Photo: Evanoco · CC BY-SA 4.0How is St. Stephen run?
St. Stephen’s town government spent $1.2 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, about $638 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: St. Stephen didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how St. Stephen is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
About $638 per resident a year, or $1.75 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: police, at 53%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
St. Stephen didn’t report all of its 2022 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for St. Stephen yet
Every year of St. Stephen’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the town reported none of its dollars for 2022. 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 $745 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.75% 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 St. Stephen’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 St. Stephen’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in St. Stephen →
Who’s in charge in St. Stephen
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time town employee for every 182 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2022 finance file (1,824).
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.
Berkeley County School District
St. Stephen’s K–12 school district, shared with Bonneau, Goose Creek, Hanahan, Jamestown, Moncks Corner and more. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $13,371 per pupil, $7,104 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.
St. Stephen’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 St. Stephen alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Berkeley County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican57.4%64,777 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat41.1%46,416 votesOthers: 1.5% (1,641 votes).
Most votes in Berkeley County: Donald J Trump
South Carolina: Trump 58.2%, Harris 40.4%
100% of St. Stephen lies in Berkeley County. Every 2024 race in Berkeley County is on the county’s page.
Berkeley 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 St. Stephen.
- 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.
How St. Stephen compares with the towns next door
St. Stephen’s own figures are Census estimates, so it isn’t placed among its neighbors. 0 of the 0 towns next door reported 2022 figures. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| St. Stephen | estimate | $745 |
Day-to-day spending in 2022, the last year every government was counted, for governments that reported it; hospital and utilities left out. Tax bill: the typical homeowner’s bill (Census ACS, 2020–24).
Reach St. Stephen’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about St. Stephen’s government
How much does St. Stephen spend per resident?
About $638 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, a Census Bureau estimate (St. Stephen didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $1.2 million.
What is the property tax rate in St. Stephen?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $745 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.74% 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 St. Stephen’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for St. Stephen yet.
How did St. Stephen vote in 2024?
South Carolina counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for St. Stephen alone. Berkeley County, where 100% of St. Stephen lies, voted Trump 57.4%, Harris 41.1% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for St. Stephen?
10 full-time and 7 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $61,343 (about $736,116 a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents St. Stephen in the state legislature?
State Senate District 32 (Ronnie Sabb) and State House District 102 (Harriet Holman). The House district also covers three neighboring towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about St. Stephen’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 St. Stephen, 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 →