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Friday Reports — June/July 2007

Issue 24-07, July 13 2007

Issue 23-07, June 22, 2007

Issue 22-07, June 8, 2007

Issue 21-07, June 1, 2007

(Back to Other 2007 Reports)

Issue 24-07 — July 13, 2007

The 2007 session of the General Assembly has adjourned for the year. This is the first year of the two-year session, and any bills not adopted this year will still be pending next year. Please take time to contact the members of the General Assembly you talked with about various issues during the session to let them know you appreciate their support.

During the next few weeks, SCAC will be mailing the 2007 Acts Affecting Counties and several Technical Bulletins on specific legislation. If you have questions about legislation which was adopted or is pending before the General Assembly, please contact the SCAC staff at 1-800-922-6081.

Budget and Proviso 37.36

Thanks to numerous contacts by county officials, the General Assembly overrode the Governor's veto of Proviso 37.36 relating to the inmate quota elimination. This proviso is intended to provide a permanent solution to the Department of Corrections (SCDC) not accepting its prisoners from local jails in a timely manner in compliance with statutory obligations. You made a difference! Sen. Mike Fair deserves a lion's share of the credit for passage of this proviso. He worked tirelessly throughout the entire session and extra session to ensure the proviso was adopted and funding provided.

Some other items of interest in this year's budget are as follows:

Part IA:

The Local Government Fund was fully funded in accordance with §6-27-30;
The Public Libraries per capita was increased by 25 cents; and
$3 million was allocated for V-Safe Firefighter Grants.

The following are some of the new IB provisos of interest to governmental entities in this year's appropriations act:

Proviso 13.27: This proviso directs the Department of Social Services to provide a detailed report to the General Assembly on the status of the Child Support Enforcement System.

Proviso 27.30: This proviso sets aside $1.5 million of the Coordinating Council for Economic Development Funds for the "County Industrial Utility Infrastructure Grant Program." Originally, a county was eligible for the grant only if the project was to assist with an existing or planned utility infrastructure project in an industrial park located within five miles of interstates 20, 26, 73, 77, 85, 95 or any of their spurs, and if the county unemployment rate was 10.0% or higher for the most recent month. The proviso now only requires that the county unemployment rate be 10.0% or higher.

Proviso 62.7: This proviso requires members of the County Board of Voter Registration and County Election Commission to receive a common curriculum on the duties and responsibilities of such boards and commissions. The proviso was amended this year to require the State Election Commission to withhold the stipend of members if they do not complete the training and certification program or fail to complete at least one training course in a year. Additionally, the proviso requires the commission to make the courses available in various locations including the upstate, coastal and midlands areas of the state.

Permits and Restrictive Covenants — S. 65

The Governor signed S. 65 into law. This act addresses questions raised by county attorneys and planners concerning Act No. 45 of 2007. The amended language of § 6-29-1145 clearly requires actual notice of a restrictive covenant from the application, materials accompanying the application or from other sources. If the permitting agency receives actual notice, it must not issue a permit that is in conflict with a recorded covenant. The permitting agency is not required to conduct searches in records offices for covenants. The amendment maintains the exclusion for building or structural permits.

Workers' Compensation Reform — S. 332

The Governor signed the Workers' Compensation Reform Bill. This is a significant piece of legislation which addresses all but one issue this association had supported. It abolishes the Second Injury Fund, a 50 percent disability to the back is no longer automatically a permanent and total injury, and it reverses several recent court decisions.

More Tax Changes — H. 3749

The General Assembly overrode the Governor's veto on H. 3749 during its last week in session. This is one of the tax bills which worked through the General Assembly this year. The bill makes some important changes to the FILOT statutes—including allowing for cash payments and lowering the threshold for qualifying for a 4 percent ratio; allowing a county council by ordinance to delay implementation of reassessment scheduled for the current tax year until property tax year 2008; allowing the Department of Revenue to issue a departmental determination directing the appropriate county official to comply with all applicable state laws relating to the valuation, assessment, or taxation of property; and allowing a county by ordinance to exempt 42.75 percent of the fair market value of a boat from the property tax.

Other Actions of Interest

Big Boats, RVs and Campers – Act No. 66. This legislation drops the assessment ratio for boats, RVs and camper trailers with a head, bed and galley to 6 percent statewide.

Priority Investment Act – Act No. 31. Requires a transportation element and a priority investment element to anticipate state and federal infrastructure investment be added to the local comprehensive plan for land use planning. This act also allows local jurisdictions to adopt measures to make affordable housing easier to build more economically.

