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S. 831
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Senators Grooms, Jackson, Kimbrell, Sutton and Bennett
Document Path: SR-0095CEM26.docx
Introduced in the Senate on January 20, 2026
Introduced in the House on March 24, 2026
Last Amended on May 12, 2026
Enrolled for Ratification
Summary: SCDOT Modernization
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
| Date | Body | Action Description with journal page number |
|---|---|---|
| 1/20/2026 | Senate | Introduced and read first time (Senate Journal-page 6) |
| 1/20/2026 | Senate | Referred to Committee on Transportation (Senate Journal-page 6) |
| 1/27/2026 | Scrivener's error corrected | |
| 3/4/2026 | Senate | Committee report: Favorable with amendment Transportation (Senate Journal-page 29) |
| 3/6/2026 | Scrivener's error corrected | |
| 3/10/2026 | Senate | Committee Amendment Adopted (Senate Journal-page 22) |
| 3/11/2026 | Senate | Amended (Senate Journal-page 22) |
| 3/11/2026 | Senate | Read second time (Senate Journal-page 22) |
| 3/19/2026 | Senate | Amended (Senate Journal-page 10) |
| 3/19/2026 | Senate | Read third time and sent to House (Senate Journal-page 10) |
| 3/19/2026 | Senate | Roll call Ayes-37 Nays-1 (Senate Journal-page 10) |
| 3/24/2026 | House | Introduced and read first time (House Journal-page 39) |
| 3/24/2026 | House | Referred to Committee on Ways and Means (House Journal-page 39) |
| 4/2/2026 | House | Committee report: Favorable with amendment Ways and Means (House Journal-page 10) |
| 4/13/2026 | Scrivener's error corrected | |
| 4/15/2026 | House | Requests for debate-Rep(s). B Newton, Pace, Frank, White, Magnuson, Edgerton, Gilreath, Cromer, Sessions, Guffey, J Moore, Gatch, Scott, Beach (House Journal-page 26) |
| 4/23/2026 | House | Debate adjourned (House Journal-page 163) |
| 4/29/2026 | House | Amended (House Journal-page 31) |
| 4/29/2026 | House | Read second time (House Journal-page 31) |
| 4/29/2026 | House | Roll call Yeas-114 Nays-0 (House Journal-page 143) |
| 4/30/2026 | House | Amended (House Journal-page 120) |
| 4/30/2026 | House | Read third time and returned to Senate with amendments (House Journal-page 120) |
| 4/30/2026 | House | Roll call Yeas-108 Nays-0 (House Journal-page 124) |
| 4/30/2026 | Senate | Senate insists upon amendment and conference committee appointed Grooms, Bennett, Walker (Senate Journal-page 26) |
| 5/6/2026 | House | House insists upon amendment and conference committee appointed Reps. Bannister, Erickson, Brewer (House Journal-page 4) |
| 5/12/2026 | House | Conference report received and adopted (House Journal-page 12) |
| 5/12/2026 | House | Roll call Yeas-112 Nays-2 (House Journal-page 68) |
| 5/12/2026 | Senate | Conference report received and adopted (Senate Journal-page 63) |
| 5/12/2026 | Senate | Roll call Ayes-43 Nays-0 (Senate Journal-page 63) |
| 5/12/2026 | Senate | Enrolled for Ratification (Senate Journal-page 63) |
| 5/14/2026 | Ratified R 156 | |
| 5/18/2026 | Signed By Governor |
View the latest legislative information at the website
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
1/20/2026
1/27/2026
3/4/2026
3/6/2026
3/10/2026
3/11/2026
3/19/2026
4/2/2026
4/13/2026
4/29/2026
4/30/2026
5/12/2026
(R156, S831)
AN ACT TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 57-1-410, RELATING TO THE SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE GOVERNOR SHALL APPOINT THE SECRETARY INSTEAD OF THE COMMISSION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION; TO DEVOLVE THE DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION UPON THE SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION; BY AMENDING SECTION 1-30-10, RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENTS OF STATE GOVERNMENT AND THEIR GOVERNING BODIES, SO AS TO DELETE THE PROVISION THAT PROVIDES THAT PART OF THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION IS A SEVEN-MEMBER COMMISSION; BY AMENDING SECTION 1-30-105, RELATING TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE GOVERNING AUTHORITY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION IS THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION; BY AMENDING SECTIONS 11-43-140 AND 11-43-150, BOTH RELATING TO THE TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE BANK, SO AS TO REMOVE THE CHAIRMAN OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION AS A DIRECTOR, TO PROVIDE THAT THE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION IS A MEMBER OF THE BOARD, AND TO MAKE A CONFORMING CHANGE; BY AMENDING SECTIONS 57-1-10, 57-1-40, 57-1-430, 57-1-500, 57-3-50, 57-1-90, 57-3-210, 57-3-700, 57-5-10, 57-5-50, 57-5-90, 57-5-310, 57-5-340, 57-13-10, 57-13-20, 57-13-40, 57-13-50, 57-25-120, 57-25-140, 57-25-150, 57-25-170, 57-25-200, 57-25-210, AND 57-1-370, ALL RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, AND ITS DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES, SO AS TO MAKE CONFORMING CHANGES REGARDING THE COMMISSION; BY REPEALING SECTIONS 57-1-310, 57-1-320, 57-1-325, 57-1-330, 57-1-340, 57-1-350, AND SECTIONS 6, 7, AND 8 OF ACT 114 OF 2007 ALL RELATING TO THE CREATION AND FUNCTIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND