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The Senate amendments to the following Bill were taken up for consideration.

H. 4501 -- Reps. Fleming, Mason, G. Brown, Seithel, Clyburn, S. Whipper, Sandifer, Stoddard, L. Whipper, Vaughn, Littlejohn, Cato, Elliott and R. Smith: A BILL TO AMEND SECTION 12-56-20, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS FOR PURPOSES OF THE SETOFF DEBT COLLECTION ACT, SO AS TO EXCLUDE FROM THE DEFINITION OF "DELINQUENT DEBT" SUMS OWED A COUNTY HOSPITAL WHEN THE HOSPITAL AND THE DEBTOR HAVE ENTERED INTO A WRITTEN PAYMENT AGREEMENT AND THE DEBTOR IS CURRENT IN MEETING THE OBLIGATIONS OF THE AGREEMENT.

Rep. FLEMING explained the Senate amendments.

The Senate amendments were agreed to, and the Bill, having received three readings in both Houses, it was ordered that the title be changed to that of an Act, and that it be enrolled for ratification.

The Senate amendments to the following Bill were taken up for consideration.

H. 3198 -- Rep. Richardson: A BILL TO AMEND SECTION 56-3-1975, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO IDENTIFICATION OF HANDICAPPED PARKING PLACES, SO AS TO REQUIRE HANDICAPPED PARKING SIGNS ERECTED AFTER JUNE 30, 1995, TO INCLUDE THE PENALTIES FOR UNLAWFUL USE.

Rep. RICHARDSON spoke in favor of the Senate amendments.

Rep. KIRSH made the Point of Order that the Senate amendments were improperly before the House for consideration since printed copies of the Senate amendments have not been upon the desks of the members for one day.

The SPEAKER sustained the Point of Order.

The Senate amendments to the following Bill were taken up for consideration.

H. 3201 -- Rep. Simrill: A BILL TO AMEND SECTION 44-95-20, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO PLACES IN WHICH SMOKING IS PROHIBITED UNDER THE CLEAN INDOOR AIR ACT OF 1990, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT LOCAL SCHOOL BOARDS MAY MAKE SCHOOL DISTRICT FACILITIES SMOKE FREE AND TO PROVIDE AN EXCEPTION FOR GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES THAT HAD A NONSMOKING POLICY IN EFFECT BEFORE AUGUST 1, 1990; AND TO DESIGNATE THE PROVISIONS OF THE CLEAN INDOOR AIR ACT AS CHAPTER 95, TITLE 44 OF THE 1976 CODE.

Rep. SHARPE explained the Senate amendments.

Rep. SHEHEEN made the Point of Order that the Senate amendments were improperly before the House for consideration since printed copies of the Senate amendments have not been upon the desks of the members for one day.

The SPEAKER sustained the Point of Order.

The Senate amendments to the following Bill were taken up for consideration.

S. 1286 -- Judiciary Committee: A BILL TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 20-7-2725 SO AS TO PROHIBIT DAY CARE CENTERS FROM

Amend the bill, as and if amended, by adding appropriately numbered SECTIONS to read:

/SECTION __. Article 7, Chapter 3, Title 23 of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 497 of 1994, is amended to read:

Section 23-3-400. The intent of this article is to promote the state's fundamental right to provide for public health, welfare, and safety of its citizens. Notwithstanding this legitimate state purpose, these provisions are not intended to violate the guaranteed constitutional rights of those who have violated our nation's laws.

The sex offender registry will provide law enforcement with the tools needed in investigating criminal offenses. Statistics show that sex offenders often pose a high risk of re-offending. Additionally, law enforcement's efforts to protect communities, conduct investigations, and apprehend offenders who commit sex offenses, are impaired by the lack of information about these convicted offenders who live within the law enforcement agency's jurisdiction.

Section 23-3-410. The registry is under the direction of the chief of the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) and may be organized and structured in a manner as shall contain information the chief considers appropriate to ensure the availability of information regarding necessary to assist law enforcement in the location of persons convicted of certain offenses. SLED shall develop and operate the registry to collect, analyze, and maintain information, to make information available to every enforcement agency in this State and in other states, and to establish a security system to ensure that only authorized personnel persons may gain access to information gathered under this article.

Section 23-3-420. The State Law Enforcement Division shall promulgate regulations prescribing:

(1) procedures for accepting and disseminating information maintained;

(2) the confidentiality of the data and information maintained in the registry;

(3) the proper disposition of all obsolete data;

(4) forms necessary for the efficient and proper operation of the registry to implement the provisions of this article.

Section 23-3-430. (A) Any person, regardless of age, residing in the State of South Carolina who has been convicted, adjudicated delinquent,

(B) For purposes of this article, a person who remains in this State for a total of thirty days during a twelve-month period is a resident of this State.

