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Friday Reports — May 2008

Issue 21-08: May 30, 2008

Issue 20-08: May 23, 2008

Issue 19-08: May 16, 2008

Issue 18-08: May 9, 2008

Issue 17-08: May 2, 2008

(Back to Other 2008 Reports)

Issue 21-08 — May 30, 2008

This is the last week of the 2008 session of the General Assembly, and there are quite a few bills of interest to county officials up in the air. There is not time to delay in contacting your House and Senate members about legislation that affects the county. At 5 p.m. on Thursday, the General Assembly will adjourn for the year, and bills that do not pass will have to start over again.

In the House, there were a number of contentious votes; and voting on amendments, vetoes and other matters has become even less predictable than usual. This became evident in the voting on the Governor's budget vetoes Thursday, when several vetoes which were widely expected to be overridden were instead sustained.

In the Senate, next week will be very chaotic with amendments being added to bills out of the blue, bills that were on the contested calendar passing without warning, and bills that were sailing through just stopping on a moment's notice.

Another contact just to reconfirm and shore up earlier conversations would be in order.

Critical Contact Issues for the Week of June 3

Jail Quota Elimination Proviso – Veto #40. The Governor has again vetoed the proviso (51.32) which prohibits the Department of Corrections (DOC) from imposing a quota on the number of sentenced state inmates it accepts from the county jail. The Governor did not veto the $1.967 million appropriated to fund DOC's reception and evaluation facility. Every member of the House and Senate needs to be contacted before Tuesday. Ask them to override Veto #40; and explain that DOC's quota policy creates serious over-crowding problems at the county jail, jails are not equipped to handle long-term prisoners, and that this also shifts medical costs to the local jails. DOC offered not one word of concern about either the proviso or the level of funding for this item during the budget process in the House or the Senate. The House will likely resume taking up vetoes on Tuesday. Just because this veto was overridden last year, does not mean that it will be again this year. This is far from a done deal.

H. 4355 Becomes a Sales Tax Mini BAT Bill. The Senate amended this bill several times and gave it second reading. H. 4355 will return to the House for concurrence or non-concurrence, once it receives third reading next week. The Senate amendments: allow a county to vote to exempt food from a local option sales tax, instead of requiring all local option sales taxes adopted in the future to exempt food; allow counties with an existing capital projects sales tax to have a referendum to renew it at a time other than the general election every two years; allow the capital projects sales tax to be used to acquire land for conservation, blight remediation, and to protect military bases; and allow local accommodations and hospitality taxes to be used to issue bonds for the list of permitted projects. House members need to be contacted to ask them to concur in the Senate amendments; and Senators need to be asked to insist on their amendments, if the House does not concur.

Charitable Property Tax Exemption Expansion – H. 3008. This bill allows a charitable entity to hold real property for future use in a property tax exempt status for three years. The Senate amended H. 3008 to delete a provision to give all warehouse facilities the 6 percent assessment ratio and other provisions which came over from the House, but were passed last year in other bills. H. 3008 is pending third reading in the Senate. The House's version of H. 3008 contains a provision to drop the assessment ratio for all warehouses from 10.5 percent to 6 percent, which would have a fiscal impact of over $12 million. Contact your House member, and ask that they concur in the Senate amendments, if and when H. 3008 returns to the House.

Sprinkler Installation Property Tax Credit — H. 4470

The Senate Finance Committee reported H. 4470 out, and it has passed the Senate. The Senate version of this bill allows a county to grant a property tax credit equal to 25 percent of the cost of installing a fire sprinkler system. For those taxpayers who receive a property tax credit, they will also get a state income tax credit equal to 25 percent of the installation cost of the sprinkler system. There are no caps on the amount of the cost of the sprinkler system. Water tap and maintenance fees for sprinklers are capped at actual costs.

The House version of H. 4470 offers an income tax credit for the installation of a commercial or residential fire sprinkler system; a prohibition on municipalities or special service districts from charging more than the actual cost of any separate water line installed solely in support of a fire sprinkler system; an exemption of sprinkler systems from state sales tax; a five-year county and city operating property tax exemption on the value of a sprinkler system installed or upgraded in facilities built before July 1, 2008; and the full depreciation, at 20 percent per year, of the value of a sprinkler system.

Evidence Warehousing — S. 429 and S. 890

S. 429 deals only with the Innocence Project program to allow post-conviction DNA testing for crimes involving death or first degree burglary. This will require clerks of court and sheriffs to retain evidence in these cases for much longer periods of time. S. 429 was recalled to the House floor, where it is pending second reading.

S. 890, the DNA sampling bill, was also amended with the contents of S. 429.

The Budget Division has made a request of the Fiscal Impact Statement Team for the local cost of the evidence warehousing provisions. Please check to see if your county has received this request and responded.

School/Higher Ed Capital Projects Sales Tax — S. 1232

As passed by the Senate, S. 1232 would allow a local option sales tax to be imposed for school capital projects for up to 15 years in all counties of the state. The tax may be imposed in the county upon the adoption of a resolution by the school district board and a favorable referendum result. The House amended the bill to apply only in a county that generated $7 million or more in state accommodations tax. The revenues may be shared with higher education for capital improvements on campuses. The Senate concurred in the House amendment, and it has been enrolled for ratification.

ATI/Point of Sale — H. 4942

The Finance Committee amendment, which is pending consideration in the Senate, suspends implementation of assessable transfers of interest (ATI) for one year. The House-passed version of H. 4942 delays recognition of an ATI until the year of reassessment. The delay in recognizing an ATI until the year of reassessment would mean that after the sale of a property which received the benefit of the 15 percent cap on assessed value increases, the tax value would not reflect the fair market value until reassessment was implemented. Because of the rollback millage calculation in a reassessment year, the rollback millage may wash out the growth in the tax base resulting from an ATI triggering the jump to fair market valuation of a property.

The BEA has informally said the fiscal impact of the amendment would still be $44 million for that one-year suspension of the ATI mechanism, which is the same as the first year impact of the bill as passed by the House.

Taxation and Finance Bills

Reassessment Delay – H. 3975. This bill allows a county to postpone reassessment for one additional year. H. 3975 was given second reading and is pending third reading in the Senate.

Rent Own 4 Percent Legal Residence Assessment Ratio – S. 1313. This bill was recalled from committee to the House calendar and is pending second reading. S. 1313 allows a person who acquires an equitable interest in property through a bond for title, lease-purchase agreement, contract for sale, or other type of contractual agreement to qualify for the 4 percent assessment ratio—as long as the person claims the property as their legal residence and is responsible for taxes on the property in question. S. 1313 also allows a single-member LLC—where the single member is an individual that is not taxed for income tax purposes as a corporation—to qualify for the 4 percent assessment ratio, if they meet all the other criteria.

Attorney Fees for Ag Tax Appeals – H. 4499. The Senate Finance Committee reported this bill favorably with an amendment to impose a standard for awarding attorney fees in ag use valuation appeals on the initial determination decision and decisions to revoke the ag use valuation similar to those in S. 490. Debate on H. 4499 was carried over, when a senator said he wanted to ask his constituent about the committee amendment. H. 4499 is pending second reading on the uncontested calendar.

Residential Improvement Districts (RIDs) – H. 4745. This bill is based upon the county improvement districts in Chapter 35 of Title 4, expanding upon that authorization which allows assessments to finance public infrastructure and improvements. H. 4745 is pending third reading in the Senate.

Mothballed Plants Bill Becomes a Ball of Amendments – S. 1171. The Senate took up the House-passed version of S. 1171, amended the bill and returned the bill to the House—where the House may concur in the Senate amendments or insist on their version of the bill and force a conference committee. Both versions of the bill exempt from property tax for four years manufacturing equipment in a plant that has been shuttered during the entire property tax year and drop the assessment ratio on manufacturing warehouse space from 10.5 percent to 6 percent, when it is used exclusively for warehousing and is separate from other areas of the plant. The Senate added language to include the contents of S. 865, which requires a tax bill to reflect the estimated value of the school operating expense homestead exemption. The bill was also amended to authorize a county, by ordinance, to change the amount of time a boat must be located in South Carolina to become taxable to 180 days in the aggregate. The Textile Communities Revitalization Act is also in S. 1171.

Textile Communities Revitalization Act – H. 4950. This bill significantly redefines what is an eligible site for incentives under this act to accommodate larger mills which may have to be demolished and redeveloped, rather than rehabilitated. The proponents mentioned specific projects in York and Greenville Counties. The Senate adopted the committee's amendment; and H. 4950 became bogged down on the contested calendar pending second reading, when an amendment to earmark vehicle sales taxes for roadwork was proposed and ruled out of order.

Affordable Housing TIFs – H. 4743. This bill allows publicly- and privately-owned affordable housing to be the focus of a tax increment financing (TIF) district. H. 4743 is pending third reading in the Senate.

