S 0274  General Bill, By Matthews

Similar(S 163, H 3351)
 A BILL TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY REPEALING SECTION
 10-1-165 RELATING TO THE PROTECTION OF CERTAIN MONUMENTS AND MEMORIALS.

   12/09/20  Senate Prefiled
   12/09/20  Senate Referred to Committee on Finance
   01/12/21  Senate Introduced and read first time
                     (Senate Journal-page 245)
   01/12/21  Senate Referred to Committee on Finance
                     (Senate Journal-page 245)

TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY REPEALING SECTION 10-1-165 RELATING TO THE PROTECTION OF CERTAIN MONUMENTS AND MEMORIALS.

Whereas, Act 292 of 2000, commonly referred to as the Heritage Act, included Section 10-1-165, which provides that certain statues and memorials located on public property may not be relocated, removed, disturbed, or altered; and

Whereas, Section 10-1-165 further provides that no street, bridge, structure, park, preserve, reserve, or other public area of the State or any of its political subdivisions dedicated in memory of or named for any historic figure or historic event may be renamed or rededicated; and

Whereas, subsection (B) of Section 10-1-165 provides that the code section may only be amended or repealed by a bill that has received a two-thirds vote on the third reading of the bill by the Senate and the House of Representatives; and

Whereas, subsection (B) impermissibly binds a future General Assembly and places an unconstitutional barrier to amending or repealing Section 10-1-165 and, therefore, is not enforceable; and

Whereas, it is the sense of the General Assembly that a simple majority in the Senate and the House of Representatives is all that is necessary to enact this bill. Now, therefore,

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION    1.    Section 10-1-165 of the 1976 Code is repealed.

SECTION    2.    This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.