Bad Neighbor Bill/Eminent Domain Study Committee – No bill to change the legal standard which requires compensation to a landowner for a governmental taking received legislative attention this session. The joint committee to study eminent domain met numerous times during the fall and spring, but has yet to come to any consensus. The deadline for their report is now Jan. 31, 2008.

Dilapidated Mobile Home Removal – Act No. 45. Provides a mechanism to efficiently remove and dispose of abandoned mobile homes. Local governments are permitted to levy a $25 fee on mobile homes when they are registered to defray any costs in removing abandoned mobile homes.

Statewide Indigent Defense System – Act No. 108. This legislation creates a statewide public defender system, similar to that for the solicitors. The circuit public defender is a state employee, and he appoints county public defenders who are county employees of the county contracted to be the administering county for the circuit. The circuit public defender is to enter into an agreement with a county in his circuit to administer the state and other funds available to the public defender. The budget proviso prohibiting a county reducing its appropriation amount below that of the previous year was codified.

Tax Restructuring Cleanup – Act No. 57, Act No. 110 and R. 177. These three acts accomplish or address the technical changes necessary to implement the property tax restructuring legislation from 2006. Among the changes are:

The millage rate cap formula in §6-1-320 was amended to equate a population loss for a jurisdiction to zero, instead of being a negative number in the formula. This change was present in all three pieces of legislation. A negative CPI was made to equate to zero in Act 57, but that change was not reflected in S. 91 or H. 3749. There is no determination on whether the CPI change will be reflected in the codified version of §6-1-320.

The triggering event for an assessable transfer of interest was changed from the recording of deed or other instrument to the execution of the deed or other instrument.

Valuation appeals for property taxation made after the first penalty date for delinquent taxes will become effective in the following property tax year, instead of the property tax year billed.

References to the term "beneficial ownership" were deleted from the code.

For counties electing to recognize newly constructed property quarterly, the code was clarified to ensure that the property tax bill would only be for that portion of the year in which the property was completed.

The form required of every real property taxpayer certifying that no assessable transfer of interest had occurred is now not required from individual real property owners.

The deadline for the annual financial report required pursuant to §6-1-50 was changed from Nov. 15 to Jan. 15, to allow for the completion of the annual audit upon which the report is designed.

2008 SCAC Legislative Policy Development Process

The process of developing the 2008 SCAC Legislative Policy Positions begins with you. A memo was mailed this week requesting the input of county officials on any legislative policy issue for consideration by SCAC's Legislative Committee. We ask that you send those issues in writing to the SCAC office by Friday, Aug. 10. If you have questions about the legislative policy development process, please contact the SCAC office at 1-800-922-6081.

2007 SCAC Annual Conference, August 2-5: Are You Ready?

The July 20 pre-registration deadline for the 2007 SCAC Annual Conference and the Institute of Government for County Officials is approaching fast. If you have not already made arrangements to attend, there is still time. See the attached enclosure for details of the program and how to register.

There is something for everyone, and the conference is a wonderful opportunity to find out the latest developments in issues affecting the citizens you serve and strategies to address those issues.

Note: If you would like copies of any of the bills or if you would like to offer comments to the SCAC staff, please call us toll-free at 1-800-922-6081, fax to 1 (803) 252-0379 or send e-mail. You can view or download bills by clicking on the bill number.

Issue 23-07 — June 22, 2007

The General Assembly completed the work of its extraordinary session for the week and will return next Thursday and Friday to consider additional gubernatorial vetoes. The proportion of bills being vetoed by the Governor has been higher than in years past, so be ready to respond quickly with calls to the members of the General Assembly if and when word comes next week.

This will be a very brief Friday Report, and a comprehensive wrap-up of the session will follow next week's session.

Budget

The budget was approved in both the Senate and House this week. The Governor has five days to exercise his veto, which will likely mean by midnight Wednesday. The budget includes Proviso 37.36 entitled Quota Elimination and $1.9 million to fund the Department of Corrections to increase their R&E capacity sufficient to eliminate the bottleneck in receiving sentenced prisoners.

Cemeteries and Other Good Stuff — S. 65

The cemetery portion of the bill mandates ingress and egress to a cemetery on private lands by certain parties for limited purposes. Requests must be in writing. If the parties cannot agree to the terms of access, the matter may be finalized in magistrates court. Current agreements are grandfathered.

This bill was amended in conference committee to address questions raised by several county attorneys and planners concerning an earlier enacted provision that prohibited the issuance of permits where the government had notice of restrictive covenants.

The amended language clearly requires actual notice of a restrictive covenant from the application, materials accompanying the application or from other sources (including other property owners). If the permitting agency receives actual notice, it must not issue a permit that is contrary to, conflicts with or is prohibited by the covenant. The permitting agency is not required to conduct searches in records offices for covenants. The amendment maintains the exemption for building or structural permits. These are not subject to the restrictive covenants.