Realtor Business Licenses – H. 4554. H. 4554 is intended to clarify where realtor business income is taxed for business license purposes and to avoid multiple taxation of that income. In the Senate version, credit is given to the jurisdiction where the sale occurs, when the sale is reported to the broker-in-charge office in another jurisdiction from the jurisdiction where the sale occurred. The Senate passed H. 4554, and it now goes back to the House for concurrence or further House amendments.

Proviso Codification and Flood Codes – S. 530. This bill codifies numerous provisos which have been in the budget act for several years. The House amended the bill this week to add several other older provisos which had been ruled out of order in the Senate. Additionally, the House added a new section which states that coastal counties and municipalities may adopt, by reference or otherwise, the provisions in the 2006 International Residential Code (IRC) necessary to prevent properties insured by the National Flood Insurance Program (NIFP) from being retrograded to a lower class for purposes of the flood insurance premium discounts allowed jurisdictions participating in the NFIP's community rating system. The bill is in the House, pending concurrence with Senate amendments.

Infrastructure and Transportation

Stormwater Fees – H. 4337. This bill has been placed on the Senate contested calendar after receiving objections from Sens. Cleary and Fair. These fees support mandated stormwater and sediment control programs. Please thank the Senators for their support.

Removal of Roads from the State System – S. 981. This bill is pending second reading on the contested House calendar. S. 981 gives DOT more options in the transfer of roads (current law requires a state-local swap). A county must agree to any road transfer, so control remains at the local level. The committee amendment pending includes the provisions of H. 4549 to earmark the sales tax on vehicles for road paving.

Public Ferry Systems – S. 996. This bill would set up a framework for county operation of public ferries. The Senate concurred in House amendments, and S. 996 is now R. 305 awaiting the Governor's action.

Water District Sewer Service – H. 3030. This bill would allow certain rural water districts to construct and operate sewage systems. H. 3030 was amended with a provision which states that a COG has no authority to determine which entities may provide water and sewer service in their territory. This may affect the COGs' role in Clean Water Act permitting. H. 3030 is pending third reading on the contested Senate calendar.

General Government Operations and Structure

Jail Recodification – S. 590. This bill is the Local Detention Committee project to update the code of laws relating to local jails to reflect current practice, court cases and delete obsolete code provisions. S. 590 is a victim of the cancellation of the House Judiciary Committee meeting, when the House stayed in session all day Tuesday and Wednesday. Recall from House Judiciary Committee to the floor was made impossible by one member saying he would object to any motion to recall it from committee. Later, an amendment being considered surfaced that would shift the responsibility for medical expenses from the pre-trial inmate to the county. SCAC will now oppose the recall of S. 590 from committee to prevent consideration of that amendment.

Firefighter Background Checks – H. 5009. This bill provides that no person may volunteer, be hired as a firefighter or perform firefighting duties who has been convicted of, pled guilty, or pled nolo contendere to arson. The Senate amended the bill to restrict consideration of a conviction or plea to 10 years. The bill now heads back to the House for consideration of the amendment.

Victim Services Certification – H. 4601. H. 4601 requires 15 hours for initial certification and 12 hours annually in continuing education. The Senate Judiciary Committee amended the bill to allow an entity to require an individual to receive additional training, if the person or entity wants more training. The bill has a Jan. 1, 2009 effective date. The House concurred with the Senate amendment, and H. 4601 has been enrolled for ratification.

EMT Background Check – H. 4334 and S. 297. This bill requires a criminal background check before employment as an EMT or upon renewal of an EMT license. H. 4334 was amended on the Senate floor to require DHEC to treat records on persons regarding sexually transmitted diseases as confidential with certain exceptions for medical purposes. The House non-concurred with the Senate amendments and sent H. 4334 back to the Senate. The Senate may insist on its amendment and force a conference committee or agree to the House version of H. 4334. The House adjourned debate on the Senate companion bill, S. 297.

Ballots – S. 913. This bill removes obsolete language regarding paper ballots. The House amended the bill to require that a candidate nominated by multiple parties must have his name listed only once on the ballot and passed the bill. The Senate amended S. 913 to remove the multiple party amendment, and it returned to the House for consideration of the Senate amendment.

Courts, Clerks and RODs

Family Court Privacy Act – S. 584. This bill seals the financial declaration filed in the family court, unless a court order is obtained or the requester is a party to or an attorney in the action. The House Judiciary Committee meeting was cancelled on Tuesday and again on Wednesday, because the House stayed in session both days. S. 584 is dead, unless it gets unanimous consent to be recalled to the House floor.

Child Support Garnishment/Centralized Collection – H. 3478. H. 3478 would allow a judge to order wage garnishment, if the person is at least three months in arrears on child support. The Senate amended H. 4378 to create a statewide centralized system for child support collection by 2010, as is mandated by the federal government. The Senate gave the bill third reading, and it now heads back to the House for consideration of the Senate amendment.

Attorney Fees in Government Initiated Actions – S. 490. This bill puts a set of criteria in the existing statute allowing the award of attorneys' fees in actions initiated by the state or a political subdivision, or action contesting a state action, and requires specific findings to be made by the court. The House amendment also allows parties an additional 120 days to serve a defendant in civil suits with the payment of an additional fee and addresses payment of attorney fees for the Layman/TERI suit. The House passed the bill, and it is now in the Senate for consideration of the House amendment.

Grand Jurors – H. 4694. This bill would prohibit any person who is currently charged in a state or federal court with a criminal offense that carries a maximum penalty of one year or more from serving on a state grand jury. The bill was not reached in the Senate Judiciary Committee and is dead, unless it is recalled to the Senate floor.

Deed Recording Fee Exemption – H. 4067. This bill would exempt from deed recording fees real property deed transfers from a trust to a trust beneficiary. The bill is currently awaiting third reading in the Senate.

Protective Orders – H. 4312. This bill provides that a protective order established by reason of incapacity other than age does not automatically terminate upon the incapacitated person reaching the age of majority. The Senate amended H. 4312 with a health care power of attorney change, and it has returned to the House for consideration of that amendment.

Judicial Enhancement – H. 3934. This bill makes several changes to the judicial system, including requiring 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. The Senate Judiciary Committee only took up the new DPS appointment during its meeting, and H. 3934 is dead as a result.

Expungement – S. 110. S. 110 codifies a court order issued by the Chief Justice regarding expungement. A House Judiciary subcommittee amended this bill to require cases handled by magistrates to be expunged at the magistrate court level, rather than by the solicitor. S. 110 is pending second reading on the House calendar.

School Resource Officers – S. 1221. This bill, which deals with the rules of civil procedure in magistrates court, was amended on the House floor to authorize a school resource officer to issue a courtesy summons to a student arrested for a misdemeanor offense, and a bond hearing must be held for the student in magistrate court within 24 hours of the student's arrest. The Senate concurred in the House amendment, and S. 1221 has been enrolled for ratification.

Immigration — H. 4400

The Senate gave third reading to H. 4400, and the House concurred in the Senate amendments to the bill. H. 4400 removed the state preemption language against local immigration ordinances that exceed state law that was contained in previous versions of the immigration bill. It also authorizes LLR to issue an employment license to private employers, in addition to any business licenses required by local government, and requires private employers to verify the legal status of new employees. Failure to comply may result in a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation and the revocation of any business license, including a local business license. All fines collected are retained by LLR.

Businesses that provide immigration services are required to obtain a license issued by LLR in addition to any local government business license requirements. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in a civil penalty of up to $1,000 per violation and the revocation of any business license, including a local business license. This fine does not preempt or preclude additional civil and criminal penalties to include restitution to the political subdivision. Additionally, if the person or entity is convicted of criminal activity in providing immigration services, they are jointly and severally liable for any loss suffered by an agency or political subdivision of the state. H. 4400 has now been enrolled for ratification.

Newly-Introduced Legislation

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.

House Bills

H. 5221 – Provides that any person or organization that creates a gun-free zone is liable for damages for criminal conduct occurring in a gun-free zone, if a reasonable person would believe that a firearm could have helped the person defend themself in the gun-free zone from the criminal conduct. A court may order treble damages under certain circumstances.

Senate Bills

S. 1423 – Creates the Office of Professional Standards under the Law Enforcement Training Council to investigate and hear complaints against law enforcement officers and to determine necessary actions to be taken.

S. 1429 – Authorizes a special purpose district providing medical services, such as a hospital or a care facility, in a county that collects more than $14 million in accommodations taxes to take out a mortgage to secure its bonds or loans to a federal agency or guarantee if the federal agency will guarantee the loan.