ITS COMMISSION; BY AMENDING SECTION 57-1-360, RELATING TO AUDITS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, SO AS TO SET FORTH CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS FOR THE CHIEF INTERNAL AUDITOR AND TO REQUIRE AN INDEPENDENT AUDIT OF THE DEPARTMENT EVERY FOUR YEARS; TO AMEND SECTION 57 3 20, RELATING TO THE DIVISIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, SO AS TO ESTABLISH CERTAIN DEPUTY SECRETARIES; BY ADDING SECTION 57-3-205 SO AS TO AUTHORIZE PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND OTHER ENTITIES AND TO SET FORTH CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS; BY AMENDING SECTION 57-3-615, RELATING TO CERTAIN TOLLS AND USAGE CHARGES, SO AS TO SPECIFY THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH TOLLS AND USAGE CHARGES MAY BE IMPOSED; BY ADDING SECTION 57-3-790 SO AS TO WAIVE THE STATE'S IMMUNITY UNDER THE 11TH AMENDMENT OF THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION FOR CERTAIN ACTIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND TO SPECIFY THE CIRCUMSTANCES FOR WAIVING IMMUNITY; BY ADDING SECTION 57-3-800 SO AS TO AUTHORIZE THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO ENTER INTO CERTAIN RECIPROCAL AGREEMENTS WITH OTHER JURISDICTIONS AND TO SPECIFY THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH AGREEMENTS ARE ENFORCEABLE; BY ADDING SECTION 57-5-1345 SO AS TO DIRECT THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO COORDINATE WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF MOTOR VEHICLES TO ADMINISTER AND COLLECT TOLLS AND USAGE CHARGES; BY AMENDING SECTIONS 57-5-820 AND 57-5-830, BOTH RELATING TO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS AND MUNICIPALITIES, SO AS TO SET FORTH THE PROCESS BY WHICH A MUNICIPALITY MAY OBJECT TO THE PROJECT; BY AMENDING SECTIONS 57-5-1320, 57-5-1330, 57-5-1335, 57-5-1340, 57-5-1350, 57-5-1360, 57-5-1370, 57-5-1380, 57-5-1390, 57-5-1400, 57-5-1410, 57-5-1420, 57-5-1430, 57-5-1440, 57-5-1450, 57-5-1460, 57-5-1470, 57-5-1480, 57-5-1490, AND 57-5-1495, ALL RELATING TO TURNPIKE PROJECTS, SO AS TO CHANGE THE NAME OF SUCH PROJECTS TO CHOICE LANE FACILITIES, TO SPECIFY THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH CHOICE LANE FACILITIES MAY BE CONSTRUCTED, TO SPECIFY THE MANNER IN WHICH BONDS MAY BE ISSUED FOR SUCH CHOICE LANE FACILITIES PROJECTS, AND TO MAKE CONFORMING CHANGES; BY ADDING SECTION 57-5-1710 SO AS TO SET FORTH THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO SELECT AND AWARD A CONTRACT TO A PHASED DESIGN-BUILD CONTRACTOR; BY ADDING SECTION 57-5-1720 SO AS TO AUTHORIZE THE DEPARTMENT TO AWARD HIGHWAY CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS USING A CONSTRUCTION MANAGER/GENERAL CONTRACTOR PROCEDURE; BY AMENDING SECTIONS 56-5-4210 AND 56-5-4220, BOTH RELATING TO CERTAIN ROAD RESTRICTIONS ON LOCAL ROADS, SO AS TO SPECIFY THE CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH RESTRICTIONS MAY BECOME EFFECTIVE; BY AMENDING SECTION 11-35-710, RELATING TO EXEMPTIONS FROM THE CONSOLIDATED PROCUREMENT CODE, SO AS TO SPECIFY THE EXEMPTION FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND TO EXEMPT CERTAIN ROAD-RELATED ACQUISITIONS BY THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY; BY AMENDING SECTION 12-28-2740, RELATING TO "C" FUNDS, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE POWERS AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEES AND PROCEDURES FOR USING "C" FUND REVENUES; BY AMENDING SECTION 12-28-2920, RELATING TO THE CONSTRUCTION OF CERTAIN ROADS, SO AS TO SPECIFY THE USE OF USAGE CHARGE REVENUES; BY ADDING SECTION 57-5-1800 SO AS TO ESTABLISH THE POTHOLE MITIGATION PROGRAM FOR THE PUBLIC REPORTING OF POTHOLE LOCATIONS; AND BY ADDING SECTION 57-1-375 SO AS TO SET FORTH A PROCESS BY WHICH COUNTY-FUNDED PROJECTS MAY REPRIORITIZE THE STATEWIDE TRANSPORTATION PLAN WITHIN THE COUNTY.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Secretary of Transportation appointment
SECTION 1. Section 57-1-410 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-1-410. The Governor shall appoint, with the advice and consent of the Senate, a Secretary of Transportation who shall serve at the pleasure of the Governor. A person appointed to this position shall possess practical and successful business and executive ability and be knowledgeable in the field of transportation. The Secretary of Transportation shall receive such compensation as may be established under the provisions of Section 8-11-160 and for which funds have been authorized in the general appropriations act.
Secretary of Transportation
SECTION 2. Notwithstanding Section 57-1-410, as amended by this act, the Secretary, who is currently serving and has been confirmed by the Senate immediately before the effective date of SECTION 1, shall continue in that capacity until a successor has been appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate.
Commission of the Department Transportation abolished
SECTION 3. Section 1-30-10(B)(1)(iv) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(iv) in the case of the Department of Transportation, a Secretary of Transportation appointed by and serving at the pleasure of the Governor.