(C) For purposes of this article, a person convicted of any of these the following offenses shall be referred to as an offender.:

(1) criminal sexual conduct in the first degree (Section 16-3-652);

(2) criminal sexual conduct in the second degree (Section 16-3-653);

(3) criminal sexual conduct in the third degree (Section 16-3-654);

(4) criminal sexual conduct with minors, first degree (Section 16-3-655(1));

(5) criminal sexual conduct with minors, second degree. If evidence is presented at the criminal proceeding and the court makes a specific finding on the record that the conviction obtained for this offense resulted from consensual sexual conduct, as contained in Section 16-3-655(3), or consensual sexual conduct between persons under the age of sixteen, the convicted person is not an offender and is not required to register pursuant to the provisions of this article;

(5)(6) engaging a child for sexual performance (Section 16-3-810);

(6)(7) producing, directing, or promoting sexual performance by a child (Section 16-3-820);

(7)(8) criminal sexual conduct: assaults with intent to commit (Section 16-3-656);

(8)(9) kidnapping (Section 16-3-910);

(9)(10) incest (Section 16-15-20);

(10)(11) buggery (Section 16-15-120);

(11) indecent exposure (Section 16-15-130);

(12) committing or attempting lewd act upon child under fourteen (Section 16-15-140);

(13) eavesdropping or peeping (Section 16-17-470);

(14) conspiracy to kidnap (Section 16-3-920);

(15) A person, regardless of age, who has been convicted, pled guilty or nolo contendere in this State, or who has been convicted, pled guilty or nolo contendere in a comparable court in the United States, or who has been convicted, pled guilty or nolo contendere in the United States federal courts of indecent exposure or of a similar offense in other jurisdictions is required to register pursuant to the provisions of this article if the court makes a specific finding on the record that based on the circumstances of the case the convicted person should register as a sex offender.

(D) Upon conviction, adjudication of delinquency, guilty plea or plea of nolo contendere of a person of an offense not listed in this article, the presiding judge may order as a condition of sentencing that the person be included in the sex offender registry if good cause is shown by the solicitor.

Section 23-3-440. (1) Prior to an offender's release from the Department of Corrections after completion of the term of imprisonment, or being placed on parole, the Department of Corrections or the Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services, as applicable, shall notify the sheriff of the county where the offender intends to reside and SLED that the offender is being released and has provided an address within the jurisdiction of the sheriff for that county. The Department of Corrections shall provide verbal and written notification to the offender that he must register with the sheriff of the county in which he intends to reside within twenty-four hours of his release. Further, the Department of Corrections shall obtain descriptive information of the offender, including a current photograph prior to release.

(2) The Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services shall notify SLED and the sheriff of the county where an offender is residing when the offender is sentenced to probation or is a new resident of the State who must be supervised by the department. The Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services also shall provide verbal and written notification to the offender that he must register with the sheriff of the county in which he intends to reside. An offender who is sentenced to probation must register within ten days of sentencing. Further, the Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services shall obtain descriptive information of the offender, including a current photograph that is to be updated annually prior to expiration of the probation sentence.

(3) The Department of Juvenile Justice shall notify SLED and the sheriff of the county where an offender is residing when the offender is released from a Department of Juvenile Justice facility or when the

(4) The Department of Corrections, the Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services, and the Department of Juvenile Justice shall provide to SLED the initial registry information regarding the offender prior to his release from imprisonment or relief of supervision. This information shall be collected in the event the offender fails to register with his county sheriff.

Section 23-3-450. The offender shall register with the sheriff of the county in which he resides. To register, the offender must provide information as prescribed by the SLED. The county sheriff shall then forward to SLED the registry information and any updated information regarding the offender. A copy of this information must be kept by the sheriff's department. The county sheriff shall ensure that all information required by SLED is secured and shall establish specific times of the day during which an offender may register. An offender shall not be considered to have registered until all information prescribed by SLED has been obtained.

Section 23-3-460. Any person required to register under this article shall be required to register annually for a period of life. The offender shall register at the sheriff's department in the county where he resides.

If any person required to register under this article changes his address within the same county, that person must send written notice of the change of address to the county sheriff within ten days of establishing the new residence.

If any person required to register under this article changes his address into another county in South Carolina, the person must register with the county sheriff in the new county within ten days of establishing the new residence. The person must also provide written notice within ten days of the change of address in the previous county to the county sheriff with whom the person last registered.

If any person required to register under this article moves outside of South Carolina, the person must provide written notice within ten days of the change of address to a new state to the county sheriff with whom the person last registered.

