South Carolina General Assembly
119th Session, 2011-2012

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Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

S. 391

STATUS INFORMATION

General Bill
Sponsors: Senators Campsen, Scott and Rose
Document Path: l:\s-jud\bills\campsen\jud0073.ssp.docx
Companion/Similar bill(s): 3392

Introduced in the Senate on January 19, 2011
Introduced in the House on February 22, 2011
Last Amended on May 3, 2012
Currently residing in the House

Summary: Absentee ballots

HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

     Date      Body   Action Description with journal page number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   1/19/2011  Senate  Introduced and read first time (Senate Journal-page 5)
   1/19/2011  Senate  Referred to Committee on Judiciary 
                        (Senate Journal-page 5)
   1/28/2011  Senate  Referred to Subcommittee: Campsen (ch), Cleary, Scott
   2/16/2011  Senate  Committee report: Favorable Judiciary 
                        (Senate Journal-page 15)
   2/17/2011          Scrivener's error corrected
   2/17/2011  Senate  Read second time (Senate Journal-page 9)
   2/17/2011  Senate  Roll call Ayes-41  Nays-0 (Senate Journal-page 9)
   2/22/2011  Senate  Read third time and sent to House 
                        (Senate Journal-page 10)
   2/22/2011  House   Introduced and read first time (House Journal-page 16)
   2/22/2011  House   Referred to Committee on Judiciary 
                        (House Journal-page 16)
   5/18/2011  House   Committee report: Favorable with amendment Judiciary 
                        (House Journal-page 64)
   5/19/2011          Scrivener's error corrected
   5/24/2011  House   Debate adjourned (House Journal-page 70)
   5/24/2011  House   Debate adjourned until Wednesday, May 25, 2011 
                        (House Journal-page 111)
   5/25/2011  House   Amended (House Journal-page 75)
   5/25/2011  House   Read second time (House Journal-page 75)
   5/25/2011  House   Roll call Yeas-111  Nays-0 (House Journal-page 75)
   5/26/2011  House   Read third time and returned to Senate with amendments 
                        (House Journal-page 6)
    6/1/2011  Senate  House amendment amended (Senate Journal-page 161)
    6/1/2011  Senate  Roll call Ayes-39  Nays-1 (Senate Journal-page 161)
    6/1/2011  Senate  Returned to House with amendments 
                        (Senate Journal-page 161)
    6/2/2011  House   Continued (House Journal-page 72)
    6/2/2011  House   Roll call Yeas-64  Nays-38 (House Journal-page 72)
    6/2/2011  House   Motion noted- Rep. Clemmons moved to reconsider the vote 
                        whereby the Bill was continued (House Journal-page 100)
   6/15/2011  House   Motion to reconsider tabled (House Journal-page 288)
   1/11/2012  House   Debate adjourned on Senate amendments until Thur., 
                        01-12-12 (House Journal-page 32)
   1/12/2012  House   Recommitted to Committee on Judiciary 
                        (House Journal-page 133)
   4/18/2012  House   Committee report: Favorable with amendment Judiciary 
                        (House Journal-page 7)
   4/19/2012          Scrivener's error corrected
   4/24/2012  House   Requests for debate-Rep(s). Loftis, Corbin, Barfield, 
                        Dilliard, Nanny, Sandifer, Hamilton, Hardwick, Hearn, 
                        Gilliard, Stavrinakis, Hayes, Branham, Hosey, GR Brow, 
                        Anderson, Whipper, Jefferson, Williams, Brantley, JH 
                        Neal, McEachern, Govan (House Journal-page 85)
   4/24/2012  House   Objection by Rep. Sellers, King (House Journal-page 85)
   4/26/2012  House   Debate adjourned (House Journal-page 85)
   4/26/2012  House   Debate interrupted (House Journal-page 142)
    5/2/2012  House   Debate adjourned (House Journal-page 74)
    5/3/2012  House   Debate adjourned (House Journal-page 52)
    5/3/2012  House   Amended (House Journal-page 53)
    5/3/2012  House   Read second time (House Journal-page 53)
    5/3/2012  House   Roll call Yeas-63  Nays-39 (House Journal-page 56)
    5/8/2012  House   Recommitted to Committee on Judiciary 
                        (House Journal-page 28)
   5/17/2012  House   Reconsidered (House Journal-page 31)
   5/17/2012  House   Debate adjourned until Tues., 05-22-12 
                        (House Journal-page 32)
   5/22/2012  House   Read third time and returned to Senate with amendments 
                        (House Journal-page 31)
   5/29/2012  Senate  Returned to House; Third Degree Amendment Rejected 
                        (Senate Journal-page 95)