Commission of the Department Transportation abolished
SECTION 4. Effective January 1, 2027, the Commission of the Department of Transportation is abolished and its functions, powers, duties, responsibilities, and authority are devolved upon the Secretary of the Department of Transportation unless otherwise provided for in this act.
Secretary of Transportation
SECTION 5. Section 1-30-105 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 1-30-105. (A) Effective on July 1, 1993, the following agencies, boards, and commissions, including all of the allied, advisory, affiliated, or related entities as well as the employees, funds, property, and all contractual rights and obligations associated with any such agency, except for those subdivisions specifically included under another department, are hereby transferred to and incorporated in and shall be administered as part of the Department of Transportation to be initially divided into divisions for Mass Transit, Construction and Maintenance, Engineering and Planning, and Finance and Administration; however, the State Highway Commission as constituted on June 30, 1993, under the provisions of Title 56, shall be the governing authority for the department until February 15, 1994, or as soon as its successors are elected or appointed and qualified, whichever is later.
Department of Highways and Public Transportation, except the Motor Vehicle Division, which was established as the Department of Motor Vehicles by Section 56-1-5, and the State Highway Patrol, formerly provided for at Section 56-1-10, et seq.
(B) Notwithstanding another provision of law, effective January 1, 2027, the governing authority of the Department of Transportation is the Secretary of Transportation pursuant to Section 57-1-410.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 6. Section 11-43-140 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 11-43-140. The board of directors is the governing board of the bank. The board consists of seven voting directors as follows: the Secretary of the Department of Transportation, ex officio; one director appointed by the Governor who shall serve as chairman; one director appointed by the Governor; one director appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives; one member of the House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker, ex officio; one director appointed by the President of the Senate; and one member of the Senate appointed by the President of the Senate, ex officio. Directors appointed by the Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the President of the Senate shall serve terms coterminous with those of their appointing authority. The terms for the legislative members are coterminous with their terms of office. The vice chairman must be elected by the board. Any person appointed to fill a vacancy must be appointed in the same manner as the original appointee for the remainder of the unexpired term.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 7. Section 11-43-150 of the S.C. Code is amended by deleting subsection (D).
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 8. Section 57-1-10 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-1-10. For the purposes of this title, the following words, phrases, and terms are defined as follows:
(1) Reserved.
(2) "Department" means the Department of Transportation (DOT).
(3) "Secretary of Transportation" means the Chief Administrative Officer of the Department of Transportation.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 9. Section 57-1-40 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-1-40. (A) It is unlawful for an official, an engineer, agent, or other employee, acting for or on behalf of the department, to accept or agree to accept, receive or agree to receive, or ask or solicit, either directly or indirectly, with the intent to have his decision or action on any question, matter, cause, or proceeding which at the time may be pending or which by law may be brought before him in his official capacity or in his place of trust or profit influenced, any:
(1) money;
(2) contract, promise, undertaking, obligation, gratuity, or security for the payment of money or for the delivery or conveyance of anything of value;
(3) political appointment or influence, present, or reward;
(4) employment; or
(5) other thing of value.
A person violating the provisions of subsection (A) is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned not more than five years and is disqualified forever from holding any office of trust or profit under the Constitution or laws of this State.
(B) It is unlawful for a person to give or offer to give, promise, or cause or procure to be promised, offered, or given, either directly or indirectly, to an official, an engineer, agent, or other employee acting for or on behalf of the department with the intent to have his decision or action on any question, matter, cause, or proceeding which at the time may be pending or which by law may be brought before him in his official capacity or in his place of trust or profit influenced, any:
(1) money;
(2) contract, promise, undertaking, obligation, gratuity, or security for the payment of money or for the delivery or conveyance of anything of value;
(3) political appointment or influence, present, or reward;
(4) employment; or
(5) other thing of value.
A person violating the provisions of subsection (B) is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned not more than five years and is disqualified forever from holding any office of trust or profit under the Constitution or laws of this State.
