State Income Tax Credit for Fortification Measures

How it works

South Carolina’s Omnibus Coastal Property Insurance Reform Act of 2007 created income tax credits for homeowners who make their legal residence more resistant to losses from hurricanes, rising floodwater, or other catastrophic windstorm events.

What the money covers

The program has two separate tax credits:

• a credit for the costs incurred to retrofit a structure qualifying as the taxpayer’s legal residence
• a credit for state sales or use taxes paid on purchases of tangible personal property used to fortify the legal residence

The Department of Insurance page says Regulation 69-75 sets the standards that must be met to qualify, and references the South Carolina Safe Home Resource Document for Mitigation Techniques.

Amounts and limits

• Retrofit credit: 25% of total costs incurred, limited to $1,000 per taxable year, whichever is less
• Sales/use tax credit: up to $1,500

How it applies

The page does not say the credit is a rebate or upfront payment; it is a state income tax credit claimed on a return. The Department of Revenue’s tax credit listing identifies this as Residential Retrofit Credit and says it is claimed on form TC-43.

Notes

The department page ties the standards to fortification measures that help with hurricanes and catastrophic wind, and also mentions rising floodwater.