Ratification of Acts

The following bills were passed by both chambers and are awaiting action by the Governor:

(R.271) S. 642 – Defines a financial institution that holds the uninsured funds on deposit of a local government entity and the state as a qualified public depository, allows the depository to secure those funds using the dedicated method or the pooling method, and authorizes the local government entity or state treasurer to require the depository to use the dedicated method.

(R. 282) S. 638 – Provides a procedure for local governments to have an invocation, and requires the Attorney General to defend any public body in a challenge to the constitutionality of the act.

(R. 293) H. 4800 – Enacts the state budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2008.

(R. 294) H. 4801 – Enacts appropriations for the capital reserve fund for FY 2007-08.

(R. 295) H. 4876 – Amends provisions of the state retirement system laws to comply with IRS requirements regarding employee benefits, employer contributions and other related matters pertaining to participating in the system—as well as procedures for the system—and eliminates the application of SC Regs. 19-900 through 19-997 to operation of Title 9.

(R.300) S. 463 – Provides a constitutional amendment to allow investment of OPEB funds in the stock market, and authorizes a trust of more than one county to invest in the stock market.

(R.305) S. 996 – Creates a framework for county operation of public ferries.

(R.313) S. 1182 – Creates a study committee to look at the feasibility and benefits of the construction, operation and maintenance of transportation infrastructure using public-private partner-ships and ventures.

(R.314) S. 1221 – Provides that a student arrested for a misdemeanor by a school resource officer may receive a courtesy summons by the resource officer and must have a bond hearing within 24 hours of arrest.

(R.321) S. 3326 – Requires an entity which hires a law enforcement officer from another entity within two years of completing mandatory training to reimburse the other entity for all training costs. For those hired within one year, reimbursement is 100 percent of the costs; and it is 50 percent of the costs, if hired after one year but before the completion of the second year of service.

(R.324) S. 4065 – Adds the word "general" before "personal representatives" to help expedite appointment of a personal representative in formal proceedings in Probate Court.

(R.325) S. 4229 – Requires the jury lists for municipal court to be prepared from the electronic file of persons holding a valid state driver's license or identification card to be furnished by the State Election Commission.

(R.327) S. 4400 – Enacts the South Carolina Illegal Immigration Reform Act.

(R.329) S. 4601 – Requires 15 hours for initial certification and 12 hours annually in continuing education for victim services certification, and allows additional training if the person or entity wants more training.

(R.331) S. 4713 – Reduces the resident requirement in this state to receive a plot in a state veterans' cemetery from 20 years to 5 years.

Issue 20-08 — May 23, 2008

For the remainder of the session, the first item in the Friday Report will be labeled "Critical Contact Issues" and will point out those select bills where a number of contacts by county officials may be the difference in the outcome of the issue. Several of the bills reported on in this issue are on the contested calendar in the House and Senate and are part of the last minute effort to leverage the other chamber to take action on a different bill in the other chamber. At some point in the remaining portion of the session, there will likely be an event that occurs to cause both sides to let these bills go; and they may be amended with any number of additional items. Be on the watch for Legislative Alerts which call for a quick response.

Critical Contact Issues for the Week of May 27

School Capital Projects Sales Tax – S. 1232. There is a full court press by the public schools, colleges and technical schools to pass S. 1232 in the House. No fewer than 10 lobbyists were working S. 1232 this week. Even if the proposal may have merit, there was no subcommittee work done to make the mechanism work in counties that have multiple school districts or school districts that overlap county boundaries. The only way to preserve the counties' ability to use the capital projects sales tax for infrastructure is to make calls from home to the members of the House now. Please see the section titled "School/Higher Ed Capital Project Sales Tax" below for a detailed description of problems with S. 1232.

Stormwater Fees – H. 4337. This bill was reported to the Senate floor with two amendments. The first amendment exempts the permitting activities under the S.C. Sediment Control Act. The second amendment would extend the ban on stormwater fees to churches. Prohibitions on fees for stormwater, sediment or erosion control by counties on agricultural land, forest land and undeveloped land remain. This legislation will be on the Senate calendar next Tuesday. Please ask your Senator to object to H. 4337. That is the only way to keep H. 4337 from putting a big hole in the fee revenue stream which supports this mandated program.

Jail Recodification – S. 590. This bill is a general cleanup of existing statutes that relate to local jails to reflect court cases, current practice and modern terminology. There is a section that places a specific process for mutual aid agreements between jurisdictions in the event of an emergency. The bill was carried over in the House Judiciary Committee and will be on the Committee's last meeting agenda for the year next Tuesday. S. 590 is the product of several years of work by the SCAC Local Detention Study Committee which includes county jailers, administrators, sheriffs and the Department of Corrections. Please contact the members of the House Judiciary Committee, and ask them to support passage of S. 590. This is the last chance to get this bill out of committee this year.

Budget Conference Committee Deletes Online Expense Registry

The budget conference committee voted on Thursday morning to remove the online expense registry proviso. Sens. Leatherman, Land and Peeler, and Rep. Joe Neal voted to exclude the proviso, because of the burden it places upon governmental entities. They also thought it may need more study before considering adoption. Another factor brought up was that it was not really a budget proviso type of subject. While every telephone call and contact made by county officials was helpful—SCAC President Rusty Smith, working closely with Sen. Yancey McGill, was able to sit down and explain the impact of the proviso upon local government resources and the issues the proviso would have caused. Both of them made numerous contacts and visits until the last meeting of the conference committee and sat through that conference committee meeting drawing upon the strength of their long-term working relationships to bring about this result. Please take the time to thank all involved in this effort. The deletion of this proviso will save the property taxpayers of the state millions of dollars for what would have been very little benefit.

School/Higher Ed Capital Projects Sales Tax — S. 1232

S. 1232 is currently pending second reading on the House contested calendar. This bill allows a school district to authorize a referendum to impose a countywide 1 cent sales tax for local school district and higher education capital projects for up to 15 years. The revenue may be shared with public schools of higher education and may be imposed in the county upon the adoption of a resolution by any school district board and a favorable referendum result.

S. 1232 is applicable statewide, while the House-passed version, H. 4883, applies only to Horry and Charleston Counties. There is a considerable effort being brought to bear by the public schools, colleges, universities and tech schools to pass the seriously flawed bill.

It is likely that the passage of this legislation would restrict the ability of county governments to adopt the local option sales tax, an initiative which goes toward real property tax relief for county residents, or the capital projects sales tax—which allows counties to build not only needed infrastructure, but also to access state road money from the infrastructure bank.

Some of the other significant problems with this bill are:

The legislation does not require school districts to cooperate in the implementation of the penny sales tax. This could mean:

A single school district may call for a referendum implementing a county-wide sales tax.

In counties with more than one school district, it would be possible to have a race to call for the referendum question with different lists of projects.

More populous school districts could use the entire proceeds of the county-wide sales tax, forcing residents of other school districts in the county to pay for projects in a single district.

The legislation would likely only enhance current school funding equity issues; wealthy counties raise more through the sales tax than those with less of a sales tax base.
The legislation makes no provisions for multi-county school districts.

Residents residing in cross county districts may end up paying for capital improvements for other counties' students.

If the revenue collected is used to reduce debt service, residents of one county could end up providing tax relief that benefits residents of another county.

Please contact your House member, and ask that they recommit S. 1232 to the House Ways and Means Committee.

ATI/Point of Sale — H. 4942

SCAC has taken no position on H. 4942, because there were counties for the bill and others against the bill. If your county has input on H. 4942, you should contact the members of the Senate directly—concentrating on members of the Finance Committee, which will likely take up the bill next Tuesday. H. 4942 delays recognition of assessable transfers of interest (ATI) until the year of reassessment, instead of each year. The delay in recognizing an ATI until the year of reassessment would mean that after the sale of a property which received the benefit of the 15 percent cap on assessed value increases, the tax value would not reflect the fair market value until reassessment was implemented. Because of the way in which the rollback millage is calculated in a reassessment year, the rollback millage may wash out the growth in the tax base due to an ATI triggering the fair market valuation of a property. The subcommittee deleted this portion of H. 4942 and recommended a provision to delay or suspend the recognition of an ATI for one year. The point of that amendment is to allow time to formulate a "fix" for the ATI issue. There was much confusion among subcommittee members about what types of transactions are an ATI and how that feature works. The BEA has informally said the fiscal impact of the amendment would still be $44 million for that one-year suspension of the ATI mechanism, which is the same as the first year impact of the bill as passed by the House.

Taxation and Finance Bills

Reassessment Delay – H. 3975. A Finance subcommittee gave a favorable report to H. 3975, which would allow a county to postpone reassessment for one additional year. H. 3975 will be before the Finance Committee at its next meeting.