View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site

VERSIONS OF THIS BILL

1/19/2011
2/16/2011
2/17/2011
5/18/2011
5/19/2011
5/25/2011
6/1/2011
4/18/2012
4/19/2012
5/3/2012

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

Indicates Matter Stricken

Indicates New Matter

AMENDED

May 3, 2012

S. 391

Introduced by Senators Campsen, Scott and Rose

S. Printed 5/3/12--H.

Read the first time February 22, 2011.

            

A BILL

TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-35, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE NOTICE OF GENERAL, MUNICIPAL, SPECIAL, AND PRIMARY ELECTIONS, SO AS TO CHANGE THE TIME IN WHICH ABSENTEE BALLOTS MAY BE OPENED FROM 2:00 P.M. TO 9:00 A.M., AND TO PROVIDE FOR A DATE ON WHICH AN ELECTION WILL BE HELD IN THE EVENT THAT IT IS POSTPONED; TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-40, RELATING TO THE TIME OF PARTY PRIMARY, CERTIFICATION OF NAMES, VERIFICATION OF CANDIDATES' QUALIFICATIONS, AND THE FILING FEE, SO AS TO CHANGE THE DATE FROM APRIL NINTH TO APRIL FIFTH; TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-190, RELATING TO SPECIAL ELECTIONS TO FILL VACANCIES IN OFFICE, SO AS TO ADD A SUBSECTION THAT PROVIDES FOR THE DATE OF AN ELECTION WHEN THE GOVERNOR DECLARES A STATE OF EMERGENCY FOR A JURISDICTION; AND TO AMEND SECTION 7-13-350, RELATING TO THE CERTIFICATION OF CANDIDATES AND VERIFICATION OF QUALIFICATIONS, SO AS TO CHANGE THE CERTIFICATION DATE FOR CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT FROM SEPTEMBER TENTH TO THE FIRST TUESDAY FOLLOWING THE FIRST MONDAY OF SEPTEMBER.

Amend Title To Conform

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

SECTION    1.    Section 7-13-35 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 434 of 1996, is further amended to read:

"Section 7-13-35.    The authority charged by law with conducting an election must publish two notices of general, municipal, special, and primary elections held in the county in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or municipality, as appropriate. Included in each notice must be a reminder of the last day persons a person may register to be eligible to vote in the election for which notice is given, the date the make-up election will be held if the originally scheduled election must be postponed due to inclement weather or other emergency, notification of the date, time, and location of the hearing on ballots challenged in the election, a list of the precincts involved in the election, the location of the polling places in each of the precincts, and notification that the process of examining the return-addressed envelopes containing absentee ballots may begin at 2:00 p.m. 9:00 a.m. on election day at a place designated in the notice by the authority charged with conducting the election. The first notice must appear not later than sixty days before the election and the second notice must appear not later than two weeks after the first notice."

