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Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
RECALLED
May 7, 2002
H. 4429
S. Printed 5/7/02--H.
Read the first time January 8, 2002.
TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-620, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS USED IN THE SOUTH CAROLINA UNDERWATER ANTIQUITIES ACT OF 1991, SO AS TO REVISE THE DEFINITIONS OF "FIELD ARCHAEOLOGIST", "STATE ARCHAEOLOGIST", AND "UNDERTAKING"; TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-670, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO A HOBBY LICENSE FOR PERSONS WISHING TO CONDUCT TEMPORARY, INTERMITTENT, RECREATIONAL, SMALL SCALE, NONCOMMERCIAL SEARCH, AND RECOVERY OF SUBMERGED PROPERTY, SO AS TO REVISE THE LICENSE FEE, DELETE ALL OTHER CATEGORIES OF HOBBY LICENSES EXCEPT A TWO-YEAR LICENSE; AND DELETE THE REQUIREMENT TO FILE CERTAIN REPORTS UNDER A HOBBY LICENSE WITHIN A WEEK AFTER DIVING ACTIVITIES TOOK PLACE; TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-710, RELATING TO CRITERIA FOR ISSUING AN EXCLUSIVE LICENSE, SO AS TO CHANGE CERTAIN CRITERIA; TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-740, RELATING TO ADDITIONAL PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO LICENSES ISSUED BY THE STATE ARCHAEOLOGIST, SO AS TO CHANGE THIS TITLE TO THE STATE UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGIST; TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-800, RELATING TO THE SUSPENSION OF A LICENSE ISSUED BY THE INSTITUTE OF ARCHAEOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY, SO AS TO CHANGE THE TITLE OF THE STATE ARCHAEOLOGIST TO THE STATE UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGIST; TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-810, RELATING TO PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THE SOUTH CAROLINA UNDERWATER ANTIQUITIES ACT OF 1991, SO AS TO DELETE REFERENCES TO SECTION 54-7-680 WHICH IS REPEALED BY THIS ACT; TO AMEND SECTION 54-7-820, RELATING TO THE RETENTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF DATA FOR RESEARCH OR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES, SO AS TO CHANGE THE TITLE OF THE STATE ARCHAEOLOGIST TO THE STATE UNDERWATER ARCHAEOLOGIST; AND TO REPEAL SECTION 54-7-680 RELATING TO THE ISSUANCE OF AN INSTRUCTIONAL LICENSE TO ALLOW STUDENT DIVERS OR CHARTER GROUP DIVERS WITHOUT INDIVIDUAL HOBBY LICENSES TO COLLECT ARTIFACTS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 54-7-620(15) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(15) 'Field archaeologist' means an a professional archaeologist selected by the licensee and approved by the institute to supervise operations under a license. The field archaeologist must hold an advanced academic degree with a specialization in underwater, nautical, or maritime archaeology and meet or exceed the Standards of the Secretary of the Interior (48 F.R. 44738-44739) and act pursuant to the criteria set forth by the South Carolina State Historic Preservation Office Guidelines and Standards for Archaeological Investigations."
SECTION 2. Section 54-7-620(39) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(39) 'State Underwater Archaeologist' means a person appointed by the Director of the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology who is the State Archaeologist administers this article."
SECTION 3. Section 54-7-620(48) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(48) 'Undertaking' means an activity by the institute or South Carolina Museum Commission which that would otherwise require a license under this article. 'Undertaking' does not include activities which, in the State Underwater Archaeologist's determination, must be conducted within sixty days in order to preserve submerged archaeological historic property or submerged paleontological property that is or may be of primary scientific value or of major archaeological, anthropological, or historic value and threatened with imminent destruction or substantial damage."
SECTION 4. Section 54-7-670(B), (C), and (D) of the 1976 Code are amended to read:
"(B) A person desiring to apply for a hobby license shall submit a completed application on a standard form prescribed by the institute together with a license fee. A license fee of five dollars for residents of this State and ten dollars for nonresidents must be charged for a six-month hobby license. A license fee of eighteen dollars for residents of this State and thirty-six dollars for nonresidents must be charged for a two-year hobby license. A license fee of five dollars must be charged for a two-day weekend hobby license.
(C) This nonexclusive statewide license may be granted optionally for a six-month or two-year period and must be renewed within the period for which the license is granted. An optional weekend, two-day hobby license may be granted to nonresidents for the purpose of collecting during a brief visit to this State. This license may be issued by any dive shop in this State.
(D) There are two categories of hobby licenses, individual and instructional. Individual licenses Licenses may be granted to individuals or members of an immediate family. Instructional licenses may be granted to a skin and scuba diving instructor or an organized training facility."
SECTION 5. Section 54-7-670(G)(1) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(1) All persons who have collected objects in accordance with Section 54-7-670 or 54-7-680 shall furnish the institute with a report which is to include a list of the objects and a description of the places from which the objects were recovered. Hobby divers are also encouraged, but not required, to include photographs or drawings of artifacts recovered and rough sketch plans of the site or map of the location with the exception of shipwreck sites covered under item (2) of this subsection. Reports submitted under six-month or a two-year hobby licenses must be filed within ten days following the end of the calendar quarter in which the activities took place. Reports All reports submitted under a weekend, two-day, hobby license must be filed within a week after the diving activities took place this license must be filed with the institute prior to submitting application for renewal of a hobby license. The institute will not consider applications for renewal until all outstanding reports have been received."
