up paying for a ban themselves
If Horry County neighborhoods want to keep fireworks away, they may have to pay for it.
After months of talks and two formal votes to consider a system that would allow areas of the county to be fireworks-free via resolutions, some now say the best solution may be creating special tax districts to ensure any ban can be enforced.
“We live in a tourism area. You’re going to deal with Harleys, you’re going to deal with Mustangs and you’re going to deal with fireworks, it’s just a way of life here,” Danny Hardee, chairman of the county council’s public safety committee, said.
“If we’re going to do it and want it controlled and want it work, then you’re going to have make these districts special tax districts, it don’t have to be a large amount, but enough to hire your own men to police it,” he said.
South Carolina’s largest county already bars fireworks on public beaches, but there aren’t any rules for communities further inland.
Officials earlier this year considered a unique fix that would have allowed residents, HOAs or community groups wishing to ban fireworks in a certain area to contact their county council members.
From there, boundary lines for a fireworks-free zone could be drawn and then by resolution approved by the entire council.
A cursory final vote to implement the system was set for April, but the council tabled any action so they could explore the idea further.
Councilman Johnny Vaught — who lets residents detonate fireworks near his property — sees a flaw in the proposed system, especially since law enforcement could only issue citations if an officer witnesses the violation.
“If he (a council member) listens to one or two people complaining about fireworks, there may be 500 people getting together to shoot them,” he said. “This was always my objection to the ordinance: How do we find out if the majority of a specific area wants to have fireworks prohibited?”
A special tax district could be the answer.
DesChamps Law, a Myrtle Beach-based firm that specializes in tax law, says on its website the districts work by assessing an additional levy on properties for added levels of service not provided through local government.
In this case, officials suggested, areas that don’t want fireworks can set up a district, alleviating criticisms that a council member may be acting on the will of just a few constituents while also ensuring violators can be punished through fines.
County Attorney Arrigo Carotti said carving out fireworks exempt zones via resolution was a “less involved and costly method” than voting for special tax districts.
