A bill

 

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 56-3-1910, RELATING TO LICENSE PLATES FOR HANDICAPPED PERSONS, SO AS TO REVISE THE DEFINITION OF THE TERM "HANDICAPPED" TO INCLUDE CERTAIN PREGNANT WOMEN; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 56-3-1960, RELATING TO THE ISSUANCE OF TEMPORARY AND PERMANENT PARKING PLACARDS, SO AS TO PROVIDE placards issued to PREGNANT WOMEN whose pregnancies are beyond their first trimesters expire twelve months after the dates they are issued.

 

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

 

SECTION 1.  Section 56-3-1910(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    (A) As used in this article, "handicapped" means a person who has one or more of the following conditions:

       (1) an inability to ordinarily walk one hundred feet nonstop without aggravating an existing medical condition, including the increase of pain;

       (2) an inability to ordinarily walk without the use of, or assistance from a brace, cane, crutch, another person, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or other assistive device;

       (3) a restriction by lung disease to the extent that the person's forced expiratory volume for one second when measured by spirometry is less than one liter, or the arterial oxygen tension is less than sixty mm/hg on room air at rest;

       (4) requires use of portable oxygen;

       (5) a cardiac condition to the extent that the person's functional limitations are classified in severity as Class III or Class IV according to standards established by the American Heart Association. If the person's status improves to a higher level, for example as a result of bypass surgery or transplantation, he no longer meets this criteria;

       (6) a substantial limitation in the ability to walk due to an arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition, for example, coordination problems and muscle spasticity due to conditions that include Parkinson's disease, cerebral palsy, or multiple sclerosis; or

       (7) blindness; or

       (8) a woman whose pregnancy is beyond the first trimester.

 

SECTION 2.  Section 56-3-1960(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    (A) A person who is "handicapped" as defined in Section 56-3-1910 may apply to the department for issuance of a temporary or permanent placard. A person may be issued a temporary placard if the condition causing his handicap is expected to last for at least four months. A placard issued to a woman whose pregnancy is beyond the first trimester expires twelve months after the date it is issued. No applicant may be denied a placard if the applicant follows the procedures established by the department and if the application is accompanied by a certificate from a licensed physician that certifies that the individual is handicapped and whether the handicap is temporary or permanent. The placards must indicate that the person is qualified to use reserved handicapped parking spaces. Applications for placards must be processed through and issued by the department's headquarters. Only one placard may be issued to an applicant. The certification procedure shall adhere to the requirements set forth in Section 56-3-1910. In conjunction with the issuance of a placard, applicants also must be issued a placard registration certificate that must be carried at all times in the vehicle driven by or transporting the handicapped individual. The certificate will display the name of the individual to which the placard was issued. A placard only can be displayed on a vehicle driven by or transporting the disabled individual whose name appears on the placard registration certificate. The department shall charge a fee of one dollar for a placard. An agency, organization, or facility that transports a disabled or handicapped person may receive a placard for each vehicle registered upon proper application and the payment of the appropriate fees.

 

SECTION 3.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

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