Thank you to those attorneys who assisted in resolving this problem and the many members of the General Assembly who supported our efforts. The current requirements have a July 1 effective date, so we needed to affect a cleanup before that date. A special thanks to the floor leaders of the free conference committee, Sen. Martin and Rep. Hagood.

Workers' Compensation Reform — S. 332

The Senate and House adopted the Conference Report on S. 332 this week, and it was sent to the Governor, who is expected to sign it.

This is a significant piece of legislation. It addresses all but one issue this association had supported. It abolishes the Second Injury Fund, a 50 percent disability to the back is no longer automatically a permanent and total injury, and it reverses several recent court decisions.

Special thanks are in order to members of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee who worked diligently to draft this legislation: Sens. Martin (Chairman), Ritchie, Hutto, Lourie and McConnell. Special thanks are also in order for members of the House who wrestled with Workers' Compensation reform for the last several years, including Reps. Cato, Chellis, Leach and Sandifer.

Action on Gubernatorial Vetoes

Indigent Defense Parity – R. 154, S. 446. This legislation is intended to create parity between public defenders and the circuit solicitors. The Governor's veto was overridden, and it becomes law.

EMT Background Checks – R. 159, H. 3304. This bill requires a criminal background check before employment as an EMT or renewal of an EMT license. It included provisions of the Senate passed DNA sampling bill, S. 142. H. 3304 was vetoed by the Governor and the House sustained that veto. The bill is now dead.

Presidential Primaries – R. 108, S. 99. This act authorizes the State Election Commission to conduct presidential primaries with the parties setting the date for primaries. The Governor's veto was overridden, and it becomes law.

Property Tax Changes – R. 107, S. 91. This act contains several property tax changes and a broadening of allowed investment options for political subdivisions. The Governor's veto was overridden, and it becomes law.

Motor Home/Boat Property Taxes – R. 86, S. 139. This act would lower the property tax assessment rate on certain motor homes and boats that can be classified as either a primary or secondary residence. The Governor's veto was overridden, and it becomes law.

Joint Municipal Water Systems – R. 74, H. 3711. This Act creates a uniform system for public service districts to extend sewer service within the district. The Governor's veto was overridden, and it becomes law.

Tax Technical Changes — H. 3749

This is one of the tax bills working through the General Assembly this year. A conference committee completed its work, and it was approved in both chambers. H. 3749 was ratified Thursday. It contains many provisions also contained in S. 91 discussed above, but there are differences and additional provisions.

Newly-Introduced Legislation

Ratification of Acts

The following bills have been passed by both chambers and are now before the Governor for signature or veto:

(R.104) S. 13 – enacts the "Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act."

(R.105) S. 15 – enacts the "Uniform Interstate Enforcement of Domestic Violence Protection Orders Act."

(R.106) S. 17 – amends the "Uniform Interstate Family Support Act."

(R.107) S. 91 – contains numerous tax changes.

(R.108) S. 99 – authorizes the State Election Commission to conduct presidential preference primaries and allows the commission to conduct the election without charge in a facility that receives state funds.

(R.111) S. 243 – creates the "South Carolina Hydrogen Infrastructure Development Fund."

(R.123) H. 3034 – requires certain state-funded buildings to meet LEED Silver or two globes on the Green Globes criteria.

(R.124) H. 3045 – enacts the "Volunteer Strategic Assistance and Fire Equipment Pilot Program."

(R.127) H. 3233 – prohibits the collection of property taxes on boats and outboard motors due before 2000 through the title freeze collection mechanism.

(R.135) H. 3568 – provides for additional supplemental and incidental uses of an agricultural use valued parcel without disqualifying the parcel from receiving the ag use value.

(R.136) H. 3569 – creates a statewide wireless broadband network to provide affordable services throughout the state.

(R.152) S. 327 – authorizes the Governor to remove a County Board of Registration member or a County Commissioner of Election who does not complete a training program provided by the State Election Commission within 18 months of their appointment.

(R.154) S. 446 – creates the "Indigent Defense Act."

(R.156) S. 213 – enacts the "Prevention of Underage Drinking and Access to Alcohol Act of 2007."

(R.159) H. 3304 – requires an applicant for EMT certification or recertification to undergo a criminal records check, and authorizes a DNA sample to be taken from a person arrested or indicted for certain felonies.

(R.163) S. 332 – provides Workers' Compensation reform.

(R.177) H. 3749 – amends the provisions of the law regarding job development tax credits.