Local Option Sales Tax Food Exemption – H. 4355. A Senate Finance subcommittee gave a favorable report to H. 4355 with an amendment. The House-passed bill exempts food from any local option sales tax adopted after the effective date of the bill, and allows the county to exempt food from an existing local option sales tax by ordinance. The Senate Finance subcommittee amendment allows food to be exempted from a local option sales tax, instead of requiring the exemption. SCAC pointed out that the House version of H. 4355 would cut the revenue projection significantly for lists of projects being formulated for referenda voted on in November. The subcommittee also adopted an amendment to allow counties which have a capital project sales tax adopted prior to 2008 to hold referenda to renew the sales tax in a year other than the general election. H. 4355 will be on the next Senate Finance Committee agenda.

Realtor Business Licenses – H. 4554. This bill received a favorable report from the Senate LCI Committee. The report includes a proposed amendment which would clarify that credit is given to the jurisdiction where the sale occurs, when the sale is reported to the broker-in-charge office in another jurisdiction from the jurisdiction where the sale occurred.

Mothballed Plants – S. 1171. The House passed S. 1171, and this bill returns to the Senate for consideration of the House amendments. The bill exempts from property tax for four years manufacturing equipment in a plant that has been shuttered during the entire property tax year. S. 1171 was also amended with the contents of H. 4672—which drops the assessment ratio on manufacturing warehouse space from 10.5 percent to 6 percent, when it is used exclusively for warehousing and is separate from other areas of the plant. The contents of H. 4950, which makes changes to the Textile Communities Revitalization Act, were also added to S. 1171.

Charitable Property Tax Exemption – H. 3008. The Senate Finance Committee will have before it at the next meeting H. 3008. The bill allows a charitable entity to hold real property for future use in a property tax exempt status for three years. The subcommittee report deleted a provision to give all warehouse facilities the 6 percent assessment ratio and other provisions that came over from the House but were passed last year in other bills.

Residential Improvement Districts (RIDs) – H. 4745. This bill is based upon the county improvement districts in Chapter 35 of Title 4, expanding upon that authorization which allows assessments to finance public infrastructure and improvements. H. 4745 is pending second reading on the contested Senate calendar.

Textile Communities Revitalization Act – H. 4950. A Senate Finance subcommittee took up H. 4950 and gave it a favorable report. This bill significantly redefines what is an eligible site for incentives under this act to accommodate larger mills, which may have to be demolished and redeveloped rather than rehabilitated. The proponents mentioned specific projects in York and Greenville Counties. H. 4950 will be before the Senate Finance Committee at its next meeting.

Affordable Housing TIFs – H. 4743. This bill allows publicly- and privately-owned affordable housing to be the focus of a tax increment financing district (TIF). This bill will be before the Senate Finance Committee at its next meeting.

Infrastructure and Transportation

Water District Sewer Service – H. 3030. This bill would allow certain rural water districts to construct/operate sewage systems in the district. H. 3030 was amended with a provision which states that a COG has no authority to determine which entities may or may not provide water and sewer service in their territory. H. 3030 is pending third reading on the contested Senate calendar.

Removal of Roads from the State System – S. 981. This bill is pending second reading on the contested House calendar. S. 981 gives SCDOT more options in the transfer of roads (current law requires a state-local swap). A county must agree to any road transfer, so control remains at the local level. The committee amendment pending includes the provisions of H. 4549 to earmark the sales tax on vehicles for road paving.

Public Ferry Systems – S. 996. This bill would set up a framework for county operation of public ferries. S. 996 has passed the House and returns to the Senate for consideration of an unrelated amendment.

General Government Operations and Structure

Fire Sprinkler Property Tax Credits – S. 860. This bill is pending second reading on the contested Senate calendar and allows the county to grant a property tax credit of up to 25 percent of the cost of the installed system available. If the county grants the property tax credit, the state matches that incentive with an equal income tax credit. There are no caps on the amount of the cost of the sprinkler system. Water tap and maintenance fees for sprinklers are capped at actual costs.

Law Enforcement Training Reimbursement – H. 3326. The House concurred in the Senate amendment to H. 3326, and it has been enrolled for ratification. H. 3326 requires an entity that hires a law enforcement officer from another entity within two years of completing the mandatory training to reimburse the other entity for all training costs. For those hired within one year, reimbursement is 100 percent of the costs; it is 50 percent of the costs for those hired after one year, but before the completion of the second year of service.

Victim Services Certification – H. 4601. The Senate passed H. 4601, and it is before the House for concurrence/non-concurrence with the amendments, which allow an entity to require greater levels of training than the statutory minimums set out in the main part of the bill. H. 4601 requires 15 hours for initial certification and 12 hours of continuing education annually. The bill has a Jan. 1, 2009 effective date.

EMT Background Check – H. 4334 and S. 297. This bill requires a criminal background check before employment as an EMT or upon renewal of an EMT license. H. 4334 was amended on the Senate floor to require DHEC to treat records on persons regarding sexually transmitted diseases as confidential with certain exceptions for medical purposes. The bill was given third reading as amended and has been returned to the House. In light of concerns that this amendment might kill the bill, the companion bill S. 297 was recalled from the House 3M committee and is pending second reading on the House calendar.

Public Prayer – S. 638. This bill provides a procedure for local governments to have an invocation, and requires the Attorney General to defend any public body in a challenge to the constitutionality of the act. S. 638 was passed by the House and enrolled for ratification.

Courts, Clerks and RODs

Family Court Privacy Act – S. 584. This bill seals the financial declaration filed in the family court, unless a court order is obtained or the requester is a party to or an attorney in the action. The House Judiciary Committee carried it over, and it will be before the committee again next week. Please contact members of the Judiciary Committee to ask that they report the bill out with the subcommittee amendment to make it applicable only to documents filed or accessed after the effective date of the act. This is the last opportunity to get S. 584 out of committee and passed this year.

Child Support Garnishment/Centralized Collection – H. 3478. H. 3478 would allow a judge to order wage garnishment, if a person is at least three months in arrears on child support. The Senate Judiciary Committee amendment creates a statewide centralized system for child support collection by 2010, as mandated by the federal government. H. 3478 is pending second reading on the contested Senate calendar.

Mechanics Liens – S. 511. This bill was given a favorable report by a House Judiciary subcommittee. S. 511 provides a mechanism to remove inactive liens from the books. The House Judiciary Committee will take up S. 511 in its last meeting next Tuesday.

DNA Database and Evidence Warehousing – S. 890 and S. 429. S. 890 is pending second reading on the contested House calendar. The House Judiciary Committee proposed an amendment to S. 890 and gave it a favorable report. The bill builds a DNA database from those charged with a felony carrying a sentence of at least five years. The proposed committee amendment adds the contents of S. 429 requiring evidence in homicides, sexual crimes, first degree robbery and first degree burglary to be held: for the term of incarceration for guilty verdicts; for the lesser of seven years or the term of incarceration for guilty or nolo contendere pleas; and until execution in capital cases. The bill is awaiting second reading on the contested House calendar. S. 429 will be before the House Judiciary Committee next Tuesday.

Middle Courts – H. 4309. This bill removes parole eligibility—other than good time credits—from all classes of felonies with sentences of one year or more, and creates a middle court process similar to existing drug courts. The court would be available to nonviolent, first-time offenders with potential sentences of 90 days or more. Solicitors are required to create a middle court process within 180 days, subject to funding from the General Assembly. There is no mention of courtroom space for these courts. The bill is currently awaiting second reading on the House calendar.

Protective Orders – H. 4312. This bill provides that a protective order established by reason of incapacity other than age does not automatically terminate upon the incapacitated person reaching the age of majority. The Senate gave the bill a second reading, and it is pending third reading on the contested Senate calendar.

Judicial Enhancement – H. 3934. This bill makes several changes to the judicial system, including requiring 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. As passed by the House, the bill also increased the civil jurisdiction in magistrate court from $7,500 to $15,000. The proposed Senate Judiciary subcommittee amendment strips all references to magistrates from H. 3934. The Senate Judiciary Committee carried this over.

Grand Jurors – H. 4694. This bill would prohibit any person who is currently charged in a state or federal court with a criminal offense that carries a maximum penalty of one year or more from serving on a state grand jury. A Senate Judiciary Committee amended the bill so that it applied to all grand juries, and not just the state grand jury, then carried it over. The bill will be before the Senate Judiciary Committee again at its next meeting.

Attorney Fees in Government Initiated Actions – S. 490. This bill adds a set of criteria in the existing statute allowing the award of attorneys' fees in actions initiated by the state or a political subdivision, or in action contesting a state action, and requires specific findings to be made by the court. The House Judiciary Committee amendment allows parties an additional 120 days to serve a defendant in civil suits with the payment of an additional fee and addresses payment of attorney fees for the Layman/TERI suit. The bill is currently awaiting second reading on the uncontested House calendar.

