S 0681 General Bill, By Land
 A Bill to amend Chapter 3 of Title 56, Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976,
 relating to registration and licensing of motor vehicles, by adding Article 6
 so as to provide for registration and licensing of corporate-owned fleet motor
 vehicles.

   04/13/93  Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-13
   04/13/93  Senate Referred to Committee on Transportation SJ-13

A BILL

TO AMEND CHAPTER 3 OF TITLE 56, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO REGISTRATION

AND LICENSING OF MOTOR VEHICLES, BY ADDING ARTICLE 6 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR REGISTRATION AND LICENSING OF CORPORATE-OWNED FLEET MOTOR VEHICLES.

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

SECTION 1. Chapter 3 of Title 56 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Article 6

Section 56-3-1010. As used in this article:

(1) `Fleet' means two hundred or more marked passenger vehicles or property carrying vehicles with empty weight of not more than five thousand pounds and a gross vehicle weight of not more than eight thousand pounds, owned or long-term leased by a corporation or other legal entity, and registered in this State pursuant to this article.

(2) `Marked vehicle' means a vehicle with a name, trademark, or logo located either on the sides or the rear of the vehicle in sharp contrast to the background and of a size, shape, and color that is legible during daylight hours from a distance of fifty feet.

(3) `Department' means the South Carolina Department of Highways and Public Transportation.

Section 56-3-1020. A corporation or other legal entity may register its fleet on an annual basis so that the registration of all passenger vehicles in the fleet expires in the same month instead of staggered vehicle registration. The month of expiration must be approved by the department. The department may issue special license plates and registration cards for fleet motor vehicles upon application on a form issued by the department. The application must be approved if it contains the information necessary for qualification as a fleet motor vehicle, provide a list of all vehicles to be included in the fleet, and upon payment of a filing fee of one hundred dollars. The filing fee is in addition to the registration fees required by this chapter.

Section 56-3-1030. Upon approval of the application for fleet registration, the director shall issue a fleet registration card and license plate for each of the qualified vehicles in the fleet. The fleet registration card must be carried in the vehicle at all times and made available to a law enforcement officer on demand. The license plate must be displayed in the manner prescribed by the department.

Section 56-3-1040. The fee for passenger carrying vehicles registered as part of a fleet under the provisions of this article is the same fee imposed by Section 56-3-620. The fee for property-carrying vehicles registered as part of a fleet under the provisions of this article is the same fee imposed by Section 56-3-660. A vehicle added to the fleet during the registration year must be registered in accordance with the provisions of this article. The fee for licensing and registration may be prorated as prescribed by the department.

Section 56-3-1050. Upon renewal of the fleet registration, the department shall require payment of full licensing fees for every vehicle registered in this preceding year unless the vehicle has been properly deleted from the fleet.

To delete a vehicle from the fleet, the fleet registration card and the fleet license plate must be surrendered to the department. If the card or license plate is lost or stolen, the person registering the fleet shall submit a sworn statement giving the circumstances for the inability to surrender the card or license plate."

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