Issue 22-07 — June 8, 2007

The General Assembly has now adjourned sine die for the year. They will come back June 19-21 to take up matters outlined in the sine die resolution (S. 787) discussed below.

Both the House and Senate continued to work until 5 p.m. on Thursday, and many conference committees were appointed. This means much legislation is still in play; therefore a more thorough Friday Report will be published in two weeks.

This is the first year of the two-year session of the General Assembly, and any bills introduced this year remain alive for consideration next year. Additionally, all bills remain in the same position they were at the time of sine die.

Now is the time to contact the members of the General Assembly to tell them "thank you" for the many changes they made to legislation to accommodate your concerns and the legislation they adopted to facilitate county service delivery.

The Sine Die Resolution

After an all week game of brinksmanship, the General Assembly agreed to return on June 19 to take up several matters. The sine die resolution allows the chambers to consider vetoes, appointments, the ratification of acts, local legislation which has the unanimous consent of the entire delegation, conference committee reports, S. 656 and H. 3544.

This means that the General Assembly may still consider the budget bill and the Department of Transportation Reform legislation, both of which are still in conference committee. Additionally, retaining the ability to consider S. 656 allows debate on both sales tax relief and income tax relief. H. 3544 is a continuing resolution to allow the functions of state government to carry on in the event the General Assembly fails to pass an appropriations bill.

The Budget Bill

The Budget Conference Committee completed work on the budget this week. However, the House conferees refuse to sign the spending package until conference reports are adopted on the income tax cut, the sales tax cut, Workers' Compensation reform and Department of Transportation (DOT) reform. DOT reform has become even more interesting, as some members of the Senate have suggested the funding involved could instead go towards car tax relief.

It would appear that the House has agreed to Proviso 37.36, entitled Quota Elimination, as well as the $1.9 million needed to fund the proviso. The proviso directs the money for the Department of Corrections (SCDC) to open 192 beds at Kirkland and 96 beds at MacDougall to increase SCDC's reception and evaluation capacity to process newly-sentenced inmates from the counties. Please thank Sen. Mike Fair as well as your Senate and House Members for supporting this proviso.

Workers' Compensation Reform — S. 332

With five minutes to go before sine die adjournment, the Workers' Compensation Reform Conference Committee members signed their report and sent it to the respective chambers for concurrence. The report, though not as pro-business as the House version, is a marked improvement over the Senate's. The two chambers now have to concur with the changes, and the Governor has to sign it. Although this process is usually a formality, with a bill this controversial, opposition can appear at any point.

The Conference Committee adopted the Senate's version of the Second Injury Fund (SCAC's preference), which would close off the fund for accidents occurring after June 30, 2008 with a shutdown of the firm on July 1, 2013. To minimize an expected spike in claims, which could lead to initial premium increases, the formula for calculating SIF assessments will be reduced from 175 percent of the previous year's losses to 135 percent. Secondly, the report adopted the weaker, but acceptable, Senate version of the 50 percent disability to the back rule. As adopted, such an injury would no longer be deemed a permanent and total disability; rather permanent and total would be presumed, but the presumption could be rebutted by showing, for instance, that the employee was still working.

Problems with repetitive trauma and occupational diseases were both addressed in the conference committee report. Also included in the report is a fix for the Supreme Court's decision in Ellison v. Frigidaire, which allowed unrelated preexisting conditions to turn a 20 percent impairment to the leg into a permanent and total disability. The only important issue that SCAC supported that did not make it into the committee report was a requirement for strict interpretation of the statute.

Additional issues of interest include a fix for Brown v. Bi-Lo (communications with employee's medical care providers) and Dodge v. Bruccoli (medical benefits after maximum medical improvement). Also in the report is a crackdown on fraud and a provision for post judgment interest on cases appealed by the employer. Generally, the business community believes the bill will be a significant improvement, but that it may take a few years to see what effect it will have and how the courts will interpret it.

Indigent Defense Parity — S. 446

This legislation is intended to create parity between public defenders and the circuit solicitors.

Public defender offices would operate by circuit with a circuit public defender heading the public defender office within a given judicial circuit. The circuit public defender would be able to hire county public defenders in order to ensure adequate representation of indigent people.

The bill is written with the intent of holding counties harmless for any additional costs associated with creating this new system. Personnel hired by the circuit public defender would be county employees; however, all personnel costs must be reimbursed to the administering county from operational funds provided to the circuit public defender office from county and state appropriated funds. The bill does codify language that has been in the budget for several years, which states that a county may not reduce funds appropriated for indigent defense below the amount it appropriated in the previous fiscal year.