The South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles Public Safety, Division of Motor Vehicles, shall inform, in writing to, any new resident who applies for a drivers driver's license, a chauffeur's license, vehicle tag, or a state identification card of the obligation of those offenders to register.

Section 23-3-470. (A) It is the duty of the offender to contact the sheriff in order to register. The failure of If an offender fails to register as required by this article, is a felony and, upon conviction, the offender he must be: punished as provided in subsection (B).

(1) fined one thousand dollars and sentenced to a mandatory ninety days in jail for a first or second offense. In no event does the court have the power to absolve a person who willfully violates this section; and

(2) sentenced to a mandatory one year not to exceed five years imprisonment and may be fined one thousand dollars for a third or subsequent offense. In no event does the court have the power to absolve a person who willfully violates this section from the obligation of serving at least one year of imprisonment.

(B)(1) A person convicted for a first offense is guilty of a misdemeanor and must be imprisoned for a mandatory period of ninety days, no part of which shall be suspended nor probation granted.

(2) A person convicted for a second offense is guilty of a misdemeanor and must be imprisoned for a mandatory period of one year, no part of which shall be suspended nor probation granted.

(3) A person convicted for a third or subsequent offense is guilty of a felony and must be imprisoned for a mandatory period of five years, three years of which shall not be suspended nor probation granted.

Section 23-3-475. (A) Anyone who knowingly and wilfully gives false information when registering as an offender pursuant to this article must be punished as provided in subsection (B).

(B)(1) A person convicted for a first offense is guilty of a misdemeanor and must be imprisoned for a mandatory period of ninety days, no part of which shall be suspended nor probation granted.

(3) A person convicted for a third or subsequent offense is guilty of a felony and must be imprisoned for a mandatory period of five years, three years of which shall not be suspended nor probation granted.

Section 23-3-480. (A) An arrest on charges of failure to register, service of an information, or a complaint for failure to register, or arraignment on charges of failure to register, constitutes actual notice of the duty to register. A person charged with the crime of failure to register who asserts as a defense the lack of notice of the duty to register shall register immediately following actual notice through arrest, service, or arraignment. Failure to register after notice as required by this article constitutes grounds for filing another charge of failure to register. Registering following arrest, service, or arraignment on charges does not relieve the offender from the criminal penalty for failure to register before the filing of the original charge.

(B) Section 23-3-470 shall not apply to a person convicted of an offense provided in Section 23-3-420 prior to July 1, 1994, and who was released from custody prior to July 1, 1994, unless the person has been served notice of the duty to register by the sheriff of the county in which the person resides. This person shall register within ten days of the notification of the duty to register.

Section 23-3-490. (A) Information collected for the offender registry is shall not be open to public inspection, upon request to the county sheriff by the public. A sheriff must release information regarding a specific person who is required to register under this article to a member of the public if the request is made in writing, stating the name of the person requesting the information, and the name or address of the person about whom the information is sought. The information must be disclosed only to the person making the request. The sheriff must provide the person making the request with the full name of the offender, any aliases, the date of birth, a current home address, the offense for which the offender was required to register pursuant to Section 23-3-430, and the date, city, and state of conviction. A photocopy of a current photograph must also be provided. The provisions of this article do not authorize SLED to release information to the public unless a request is made in writing stating the name of the person making the request and the name of the person about whom information is sought. SLED is only authorized to release to the public the name of the county in which the offender is registered. Otherwise, SLED is not authorized to release any information contained

(B) Nothing in subsection (A) prohibits a sheriff from disseminating information contained in that subsection regarding a specific person who is required to register under this article if the sheriff or another law enforcement officer is presented with facts giving rise to a reasonable suspicion of criminal activity and has reason to believe the release of this information will deter the criminal activity.

(C) For purposes of this article, information on a juvenile adjudicated delinquent in family court for an offense listed in Section 23-3-430 must not be made available to the public."

SECTION_______. If any provision of this act or the application thereof to any person is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the act which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application and to this end the provisions of this act are severable./

Renumber sections to conform.

Amend totals and title to conform.

Rep. HUTSON explained the amendment.

The amendment was then adopted.

Reps. WILKINS and D. SMITH proposed the following Amendment No. 2A (Doc Name P:\amend\GJK\22961SD.96), which was adopted.

Amend the bill, as and if amended, in Section 20-7-2725 of the 1976 Code as contained in SECTION 1, by inserting after / who / on line 19, page 2, / is required to register under the sex offender registry act pursuant to Section 23-3-430 or who /

Renumber sections to conform.

Amend totals and title to conform.

Rep. LIMBAUGH explained the amendment.

The amendment was then adopted.

The Senate amendments, as amended, were then agreed to and the Bill ordered returned to the Senate.

| Printed Page 4690, May 30 | Printed Page 4710, May 30 |