South Carolina General Assembly
116th Session, 2005-2006

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Bill 4579

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter


(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

.Indicates Matter Stricken

Indicates New Matter

AMENDED

April 25, 2006

H. 4579

Introduced by Reps. Merrill, Bingham, E.H. Pitts, Hardwick, Haley, Bailey, Bales, Cato, Dantzler, Duncan, Hinson, Jefferson, Leach, Loftis, Mahaffey, Moody-Lawrence, Neilson, M.A. Pitts, Umphlett and Young

S. Printed 4/25/06--H.

Read the first time February 1, 2006.

            

A BILL

TO AMEND SECTION 59-19-315, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO A SCHOOL TRUSTEE'S TERM OF OFFICE, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT IN A SCHOOL DISTRICT WHERE SCHOOL BOARD MEMBERS ARE ELECTED, THE ELECTION MUST BE HELD ON THE SECOND TUESDAY OF NOVEMBER; TO AMEND SECTIONS 59-71-40 AND 59-71-50, BOTH RELATING TO A SCHOOL BOND ELECTION, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE ELECTION MUST BE HELD ON THE SECOND TUESDAY OF NOVEMBER.

Amend Title To Conform

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

SECTION 1.    Section 59-71-40 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

Section 59-71-40.    The election hereby required shall must be ordered by the authorities, who shall fix the date thereof and prescribe the form of the notice of the holding of the election. Advices of the action thus taken by the authorities shall be transmitted to The authorities shall notify the commissioners of election for the county, or counties, wherein in which the election is to be held. It shall thereupon become the duty of The commissioners of election to shall conduct the election so ordered. To that end, the commissioners of election and shall prescribe the form of ballot, arrange for voting places in each precinct, or any part of a precinct, constituting all or a portion of the operating school unit, appoint managers, and receive the returns of the election. After duly canvassing the returns, The commissioners of election shall declare the results thereof of the election and certify such those results to the authorities.

SECTION 2.    Section 59-71-50 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 59-71-50.    Notice of the holding of such an the election shall must be given by publication thereof, in some a newspaper published in the county wherein in which the operating school unit is located, at least once not less than fifteen days prior to before the occasion set for the holding of such election. If the operating school unit lies partly in one county and partly in another, the publication required by this section shall must be made in both counties. Such The notice shall state must include:

(1)    the occasion of the holding date of the election;

(2)    the location locations of the several polling places;

(3)    the voting qualifications imposed upon persons desirous of voting;

(4)    the amount of bonds to be issued; and

(5)    a brief description of the purpose for which the proceeds of the bonds shall will be applied used."

SECTION    3.    Section 4-10-30 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 317 of 1990, is further amended to read:

"Section 4-10-30.    (A)    The county election commission in each county shall conduct a referendum on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November at the next scheduled general election on the question of implementing the local option sales and use tax within the county area. The state election laws apply to the referendum mutatis mutandis. The county election commission shall publish the results of the referendum and certify them to the county council. The sales and use tax must not be imposed in the county area, unless a majority of the qualified electors voting in the referendum approve the question.

(B)    The ballot must read substantially as follows:

'Must a one percent sales and use tax be levied in __________ County for the purpose of allowing a credit against a taxpayer's county and municipal ad valorem tax liability and for the purpose of funding county and municipal operations in the __________ County area?

Yes    []

No    []

Those voting in favor of the question shall deposit a ballot with a check or cross mark in the square after the word 'Yes', and those voting against the question shall deposit a ballot with a check or cross mark in the square after the word 'No'.'

(C)    If the question is not approved at the initial referendum, the county council may call for another referendum on the question. However, following the initial referendum, a referendum for this purpose must not be held more often than once in twelve months and must be held on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November each scheduled general election.