Immigration — H. 3032 and H. 4400

The conference committee on H. 3032, the latest version of the immigration bill, did not meet this week. The conferees are: Sens. McConnell, Verdin and Sheheen, and Reps. Harrison, Delleney and Viers. Attempting to avoid conference, the Senate placed H. 4400 on special order—making certain that it will be debated next week and sent to the House in hopes that the House would concur with the bill, so that it can be ratified. The Senate distributed a draft amendment among the Senators on Thursday aimed at avoiding a conference committee with the House on this issue, but it was not widely available. The amendment could be the focus of debate next week.

Newly-Introduced Legislation

House Bills

H. 5176 – In lieu of arresting students, authorizes school resource officers to issue a courtesy summons to appear and to meet with students involved in school incidents other than gang, drugs or weapons crimes in connection with a school activity or school-sponsored event.

H. 5202 – Requires a service provider to provide broadband service to consumers located in its service territory or allow another service provider to come in and provide broadband service in that area.

Senate Bills

S. 1405 – Provides a state standard for residential property maintenance regarding weeds and debris that does not preempt existing county ordinances.

Ratification of Acts

The following bill was passed by both chambers and is awaiting action by the Governor:

(R. 239) S. 1039 – Prohibits local government ordinances that restrict a landowner from discharging a firearm on his property of 25 acres or more to protect people or property, but allows existing ordinances without the 25-acre exception to remain valid and otherwise enforceable.

Acts

The following bills were passed by both chambers and signed into law by the Governor:

(R. 248, Act No. 210) H. 3451 – Provides for the electronic recording of land title documents in the RODs' offices.

(R. 236, Act No. 205) S. 14 – Provides that a minor child under the age of 17 may accompany their parent in the voting booth.

Issue 19-08 — May 16, 2008

Critical Contact Issues for the Week of May 20

Online Expense Registry Provisos. Ask the budget conferees to reject both versions of this proposal. The conferees are: Sens. Leatherman, Land and Peeler, and Reps. Cooper, Merrill and Joe Neal. The Budget Conference Committee members will decide as early as Monday morning whether either version of this proposal is included in the budget. The Senate version is Proviso 86.2, and the House version is Proviso 75. Also, contact the members of the House and Senate and ask that they support deleting these provisos and communicate that to their conferees. Both of these provisos require the posting of every expense of $100 or more—from whatever source or for whatever purpose, paid by check or credit card—to be posted to a website. The requirement excludes wages and compensation paid to individuals. Many counties have no website at all, or their website is inadequate to handle this volume of content with the required features. Those that do have a sufficiently sophisticated website will still have issues with the personnel or amount of time involved to provide the required monthly updates. Even if a county has a website or the Comptroller General provides the site, it may involve entering expenses twice.

School Capital Projects Sales Tax – S. 1232. Ask your House member to request debate on S. 1232. S. 1232 is pending second reading on the House calendar and would allow a local option sales tax to be imposed for local school and higher education institution capital projects for up to 15 years. The tax may be imposed in the county upon the adoption of a resolution by the school district board and a favorable referendum result.

S. 1232 is applicable statewide, while the version passed by the House earlier applies only to Horry and Charleston Counties. There is a considerable effort being brought to bear by the colleges, universities and technical schools to pass the Senate version of this bill. There is very little chance that a county would be able to enact two capital project sales taxes, and the school penny is effective for up to 15 years and could be used to fund state institutions.

Budget Conference Committee Appointed and Will Meet Monday Morning

The budget conferees are: Sens. Leatherman, Land and Peeler, and Reps. Cooper, Merrill and Joe Neal. The conference committee met this week to organize and will meet to work on items that are not identical in both versions of the budget on Monday, May 19. Some of the provisos that differ in the two versions of the budget follow:

Suspension of the EIA Maintenance of Local Effort – Proviso 1.45. This proviso is in the Senate version of the budget and suspends for FY 2008-09 the requirements of §59-21-1030, the local maintenance of effort requirement in the Education Improvement Act.

$5 Traffic Ticket Surcharge – Proviso 90.11. This proviso was determined to be out of order by the Finance Committee and was not adopted in the Senate budget. The proviso is in the House version of the budget. It would add a $5 surcharge for all misdemeanor traffic tickets and non-moving violations. The revenue from the surcharge would fund the Criminal Justice Academy.

ATI/Point of Sale — H. 4942

A Senate Finance subcommittee met and heard testimony from several groups about this bill. SCAC was called upon by the subcommittee; and our staff informed the subcommittee that SCAC has taken no position on H. 4942, because there are some counties in favor of the bill and others are opposed to it. If your county has input on H. 4942, you should contact the members of the Senate directly, concentrating on the members of the Finance Committee.

H. 4942 delays recognition of assessable transfers of interest (ATI) until the year of reassessment, instead of each year. The delay in recognizing an ATI until the year of reassessment would mean that after the sale of a property which received the benefit of the 15 percent cap on assessed value increases, the tax value would not reflect the fair market value until reassessment was implemented. Because of the way in which the rollback millage is calculated in a reassessment year, the rollback millage may wash out the growth in the tax base due to an ATI triggering the fair market valuation of a property. The subcommittee deleted this portion of H. 4942 and recommended a provision to delay or suspend the recognition of an ATI for one year. The point of that amendment is to allow time to formulate a "fix" for the ATI issue. There was much confusion among the subcommittee members about what types of transactions are an ATI and how that feature works. The BEA has informally said the fiscal impact of the amendment would still be $44 million for that one year suspension of the ATI mechanism, which is the same as the first year impact of the bill as passed by the House.

Taxation and Finance Bills

Reassessment Delay – H. 3975. A Finance subcommittee gave a favorable report to H. 3975, which would allow a county to postpone reassessment for one additional year.

Accommodations and Hospitality Fee Bonds – S. 524. The House Ways and Means Committee tabled S. 524. This bill does not affect the items for which these local fees can be spent, but does allow bonds to be issued using these revenue streams. There was confusion over the uses of the state accommodations tax revenue and the local fee uses. Another comment stated that if bonds were issued, it would just make the fee permanent.

Realtor Business Licenses – H. 4554. This bill was reported out of a Senate LCI subcommittee without amendment. H. 4554 is intended to end a multiple tax impact upon real estate agents. Business license taxes are assessed at the office of the agent in charge with credit given for taxes paid to other jurisdictions.

Mothballed Plants – S. 1171. The House Ways and Means Committee gave a favorable report to S. 1171 with several amendments. The bill exempts from property tax for four years manufacturing equipment located in a plant that has been shuttered during the entire property tax year. S. 1171 was also amended with the contents of H. 4672—which drops the assessment ratio on manufacturing warehouse space from 10.5 percent to 6 percent, when it is used exclusively for warehousing and is separate from other areas of the plant. The contents of H. 4950, which makes changes to the Textile Communities Revitalization Act, were also added to S. 1171.

Charitable Property Tax Exemption – H. 3008. A Senate Finance subcommittee gave a favorable report to H. 3008. The bill allows a charitable entity to hold real property for future use in a property tax exempt status for three years. The subcommittee deleted a provision to give all warehouse facilities the 6 percent assessment ratio and other provisions that came over from the House but were passed last year in other bills.

Residential Improvement Districts (RIDs) – H. 4745. This bill is based upon the county improvement districts in Chapter 35 of Title 4, expanding that authorization which allows assessments to finance public infrastructure and improvements. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee amended the bill with technical language to ensure that the legislation is useable for issuing bonds and then reported the bill out favorably.

Expansion of 4 percent assessment qualifiers – S. 1313. This bill allows a person who acquires an equitable interest in property through a bond for title, lease-purchase agreement, contract for sale, or other type of contractual agreement to qualify for the 4 percent assessment ratio—as long as the person claims the property as their legal residence and is responsible for taxes on the property in question. The Senate amended the bill to also allow a single-member LLC—where the single member is an individual that is not taxed for South Carolina income tax purposes as a corporation—to qualify for the 4 percent assessment ratio, if they meet all the other criteria establishing owner-occupant status. The bill received third reading in the Senate.

Affordable Housing TIFs – H. 4743. This bill allows publicly- and privately-owned affordable housing to be the focus of a tax increment financing (TIF) district. A Finance subcommittee reported the bill out favorably this week.

Immigration — H. 3032 and H. 4400

The Senate amended H. 3032 to mirror its version of the immigration bill that stalled in conference (S. 392). The House amended the Senate amendments to H. 3032 and put back in the preemption language which prohibits local governments from enacting any ordinance that is in conflict or otherwise exceeds state and federal immigration law. It would also allow a sheriff to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding between the state and the U.S. Department of Justice or Department of Homeland Security, subject to the availability of funds, to have corrections officers and local law enforcement officers trained to enforce federal immigration laws. After debate by the House and Senate, H. 3032 moved to conference. The conferees are: Sens. McConnell, Verdin and Sheheen, and Reps. Harrison, Delleney and Viers. No meeting for the committee has been set.

