The Republican lawmaker from Charleston has crafted a bill that would allow voters to elect the state's 46 now-appointed county tax assessors.

"I suddenly realized the assessor has been working for the wrong people," Altman said. "The assessor has been working for those officials that collect and spend the money. I want them to start working for the taxpayer."

The bill has a number of co-sponsors from both parties, which Altman says assures House passage.

Would the bill actually bring lower property taxes?

Altman maintains reassessing homes, cars and other personal property has become a "back door" way to hike property taxes. Too many public officials dodge the poison pill of tax hikes by letting reassessments do it for them, he says. Assessors face tacit pressure to inflate property values, he says, pressure to which an elected official wouldn't bow.

"If we are going to raise taxes, then let's raise taxes," he says. "Everyone has been tossing around such complex solutions to this problem. This is a simple solution."

Skeptics say the plan is more simplistic than simple. They argue that assessors follow strict state guidelines and, whether hired or elected, would come back with the same results.

They also fail to see how an elected assessor would keep property values from rising.

"I don't see a connection," said Kathy Williams, assistant director of the South Carolina Association of Counties.

Williams' group hasn't taken an official position on the bill, but she says she doesn't think it will work as Altman says it can. "They (assessors) don't set budgets or the millage (tax) rate."

The tax assessor is mainly responsible for making sure property values are assessed at the going market rates.

By law, counties must reassess every five years, though a local government can delay reassessment by a year or two if it wants. Assessors also regularly revalue property after sales or major renovations.

Last week, House debate over Gov. Mark Sanford's income tax reduction plan turned into a discussion of the need for property tax relief.

The Republican leadership said bills to promote this issue are in the pipeline. Rep. Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, says Altman's is one of the bills he supports.

"Making the (assessor) position an elected one will create a little bit more accountability in the system," said Harrell, who as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee holds a lot of sway.

"How many people out there can name their tax assessor?" Harrell said. "It's such an important position. We need to think about the long term, and this will help us."

R. Thayer Rivers, D-Beaufort, and a few others see it differently.

"There would be more political pressure on the tax assessor if he or she had to worry about elections," Rivers said.

Scott Price, general counsel for the South Carolina School Board Association, tends to agree with Rivers.

"I need to study and look into this more, but at first blush my concerns are that partisan politics could have an impact, like they do with school boards," Price said. "From a governance standpoint, I think it would be better for county councils to act as the elected body and for them to appoint assessors. . When you make assessors elected they tend to lose some accountability."

Charleston County Assessor Mike Huggins said some states elect tax assessors but he thinks it's a bad notion. "There's already enough pressure without having to run for an office," Huggins said.