(D)    Two weeks before the referendum the county council and the municipal councils in the county area shall publish in a newspaper of general circulation within the jurisdiction the anticipated credit against property taxes in the first year of implementation of the property tax credit fund. The notice must show the anticipated credit on the following classes of property:

(1)    a primary residence;

(2)    personal property including, but not limited to, an automobile;

(3)    a commercial facility;

(4)    an industrial facility."

SECTION    4.    Section 4-10-35 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 317 of 1990, is further amended to read:

"Section 4-10-35.    (A)    Upon petition of fifteen percent of the qualified electors of a county presented to the governing body of that county which has implemented the one percent sales and use tax authorized by this chapter requesting that this tax be rescinded, the county governing body shall conduct a referendum on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November next following at the next scheduled general election on the question of rescinding the local option sales and use tax within the county area. The state election laws apply to the referendum mutatis mutandis. The county election commission shall publish the results of the referendum and certify them to the county council. The sales and use tax must be rescinded in the county area upon the certification of the results if a majority of the qualified electors voting in the referendum vote in favor of rescinding the tax.

(B)    The ballot must read substantially as follows:

'Must the one percent local option sales and use tax levied in __________ County pursuant to Chapter 10, Title 4 of the 1976 Code be rescinded?

Yes    []

No    []

Those voting in favor of the question shall deposit a ballot with a check or cross mark in the square after the word 'Yes', and those voting against the question shall deposit a ballot with a check or cross mark in the square after the word 'No'.'

(C)    A referendum for rescission of this tax may not be held earlier than two years after the tax has been levied in the county. If a majority of the qualified electors voting in the rescission referendum vote against rescinding the tax, no further rescission referendums may be held for a period of two years. If a majority of the qualified electors vote in favor of rescinding the tax, the tax may not be reimposed in the county for a period of two years. The petition requesting rescission must be presented to the county governing body at least one hundred twenty days before the Tuesday following the first Monday of November of that year next scheduled general election or the referendum must be held on the Tuesday following the first Monday of November of at the following year general election."

SECTION    5.    Section 5-15-50 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 5-15-50.    Each municipal governing body may by ordinance may establish municipal ward lines and the time for general and special elections within the municipality. Public notice of the elections shall be given at least sixty days prior to such elections."

SECTION    6.    Section 5-15-60 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 5-15-60.    Each municipality in this State shall adopt by ordinance one of the following alternative methods of nominating candidates for and determining the results of its nonpartisan elections:

(1)    the nonpartisan plurality method prescribed in Section 5-15-61;

(2)    the nonpartisan election and runoff election method prescribed in Section 5-15-62;

(3)    the nonpartisan primary election and general election method prescribed in Section 5-15-63. If nonpartisan elections are not provided for, nomination of candidates for municipal offices may be by party primary, party convention, or by petition in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, the applicable provisions of the state election laws, and the rules of municipal political party organizations not in conflict therewith with these laws."

SECTION    7.    Section 5-15-70 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 5-15-70.    (A)    Each municipal governing body shall determine by ordinance the time for filing nominating petitions, holding primary elections or conventions, the time for entry of candidates for nominations in municipal party primary elections or conventions, the time for closing of entries, and the time and manner of filing by candidates in nonpartisan elections. The municipal governing body may determine by ordinance that either filing a statement of candidacy or a petition with the municipal election commission is required to place the name of the candidate on the ballot in nonpartisan general elections. However, no a candidate's name may must not be placed on the ballot by petition in a general election conducted in accordance with the provisions of Section 5-15-63. If the municipal council determines that the petition method is used, the percentage of electors required on these petitions may must not be less than five percent of the qualified electors of the geographical area of the office for which he offers as a candidate.