H. 4400 was amended to include the Senate's version of the immigration bill, which removes the state preemption language against local ordinances that would exceed state law. H. 4400 is pending second reading on the Senate calendar and will probably be taken up next week.

Infrastructure and Transportation

Stormwater Fees – H. 4337. This bill was reported favorably out of a Senate Agriculture subcommittee. SCAC testified against the legislation, which impacts 16 counties. The bill was amended to add churches to the list of property exempt from stormwater fees. The subcommittee asked the parties to attempt to resolve their differences by next week. In light of the fact that there does not seem to be uniformity on how the fees are assessed, this could be difficult.

Removal of Roads from the State System – S. 981. This bill received a favorable report from the House Education and Public Works Committee. It gives SCDOT more options in the transfer of roads (current law requires a state-local swap). A county must agree to any road transfer, so control remains at the local level. The bill was amended to include the provisions of H. 4549 to earmark the sales tax on vehicles for road paving.

Public Ferry Systems – S. 996. This bill would set up a framework for county operation of public ferries. S. 996 was reported favorably out of the House Education and Public Works Committee.

Airport Commissions – H. 5144. The House Education and Public Works Committee took up H. 5144, even though it was not on the agenda. H. 5144 would vest operation of the Myrtle Beach Airport (and other airports in Horry County) in an authority appointed by the county, the City of Myrtle Beach and the legislative delegation. The Governor would appoint the chairman. We mention H. 5144, because it has been made statewide and could be a vehicle for other jurisdictions. There was also a statement that S. 1371 (companion bill) would be scheduled for a hearing in the Senate next week.

Water District Sewer Service – H. 3030. This bill would allow certain rural water districts to construct/operate sewer systems within the district. H. 3030 was the subject of debate this week and there was talk of an amendment to work out the differences being introduced, but none has been published at this time.

General Government Operations and Structure

Fire Sprinkler Property Tax Credits – S. 860. A Senate Finance subcommittee gave a favorable report to S. 860. S. 860 allows the county to grant a property tax credit of up to 25 percent of the cost of the installed system available. If the county grants the property tax credit, the state matches that incentive with an equal income tax credit. There are no caps on the amount of the cost of the sprinkler system. Water tap and maintenance fees for sprinklers are capped at actual cost. S. 860 is pending second reading on the contested Senate calendar.

Law Enforcement Training Reimbursement – H. 3326. The Senate gave this bill third reading, and it returns to the House for consideration of the Senate amendment. H. 3326 requires an entity that hires a law enforcement officer from another entity within two years of completing the mandatory training to reimburse the other entity for all training costs. For those hired within one year, reimbursement is 100 percent of the cost; and reimbursement is 50 percent for those hired after one year, but before the completion of the second year of service.

Victim Services Certification – H. 4601. The Senate adopted the committee amendment and gave it second reading. H. 4601 requires 15 hours for initial certification and 12 hours annually in continuing education. The committee-proposed amendment allows an entity to require an individual to receive additional training, if the person or entity wants more training. The bill has a Jan. 1, 2009 effective date.

Animal Tethering – S. 833. A House subcommittee amended S. 833 by removing the individual factors that had to be shown before a charge of animal cruelty could be brought against an owner. The bill makes it a criminal offense to cruelly chain or other-wise restrain an animal by depriving it of food, water or shelter. The amendment increases the maximum penalty to 10 years or $10,000. Additional amendments make it a crime to sharpen an animal's teeth and increase penalties for cockfighting. The amendment also deleted the language which allows local ordinances to be stricter than state law and to be enforced with civil penalties.

Public Prayer – S. 638. The House Judiciary Committee gave S. 638 a favorable report. This bill provides a procedure for local governments to enact policies allowing for an invocation by one of the elected or appointed officials of the body, a chaplain elected by the body or a speaker chosen on an objective and rotating basis from a pool of the community's religious leaders. S. 638 requires the state Attorney General to defend any public body in a challenge to the constitutionality of the act, to make available a written statement of the law and to update the statement as needed.

EMT Background Check – H. 4334. This bill requires a criminal background check before employment as an EMT/renewal of an EMT license. H. 4334 was amended on the Senate floor to require DHEC to treat records regarding cases of sexually transmitted diseases as confidential with certain exceptions for medical purposes. The bill was given third reading as amended and has been returned to the House.

Courts, Clerks and RODs

Child Support Garnishment/Centralized Collection – H. 3478. H. 3478 would allow a judge to order wage garnishment, if a person is at least three months in arrears in paying child support. The Senate Judiciary Committee amended the bill to create a statewide centralized system for child support collection by 2010, as is mandated by the federal government, and gave it a favorable report.

Expungement – S. 110. S. 110 codifies a court order issued by the Chief Justice regarding expungement. The House Judiciary subcommittee amended S. 110 to require that cases handled by magistrates be expunged at the magistrate court level, rather than by the solicitor. The subcommittee gave the bill a favorable report.

Family Court Privacy Act – S. 584. This bill seals the financial declaration filed in family court, unless a court order is obtained or the requestor is a party to or an attorney in the action. A House Judiciary subcommittee gave this bill a favorable report, and it goes to the House Judiciary Committee. The subcommittee adopted an amendment to require the financial declaration document to be sealed when filed/accessed after the act's effective date.

DNA Database and Evidence Warehousing – S. 890 and S. 429. The House Judiciary Committee amended S. 890 and gave it a favorable report. The bill builds a DNA database from those charged with a felony carrying a sentence of at least five years. The amendment adds the contents of S. 429 requiring evidence in homicides, sexual crimes, first degree robbery and first degree burglary to be held: for the term of incarceration for guilty verdicts, for the lesser of seven years or the term of incarceration for guilty or nolo contendere pleas, and until execution in capital cases. The bill is awaiting second reading on the House calendar. The stand-alone version, S. 429, was given a favorable report by a House Judiciary subcommittee.

Middle Courts – H. 4309. This bill removes parole eligibility, other than good time credits, from all classes of felonies with sentences of one year or more and creates a middle court process similar to existing drug courts. The court would be available to nonviolent first-time offenders with potential sentences of 90 days or more. Solicitors are required to create a middle court process within 180 days, subject to funding from the General Assembly. There is no mention of courtroom space for these courts. The bill is currently awaiting second reading on the House calendar.

Protective Orders – H. 4312. This bill provides that a protective order established by reason of incapacity other than for being a minor does not automatically terminate upon the incapacitated person reaching the age of majority. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee amended the bill to provide that a person granted power under a healthcare power of attorney is to be given the same visitation or access by a healthcare provider that an immediate family member would be given. The subcommittee gave H. 4312 a favorable report.

Judicial Enhancement – H. 3934. This bill makes several changes to the judicial system—including requiring 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. As passed by the House, the bill also increased the civil jurisdiction in magistrate court from $7,500 to $15,000. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee stripped out all references to magistrates and reported the bill out favorably.

Grand Jurors – H. 4694. This bill would prohibit any person who is currently charged in a state or federal court with a criminal offense that carries a maximum penalty of one year or more from serving on a state grand jury. H. 4694 was amended to allow the person to serve on the next grand jury, if the charges are dismissed or the person is found not guilty. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee amended the bill, so that it applied to all grand juries and not just to the state grand jury, and gave H. 4694 a favorable report.

Personal Representative Appointment – H. 4065. This bill adds the word "general" before personal representative under §6-1-302. H. 4065 is pending second reading on the Senate calendar.

Attorney Fees in Government Initiated Actions – S. 490. This bill adds a set of criteria to the existing statute allowing the award of attorneys' fees in actions initiated by the state or a political subdivision, or action contesting a state action, and requires specific findings to be made by the court. The House Judiciary Committee adopted an amendment to allow parties an additional 120 days to serve a defendant in civil suits with the payment of an additional fee and gave S. 490 a favorable report. The bill is currently awaiting second reading.

Ignition Interlock – H. 472. This bill is a cleanup of the existing interlock device law, which requires an alcohol monitoring device to be placed on all vehicles of a person who has been convicted of a second DUI offense. The offender must pay all costs for the device. If a person is indigent, the cost of the device is paid from the Interlock Device Fund, which is funded by a monthly fee charged by the interlock device service provider. S. 472 was amended to allow an interlock device order to be enforced in this state, if a person under an interlock device order from another state moves to South Carolina or a South Carolina resident is placed under an interlock device order from another state. The House Judiciary Committee gave a favorable report to S. 472 as amended, and it is pending second reading on the House calendar.

