Lexington County residents this fall likely will get to decide if they want to pay higher sales taxes to help stave off the cost of school construction in the rapidly growing county.

After four years of debate, Lexington County’s State House delegation has introduced a county sales tax increase of 1 cent on the dollar that would give voters a choice on funding school construction without raising property taxes.

If approved by the Legislature and ratified by voters in a November referendum, the bill would raise the county sales tax to 6 percent — a 20 percent increase. The revenue would be credited to homeowners’ property tax bills in each of Lexington’s five school districts.

The tax must be approved by the delegation every seven years, according to the wording of the State House bill. The bill also says that if the Legislature passes any form of statewide school property tax relief, the local sales tax is automatically rescinded.

Though school districts have sought the local sales tax since 2000, a scheduled $118 million Lexington 1 construction referendum in May brought the issue to a head. Community members and businesses on both sides of the issue had held public meetings to motivate voters.

Sen. Jake Knotts, the delegation chairman, said the bill has the unanimous support of House and Senate members. How to pay for schools, he said, should be left to the voters.

“This is the best possible solution that we can come up with,” Knotts said.

Lexington 1 isn’t the only district planning new schools.

Lexington-Richland 5 said it needs $91 million in new schools, but hopes to build without a referendum.

Lexington 1 officials say they are adding 500 students a year, while Lexington-Richland 5 estimates it will average 270 new students a year over the next decade.

Lexington County gained 49,000 people in the 1990s, according to census figures.

In addition to setting a sales tax referendum in November, the bill also would require any bond referendum in the county be held in November, during the general election when applicable. School board chairwoman Kay Coker said Lexington 1 would move its referendum to November only if the legislation passes.

Schools and legislators estimate the sales tax will raise $26 million in revenue the first year, which would be split among the districts based on the number of students and percentage of county population.

Lexington 1, which covers central Lexington County, estimates its share would be about $10 million a year. That translates to a $185 property tax credit for every $100,000 of home value. Estimates for other districts were not immediately available.

Jack Dinkins, who owns Auto Station on U.S. 378 in Lexington, was one of a handful of business owners who posted signs protesting the school tax increase.

“Enough is enough,” Dinkins said.

Becky Fagg, head of the Lexington tax watchdog group We The People, supported the clause requiring November referendums but thinks voters should be able to vote on the tax every seven years.

“We’re glad the bond referendum has been moved,” Fagg said. “Money questions need to be addressed by as large a number of voters as possible.”

Next year’s scheduled property reassessment and rising school operations costs, she said, mean taxpayers should wait to see how much relief they receive.

But school officials were pleased the bill had such broad support among the delegation, schools and community.

“It’s extremely important for us to have alternative ways to raise funds,” said Frank Vail, superintendent of Lexington 4, which serves an area that includes Swansea and Gaston.

The county delegation has blocked previous requests for the sales tax. Knotts said members changed their minds when they decided other statewide plans for tax relief would not pass the Legislature this year.

The Senate is scheduled to take a final vote this week. Passage is likely, lawmakers said.

Lexington 1’s Coker said a handful of compromises also changed some minds, including the agreement to allocate money based on the number of students and county population.

“We just kept communicating, kept talking,” she said.

Coker said the county could become a model for the state. A handful of others, including Horry and Jasper, have passed the tax, which comes on top of the state’s 5 percent sales tax.