(B)    When a candidate's name is to be placed on the ballot by virtue of a primary election or convention, the party concerned shall conduct the primary election twelve weeks before the election and certify the candidacy to the municipal election commission not later than by twelve o'clock noon sixty days prior to before the election. When a candidate's name is to be placed on the ballot by virtue of a convention, the party concerned shall certify the candidacy to the municipal election commission by twelve o'clock noon sixty days before the election. When the filing by statement of candidacy is authorized, the individual candidate shall file the statement with the commission not later than during a fourteen-day period to close at twelve o'clock noon sixty days prior to before the election and the commission shall place the name of the candidate upon the ballot. If the petition method is authorized, the candidate shall file the necessary petition with the municipal clerk by twelve o'clock noon seventy-five days prior to before the general election concerned and the clerk shall deliver the petition to the commission. The commission shall examine the petition and determine its validity not later than by twelve o'clock noon sixty days prior to before the general election concerned and when so validated, the commission shall place the name of the petition candidate upon the ballot.

(C)    For nonpartisan special elections, if the petition method is authorized, the candidate shall file the petition with the municipal clerk not later than by twelve o'clock noon, sixty days prior to before the election. The commission shall determine the validity of the petition not later than forty-five by twelve o'clock noon seventy-five days prior to before the election and when so validated, shall place the candidate's name on the ballot. If the statement of candidacy is authorized, these statements must be filed not later than by twelve o'clock noon, forty-five days prior to before the election.

For partisan special elections, petitions must be submitted pursuant to Section 7-13-190(B)."

SECTION    8.    Section 5-15-130 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 5-15-130.    (A)    Within forty-eight hours after the closing of the polls, any by twelve o'clock noon Wednesday following the day of the declaration by the board of the result of the election, a candidate may contest the result of the election as reported by the managers by filing a written notice of such contest together with a concise statement of the grounds therefor for the contest with the Municipal Election Commission. Within forty-eight hours after On Monday following the filing of such the notice, the Municipal Election Commission shall, after due notice to the parties concerned, shall conduct a hearing on the contest, decide the issues raised, file its report together with all recorded testimony and exhibits with the clerk of court of the county in which the municipality is situated, notify the parties concerned of the decisions made, and when the decision invalidates the election the council shall order a new election as to the parties concerned.

(B)    Neither The mayor nor any or a member of council shall be is not eligible to pass on the issues arising in any contest in which he is a party."

SECTION    9.    Section 7-13-10 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 7-13-10.    General elections for federal, state, and county, and municipal officers in this State shall must be held on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November in each even-numbered year at such the voting places as have been or may be established by law. All general or special elections held pursuant to the Constitution of this State shall must be regulated and conducted according to the rules, principles, and provisions herein prescribed set forth in this chapter and, in the case of municipal elections, in Chapter 15 of Title 5."

SECTION    10.    Section 7-13-40 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 236 of 2000, is further amended to read:

"Section 7-13-40.    In the event that a party nominates candidates by party primary, a party primary must be held by the party and conducted by the State Election Commission and the respective county and municipal election commissions on the second Tuesday in June of each general election year, and a second and third primary each two weeks successively thereafter after that, if necessary. Written certification of the names of all candidates to be placed on primary ballots must be made by the political party chairman, vice chairman, or secretary to the State Election Commission or the county or municipal election commission, whichever is responsible under by law for preparing the ballot, not later than by twelve o'clock noon on April ninth, or if April ninth falls on a Saturday or Sunday, not later than by twelve o'clock noon on the following Monday. Political parties nominating candidates by party primary must verify the qualifications of those candidates prior to before certification to the appropriate election commission of the names of candidates to be placed on primary ballots. The written verification required by this section must contain a statement that each candidate certified meets, or will meet by the time of the general election, or as otherwise required by law, the qualifications for office for which he has filed. Political parties must not accept the filing of any candidate who does not or will not by the time of the general election, or as otherwise required by law, meet the qualifications for the office for which the candidate desires to file, and such the candidate's name shall must not be placed on a primary ballot. The filing fees for all candidates filing to run in all primaries, except municipal primaries, must be transmitted by the respective political parties to the State Election Commission and placed by the executive director of the commission in a special account designated for use in conducting primary elections and must be used for that purpose. The filing fee for each office is one percent of the total salary for the term of that office or one hundred dollars, whichever amount is greater."