A conference report has been adopted by both houses that removed a provision dealing with allowing solicitors and public defenders to opt into the Police Officers Retirement Fund. That provision was added to H. 3826, which is pending concurrence in the Senate. Counties continue to be held harmless in that amended bill for the difference in the employer contribution rates.

Other Actions of Interest

Traffic Diversion – H. 3572. This legislation—which would allow a first-time traffic offender to avoid a conviction, including the fine and points, if they enter an education or public service program—is pending third reading on the Senate calendar. The bill still fails to hold harmless local entities which do not contract with the solicitor to run the program.

Military Base Development Rights Millage Cap Exemption – H. 3812. This bill creates an exemption from the millage rate cap for purchase of residential development rights on land surrounding a military base. The bill is still pending third reading in the Senate.

Presidential Primaries – S. 99. This bill authorizes the State Election Commission (SEC) to conduct presidential primaries with the parties setting the date for primaries, along with an amendment to increase candidate filing fees and a new tax check-off to defray state expenses. The Senate amended the bill to allow consolidation of polling places during a primary and a provision to allow a party or the SEC to use any facility that receives state funds for a primary without charge, subject to availability as determined by the governing entity. The House concurred in the Senate amendment, and the bill has been ratified.

Uniform Enforcement of Domestic Violence Orders – S. 15. This bill establishes a uniform procedure for the enforcement of domestic violence protection orders. The bill was given a third reading on Wednesday and sent back to the Senate for concurrence. The Senate concurred, and the bill has been enrolled for ratification.

Uniform Enforcement of Family Support Orders – S. 17. This bill would establish uniform procedures for the enforcement of family support orders under the Interstate Family Support Act. The bill was given a third reading in the House, and has been enrolled for ratification.

Property Tax Changes – H. 3749. The Senate and House both placed numerous amendments on this bill. H. 3749 contains provisions amending the Tourism Infrastructure Admissions Tax Act; a package of fee in lieu of tax (FILOT) changes including up to a 10-year extension of FILOT agreements and reducing the minimum investment on the small fee to $2.5 million; allowing a one-year delay on reassessment for counties scheduled to implement this year; a county optional assessment drop on boats; disclosure of income taxpayer address; and a broadening of allowed investment options by political subdivisions. H. 3749 is in a conference committee.

Property Tax Changes – S. 367. This bill would clarify the CPI plus population language in the millage rate cap to ensure that population loss is deemed a zero for the rate limitation formula. Amendments adopted include making the assessable transfer of interest certificate a separate mailing—instead of part of the tax bill—and requiring it every year for property held by a legal entity, but only as necessary for individual landowners. The Governor signed this bill this week.

Law Enforcement Training Costs – H. 3326. This bill requires a governmental entity hiring a law enforcement officer from another governmental entity to reimburse the entity losing the officer for training costs, if hired within two years of completing training. An entity is required to seek reimbursement from the hiring entity before seeking reimbursement from an employee by agreement. Further, the bill will prohibit future promissory notes between entities and employees. The bill received third reading in the House and was sent to the Senate.

Election Training Enforcement – S. 327. This bill requires members of a County Board of Voter Registration or Election Commission to be removed by the Governor, if they have not fulfilled the training provided by the State Election Commission. A conference report was adopted by both houses, and the bill has been enrolled for ratification.

Campers and Large Boats – S. 139. S. 139 makes the assessment ratio for all boats with a head, a bed and a galley 6 percent, instead of the current county option to drop the assessment ratio. S. 139 also makes the assessment ratio on "pull behind" campers with a head, a bed and a galley 6 percent. The Governor vetoed S. 139 this week. The veto was overridden by both chambers, and the bill now becomes an act.

Homestead Exemption Application – S. 652. This legislation would allow an individual to apply for the homestead exemption by mail, or by internet if the auditor is able to access records which establish the individual's eligibility. S. 652 was given third reading in the Senate and sent to the House.

Alcohol Diversion Program – H. 3490. Gov. Sanford vetoed this bill, which would allow 17- to 20-year-olds with a first-time alcohol related offense—other than DUI—to enter an alcohol education program and avoid a conviction that would jeopardize their Life Scholarship. The veto was overridden in the Senate and the House; H. 3490 is now law.

Joint Water and Sewer Systems – H. 3711. Gov. Sanford's veto of this bill, which defines procedures for creation of joint water and sewer authorities, was overridden in the Senate and the House this week. H. 3711 is now law.

Newly-Introduced Legislation

House Bills

H. 4239 – increases the amount an employee may receive in a civil action brought against a public employing body for retaliatory action against the employee for reporting a state or federal law violation from $15,000 to $300,000 and removes the limit on attorney's fees.