(C) Any official or employee of the department are subject to the provisions of Chapter 13, Title 8, the State Ethics Act, and the provisions of Chapter 78, Title 15, the South Carolina Tort Claims Act.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 10. Section 57-1-430(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(A) The secretary is charged with the affirmative duty to establish and carry out the policies of the department, to administer the day-to-day affairs of the department, to direct the implementation of the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program and the Statewide Mass Transit Plan, and to ensure the timely completion of all projects undertaken by the department, and routine operation and maintenance requests, and emergency repairs. The secretary must represent the department in its dealings with other state agencies, local governments, special districts, and the federal government.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 11. Section 57-1-500 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-1-500. The secretary must provide for a workshop of at least two biennial contact hours concerning ethics and the Administrative Procedures Act for the secretary, the chief internal auditor, and senior management employees of the Department of Transportation; and a biennial ethics workshop of at least two contact hours for all other department employees.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 12. Section 57-3-50 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-3-50. The department may establish such highway districts as in its opinion are necessary for the proper and efficient performance of its duties. The department, every ten years, must review the number of highway districts and the territory embraced within the districts and make changes that may be necessary for the proper and efficient operation of the districts.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 13. Section 57-1-90(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(A) In formulating transportation policy, promulgating regulations, allocating funds, and planning, designing, constructing, equipping, operating and maintaining transportation facilities, no action of the secretary, or the South Carolina Department of Transportation shall have the effect of discriminating against motorcycles, motorcycle operators, or motorcycle passengers. No regulation or action of the secretary, or department shall have the effect of enacting a prohibition or imposing a requirement that applies only to motorcycles or motorcyclists, and the principal purpose of which is to restrict or inhibit access or motorcycles and motorcyclists to any highway, bridge, tunnel, or other transportation facility.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 14. Section 57-3-210(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(A) The department is authorized to utilize public transit funds to contract directly with private operators of public transit systems to provide service to the general public, provided that the private operators have established a plan of service that has been approved by the local governmental entity that has jurisdiction over the area to be served, the department, and the federal government.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 15. Section 57-3-700 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-3-700. With the approval of the Secretary of Transportation, the county officials may designate the department, acting through its agents and employees, as agents of the county in securing necessary rights of way and other lands.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 16. Section 57-5-10 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-10. The state highway system shall consist of a statewide system of connecting highways that shall be constructed to the Department of Transportation's standards and that shall be maintained by the department in a safe and serviceable condition as state highways. The department may utilize funding sources including, but not limited to, the State Non-Federal Aid Highway Fund and the State Highway Fund as established by Section 57-11-20 in carrying out the provisions of this section. The complete state highway system shall mean the system of state highways as now constituted, consisting of the roads, streets, and highways designated as state highways or designated for construction or maintenance by the department pursuant to law, together with the roads, streets, and highways added to the state highway system by the Secretary of Transportation, and the roads, streets, and highways 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.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 17. Section 57-5-50 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-50. The Secretary of Transportation may transfer any route or section of route from the state highway secondary system to the state highway primary system, or vice versa, when, in the secretary's judgment, such transfer is advisable to better serve the traveling public.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 18. Section 57-5-90 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-90. The department may establish such belt lines or spurs as it deems proper and construct and maintain such belt lines and spurs from funds otherwise provided by law for the construction and maintenance of the state highway system, but the total length of such belt lines and spurs to be established or constructed in any county shall not exceed two miles in any one fiscal year; provided, that should the department fail to establish belt lines or spurs during a fiscal year the allocation to the counties shall be continued from year to year and the mileage shall be cumulative. Provided, further, that any mileage that accumulated prior to June 30, 1972, under this section shall remain to the credit of the county to which it accumulated.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 19. Section 57-5-310 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-310. The Department of Transportation may own such real estate, in fee simple or by lease, as shall be deemed necessary for the purpose of facilitating the proper operation of the department or for the building and maintenance of the public highways in the state highway system.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 20. Section 57-5-340 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-340. The department shall continuously inventory all of its real property. When, in the judgment of the department any real estate acquired as provided in this chapter is no longer necessary for the proper operation of the department or highway systems, the department shall vigorously attempt to sell the property by advertising for competitive bids in local newspapers or by direct negotiations, but in every case of the sale or transfer of any real estate by the department, the sale or transfer shall be made public by publishing notice of it on the website maintained by the department. The department shall convey by deed, signed by the Secretary of the Department of Transportation and the Deputy Director of the Division of Finance and Administration, any real estate disposed of under this section. Any funds derived from the sale of surplus property by authority of this section shall be credited to the funding category from which funds were drawn to finance the department's acquisition of the property. However, any funds derived from the sale of right of way, which the department has purchased, in excess of the department's cost shall be distributed among the counties as C funds pursuant to Section 12-28-2740.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 21. Sections 57-13-10 through 57-13-20 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 57-13-10. The Secretary of Transportation may cooperate and negotiate with the proper authorities of adjoining states in the construction, purchase, acquisition and maintenance of bridges constructed or to be constructed across streams which constitute boundaries between this State and such adjoining states and may expend for such purposes not exceeding one half of the total cost of such bridges and approaches thereto and bear a proportionate part of the maintenance thereof, such expenditures to be made from the funds available for the construction and maintenance of highways and bridges in the state highway system.
Section 57-13-20. Any county may, with the approval of the department, provide the funds necessary for participation in the construction, purchase or acquisition of any such bridge as is described in Section 57-13-10 and shall be entitled to reimbursement therefor under the provisions of Article 1, Chapter 11.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 22. Sections 57-13-40 through 57-13-50 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 57-13-40. The department may permit any person, county or municipality, or any combination thereof, to construct toll bridges and appertaining structures suitable for highway traffic on any roads of the state highway system. But before any such permit is issued an agreement satisfactory to the Department of Transportation must be executed by the person receiving such permit fixing conditions under which the bridge is to be constructed, the character and design of the structure, the rate of toll to be charged traffic using it and the terms according to which it can be acquired by the State or counties concerned.
Section 57-13-50. A permit may not be issued by the department under the authority of Section 57-13-40 except after advertisement of all the terms and conditions affecting such permit in at least five daily newspapers of this State and after the county legislative delegation of every county directly adjacent to the bridge has been given formal notice, describing such terms and conditions, and has approved such terms and conditions.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 23. Section 57-25-120(4)(d) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(d) land on the opposite side of a nonfreeway primary highway which is designated scenic by the department.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 24. Section 57-25-140(D)(4) and (J) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(4) scenic areas designated by the department or other state agency having and exercising that authority.
(J) Signs permitted under subsection (A)(1), (2), (3), and (4) must comply with the regulations promulgated by the department in accordance with uniform national standards.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 25. Section 57-25-150(A) and (D) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(A) The department shall issue permits for the erection and maintenance of outdoor advertising signs coming within the exceptions contained in Section 57-25-140(A)(1), (2), and (3), consistent with the safety and welfare of the traveling public necessary to carry out the policy of the State declared in this article and consistent with the national standards promulgated by the Secretary of Transportation or other appropriate federal official pursuant to U.S.C. Title 23.
The department also shall promulgate regulations governing the issuance of the permits and standards for size, spacing, and lighting of the signs and their messages.
