Middleton Place · Photo: Brian Stansberry · CC BY 3.0How is Summerville run?
Summerville’s town government spent $61.1 million on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, about $1,185 per resident. Water and other utilities ($10 million) are counted separately.
What stands out about how Summerville is run
Read from the town’s budget and official records.
About $1,185 per resident a year, or $3.25 a day
Day-to-day services only. The biggest line: police, at 28%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
No comparison for Summerville yet
The fair comparison uses 2022, the last year the Census Bureau counted every government (later years are a sample). Summerville’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate (it reported none of its 2022 dollars), so it has no like-for-like peer figure. It reported 2024; the next full count is 2027.
How Town Hall compares budgets →Day-to-day spending is up 41% since 2023
Day-to-day services, in dollars, in the years Summerville reported to the Census Bureau. Prices rose too: about 4% a year in 2022–2024.
Day-to-day spending by fiscal year
Per resident: 2023: $845 · 2024: $1,185.
full-time in March 2025, up from 431 in 2022. Both are Census estimates.
Building projects, interest and enterprises (hospital, utilities) are left out, so a big construction year doesn’t read as growth.
The typical homeowner pays $1,946 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.59% 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 Summerville’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.
Tax bills are one input to Summerville’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Summerville →
Who’s in charge in Summerville
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
Summerville’s meeting calendar isn’t in our feed yet. The town posts agendas and minutes on summerville.sc.us ↗.
One full-time town employee for every 109 residents
On the payroll in March 2025, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (a Census estimate). Residents: the Census population in the 2024 finance file (51,617).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2025
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Dorchester School District 2
Summerville’s K–12 school district, shared with North Charleston. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $12,547 per pupil, $7,077 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.
Berkeley County School District · $13,371 per pupil
Charleston County School District · $18,199 per pupil
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Summerville’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 Summerville alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Dorchester County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican56.4%43,839 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat41.8%32,489 votesOthers: 1.8% (1,436 votes).
Most votes in Dorchester County: Donald J Trump
South Carolina: Trump 58.2%, Harris 40.4%
84% of Summerville lies in Dorchester County; the rest in Berkeley County, Charleston County. Every 2024 race in Dorchester County is on the county’s page.
Dorchester 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
Summerville sends 6 representatives to the South Carolina House alone.
- 1Your townTown governmentOfficials: summerville.sc.us ↗
- 2South Carolina HouseSummerville is split between 6 districts
- 3South Carolina SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseSplit between districts
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of South Carolina
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
How Summerville compares with the towns next door
Summerville’s 2022 figures are a Census estimate, so it isn’t placed among them. Neighbors that reported 2022 spent $274 to $1,078 per resident. Tap a town to see its page.
| Town | Day-to-day, per resident (2022) | Tax bill |
|---|---|---|
| Lincolnville | $274 | $1,038 |
| North Charleston | $1,078 | $1,527 |
| Summerville | estimate | $1,946 |
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 Summerville’s government
The official site has phone numbers, hours and forms. Neighbors add the rest to the Handbook.
Questions about Summerville’s government
How much does Summerville spend per resident?
About $1,185 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to December 31, 2024, as reported to the Census Bureau.
What is the property tax rate in Summerville?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $1,946 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.59% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.48% across South Carolina. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see summerville.sc.us.
Who runs Summerville’s government?
See summerville.sc.us for current officials. We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Summerville yet.
How did Summerville vote in 2024?
South Carolina counts votes by county and precinct, not by town, so there are no official results for Summerville alone. Dorchester County, where 84% of Summerville lies, voted Trump 56.4%, Harris 41.8% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Summerville?
473 full-time and 38 part-time employees in March 2025, with a March payroll of $2.6M (about $31.6M a year if every month were the same); Census Bureau estimates.
Who represents Summerville in the state legislature?
Summerville is split among 6 State House districts and 3 State Senate districts, so your address decides. The South Carolina Legislature’s lookup finds yours. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Summerville’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; 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 →