Elections

Ballots – S. 913. The House Judiciary Committee gave S. 913 a favorable report. The bill removes obsolete language regarding paper ballots. The bill is currently on the contested House calendar pending second reading.

Election and Registration Boards – S. 1106. This bill would codify the numerous local laws combining county election commissions and boards of registration. The House Judiciary Committee gave the bill a favorable report, and it is currently pending second reading on the contested House calendar.

NACo Steering Committee Nominations

Do you want a voice in creating the national legislative policies of the National Association of Counties? Then consider filling out a NACo nomination form to be appointed to one of their 11 steering committees. The nomination process for membership on NACo policy steering committees is underway. As a steering committee member, you are responsible for debating and creating national policies and priorities affecting counties and serve as NACo's frontline in their grassroots efforts. Committees meet at the NACo legislative and annual conferences and one other time during the year. You will be responsible for your own travel.

Please contact Kathy Williams at the SCAC Offices, if you would like to receive a nomination form. Completed forms must be received by SCAC no later than Friday, June 13. The nominations will be processed by SCAC and forwarded to NACo for approval by the NACo President after the NACo Annual Conference in July. Appointments will be announced in September.

Newly-Introduced Legislation

House Bills

H. 5142 – Provides that all new motor vehicles sold must be equipped with an ignition intervention device to prevent a person from operating the vehicle if they have consumed alcohol.

H. 5144 – Creates the Grand Strand Airport District, and requires Horry County and the City of Myrtle Beach to contract with the airport district to provide funds to meet any operating deficits. If the county fails to contract with the airport district, if there is a default on the contract or if the county otherwise for any reason fails to provide for the operating deficit, annual state funds for the county shall be withheld to pay for the operating deficit. This bill also allows a municipality to annex property that is contiguous to the airport district.

Senate Bills

S. 1360 – Provides that a special purpose district or service district must hold a public meeting prior to beginning a project to construct, expand or materially alter a water distribution system or sewage collection system.

S. 1371 – Creates the Grand Strand Airport District, and requires Horry County and the City of Myrtle Beach to contract with the airport district to provide funds to meet any operating deficits. If the county fails to contract with the airport district, if there is a default on the contract or if the county otherwise for any reason fails to provide for the operating deficit, annual state funds for the county shall be withheld to pay for the operating deficit. This bill also allows a municipality to annex property that is contiguous to the airport district.

Ratification of Acts

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

(R. 271) S. 642 – Allows a depository to secure funds using the dedicated method or the pooling method, and authorizes the local government entity or state treasurer to require the depository to use the dedicated method.

(R. 275) H. 3853 – Creates a non-moving traffic offense for idling a commercial diesel vehicle longer than 10 minutes or idling a passenger bus longer than 15 minutes.

Issue 18-08 — May 9, 2008

Critical Contact Issues for the Week of May 13

Stormwater Fee Exemptions – H. 4337. H. 4337 is in the Senate Agriculture Committee. This is the legislation which exempts agricultural lands, forest lands and vacant lands from any fee imposed for stormwater, sediment or erosion control. The terms agriculture lands, forest lands and vacant lands are not defined. A Senate Agriculture subcommittee meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Wednesday, May 14. The subcommittee members are: Sens. Campbell, Chairman; Campsen; Cromer; McGill and Williams.

School Capital Projects Sales Tax – S. 1232. This bill would allow a local option sales tax to be imposed for local school and higher education capital projects for up to 15 years. The tax may be imposed in the county upon the adoption of a resolution by the school district board and a favorable referendum result.

S. 1232 is applicable statewide, while H. 4883 applies only to Horry and Charleston Counties. There is a considerable effort being brought to bear by the colleges, universities and technical schools to pass the Senate version of this bill. S. 1232 would most likely appear before the House Ways and Means subcommittee consisting of: Reps. Littlejohn, Chairman; Battle; Edge; Simrill and Leach.

House Takes Up the Budget

The House took up the Senate-passed budget bill this week and sent it back to the Senate, so that a conference committee can be appointed to work out the differences between the two versions of the budget. The House version fully funds the Local Government Fund.

The strike and insert amendment offered by the House leadership, which forms the basis of the House version of the budget, struck the Senate's online expenditure registry proviso and inserted the following:

(CG: Transaction Register) The Comptroller General shall make available for use by each county government, municipal government, special purpose district, and all state agencies a transaction register which includes a complete record of all checks written for one hundred dollars or more from whatever source for whatever purpose and all credit card expenditures, including expenditures on credit cards issued to state and local officers or employees for official use. The register must be prominently posted on the Comptroller General's Internet website and made available for public viewing and downloading. The register must not include an entry for salary, wages, or other compensation paid to individual employees. The register must be accompanied by a complete explanation of any codes or acronyms used to identify a payee or expenditure. The register must be searchable and updated at least once a month. Each monthly register must be maintained on the Internet website for one year. If an entity provides the Comptroller General with information, it must be in a mutually agreed upon format. The Comptroller General shall utilize existing appropriations to comply with this provision.

Taxation and Finance Bills

Municipal Capital Projects Sales Tax – H. 4378. This bill was recommitted to the House Ways and Means Committee from the House floor.

Accommodations and Hospitality Fee Bonds – S. 524. This bill does not affect the items for which these local fees can be spent, but does allow bonds to be issued using these revenue streams. A House Ways and Means subcommittee gave S. 524 a favorable report without amendments, and it will be before the House Ways and Means Committee at its next meeting.

90-Day Safe Harbor – S. 422. A House Ways and Means subcommittee adjourned debate on S. 422. This bill would create a 90-day safe harbor allowing those who rent their homes to retain their 4 percent legal residence ratio, which is an increase from the current 14-day safe harbor.

Mothballed Plants – S. 1171. A House Ways and Means subcommittee gave a favorable report to S. 1171 with several amendments. The bill exempts manufacturing equipment in a plant which has been shuttered from property tax for four years. S. 1171 was also amended with the contents of H. 4672—which drops the assessment ratio on manufacturing warehouse space from 10.5 percent to six percent, when it is used exclusively for warehousing and is separate from other areas of the plant. The contents of H. 4950, which makes changes to the Textile Communities Revitalization Act, were also added.

Immigration — H. 3032

The House amended the Senate amendments to H. 3032 and put back in the preemption language which prohibits local governments from enacting any ordinance that is in conflict or otherwise exceeds state and federal immigration law. It also allows a sheriff to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding between the state and the U.S. Department of Justice or Department of Homeland Security, subject to the availability of funds, to have corrections officers/local law enforcement officers trained to enforce federal immigration laws. H. 3032 now goes back to the Senate for consideration of the House amendment.

General Government Operations and Structure

Attorney Fees in Government Initiated Actions – S. 490. This bill puts a set of criteria in the existing statute allowing the award of attorneys' fees in actions initiated by the state or a political subdivision, or in actions to contest a state action, and requires specific findings to be made by the court. A House Judiciary subcommittee gave S. 490 a favorable report.

Law Enforcement Training Reimbursement – H. 3326. The Senate Judiciary Committee gave a favorable report to H. 3326, which would require an entity that hires a law enforcement officer from another entity within two years of completing the mandatory training to reimburse the other entity for all training costs. For officers hired within one year after training, reimbursement would be 100 percent of the training costs; for officers hired after one year but before the completion of the second year of service, reimbursement would be 50 percent of the training costs. H. 3326 is pending second reading on the Senate calendar.

Victim Services Certification – H. 4601. The Senate Judiciary Committee gave this bill a favorable report with an amendment this week. Currently, the bill requires 15 hours for initial certification and 12 hours annually in continuing education. The committee's proposed amendment allows an individual to receive additional training, if the person or entity wants more training. The amendment also adds the presidents of the Jail Administrators Association and Police Chiefs Association to the Victim Services Coordinating Council, which sets policy for the required courses.

Water District Sewer Service – H. 3030. This bill would allow certain rural water districts to construct and operate sewage systems within the district. The Senate Judiciary Committee amended the bill to require approval by the county governing body before such service is offered, and the extension of service to comply with an applicable comprehensive plan. The committee gave the bill a favorable report.

Courts, Clerks and RODs

DNA Database and Evidence Warehousing – S. 890. A House Judiciary subcommittee—through a procedural quirk—gave S. 890 an unfavorable report, and it goes to the House Judiciary Committee. S. 890 builds a DNA database from those charged with a felony carrying a potential sentence of five years. The subcommittee also added the contents of S. 429 to require evidence in homicides, sexual crimes, first degree robbery and first degree burglary to be held: for the term of incarceration for guilty verdict cases; for the lesser of seven years or the term of incarceration for sentences after guilty or nolo contendere pleas; and until execution in capital cases.

Expungement – S. 110. S. 110 codifies a court order issued by the Chief Justice regarding expungement. A House Judiciary subcommittee adjourned debate on this bill.

