How is Lamar run?
Lamar’s town government spent $499,000 on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2023, about $580 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Lamar didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Lamar is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
About $580 per resident a year, or $1.59 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 50%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Lamar didn’t report all of its 2023 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Lamar yet
Every year of Lamar’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the town reported none of its dollars for 2022–2023. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →The typical homeowner pays $436 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.34% of the home’s value, vs 0.48% across South Carolina.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Lamar’s rate.
Can I afford it? →The median bill homeowners report to the Census survey (bills of $10,000+ are reported as “$10,000+”). The effective rate is that bill ÷ the median home value: a rough guide, not the official tax rate. In a town this small the estimate has a wide margin.
Tax bills are one input to Lamar’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Lamar →
Who’s in charge in Lamar
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time town employee for every 430 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2023 finance file (860).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2022
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Darlington County School District
Lamar’s K–12 school district, shared with Darlington, Hartsville, Society Hill. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $17,954 per pupil, $9,616 goes to the classroom (teachers, aides, supplies); the rest to buses, buildings, counselors and administration. Building projects and debt payments aren’t in the per-pupil figure.
South Carolina districts overall: 45% local, 43% state, 13% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Lamar’s votes are counted by county
South Carolina reports official results by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Lamar alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Darlington County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican56.1%17,017 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat42.8%12,977 votesOthers: 1.1% (337 votes).
Most votes in Darlington County: Donald J Trump
South Carolina: Trump 58.2%, Harris 40.4%
100% of Lamar lies in Darlington County. Every 2024 race in Darlington County is on the county’s page.
Darlington County’s 2024 results →Official 2024 general election returns, as certified (MIT Election Data + Science Lab). Percentages are of votes for candidates; blank and spoiled ballots aren’t counted. Candidates are listed by votes, and party colors are neutral on purpose.
Portraits: Kamala D Harris: official vice-presidential portrait, Lawrence Jackson, The White House, 2021; Donald J Trump: official portrait, Shealah Craighead, The White House, 2017. All are U.S. government works in the public domain. A race shows photos only when every candidate has an official portrait; otherwise every candidate in it gets initials.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Lamar.
- 1Your townTown governmentLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2South Carolina HouseState representatives
- 3South Carolina SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of South Carolina
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Lamar’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Lamar’s government
How much does Lamar spend per resident?
About $580 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2023, a Census Bureau estimate (Lamar didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $680,000.
What is the property tax rate in Lamar?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $436 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.34% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.48% across South Carolina. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the town’s assessor.
Who runs Lamar’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Lamar yet.
How did Lamar vote in 2024?
South Carolina counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Lamar alone. Darlington County, where 100% of Lamar lies, voted Trump 56.1%, Harris 42.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Lamar?
2 full-time and 4 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $12,893 (about $154,716 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Lamar in the state legislature?
State Senate District 29 (J.D. Chaplin) and State House District 62 (Robert Williams). The House district also covers three neighboring towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Lamar’s government
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments (2022, every government) and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2023–24, a sample) and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (for Lamar, the Bureau’s estimates); day-to-day spending is current operations, with hospitals, utilities and airports apart. School district: Census school finance survey, 2023–24. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 2020–24. Elections: official 2024 returns via the MIT Election Data + Science Lab; turnout uses Census citizen voting-age population (CVAP, 2020–24). Officials: Open States, names shown only with a current term (checked October 9, 2026). Districts: Census Bureau (119th Congress, 2024 state districts); legislators: Open States and congress-legislators. How Town Hall works →