(D) The department shall promulgate regulations governing the issuance of permits which must include mandatory maintenance to ensure that all signs are always in a good state of repair. Signs not in a good state of repair are illegal.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 26. Section 57-25-170 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-25-170. The department may provide within the right of way for areas at appropriate distances from interchanges on the interstate system and controlled access roads on the federal-aid primary system on which signs, displays, and devices giving specific information in the interest of the traveling public may be erected and maintained under standards and regulations authorized to be adopted and promulgated by the department. The standards and regulations may provide for cooperative agreements between the Department of Transportation and private interests for the use and display of names for FOOD, LODGING, and GAS information signs on the highway right of way.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 27. Section 57-25-200(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
(A) Within the requirements of this article the Secretary of Transportation may enter into agreements with other governmental authorities relating to the control of outdoor advertising in areas adjacent to the interstate and primary highway systems, including the establishment of information centers and safety rest areas and take action in the name of the State to comply with the terms of the agreements.
Commission of the Department of Transportation abolished, conforming change
SECTION 28. Section 57-25-210 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-25-210. The department is not required to expend funds for the removal of outdoor advertising under this article until federal funds are made available to the State for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this article and the department has entered into an agreement with the Secretary of Transportation as authorized by Section 57-25-200 and as provided by the Highway Beautification Act of 1965.
Repeal
SECTION 29. Sections 57-1-310, 57-1-320, 57-1-325, 57-1-330, 57-1-340, and 57-1-350 of the S.C. Code, and Sections 6, 7, and 8 of Act 114 of 2007 are repealed.
Chief Internal Auditor and audits of the Department of Transportation, conforming change
SECTION 30. Sections 57-1-360(B) through Section 57-1-370 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
(B)(1) The chief internal auditor must be a certified public accountant, a certified internal auditor, or a certified fraud examiner, and possess any other experience the State Auditor may require. The chief internal auditor must establish, implement, and maintain the exclusive internal audit function of all departmental activities. The State Auditor shall set the salary for the chief internal auditor as allowed by statute or applicable law.
(2) The audits performed by the chief internal auditor must comply with recognized governmental auditing standards. The scope of internal audit services shall cover the entire department, including all the department's activities, assets, and personnel. The scope of internal audit activities also encompasses all, but is not limited to, objective examinations of evidence to provide independent assurance on the adequacy, effectiveness, and efficiency of governance, risk management, control processes, and compliance for the department. The department and any entity contracting with the department must fully cooperate with the chief internal auditor in the discharge of his duties and responsibilities and must timely produce all books, papers, correspondence, memoranda, and other records considered necessary in connection with an internal audit. All final audit reports must be submitted to the secretary, the Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, the Chairman of the House of Representatives Education and Public Works Committee, and the Chairman of the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee before being made public. All final audit reports shall be published on the department's and the State Auditor's websites.
(3) The State Auditor is vested with the exclusive management and control of the chief internal auditor.
(4) Every four years the State Auditor shall employ an independent external firm to perform a performance and organizational audit on the Department of Transportation. The audit firm must be selected by the State Auditor. A report from the independent external firm must be completed by January 15, 2028, and every four years after that time. Upon completion, the report must be submitted to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, the Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, and the Chairman of the House Education and Public Works Committee.
Section 57-1-370. (A) The department must develop the long-range Statewide Transportation Plan, with a minimum twenty-year forecast period at the time of adoption, that provides for the development and implementation of the multimodal transportation system for the State. The plan must be developed in a manner consistent with all federal laws or regulations and in consultation with all interested parties, particularly the metropolitan planning organizations and the nonmetropolitan planning organization area local officials. The plan may be revised from time to time as permitted by and in the manner required by federal laws or regulations.
(B) Concerning the development, content, and implementation of the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program, the department must:
(1) develop a process for consulting with nonmetropolitan local officials, with responsibility for transportation, that provides an opportunity for their participation in the development of the long-range Statewide Transportation Plan and the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program;
(2) approve the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program and ensure that it is developed pursuant to federal laws and regulations and approve an updated Statewide Transportation Improvement Program from time to time as permitted by and in the manner required by federal laws or regulations;
(3) develop and revise the transportation plan for inclusion in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program, for each nonmetropolitan planning area in consultation with local officials with responsibility for transportation;
(4) work in consultation with each metropolitan planning organization to develop and revise a transportation improvement program for each metropolitan planning area;
(5) select from the approved Statewide Transportation Improvement Program the transportation projects undertaken in nonmetropolitan areas in consultation with the affected nonmetropolitan local officials with responsibility for transportation;
(6) select projects to be undertaken, in consultation with each metropolitan planning organization, from the metropolitan planning organization's approved transportation improvement plan in metropolitan areas not designated as a transportation management area;
(7) consult with each metropolitan planning organization, in metropolitan areas designated as transportation management areas, concerning the projects selected to be undertaken from the approved transportation improvement program and in accordance with the priorities approved by the transportation improvement program; and
(8) when selecting projects to be undertaken from nontransportation management area metropolitan planning organizations' transportation improvement programs, or selecting the nonmetropolitan area projects to be undertaken that are included in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program, and when consulting with metropolitan planning organizations designated as transportation management areas, the department shall establish a priority list of projects to the extent permitted by federal laws or regulations, taking into consideration at least the following criteria:
(a) financial viability including a life cycle analysis of estimated maintenance and repair costs over the expected life of the project;
(b) public safety;
(c) potential for economic development;
(d) traffic volume and congestion;
(e) truck traffic;
(f) the pavement quality index;
(g) environmental impact;
(h) alternative transportation solutions; and
(i) consistency with local land use plans.