H. 4260 – authorizes a county to collect a special district fee on special district bonds not to exceed 4 percent of the amount of the bond.

Senate Bills

S. 825 – authorizes the net proceeds from certain lottery games to be designated to either K-12 or higher educations programs in equal amounts, and to county public libraries on a per capita basis to be used for educational technology delivery, upgrade and maintenance.

S. 831 – extends the time period that passing scores for the magistrate's eligibility exam are valid from six months to one year.

Ratification of Acts

The following bill has been passed by both chambers and is now before the Governor for signature or veto:

(R.98) H. 3659 – provides that counties which were allocated to receive minibottle tax revenues in Fiscal Year 2004-2005 for education, prevention and other purposes shall receive at least the same amount of revenues from the new excise tax revenues—beginning with the first full fiscal year after sales of liquor by the drink are authorized—with any differences being made up from the general fund.

Issue 21-07 — June 1, 2007

There are quite a few conference committees still working on "big" bills, such as the budget, DOT restructuring, Workers' Compensation and circuit public defenders. There are also several "big" bills awaiting consideration on the House and Senate calendars—such as school choice, income tax relief, sales tax relief and the cigarette tax. Next Thursday is the final day of the regular session. Any bills not passed next week will still be alive and can be considered by the General Assembly next year.

There is not yet a sine die resolution to allow the General Assembly to return after the June 7 mandatory adjournment. However, the Senate resolution to return June 19-21 is pending consideration on the House calendar.

The Budget Bill

The Budget Conference Committee continues to be stalled by the income tax cut, the sales tax cut, the cigarette tax, Workers' Compensation reform and Department of Transportation reform. The Senate has passed a continuing resolution in case the conferees fail to compromise on a bill. It is likely that the impasse will be overcome. The conference committee is scheduled to meet Monday at 4 p.m.

Proviso 37.36, entitled Quota Elimination, has yet to be taken up by the conference committee. The proviso directs $1.9 million for the Department of Corrections (SCDC) to open 192 beds at Kirkland and 96 beds at MacDougall to increase its reception and evaluation capacity to process newly-sentenced inmates from the counties. Please continue to contact your members of the General Assembly to ask that they support Proviso 37.36.

Workers' Compensation Reform — S. 332

The conferees on S. 332 are Sens. Martin, Hutto and Ritchie; and Reps. Cato, Chellis and Haley. The conference committee met this week and worked on the technical aspects of the differences, leaving the substantive differences to next week. The provisions of the House version as a whole are more likely to stabilize Workers' Compensation Insurance premiums. However, there are some more desirable provisions in the Senate version, chief among them the closure of the Second Injury Fund on July 1, 2008, instead of the scaled back continuance of the Second Injury Fund contained in the House version.

Indigent Defense Parity — S. 446

This legislation is intended to create parity between public defenders and the circuit solicitors. Public defender offices would operate by circuit, with a circuit public defender heading the public defender office within a given judicial circuit. The circuit public defender would be able to hire county public defenders in order to ensure adequate representation of indigent people.

The bill does codify language which has been in the budget for several years which states that a county may not reduce funds appropriated for indigent defense below the amount it appropriated in the previous fiscal year.

The House version of the bill contains language which would allow the assistant solicitors and assistant public defenders to participate in the Police Officers Retirement System. The amendment holds counties harmless for the difference in the employer contribution rates. The Senate took this language out of the bill this week. S. 446 is in Conference Committee and will be taken up on Tuesday at 2 p.m. The conferees are: Sens. Malloy, Rankin and Ryberg; and Reps. Murrell Smith, Doug Smith and Rutherford.

Traffic Diversion — H. 3572

The Senate Judiciary Committee reported this bill out favorably this week with a few technical amendments. This legislation would allow a first-time traffic offender to avoid a conviction, including the fine and points, if they enter an education or public service program.

All solicitors are responsible to begin a program. The legislation gives the entity which runs the program $140, and holds state agencies harmless for their losses due to diverted traffic tickets. The bill fails, however, to hold harmless local entities which do not contract with the solicitor to run the program.

H. 3572 is pending second reading on the Senate calendar. Please call your Senator and ask that local governments be held harmless in the same manner as state agencies. Local governments are operating under a millage cap, not state agencies or solicitors offices.

Other Actions of Interest

Military Base Development Rights Millage Cap Exemption – H. 3812. This bill creates an exemption from the millage rate cap for purchase of residential development rights on land surrounding a military base. The Senate Finance Committee reported the bill out favorably this week, and it received a second reading. There was discussion that the bill allows relief for one problem but not others, and there may be amendments offered on third reading.

