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COMMITTEE REPORT
May 15, 2008
S. 981
S. Printed 5/15/08--H.
Read the first time April 15, 2008.
To whom was referred a Bill (S. 981) to amend Section 57-5-10 of the 1976 Code, relating to the general composition of the state highway system, to provide that all highways in the state highway, etc., respectfully
That they have duly and carefully considered the same and recommend that the same do pass with amendment:
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by adding the following appropriately numbered SECTIONS:
/ SECTION __. The General Assembly finds that:
(1) before a motor vehicle may be licensed and registered by the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles for the privilege of using the public highways of this State, that department either collects or confirms the collection of any applicable sales, use, and casual excise taxes due on the vehicle;
(2) without the required registration and licensing it is unlawful for a motor vehicle to use the public highways of this State; and
(3) the revenue of the sales, use, and casual excise tax required to be paid before a motor vehicle may be registered and licensed in this State is included within the "sources of revenue" that may be pledged to secure highway bonds pursuant to Section 13(6)(a), Article X of the Constitution of this State.
SECTION __. Article 25, Chapter 36, Title 12 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 12-36-2647. (A) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 59-21-1010, an amount as provided in subsection (B) of this section of sales, use, and casual excise tax revenues derived from the sale, use, or titling of a vehicle required to be licensed and registered by the South Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles, otherwise required to be credited as provided pursuant to Section 59-21-1010, instead must be credited to the State Non-Federal Aid Highway Fund established pursuant to Section 57-11-20. Revenues credited to the State Non-Federal Aid Highway Fund pursuant to this section must be used exclusively for highway, road, and bridge maintenance.
(B) In fiscal year 2008-2009, an amount equal to ten million dollars of the revenues specified in subsection (A) of this section must be credited to the State Non-Federal Aid Highway Fund. In each succeeding fiscal year, an additional thirty million dollars must be added to the cumulative total amount credited as provided pursuant to this subsection in the preceding fiscal year, until and after which all of the specified revenues must be so credited. For fiscal years beginning after June 30, 2009, an amount equal to ten percent of the revenue credited pursuant to this subsection in a fiscal year must be credited and apportioned as 'C' funds are credited and apportioned pursuant to Section 12-28-2740. All of the additional 'C' fund revenues apportioned pursuant to this subsection must be expended solely for rural road maintenance and construction and this additional allocation is not subject to the requirement for twenty-five percent of 'C' funds to be expended on the state highway system as provided pursuant to Section 12-28-2740(C). The balance of the revenue credited in a fiscal year pursuant to this subsection must be credited to the State Non-Federal Aid Highway Fund.
(C) There is transferred from income tax revenues credited to the general fund of the State in each fiscal year to the Education Improvement Fund an amount sufficient to offset sales tax revenues not credited to the EIA fund as a result of the reduction of sales tax revenues provided pursuant to this section.
(D) In fiscal year 2008-2009, there must be transferred from nonstate tax revenues in the State Highway Fund to the State Highway Account of the South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank an amount equal to ten million dollars. In each succeeding fiscal year, one-half of the amount required to be transferred to the State Non-Federal Aid Highway Fund pursuant to subsection (B) in each fiscal year must be similarly transferred."
SECTION __. Section 12-28-2920 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 12-28-2920. (A) The department shall review projects for the possibility of constructing toll roads to defray the cost of these projects pursuant to the authority granted the department in Section 57-5-1330. No project may be funded by means of imposing a toll on the users of the project unless in conjunction with federal funds authorized for use on toll roads it is determined to be substantially feasible by the department. The funds derived from tolls must be:
(1) credited to the State Highway Fund or retained and applied by the entity or entities developing the toll road pursuant to an agreement authorized under Section 57-3-200 for the purpose of funding:
(a) the cost of construction, financing, operation, and maintenance of the toll project; or
(b) in the case of any Qualified Toll Project, the cost of acquisition, construction, equipping, improvement, financing, refinancing, operation, and maintenance of the toll project; or
(2) used to service bonded indebtedness for highway transportation purposes incurred pursuant to Paragraph 9, Section 13, Article X of the South Carolina Constitution.
(B) Upon repayment of the cost of construction and financing, toll charges shall cease, and in addition, in the case of any Qualified Toll Project upon the repayment of the cost of acquisition, construction, equipping, improvement, financing, refinancing, operation, maintenance, and satisfaction of the obligations of the department under any agreement authorized under Section 57-3-200, toll charges shall cease.
(C) For purposes of this section and Section 57-3-200, a 'Qualified Toll Project' is a toll project on which tolls were being collected prior to January 1, 2008."
SECTION __. Section 57-3-200 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 57-3-200. (A) From the funds appropriated to the Department of Transportation and from any other sources which may be available to the Department, the Department of Transportation may expend such funds as it deems necessary to enter into partnership agreements with political subdivisions including authorized transportation authorities, and or private entities to finance, by tolls and other financing methods,:
(1) the cost of acquiring, constructing, equipping, maintaining, and operating highways, roads, streets, and bridges in this State.;
(2) in the case of any Qualified Toll Project (as defined in Section 12-28-2920), the cost of acquiring, constructing, equipping, improving, maintaining, financing, refinancing, and operating highways, roads, streets, and bridges in this State, or
(3) the department shall establish the initial toll to be charged to the traveling public for the use of the transportation facility and any revisions to those tolls after providing public notice and a hearing.