SECTION    11.    Section 7-13-70 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 304 of 1998, is further amended to read:

"Section 7-13-70.    (A)(1)    For the purpose of carrying on general or special elections for federal, state, and county officers provided for in Section 7-13-10, the Governor, at least ninety days before the election, must shall appoint for each county not less than three nor more than five commissioners of election upon the recommendation of the senatorial delegation and at least half of the members of the House of Representatives from the respective counties. The Governor must shall notify the State Election Commission in writing of the appointments. The State Election Commission must shall verify that at least one of the appointees represents the largest political party and one represents the second largest political party as determined by the composition of that county's delegation in the General Assembly or the makeup of the General Assembly as a whole if the county's delegation is composed of only one party's members. The commissioners shall continue in office until their successors are appointed and qualified. After their appointment the commissioners must shall take and subscribe, before any an officer authorized to administer oaths, the following oath of office prescribed by Section 26 of Article III of the Constitution: 'I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I am duly qualified, according to the Constitution of this State, to exercise the duties of the office to which I have been appointed, and that I will, to the best of my ability, discharge the duties thereof, and preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of this State and of the United States. So help me God'.

(2)    The oath must be immediately must be filed in the office of the clerk of court of common pleas of the county in which the commissioners are appointed, or if there is no clerk of court, in the office of the Secretary of State.

(3)    Commissioners and such staff as designated by the commission must shall complete, within eighteen months after their appointment or reappointment, a training and certification program conducted by the State Election Commission. Following initial certification, each commission member and staff person designated by the commission must shall take at least one training course each year.

(B)    The membership and duties of municipal election commissioners are determined pursuant to Chapter 15 of Title 5."

SECTION    12.    Chapter 13, Title 7 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Article 2

Uniform Election Procedure Act

Section 7-13-210.    (A)    For purposes of this article, 'governing body' means the governing body of a municipality, school board, or school district.

(B)(1)    Notwithstanding another provision of law or special act providing for the election of the members of a governing body, beginning at the time of the general election of 2008 and each year after that as appropriate, members of a governing body must be elected in elections conducted at the time of the general election.

(2)    Terms of current members of a governing body expiring after December 31, 2006, must be extended until their successors are elected and qualify in the manner provided in this article at the general election.

Section 7-13-215.    If a member of a governing body is elected at the time of the general election or on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November, the provisions of this article control the election of that member.

Section 7-13-220.    A member of a governing body elected in a nonpartisan election as provided by law must be elected in that manner except that the date of the nonpartisan election must be at the same time in the appropriate even-numbered or odd-numbered year as provided in Section 7-13-210(B).

Section 7-13-225.    The terms for a member elected to a governing body are as provided by law for that governing body.

Section 7-13-230.    Candidates for these offices, which are filled in nonpartisan elections on the effective date of this article, must be nominated by the method provided by law for the office affected with the appropriate authority conducting the election.

Section 7-13-235.    The cost of elections held pursuant to this article must be borne by the governing bodies elected at the times specified in this article on a pro rate basis determined by the entity charged by law with conducting the election.

Section 7-13-240.    Members of a governing body must be elected from the district at large, from specified election districts, or in another manner as provided by law for that governing body.

Section 7-13-245.    Vacancies in these offices must be filled as provided by law.

Section 7-13-250.    The results of these elections must be determined in the manner provided by law for that governing body.

Section 7-13-255.    A referendum on the question of raising the bonded indebtedness limit of a governing body, including a county and any other referendum, must be conducted at the time of the general election.

Section 7-13-260.    An election held pursuant to Section 59-71-40 to issue general operating bonds for an operating school unit as defined in Section 59-71-20 must be conducted at the time of the general election."

SECTION    13.    This act takes effect January 1, 2007.

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