(C) When state funding is programmed for a project, the department may use federal law, regulations, or guidelines relevant to the type of project being undertaken to be eligible for federal matching funds.
(D) The department shall have any other rights, duties, obligations, or responsibilities as specifically provided by law.
Deputy secretaries
SECTION 31. Section 57-3-20 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-3-20. The responsibilities and duties of the following deputy secretaries must include, but not be limited to:
(1) Deputy Secretary for Finance and Administration:
(a) financial planning and management;
(b) accounting systems necessary to comply with all federal and/or state laws and/or regulations as well as all policies established by the Comptroller General;
(c) administrative functions, including developing policy and procedures; and
(d) financial management of funding from federal, state, and local transit, rail, and other intermodal transportation.
(2) Deputy Secretary for Engineering:
(a) operation and management of the department's highway districts;
(b) direct highway engineering activities, including preconstruction, construction, construction oversight, and maintenance of state highways; and
(c) establish project and program priority lists.
(3) Deputy Secretary for Intermodal and Freight Programs:
(a) develop a statewide public transit system;
(b) coordinate the preservation and revitalization of existing rail corridors;
(c) develop and coordinate a statewide passenger and freight rail system, including the development of a comprehensive state rail plan for passenger and freight railroads and rail infrastructure services;
(d) coordinate and implement a comprehensive intermodal transportation program for the movement of passengers and freight through integrated highway, railroad, port, airport, and other transit systems; and
(e) manage the Office of Railroads and the Office of Public Transit.
(4) Deputy Secretary for Planning:
(a) develop statewide strategic transportation plans; and
(b) coordinate statewide plans with federal and state-funded regional and local transportation planning organizations.
Public-private partnership agreements
SECTION 32. Article 2, Chapter 3, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-3-205. (A) The department may enter into public-private partnership arrangements between or among the department and any public or private entity for the purpose of planning, designing, financing, constructing, operating, or maintaining the highways, roads, streets, bridges, public transit, and work improvements or facilities incidental or related thereto under the jurisdiction of the department. The provisions of this section may be used with any other provisions of state law to accomplish one or more projects.
(B) Public-private partnership arrangements may take the form of design-build agreements, design-build-operate agreements, design-build-operate-maintain agreements, design-build-finance-operate-maintain agreements, franchise agreements, predevelopment agreements, usage charge service agreements, direct agreements, guarantees, concession agreements, lease agreements, availability payments agreements, performance-based payments agreements, or any other form of contract approved by the department, or other similar arrangements or agreements pursuant to which the design, right of way acquisition, relocation of structures or utilities, construction, financing, management, maintenance, and operation, or any combination thereof, of a public highway, road, street, buildings and facilities owned by the department, broadband technology, bridge, public transit project and work, improvements or facilities incidental or related thereto is accomplished by the department or on behalf of the department by any public or private entities or methods. Additionally, such agreements may:
(1) be short-term or long-term agreements, but not exceed sixty years;
(2) authorize the establishment, adjustment, indexation, and enforcement of fares, usage charges, or other user fees, including time-of-day or dynamic pricing, consistent with policies adopted by the department, which may allow enforcement through photo monitoring, cashless charges, charge-by-mail, and charge-by-license plate. Such enforcement tools are authorized for projects under this section as well as on a choice lane facility designated under Article 9, Chapter 5, Title 57;
(3) specify a revenue application waterfall, reserves, rate covenants, and collection and enforcement measures; and
(4) be structured on a revenue-risk, availability-payment, or hybrid basis, including usage-based performance components.
(C) Subject to Section 57-3-615, any contracts entered into pursuant to this section may authorize funding to be established, set, modified, adjusted, and retained by the private entity, may include fares, usage charges, or other user fees for use of the project that is the subject of the arrangement, and the department may provide enforcement and collection services for the benefit of a public-private partnership arrangement. The funding may be distributed among the participants in the project as may be provided for by contract. Multiyear payment obligations may be appropriation backed availability payments or milestone payments and may include standard non-appropriation clauses and termination-for-non-appropriation remedies with predefined compensation formulas.
(D) The department may:
(1) take any action to obtain federal, state, or local assistance for a qualifying project that serves the public purpose and the public-private partnership arrangements authorized by this section and may enter into any contracts required to receive such assistance;
(2) determine that it serves the public purpose and the public-private partnership arrangements authorized by this section for all or any portion of the costs of a project to be paid, directly or indirectly, from the proceeds of a grant or loan made by federal, state, or local government or any agency or instrumentality thereof. Such assistance includes, but is not limited to, assistance under the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, railroad rehabilitation and improvement financing, private activity bonds, and other federal credit or tax-exempt financing programs; and
(3) cooperate with private partners to obtain allocations or approvals necessary for the issuance of private activity bonds and similar instruments, and may establish or incorporate, or assist in the establishment and incorporation of, a not-for-profit corporation or entity for the purpose of borrowing funds through a governmental conduit bond issuer for the benefit of a project procured by the department.
(E) Any contract entered into pursuant to this section shall require the private partner or each of its prime contractors to provide performance and payment security to the extent deemed necessary by the department or required by the financing parties. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the penal sum or amount of such security may be less than the price of the contract involved, such as the value of the construction elements of the contract, based upon the department's determination on a project-by-project basis of what sum may be required to adequately protect the department, the State, and the contracting and subcontracting parties.