SECTION    2.    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 election commissions on the second Tuesday in June of each general election year, and a second and third primary each two weeks successively thereafter, 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 election commission, whichever is responsible under law for preparing the ballot, not later than twelve o'clock noon on April ninth fifth, or if April ninth fifth falls on a Saturday or Sunday, not later than twelve o'clock noon on the following Monday. Political parties nominating candidates by party primary must verify the qualifications of those candidates prior to 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 a 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    3.    Section 7-13-190 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 3 of 2003, is further amended by adding:

"(F)    In the event the Governor declares a state of emergency covering an entire jurisdiction holding an election, the election must be postponed and held on the next Tuesday. This subsection does not apply to statewide primaries and general elections."

SECTION    4.    Section 7-13-350 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 3 of 2003, is further amended to read:

"Section 7-13-350.    (A)    Except as otherwise provided in this section, the nominees in a party primary or party convention held under the provisions of this title by any a political party certified by the commission for one or more of the offices, national, state, circuit, multi-county multicounty district, countywide, less than countywide, or municipal to be voted on in the general election, held on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in November, must be placed upon the appropriate ballot for the election as candidates nominated by the party by the authority charged by law with preparing the ballot if the names of the nominees are certified, in writing, by the political party chairman, vice-chairman vice chairman, or secretary to the authority, for general elections held under Section 7-13-10, not later than twelve o'clock noon on August fifteenth or, if August fifteenth falls on Saturday or Sunday, not later than twelve o'clock noon on the following Monday; and for a special or municipal general election, by at least twelve o'clock noon on the sixtieth day prior to the date of holding the election, or if the sixtieth day falls on Sunday, by twelve o'clock noon on the following Monday. Political parties nominating candidates by primary or convention must verify the qualifications of those candidates prior to certification to the authority charged by law with preparing the ballot. The written certification 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 the office for which he has filed. Any A 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 he has filed shall must not be nominated and certified, and such the candidate's name shall must not be placed on a general, special, or municipal election ballot.

(B)    Candidates for President and Vice President must be certified to the State Election Commission not later than twelve o'clock noon on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in September September tenth to the State Election Commission, or if September tenth falls on Sunday, not later than twelve o'clock noon on the following Monday."

SECTION    5. Section 5-7-200 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:

"Section 5-7-200.    (a)(A)    A mayor or councilman shall forfeit his office if he:

(1)    lacks at any time during his term of office any a qualification for the office prescribed by the general law and the Constitution;

(2)    violates any an express prohibition of Chapters 1 to 17; or

(3)    is convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude.

(b)(B)    A vacancy in the office of mayor or council shall must be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term either:

(1)    at the next regular municipal election; or

(2)    at a special election held pursuant to Section 7-13-190, if the vacancy occurs:

(a)    one hundred eighty days or more, or

(b)    ninety days or less

prior to the next general municipal election."

SECTION    6.    Section 7-13-190(B) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 412 of 1998, is further amended to read:

"(B)    In partisan elections, whether seeking nomination by political party primary or political party convention, filing by these candidates shall open for the office at twelve o'clock noon on the third Friday after the vacancy occurs for a period to close ten days later at twelve o'clock noon. If seeking nomination by petition, the petitions must be submitted not later than twelve o'clock noon, sixty days prior to the election. Verification of these petitions must be made not later than twelve o'clock noon forty-five days prior to the election. If seeking nomination by political party primary or political party convention, filing with the appropriate official is the same as provided in Section 7-11-15 and if seeking nomination by petition, filing with the appropriate official is the same as provided in Section 7-11-70.

A primary must be held on the eleventh Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. A runoff primary must be held on the thirteenth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. The special election must be on the eighteenth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs. If the eighteenth Tuesday after the vacancy occurs is no more than sixty one hundred twenty days prior to the general election, the special election shall be held on the same day as the general election. If the filing period closes on a state holiday, then filing must be held open through the succeeding weekday. If the date for an election falls on a state holiday, it must be set for the next succeeding Tuesday. For purposes of this section, state holiday does not mean the general election day."

SECTION    7.    This act takes effect upon preclearance approval by the United States Department of Justice or approval by a declaratory judgment issued by the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, whichever occurs first.

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