H 4303

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
Bill 4303
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)
Indicates Matter
Stricken
Indicates New Matter
As Passed By The Senate
May 13, 2026
H. 4303
Introduced by Reps. Gatch, Cobb-Hunter, Sessions,
M. M. Smith, Brewer, Rutherford, Gagnon, Guest, Guffey, Weeks, Hosey and Yow
S. Printed 5/13/26--S.
Read the first time May 6, 2025
________
A bill
TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING
SECTION 12-21-620, RELATING TO TAX RATES ON PRODUCTS CONTAINING TOBACCO, SO AS
TO TAX CIGARETTES FOR HEATING ONE AND ONE-QUARTER mills ON EACH CIGARETTE.
    Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1.  Section 12-21-620 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
    Section
12-21-620. (A) There shall be
levied, assessed, collected, and paid in respect to the articles containing
tobacco or nicotine enumerated in this section the
following amounts:
       (1)
upon all cigarettes for smoking made of tobacco or
any substitute for tobacco, three and one-half mills on each cigarette;
       (2) upon all cigarettes for heating
made of tobacco or any substitute for tobacco, fourteen
and one-quartertwenty-one and three hundred
seventy-five thousandths mills on each cigarette. The proceeds of this item must be
deposited in the South Carolina Medicaid Reserve Fund created pursuant to
Section 11-11-230(B);
       (2)(3) upon all tobacco products, as defined in Section
12-21-800, five percent of the manufacturer's price;
       (4) upon all vapor products and
electronic cigarettes, a tax of five cents per milliliter of consumable
nicotine liquid solution or other material containing nicotine that is depleted
as a vapor product is used. The proceeds of this item must be deposited in the
South Carolina Medicaid Reserve Fund created pursuant to Section 11-11-230(B).
    Manufacturer's price
as used in this section is the established price at which a manufacturer sells
to a wholesaler.
    (B)
As used in this section, "cigarette" means:
       (1)
any roll for smoking or heating under ordinary conditions
of use containing tobacco or any substitute for tobacco wrapped in paper
or in any substance other than a tobacco leaf; or
       (2)
any roll for smoking or heating under ordinary conditions
of use containing tobacco or any substitute for tobacco, wrapped in any
substance, weighing three pounds per thousand or less, however labeled or
named, which because of its appearance, size, type of tobacco used in the
filler, or its packaging, pricing, marketing, or labeling, is likely to be
offered to, or purchased by, consumers as a cigarette described in item (1) of
this subsection.
SECTION 2.  This act takes effect October 1,
2025.
----XX----
This web page was last updated on May 13, 2026 at 06:59 PM