South Carolina: State rules

The South Carolina Department of Environmental Services says every public water system must keep a viable cross-connection control program, survey for unprotected cross-connections, and control them with backflow prevention assemblies. The system must keep records of location, type, size, and annual test results. All testing must be done by a state-certified backflow prevention tester, and assemblies used in South Carolina must be on the Department’s approved list. The tester course is a four-day class with classroom and wet-lab time. Students who pass a proctored practical exam and a written exam receive Backflow Prevention Assembly Tester certification. The Department says there are no prerequisites, though water-industry experience is encouraged. The certificate expires every three years.

Checked against official sources on October 11, 2026. Rules and links change; confirm with the office listed before you act.

Recertification is a 25-question written exam plus wet-lab tests of a double check valve assembly, a pressure vacuum breaker, and a reduced-pressure principle assembly. The differential gauge must be accurate to within 2 percent of full scale or plus or minus 0.3 psi differential. Testers renew either at a recertification center or by repeating the state-sponsored workshop. The Department says it must be the certifying agency for all testers in South Carolina. There is no direct reciprocity with training providers. A tester who finished an approved class elsewhere must still pass a Department one-day written and practical exam. There are no reciprocity recertifications.

The program rests on the State Safe Drinking Water Act sections the page cites, R.44-55-20(6) and 44-55-40(6), and on regulation R.61-58.7(F). A Department study guide says the water system tracks assemblies and enforces testing and installation. The page lists a certified-tester listing for people who need a test and names Steve Fox at 803-898-4426 and Maria Johnson at 803-898-0027 as the cross-connection contacts. The general bureau telephone on the page is 803-898-3432. Course dates are announced by the Department. Dollar charges for a private test are not set on the page.

Ask for a current South Carolina certification, not only an out-of-state card, because the Department says it is the certifying agency. The gauge-accuracy sentence is a recertification condition for the tester. It is not an instruction for a property owner to run the test. Assemblies still have to be on the Department’s approved list, and the water system keeps the annual result under R.61-58.7(F).

Official resources in South Carolina

SCDES cross connection control and backflow prevention

States that all testing is done by a state-certified tester and explains the four-day course and three-year renewal.

Recertification study guide

Says gauges are certified annually and that the water system enforces testing under R.61-58.7(F).

EPA primacy page

Federal context for state drinking-water programs.

Key facts for South Carolina

Every public water system must maintain a cross-connection program and annual test records.
All testing must be done by a state-certified backflow prevention tester.
Assemblies must be on the Department’s approved list.
Certification follows a four-day course and proctored written and practical exams, and it expires every three years.
The Department is the certifying agency; out-of-state training still requires a Department exam.
Recertification includes a gauge accurate to within 2 percent of scale or 0.3 psi.

What to do next

Ask for a current South Carolina tester certification.
Do not accept an out-of-state card as a substitute.
Use the Department’s tester listing and still confirm the water system will receive that tester’s report.
Call the cross-connection contacts on the Department page if the certification is unclear.

Looking for your city or county in South Carolina?

We haven't found official program-level pages for South Carolina we can verify yet, so we don't show local numbers here rather than guess. Here's what to use instead, in order:

General Start with the statewide information above. It applies across South Carolina, but cities and counties can add their own steps, fees or deadlines.
Call to confirm Ask the official office. They have the current local rule, fee and form.
South Carolina DES cross connection control
Website →
Phone: (803) 898-4426 (as listed on that page, checked Oct 4, 2026)
Your city or county office: Local governments →
Not sure who handles it locally? USAGov's free help line, 1-844-872-4681, or the South Carolina page on USA.gov can point you to the right office.
Know the current info? Tell us and include a link to the official page. We check every tip before it goes up.

Helpful guides

Backflow tester planner →

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