Family Court Privacy Act – S. 584. This bill seals the financial declaration filed in the family court, unless a court order is obtained or the requester is a party to the action or an attorney in the action. A House Judiciary subcommittee gave this bill a favorable report, and it goes to the House Judiciary Committee.

Child Support Garnishment/Centralized Collection – H. 3478. H. 3478 would allow a judge to order wage withholding for a person under a child support order who is not currently ordered to pay through wage withholding or the family court, if payments are at least three months in arrears. A Senate Judiciary subcommittee amended the bill to comply with a federal mandate to create a statewide centralized system for child support collection by 2010 and gave it a favorable report.

Middle Courts – H. 4309. H. 4309 creates a broad class of offenses, carrying a sentence of one year or more, that would not be eligible for early release from incarceration other than through good time credit. A House Judiciary subcommittee amended the bill to include the creation of a middle court process similar to existing drug courts. The middle court would be available to a person with an active sentence of 90 days or more for a nonviolent crime and having no prior convictions. The House Judiciary Committee further amended H. 4309 to require each solicitor to establish a middle court within 180 days of the effective date of this bill, subject to the availability of funds. The Supreme Court shall appoint middle court judges to serve a term of two years without pay. The General Assembly shall appropriate funds annually to the solicitor to employ a middle court administrator and pay for other costs associated with the process. The bill does not include detail about the use of courtroom space and court personnel. The committee gave the bill a favorable report as amended.

NACo Steering Committee Nominations

'Can't Wait to Get Your Friday Report Each Week, or Missed Your E-mail Version This Week?

Information has a short shelf life in the legislative arena. The sooner you receive legislative updates, the sooner you are able to contact the members of the General Assembly to thank them for doing helpful things or give them the information they need to make better decisions. The Friday Report is usually available on the web by 3 p.m. on Friday. The Friday Report can also be sent to you directly. Just fax the enclosed form, or follow e-mail request instructions.

Issue 17-08 — May 2, 2008

Rabbit season is open. Once the May 1 procedural deadline passes, bills that did not make it across to the second chamber or that stalled in the second chamber appear as amendments to other bills with little or no warning. These types of occurrences require us to send out special Legislative Alerts and to use telephone and e-mail to get the responses necessary to address concerns that arise. Please be on the watch and ready to respond quickly during these last five weeks of the session. For the remainder of the session, the first item in the Friday Report will be labeled "Critical Contact Issues" and will point out select bills where a number of contacts by county officials may be the difference in the out-come of the issue.

Critical Contact Issues for the Week of May 9

Municipal Capital Projects Sales Tax – H. 4378. This bill was debated, and debate adjourned prior to receiving second reading. H. 4378 failed to make the May 1 deadline. However, H. 4378 is still on the contested House calendar pending second reading.

Please contact your House member, and encourage them to recommit H. 4378 to committee when it comes up for debate again.

Online Spending Registry – Proviso 86.2. The House did not take up the budget this week. The budget is still pending House action on the Senate-passed version of the budget. This is the Senate proviso which requires the withholding of state aid to subdivisions money from counties, if they fail to provide an online searchable database of all county financial transactions and credit card expenditures to be updated monthly. The register must display the amount, the name of the payee and a detailed statement of the purpose for each check/expenditure issued. The register must not include an entry for salary or wages and cannot include information that can be used to identify an employee. This Senate proviso singles out counties and does not address other units of government.

The Comptroller General and Sen. Bryant have repeatedly claimed this can be done at no cost. What they fail to understand or do not disclose is that:

not every county has a website, or a website that is currently usable for this feature;
the Comptroller General's online registry does not meet the requirements of the proviso, because it does not have a detailed description of the expenditure and is searchable only as to the agency name and month of expenditure; and
the Comptroller General's online registry is a function of the multi-million dollar computer program agencies use through his office.

Contact your House member, and ask them to oppose any effort to adopt the Senate proviso when the House takes up the Senate amendments to the budget next Tuesday.

Taxation and Finance Bills

School Sales Tax – H. 4883 and S. 1232. Both of these bills would allow a local option sales tax to be imposed for school capital projects for up to 15 years. The tax may be imposed in the county upon the adoption of a resolution by the school district board and a favorable referendum result.

H. 4883 is in the Senate Finance Committee. H. 4883 applies only to a school district whose boundaries are the same as the county, and if the county collects $7 million or more in state accommodations tax. The revenues may be shared with higher education for capital improvements on campuses.

S. 1232 has passed the Senate and is now in the House Ways and Means Committee. S. 1232 was amended on the Senate floor to make it applicable to any school district, or group of school districts, without the requirement that the boundaries be the same as the county or the reference to accommodations tax collections.

Food Exemption from Local Sales Taxes – H. 4355. The House gave third reading to H. 4355 this week, and it is now in the Senate Finance Committee. The legislation exempts unprepared food from the local sales taxes. This exemption applies to local option sales taxes adopted after the effective date of the act, unless the governing body votes to exempt food from a local option sales tax already in place. In response to points raised by Rep. Ott, the House tabled the proposed Committee amendment, which would have created a cost of collection allowance of up to $3,000 per merchant for the local hospitality tax and up to $3,000 per merchant for the local accommodations tax.

6 Percent Assessment Ratio for Warehouses – H. 4672. The House amended and passed H. 4672 this week. An amendment to significantly reduce the fiscal impact of the warehouse provision from $12.7 million to about $1 million was adopted by the House. The House also adopted an amendment inserting the language contained in S. 1171, which allows manufacturing machinery in a closed plant to be property tax exempt, if the property is in a plant which is closed for one fiscal year and the personal property has not been used in operations for one fiscal year. The personal property becomes taxable at the earlier of its operation in a manufacturing process or four years. H. 4672 is now in the Senate Finance Committee.

Reassessment Delay – H. 3975. H. 3975 allows the governing body of a county to postpone for one additional year a reassessment program scheduled for implementation in 2008. The House passed the bill.

Ag Use Appeals – H. 4499. This bill allows a taxpayer to receive attorney fees and costs when they prevail on appeal from the assessor's decision to deny or revoke an ag use application. A Senate Finance subcommittee agreed to propose an amendment to require a finding that the assessor's decision was unreasonable in order to award attorney fees and expenses. The subcommittee is also drafting guidelines on the amount of attorney fees. H. 4499 will likely appear on the next Finance Committee agenda.

Stormwater Fee Exemptions – H. 4337. H. 4337 passed the House and is in the Senate Agriculture Committee. This is the legislation which exempts agricultural lands, forest lands and vacant lands from any fee imposed for stormwater, sediment control or an erosion control program. Sixteen (16) counties have such a program. The terms agriculture lands, forest lands and vacant lands are not defined. Please ask your Senator to object to H. 4337.

Textiles Communities Revitalization Act – H. 4950. The House amended H. 4950 this week and inserted the Textiles Communities Revitalization Act. The bill received a third reading. The bill allows a property tax credit for the proposed rehabilitation of a textile mill site. The rehabilitation must be approved by a positive majority vote of the local governing body.

4 Percent Assessment Ratio for Sales Contracts – S. 1313. The Senate Finance Committee reported S. 1313 out, and it is pending second reading on the Senate calendar. The bill clarifies that contracts for sale which are similar to a bond for title agreement qualify for the legal residence ratio. The pending amendment requires that those documents be recorded, and that the assessor publish a list of documentation required to apply for the 4 percent ratio prior to July 1 each year. S. 1313 was carried over on the Senate floor, after a Senator stated that he may have additional amendments to place on the bill.

Immigration — S. 392 and H. 3032

The conference committee on S. 392 appears to be at a standstill, potentially not to take up the bill again.

The Senate amended a bill to create an immigration study committee, H. 3032, with a revised version of S. 392. The Senate amendment authorizes SLED to seek an agreement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on a number of law enforcement issues—including state and local law enforcement of federal immigration laws, the detention by state or local law enforcement of illegal aliens, specific training of law enforcement of immigration laws and reimbursement of costs/expenses for training, enforcement and detention.

H. 3032 requires law enforcement to make reasonable efforts to determine the residency/citizenship status of a person charged with a criminal offense. Verification must be made within 72 hours though the DHS. The jail must account for the expenses incurred for any illegal alien who is an inmate and forward an invoice to the DHS. H. 3032 creates a new state verification form required to be maintained by employers. Investigation and enforcement of employment complaints would be done by the Department of Labor Licensing and Regulation (LLR), and the bill imposes civil penalties for violations to be assessed by LLR. Local governments are prohibited from enacting any ordinance that would limit/prohibit law enforcement officers from enforcing provisions of the act. H. 3032 now goes back to the House for consideration of the Senate amendment.

South Carolina Association of Counties

In This Section

Friday Reports — May 2008