Business Licenses and Permits:: Published by Corporation Service Company » Blog Archive » Business license introduced to stop copper theft

A new business license has been introduced in South Carolina to stop the rising trend of copper theft.

Any person selling more than ten pounds of recycled copper, brass, steel or aluminum must obtain a permit from the local sheriff’s office.

This comes after homes and businesses in the state have suffered from copper being taken from air conditioning units and other appliances.

Under the new law signed by the governor, recycling businesses must copy the permit of the person who sold them the metal, as well as take a photo of the seller and record their vehicle’s license plate number. Businesses are also no longer allowed to pay cash for copper.

Sheriff Leon Lott of Richland County told news provider WSAV.com: “It is going to help us tremendously. I think you’re going to see a major impact on the copper theft and metal thefts.”