Homestead Exemption Application – S. 652. This legislation would allow an individual to apply for the homestead exemption by mail, or by internet if the auditor is able to access records which establish the individual's eligibility. S. 652 received second reading in the Senate this week.

EMT Background Checks – H. 3304. This bill requires a criminal background check before employment as an EMT or renewal of an EMT license. H. 3304 received a favorable report from the Senate Medical Affairs Committee. H. 3304 was amended on the Senate floor to include the provisions of the Senate passed DNA sampling bill (S. 142), received third reading in the Senate and will return to the House for consideration of the Senate amendments.

Erroneous Mortgages Satisfaction – H. 3033. This bill would create a procedure for the filing of a recession of an erroneous mortgage satisfaction. The Senate Judiciary Committee amended H. 3033 to add a 24-hour waiting period for the document of rescission to become effective as a safe harbor for the innocent buyer who comes in with a deed of title during the time period between the recording of the erroneous satisfaction and the recording of the document of rescission. H. 3033 is pending second reading in the Senate.

Judicial Enhancements – H. 3934. This bill requires the clerk of court to report all grand jury indictments that return a true bill to court administration, along with the name of the defendant and the offense charged. H. 3934 also increases the magistrate court civil jurisdictional limit from $7,500 to $15,000. H. 3934 was amended to delete the provision that would have allowed family court judges to appoint hearing officers. This bill has passed the House and is now in the Senate.

Agritourism – H. 3568. This bill allows for additional supplemental and incidental uses of an agricultural use valued parcel to not disqualify the parcel from receiving the ag use value. This bill was reported out of Finance Committee and received third reading this week in the Senate. H. 3568 now goes back to the House for consideration of the amendment to name additional incidental uses.

Property Tax Changes – H. 3749. The Senate has amended this bill numerous times, but has yet to give it second reading. H. 3749 contains provisions amending the Tourism Infrastructure Admissions Tax Act; a package of fee in lieu of tax (FILOT) changes including up to a 10-year extension of FILOT agreements and reducing the minimum investment on the small fee to $2.5 million; allowing a one-year delay on reassessment for counties scheduled to implement this year; disclosure of income taxpayer address and a broadening of allowed investment options by political subdivisions. H. 3749 is pending second reading on the Senate calendar.

Property Tax Changes – S. 91. This bill was also amended with almost exactly the same amendments as H. 3749 and was returned to the House for consideration of the Senate amendments.

Property Tax Changes – S. 367. This bill would clarify the CPI plus population language in the millage rate cap to ensure that population loss is deemed a zero for the rate limitation formula. Amendments adopted include making the assessable transfer of interest certificate a separate mailing—instead of part of the tax bill—and requiring it every year for property held by a legal entity, but only as necessary for individual landowners. The House concurred in the Senate amendments to S. 367, and it was ratified this week.

Identity Theft – S. 453. This is the bill to set up procedures for handling Social Security Numbers and other personal information in governmental records. The House Judiciary General Laws Subcommittee was unable to report the bill to the full committee. The subcommittee does not plan to meet again, so S. 453 will probably see no further action this year.

Statewide Wireless Network – H. 3569. This bill would create a statewide wireless broadband network to provide affordable broadband services throughout the state. The Senate Judiciary Committee struck the provisions of this bill that would have created a commission to implement the broadband network and replaced it with a study committee. One of the members of the study committee is required to be an appointee by the Governor as recommended by SCAC. H. 3569 was given a favorable report, passed the Senate, and returned to the House for consideration of the Senate amendments.

Uniform Expungement – S. 110. This piece of legislation provides for a uniform procedure for the expungement of criminal records. S. 110 received a favorable report from the Senate Judiciary Committee with an amendment to increase the expungement fee to $250, unless there is dismissal of the charges or acquittal. S.110 is on the Senate calendar pending third reading.

Sex Offender Monitoring – S. 43. This bill would require persons convicted of certain sexual-related offenses to be electronically monitored by the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services (PPP). PPP agreed to language that clarified reporting by clerks of court and detention facilities of offenders release and sentence dates. S. 43 was also amended to reduce the length of notice required to be given PPP to 48 hours before release from jail. The House Judiciary Committee adjourned debate temporarily, but was unable to come back to the bill after it was forced to adjourn for lack of a quorum.

Concealed Weapons Permits – H. 3964. The House Judiciary Committee gave a favorable report to H. 3964 to allow concealed weapons in schools. One amendment provides that if a person is involuntarily committed to the Department of Mental Health, documents must be transmitted to SLED for use in the concealed weapons permit process. H. 3964 is pending second reading on the House contested calendar with the involuntary commitment amendment.

