The General Assembly is committed to creating a permanent solution to our state's property tax problem. Legislators have taken steps in the past to create relief - some have been successful, others have not - but now legislators are working to find a permanent solution.

Some have said that past attempts have had the success of putting a Band-aid on a bullet wound. This time we are trying to address the heart of the problem and attempt to fix the system, instead of just mending it.

There is a fundamental problem with our state's property tax system. The General Assembly has empowered the counties to be in control of the property tax system in their areas. The system is now out of control and must be changed so that it is fair and generates the needed funds, but most of all, there must be a permanent solution.

Recently, The Post and Courier has printed many articles on property tax relief and when you address the problems in the system, you seem to have all fingers pointed at the General Assembly. With the issue of property tax, not all rocky roads lead to Columbia. As it turns out, the problem is much more local, but the Legislature does have the power to address these local issues.

County officials won't solve the problem and have been asking the Legislature to step in. As the old saying goes, they should be careful what they ask for. For years, we have heard "home rule" from local governments. This has been an opportunity for the counties to exercise home rule, but they simply have not.

Counties and cities have the benefit of hiding behind a formula that only a few understand. This enables them to say that they have not increased taxes because they have not raised the millage rate. The reality is they have received huge tax revenue increases even though they have not increased the millage rate.

In 1993, Charleston County received $45.5 million in property tax revenue and $16.4 million in local option sales tax. In 2005, the projected numbers have jumped to $95.8 million in property tax revenue and $39 million in local option sales tax. When the county is generating almost $73 million in additional revenue through its tax system, that is clearly an increase in county taxes.

In 1993, the Charleston County School District millage rate was 79.8, from which the schools received $67.3 million in revenue from our property taxes. On May 5, 1999, The Post and Courier had an article titled "School Board seeks best way to sue over school funding." That was the beginning of the School Board's fight to eliminate the 90-mill cap that the local legislative delegation placed on the board to protect property owners from the board running up taxes. This cap, which had been in place since 1972, was challenged in the courts and was struck down by the S.C. Supreme Court in 2001. This decision allowed Charleton County to increase its school millage rate to whatever it wanted on our homes.

That decision made it possible for the district's millage rate to increase to 109 and for it to receive $187.6 million in property tax revenue. In 2005, with reassessment and a millage rate changed to 91.1, the school district was able to generate $219.6 million in property tax revenue. If you notice, the millage rate was lowered, but still its property tax revenue increased by $32 million. Once again, this is a huge increase.

The reason the county and schools' revenue has increased so dramatically, even though the millage rate has decreased, is because they have used reassessment as a means to increase our property taxes.

It is this kind of action on the local level that has gotten the Legislature involved. In the wake of reassessment, the county and the school district could have lowered the millage rate more than they did to curb the growth of property taxes or - better yet - they could have kept their budgets revenue neutral. As is too often the case, however, the county and the school district refused to take such a fiscally prudent action.

This is a problem with a local origin, but it can be dealt with at the state level. The House and the Senate's ad hoc committees on property tax are examining every possibility in an effort to create a fair and permanent solution. Both committees have stated that they will produce a proposal for legislation by the end of December. The House and Senate leaders have committed to working toward passage of legislation this session.

We are talking about altering the way government is financed. There is no simple answer that will solve all property tax issues. We need to carefully examine alternatives, weigh the effects and find answers that best help all South Carolinians.

Wallace Scarborough represents Charleston County House District 115.