BUILDING TENANT POWER ACROSS SOUTH CAROLINA
SC Tenants is a statewide tenant union led by poor, working-class tenants across South Carolina. With a multigenerational and multiracial base of poor and working-class tenants, SC Tenants is fighting for a South Carolina where everyone has safe, high-quality, affordable housing.
Housing justice is a fight we are waging every day against a system designed to prioritize profit over people.
Landlords, corporations, and complicit politicians have created a housing crisis where rent soars, homes crumble, and tenants are left to fend for themselves. But we refuse to accept their vision of housing as a commodity.
We aim to dismantle structures that uphold landlord control and build systems that put housing in the hands of the people who live there.
Our campaigns respond to injustices and are declarations of what’s possible when tenants take the lead.
Statewide Campaign: Eviction Record Sealing Bill,
H. 4270 & S.983
Eviction Should Not Be a Life Sentence.
In South Carolina, an eviction filing becomes public record the moment it’s filed even if the case is dismissed or resolved. That means a person can do everything right, pay what’s owed, work it out with their landlord, or even win in court, and the eviction still follows them for years.
Landlords, screening companies, and software systems use these records to deny housing, raise security deposits, charge higher fees, or push families into unsafe or unstable living conditions.
This is housing punishment, and it is happening on purpose — especially in Black, working-class, & public housing communities.
South Carolina has one of the highest eviction rates in the country. Families are being locked out of housing every single day because of old records that should no longer define them.
What the Eviction Record Sealing Bill (H.4270, S.983) Does
This bipartisan bill would create a process to seal eviction records, so that:
Tenants with past evictions have a path to seal the record after a set period.
Families can access safe, stable, and affordable housing without being punished forever.
This bill is reasonable, fair, and supported statewide but legislators will not act unless tenants speak up.
HOW YOU CAN HELP WIN THIS BILL
Contact Your Senators!
H4270 has a companion bill in the Senate (S983)! Let’s urge our lawmakers to have a subcommittee hearing by the end of the month!
Lawmakers need to hear from their folks who live in their district.
Your voice can move this bill forward.
We provide the script and you provide your voice.
Contact Your House Representatives!
H4270 passed subcommittee with a unanimous YES! Let’s push this bill to the finish line and thru full committee!n
Lawmakers need to hear from their folks who live in their district.
Your voice can move this bill forward.
We provide the script and you provide your voice.
Contact Us
Want to connect with SC Tenants? You’re in the right place.
Whether you’re ready to join the tenant union, reaching out for a media story, or looking to support the fight to end evictions — we’re glad you’re here. This form is the best way to get in touch with us about getting involved, donating, or collaborating.