Law Enforcement Training Costs – H. 3326. This bill requires a governmental entity hiring a law enforcement officer from another governmental entity to reimburse the entity losing the officer for training costs, if hired within two years of completing training. House Judiciary reported the bill favorably after amendments to require an entity to seek reimbursement from the hiring entity before seeking reimbursement from an employee by agreement. Further, the bill will prohibit future promissory notes between entities and employees. The bill is pending second reading in the House

Presidential Primaries – S. 99. This bill authorizes the State Election Commission (SEC) to conduct presidential primaries with the parties setting the date for primaries, along with an amendment to increase candidate filing fees and a new tax check-off to defray state expenses. The House gave the bill third reading and returned it to the Senate for concurrence. The Senate refused to concur, and amended the bill to allow consolidation of polling places during a primary and a provision to allow a party or the SEC to use any facility that receives state funds for a primary free of charge, subject to availability as determined by the governing entity. S. 99 has been returned to the House for consideration of the amendments

Election Training Enforcement – S. 327. This bill is in a conference committee consisting of Sens. Knotts, Sheheen and Campsen; and Reps. Clemmons, Stewart and Scott. The conference committee has ironed out some wording to clarify that current election and registration officials are not exempt from the provisions of S. 327. The conference committee has yet to make its report to the House and Senate.

Smoking Ban – S. 103. This bill would prohibit smoking in public places, except in certain prescribed areas. The House Judiciary Committee amended the bill to remove the section prohibiting local government bans more restrictive. The committee was unable to report S. 103 out after it was forced to adjourn for lack of a quorum.

Uniform Enforcement of Family Support Orders – S. 17. This bill would establish uniform procedures for the enforcement of family support orders under the Interstate Family Support Act. The House Judiciary Committee reported S. 17 favorably, and it is awaiting second reading.

Uniform Enforcement of Child Custody Ordersx – S. 13. This bill establishes a uniform procedure for the enforcement of child custody and visitation orders. S. 13 was reported favorably by the Judiciary Committee and given third reading by the House.

Uniform Enforcement of Domestic Violence Orders – S. 15. This bill establishes a uniform procedure for the enforcement of domestic violence protection orders. The Judiciary Committee amendment was tabled, and S. 15 was given second reading in the House on Thursday. However, a motion to reconsider second reading was made and will be considered next week.

Newly-Introduced Legislation

House Bills

H. 4162 – establishes the "South Carolina Mass Transit Advisory Commission."

H. 4163 – provides for the appropriation of $20 million from the surplus FY 2006-07 general fund revenues for additional FY 2007-08 EFA funding to hold harmless schools districts otherwise receiving reduced EFA funding for FY 2007-08.

H. 4199 – provides that the governing body of a county has the sole authority to permit the construction of a new landfill in the county or expand an existing landfill.

Senate Bills

S. 800 – authorizes county council to exempt 42.75 percent of the value of a watercraft and its motor for property tax purposes.

Ratification of Acts

The following bill has been passed by both chambers and is now before the Governor for signature or veto:

(R.65) S. 661 – extends the deadline the Eminent Domain Study Committee has to produce its report and recommendations to the Chairmen of the Senate and House Judiciary Committee and the Governor to Jan. 31, 2008.

(R.70) H. 3428 – provides for state law enforcement agencies to appoint reserve officers in the same manner as municipal and county law enforcement agencies.

(R.71) H. 3456 – authorizes a local official or landowner to seek to remove and sell or remove and destroy an abandoned mobile home by applying to the magistrates court, and allows a local governing body to impose a fee to defray the costs involved in disposing of the abandoned mobile home. It also requires planning organizations to inquire if a parcel of land has a restricted covenant. However, a restrictive covenant does not include restrictions concerning a type of structure.

(R.72) H. 3490 – allows 17- to 20-year-olds with a first-time alcohol-related offense—other than DUI—to enter an alcohol education program and avoid a conviction which would jeopardize their Life Scholarship.

(R.74) H. 3711 – defines procedures for the creation of joint water and sewer authorities.

(R.86) S. 139 – provides that a motor home, a boat or watercraft, or a trailer used for camping and recreational travel that is pulled by a motor vehicle will be treated as a primary or secondary residence for purposes of ad valorem property taxation; and their fair market value must be determined in the manner that motor vehicles are valued for property tax purposes.

(R.90) S. 391 – allows the coroner to appoint investigators, and allows the chief magistrate to serve as interim coroner until the Governor appoints a replacement coroner in the event of a vacancy.

South Carolina Association of Counties

In This Section

Friday Reports — June/July 2007