SECTION 6. Section 54-7-670(H)(1) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(1) All persons who have collected fossil specimens in accordance with this section or Section 54-7-680 54-7-670 shall furnish the museum commission with a report, which must include a list of the fossils and a description of the places from which the fossils were recovered. Hobby divers are also encouraged, but not required, to include photographs or drawings of fossils and rough sketch plans of the site or map of the location. Reports All reports submitted under a six-month or two-year hobby licenses must be filed within ten days following the end of the calendar quarter in which the activities took place. Reports All reports submitted under a weekend, two-day, hobby license must be filed within a week after the diving activities took place this license must be filed with the institute prior to submitting application for renewal of a hobby license. The institute will not consider applications for renewal until all outstanding reports have been received."
SECTION 7. Section 54-7-710(A) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(A) The institute shall consider at least the following criteria when determining whether or not to issue an exclusive license:
(1) the degree of archaeological, anthropological, historical, paleontological, and scientific importance and public educational potential of the proposed property, including, without limitation, its eligibility for inclusion in the National Register;
(2) the date the application was received in order to give priority to the first applicant requesting a license for a particular project location;
(3) the degree and scope of planning undertaken by the applicant including project readiness and financial feasibility and commitment to undertake and complete the work;
(4) the degree of training and experience of the applicant, and his personnel, as well as his professional degrees and experience or of his field archaeologist or field paleontologist in the field of maritime archeology or paleontology and underwater fossil recovery;
(5) the extent to which the applicant's responses in the application are thorough;
(6) the extent to which the applicant possesses, or will possess at the beginning of the work, the necessary equipment to undertake the license activity; and
(7) the degree of public benefit to be derived from issuance of the license in relation to the degree of harm to the state's submerged archaeological historic property or submerged paleontological property to be expected from issuance of the license."
SECTION 8. That portion of Section 54-7-740 of the 1976 Code which immediately precedes item (1) is amended to read:
"For each license issued by the State Underwater Archaeologist the following provisions also apply:"
SECTION 9. Section 54-7-800(A) and (B) of the 1976 Code are amended to read:
"(A) The institute may suspend operations under a license at any time for just cause if it has reason to believe that the terms and provisions of a license or other applicable law or regulation are being violated. Within ten days of the suspension, the State Underwater Archaeologist or his designee shall begin investigating the facts underlying a suspension. Upon conclusion of this investigation, the State Underwater Archaeologist shall issue a written determination recommending either that the license be restored or that the license be revoked. If the State Underwater Archaeologist recommends revocation of the license, then the license shall remain suspended until the matter is resolved as provided in this section.
(B) The State Underwater Archaeologist may revoke a license for:
(1) failure to begin work under the terms of the license within the first one-third of the period of the license;
(2) failure to work diligently toward completion of the project after it has been started or failure to maintain a presence on the site if weather permits;
(3) if a licensee knowingly makes or causes to be made a false statement or report that is material to an action taken by the institute;
(4) failure to comply with any of the provisions of the license;
(5) violation of this article or any other pertinent law or regulation; or
(6) when a license has been issued based upon incorrect information, mistaken belief, or clerical error, or any other just cause as provided by this article."
SECTION 10. Section 54-7-810 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 54-7-810. (A)(1) A person who violates any of the provisions of Section 54-7-650(G), 54-7-660, or 54-7-670 is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine of not more than fifty dollars. If a person holds a hobby license issued under these sections, the license may be revoked by the institute.
(2) Each day a violation continues constitutes a separate offense.
(B)(1) A person who violates the terms of a hobby license issued by the institute under Section 54-7-680 is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars. If a person holds a hobby license issued under Section 54-7-680, the license may be revoked by the institute.
(2) Each day a violation continues constitutes a separate offense.
(C)(1) A person who violates the terms of an exclusive license to utilize a submerged archaeological historic property or paleontological property for commercial salvage or other income producing purposes issued pursuant to Section 54-7-690 is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be punished by a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars or imprisonment for not more than one year, or both. If the person holds a license issued under that section, the license may be revoked by the institute.
(2) Each day a violation continues constitutes a separate offense."
SECTION 11. Section 54-7-820(A) of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"(A) The institute reserves the right to retain and distribute for research or educational purposes data provided to the institute under this article. All archaeological and paleontological records of the South Carolina Institute of Archaeology and Anthropology and the South Carolina Museum Commission pertaining to submerged archaeological historic properties and submerged paleontological properties, including, but not limited to, actual locations of the properties or mandatory reports from licensed divers concerning locations of the properties or objects or materials recovered from such properties, are not considered public record for purposes of the Freedom of Information Act. These records may only be opened when the State Underwater Archaeologist considers that it is in the best interest of the State to allow access to the records upon good cause shown by the persons petitioning to open the records."
SECTION 12. Section 54-7-820(C) and (D) of the 1976 Code are amended to read:
"(C)(1) If, in the course of activity licensed under this article a person discovers human remains or an apparent grave site, the person shall:
(a) leave the remains undisturbed unless the remains are a person who died in the course of diving operations or other immediate cause, including, but not limited to, drowning, boating accident, or homicide;
(b) immediately notify the State Underwater Archaeologist, Deputy State Archaeologist for Underwater, or a representative of the institute; and
(c) suspend activity at the site until permitted to resume by the institute.
(2) The State reserves the right to recover human remains for the purpose of study or reburial in accordance with any pertinent federal or state law.
(D)(1) Except as may be otherwise specifically provided, the Deputy State Underwater Archaeologist for Underwater is designated to issue licenses and otherwise administer this article.
(2) The institute may establish from time to time detailed guidelines containing archeology standards, processing requirements, and other requirements or matters relating to the administration of this article."
SECTION 13. Section 54-7-680 of the 1976 Code is repealed.
SECTION 14. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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