(B) The provisions of this section must not be construed to confer upon the Department of Transportation or political subdivisions any power to finance by tolls or other means the acquisition, construction, equipping, maintenance or operation which the Department of Transportation or political subdivisions does not possess under other provisions of this Code."
SECTION __. The Department of Transportation shall conduct a feasibility study regarding the Cross Island Parkway on US Highway 278 in Beaufort County on the question of whether or not the toll booths thereon should be automated in order to lower the toll charge. This feasibility study shall be completed no later than January 1, 2009, and the department's reports and recommendations shall be provided to the Governor and to the presiding officer of each house of the General Assembly. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.
ROBERT E. WALKER for Committee.
TO AMEND SECTION 57-5-10 OF THE 1976 CODE, RELATING TO THE GENERAL COMPOSITION OF THE STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM, TO PROVIDE THAT ALL HIGHWAYS IN THE STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM MUST BE BUILT ACCORDING TO STATE STANDARDS, TO AMEND SECTION 57-5-70, RELATING TO ADDITIONS TO THE STATE HIGHWAY SECONDARY SYSTEM, TO ALLOW THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO ADD COUNTY AND MUNICIPAL ROADS TO THE STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM WHEN NECESSARY FOR THE INTERCONNECTIVITY OF THE STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM, TO AMEND SECTION 57-5-80, RELATING TO THE DELETION AND REMOVAL OF ROADS FROM THE STATE HIGHWAY SECONDARY SYSTEM, TO PROVIDE FOR THE REMOVAL OF ROADS FROM THE STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM WHEN A COUNTY, MUNICIPALITY, SCHOOL, OR OTHER GOVERNMENTAL AGENCY AGREES TO ACCEPT THE ROAD INTO ITS OWN HIGHWAY SYSTEM, AND TO REPEAL SECTION 57-5-90, RELATING TO BELT LINES AND SPURS.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 57-5-10 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 57-5-10. The state highway system shall consist of a statewide system of connecting highways which that shall be constructed by to the Department of Transportation Transportation's standards and which that shall be maintained by the department in a safe and serviceable condition as state highways. The complete state highway system shall mean the system of state highways as now constituted, consisting of the roads, streets, and highways heretofore designated as state highways or designated for construction or maintenance by the department pursuant to law, together with the roads, streets, and highways heretofore added to the state highway system by the Commission of the Department of Transportation, and such the roads, streets, and highways as may hereafter that may be added to the system pursuant to law. Roads and highways in the state highway system are classified into three classifications:
(1) interstate system of highways;
(2) state highway primary system; and
(3) state highway secondary system."
SECTION 2. Section 57-5-70 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 57-5-70. The department shall may take over and accept as a part of the state highway secondary system the roads remaining in the various county or municipal road systems which have been maintained by the respective counties, or so much mileage thereof as the availability of funds for construction of secondary state highways in a county may justify; provided, that municipal streets which are extensions of state highways may be added to the state highway secondary system in lieu of an equal mileage of county roads. that the department determines are necessary for the interconnectivity of the state highway system. The roads to be placed in the state highway system hereunder pursuant to this section shall be selected by the department with the consent of the county or municipality. Maintenance jurisdiction by the department of roads added to the state highway secondary system pursuant to the provisions of this section shall not commence until construction to state highway standards shall have started has been completed."
SECTION 3. Section 57-5-80 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 57-5-80. (A) The department may delete and remove the following roads from the state highway secondary system: of roads in any county any roads which are of low traffic importance and substitute therefor an equal, or less, mileage of other roads of higher traffic importance as determined by traffic surveys and estimates. Maintenance responsibility for roads deleted and removed from the state highway secondary system pursuant to the provisions of this section shall transfer from the jurisdiction of the department to the jurisdiction of the county or municipality in which such roads are situated, effective upon notice from the department of official action deleting and removing the roads from the state highway system.
(1) roads that are of low traffic importance; or
(2) roads that a county, municipality, school, or other governmental agency agrees to accept into its own system.
(B) In order for the department to delete and remove a road of low traffic importance from the state highway secondary system, the department and the affected county or municipality must first agree upon which roads will be removed and deleted from the state highway secondary system and the location and amount of road mileage of higher traffic importance currently under the jurisdiction of the affected county or municipality that the department will add to the state secondary highway system. The mileage added to the state highway secondary system pursuant to this section must be equal to, or less than, the mileage of the road deleted and removed from the system.
(C) Maintenance responsibility for roads deleted and removed from the state highway secondary system pursuant to this section shall transfer from the jurisdiction of the department to the jurisdiction of the county, municipality, school, or governmental agency in which the roads are situated, effective upon notice from the department of official action deleting and removing the roads from the state highway system.
(D) For the purposes of this section, traffic importance must be determined by traffic surveys and estimates."
SECTION 4. Section 57-5-90 of the 1976 Code is repealed.
SECTION 5. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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