(F) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, proposals under this section, with respect to public highway, road, bridge, building, facility, or public transit projects or work incidental or related thereto that the department determines can be more efficiently accomplished by any of the means enumerated in this section, may be evaluated and awarded by the department based on qualifications of participants or best value, or both, as evaluated by procedures of the department and taking into consideration the best interest of the State of South Carolina. Projects authorized under a predevelopment agreement may be authorized without specifying or finalizing the full or final scope of work to be performed under the procurement or predevelopment agreement. The department may utilize a two-step request for qualifications or request for proposals process with shortlisting, conduct competitive dialogue or confidential meetings with proposers, solicit and accept alternative technical concepts, and make best-value tradeoffs without mandated formulaic weights.
(G)(1) To the extent not authorized by statutory provisions other than this section, the solicitation pursuant to subsection (B) for a given project must be submitted to the Joint Bond Review Committee for review and comment prior to advertisement of the solicitation.
(2) The contract may include an agreement to make payments to a development entity on a multiyear basis, provided either that payment and performance obligations for succeeding fiscal periods are subject to the availability and appropriation of funds for such periods, or that specific, limited revenues are identified in a solicitation which has received review and comment by the Joint Bond Review Committee prior to the solicitation of the procurement and such revenues are payable solely from a revenue-producing project or from a special source, which source does not involve revenues from any tax.
(3) The department may set up separate accounts, which may be with a commercial trustee, to account for any such funds and provide for the deposit and disbursement of moneys therein under the public-private partnership arrangement.
(4) The department shall notify the Joint Bond Review Committee within thirty days of execution of the public-private partnership arrangement and shall provide the Joint Bond Review Committee an annual report within one hundred twenty days of the end of each fiscal year regarding the status of all public-private partnership arrangements outstanding.
(H) When the department proposes to enter into a public-private partnership arrangement under this section, it shall, prior to the execution and delivery of the contract documents for the public-private partnership arrangement, file a copy of the documents in the Office of the Secretary of State. It is the duty of the Secretary of State to file and index the filing in a special book to be kept by such officer for such purpose. The Secretary of State shall be authorized to prepare and deliver certified copies of the filed documents and to deliver them to interested parties. For each certification a reasonable fee may be charged. No action shall be commenced on account of the validity of a public-private partnership arrangement after the expiration of twenty days from the date of the filing and indexing of the proposed contract documents for the public-private partnership arrangement in the Office of the Secretary of State. The period within which such actions may be commenced shall not begin to run until such records have been filed as prescribed in this section.
(I)(1) Before entering into any public-private partnership arrangement structure, the department shall promulgate regulations governing the solicitation, evaluation, award, financing, and oversight of such projects.
(2) Notwithstanding item (1) or any other provision of law, the department may enter into agreements with an adjoining state to administer a public-private partnership arrangement structure in the State as long as such agreement has been submitted to the Joint Bond Review Committee for review and comment prior to execution.
(3) The department may promulgate other regulations to implement the provisions of this section.
Toll and usage charge restrictions
SECTION 33. Section 57-3-615 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-3-615. (A) No toll or usage charge may be imposed on the passage of any vehicle on any publicly owned or controlled road, bridge, highway, or interstate in this State except as provided by this section. Any toll or usage charge imposition must be allowed by or not contrary to federal law. Tolls or usage charges may be imposed on a publicly owned or controlled road, bridge, highway, or interstate under any of the following circumstances:
(1) the toll or usage charge imposition is specifically authorized by the General Assembly;
(2) the usage charge imposition is on managed or choice lane facilities designated as a choice lane facility under Article 9, Chapter 5, Title 57; or
(3) the usage charge imposition is reviewed by the Joint Bond Review Committee and approved by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority in connection with an agreement under Section 57-3-200 or 57-3-205 for managed or choice lane facilities prior to the solicitation of proposals for the agreement. The manner and method of usage charge imposition and rate setting are not required to be reviewed or approved, but must be set forth in the agreement, as may be amended from time to time.
(B) Usage charges imposed under subsection (A)(2) or (3) of this section may only be imposed on managed or choice lane facilities that increase the capacity of the applicable road, bridge, highway, or interstate. Managed or choice lane facilities are those facilities that are actively managed to achieve more effective and efficient use of a road, bridge, highway, or interstate using various strategies including, but not limited to, pricing, vehicle eligibility, and access control; the managed or choice lane facilities shall be in addition to and not in place of existing lanes. Usage charges are charges imposed for the use of, or right to use, managed or choice lane facilities.
(C) Tolls may continue to be imposed on the passage of vehicles on any publicly owned or controlled road, bridge, highway, or interstate in this State on which tolls or usage charges were imposed as of January 1, 2026.
Immunity waived
SECTION 34. Article 7, Chapter 3, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-3-790. (A) The State waives its immunity under the 11th Amendment of the United States Constitution and consents to suit in a federal court for lawsuits arising out of the department's compliance, discharge, or enforcement of responsibilities assumed pursuant to 23 U.S.C. Sections 326 and 327. The waiver of immunity under this section is valid only if:
(1) the Secretary of Transportation executes a memorandum of understanding with the United States Department of Transportation accepting the jurisdiction of the federal courts as required by 23 U.S.C. Sections 326(c) and 327(c);
(2) before execution of the memorandum of understanding under subsection (A), the South Carolina Attorney General has issued an opinion letter to the Secretary of Transportation and the administrator of the Federal Highway Administration that the memorandum of understanding and the waiver of immunity are valid and binding upon the State;
(3) the act or omission that is the subject of the lawsuit arises out of or relates to compliance, discharge, or enforcement of responsibilities assumed by the department pursuant to 23 U.S.C. Sections 326 and 327; and
(4) the memorandum of understanding is in effect when the act or omission that is the subject of the federal lawsuit occurred.
