Duke’s 2018 assessment denied, appeals further

Late last year the South Carolina Department of Revenue rejected Duke Energy’s appeal of its 2018 tax assessment reflecting the utility’s properties in 22 South Carolina counties, including Oconee, Anderson, and Pickens. For the tax year 2018, Duke was assessed at nearly $400 million, but contested a portion of the assessment amounting to $9.5 million. The state DOR, in evaluating the appeal, found Duke’s arguments “unpersuasive.” That was in November. The next month Duke appealed further and a spokeswoman for the DOR, Bonnie Swingle, says that appeal is pending in a state administrative law court for a hearing not yet scheduled. In a separate matter, Duke is appealing its assessment for 2019. The appeals carry major implications for Oconee County’s budget. County tax officials say Duke exercised it appeal rights by paying 80% of its 2018 property tax bill to the county. That amounted to $25.6 million. It’s believed an additional $6 million remains pending the outcome of Duke’s appeal to the administrative law court. Oconee tax officials are anticipating by the middle of next week, Duke will again pay 80% on its 2019 bill by the county’s first deadline to pay without penalty. Chairman Julian Davis of Oconee County Council, aware of Duke’s appeals, says the county has deliberately calculated its budgets this year and last based on 80% payments by its highest taxpayer and will look toward the final resolutions of the appeals.