S 0753 General Bill, By Fair, Matthews and Courson
 A BILL TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION
 16-17-750 SO AS TO PROHIBIT THE SALE OF ANY DIETARY SUPPLEMENT CONTAINING
 EPHEDRA TO A PERSON LOCATED WITHIN THE STATE OR MAKING THE PURCHASE WITHIN THE
 STATE, TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS, AND TO PROVIDE CRIMINAL PENALTIES.

   06/05/03  Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-55
   06/05/03  Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary SJ-55

TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 16-17-750 SO AS TO PROHIBIT THE SALE OF ANY DIETARY SUPPLEMENT CONTAINING EPHEDRA TO A PERSON LOCATED WITHIN THE STATE OR MAKING THE PURCHASE WITHIN THE STATE, TO PROVIDE EXCEPTIONS, AND TO PROVIDE CRIMINAL PENALTIES.

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

SECTION    1.    Article 7, Chapter 17, Title 16 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 16-17-750.    (A)    For purposes of this section:

(1)    'Ephedra' means herbs and herbal products that contain ephedrine alkaloids, including ma huang, Chinese ephedra, ephedra sinica, ephedra herb powder, epitonin, or any extract of those substances, but does not include any drug that contains ephedrine and is lawfully sold, transferred, or furnished over-the-counter with or without a prescription pursuant to the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U. S. C. 301 et seq.) or regulations adopted under that act.

(2)    'Person' means a natural person, individual, corporation, unincorporated association, proprietorship, firm, partnership, joint venture, joint stock association, or any other business organization or entity.

(B)(1)    A person may not sell or offer for sale any dietary supplement containing any quantity of ephedra or ephedrine alkaloids to a person located within this State or to a person making the purchase from within this State.

(2)    The prohibition in subsection (B)(1) does not apply to the sale of any product that receives explicit approval as safe and effective for its intended use under the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U. S. C. 355) or is lawfully marketed under an over-the-counter monograph issued by the United States Food and Drug Administration.

(C)(1)    A person who violates subsection (B)(1) is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned not more than one year or fined not more than five thousand dollars, or both, for a first offense.

(2)    For a subsequent violation of subsection (B)(1) a person is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned not more than five years or fined not more than twenty thousand dollars, or both."

SECTION    2.    This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor and applies to sales or the offer for sale of ephedra, as defined in Section 16-17-750 of the 1976 Code as added by Section 1 of this act, on or after this act's effective date.