(B) Within one year of submitting an application to assume administration of 23 U.S.C. Sections 326 and 327, otherwise known as the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) Assignment Program pursuant to this section, the secretary shall issue a NEPA Manual detailing the manner in which the department will carry out its NEPA responsibilities. The department must provide a public comment period of at least thirty days on a draft NEPA Manual prior to issuance of a final NEPA Manual.
(C) The department must annually publish a report describing the department's assumption of NEPA responsibilities. The annual report must be made available to the public and posted on the department's website. That report shall include, but not be limited to, an analysis of time savings, an analysis of positive and negative financial impacts, and a summary of any legal actions challenging the department's actions under the program.
(D) The Secretary of Transportation is given the authority to coordinate with the Director of the Department of Environmental Services, the Director of the Department of Natural Resources, the Director of the Department of Archives and History, and any other agency head whose agency may impact the issuance of environmental decisions necessary to expedite the delivery of transportation projects. Such agency heads must be responsive to such requests of the Secretary of Transportation. The department shall include in the report required in subsection (C) on all state agency activities related to permit and environmental decisions related to transportation projects.
Reciprocal agreements
SECTION 35. Article 7, Chapter 3, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-3-800. The Department of Transportation may enter into reciprocal agreements with other jurisdictions including the federal government and any state, or agencies or departments thereof, to enforce toll or usage charge violations. The agreement shall provide that, when another jurisdiction certifies that the owner of a vehicle registered in this State has failed to pay a toll or usage charge, processing fee, or civil penalty due to that jurisdiction, the unpaid toll or usage charge, processing fee, or civil penalty may be enforced by placing a registration suspension as if the owner of the motor vehicle has an outstanding judgment for failure to pay a toll or usage charge under Section 56-3-1335, upon electronic notification by the Department of Transportation to the Department of Motor Vehicles. The agreement shall only be enforceable to the extent that:
(1) the other jurisdiction has its own reciprocal procedure for toll or usage charge violation enforcement and does, in fact, reciprocate in enforcing toll or usage charge violations within this State by withholding the registration renewal of registered owners of motor vehicles from such jurisdiction, and the other jurisdiction provides due process and appeal protections to avoid the likelihood that a false, mistaken, or unjustified claim will be pursued against the owner of a vehicle registered in this State;
(2) drivers and vehicles licensed or registered in this State, while operating on the highways and bridges of the other jurisdiction, shall receive the benefits, privileges, and exemptions of a similar kind with regard to toll or usage charge enforcement as are extended to the drivers and vehicles licensed or registered in the other jurisdiction while they are operating on the highways and bridges of this State;
(3) the owner of a vehicle registered in this State may present evidence to the other toll or usage charge agency or jurisdiction by mail or other means to invoke rights of due process without having to appear personally in the jurisdiction where the violation allegedly occurred;
(4) the reciprocal violation enforcement arrangement between the department and the other toll or usage charge agency provides that each party shall charge the other for costs associated with registration holds, or the like, in their respective jurisdictions.
Coordination of departments for toll and usage charges
SECTION 36. Article 9, Chapter 5, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-5-1345. (A) In order to administer, collect, and enforce any toll or usage charge, toll or usage charge violation, processing fee, civil penalty, or registration-based enforcement mechanism authorized by this title, the Department of Transportation shall coordinate with the Department of Motor Vehicles to ensure access to current motor vehicle and owner registration data.
(B) The Department of Transportation shall, at a minimum, receive updated toll and usage charge related vehicle data from the Department of Motor Vehicles monthly. The data shall include, but is not limited to, vehicle identifiers, registration status indicators, and any information necessary to support toll or usage charge billing, notice, enforcement actions, or registration renewal blocks authorized by law.
(C) The Department of Transportation and the Department of Motor Vehicles shall enter into a memorandum of understanding governing:
(1) the frequency, format, and method of data exchange;
(2) data security standards and confidentiality requirements;
(3) limitations on use of the data solely for toll or usage charge administration and enforcement purposes; and
(4) procedures to ensure data accuracy, error resolution, and due process protections for registered vehicle owners.
(D) No toll or usage charge enforcement action that relies upon registration suspension, renewal block, or similar Department of Motor Vehicles action may be initiated unless the vehicle data relied upon has been updated in accordance with this section.
(E) Nothing in this section authorizes the disclosure of personal information except as otherwise permitted by state and federal law.
Road projects within a municipality
SECTION 37. Sections 57-5-820 through 57-5-830 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 57-5-820. (A) As used in this section and Section 57-5-830:
(1) "Structurally deficient" means not adequate to handle the vehicle weights authorized on roads leading to them.
(2) "Functionally obsolete" means narrow clearances or sharp roadway approach angles that make passage difficult or hazardous, or with too few lanes for existing traffic needs.
(B)(1) All work to be performed by the department on state highways within a municipality must be with the consent and approval of the proper municipal authorities, except that work performed or to be performed on a bridge and its approaches, certified by the department as functionally obsolete or structurally deficient, to remove, replace, or improve such bridge and its approaches shall not require prior consent and approval of a municipal authority if the bridge crosses the intracoastal waterway.
(2) A decision by a municipality to not consent and approve the work must be communicated in writing to the department within one hundred eighty days of receiving notice of the work from the department. A decision to disapprove of the work shall result in the cancellation of the project, unless the project is determined by the Governor to be in the best interest of the State.
(3) Failure to provide consent and approval within one hundred eighty days shall be deemed acceptance of the work.
(4) A municipality shall not conditionally approve the work to be performed by the department.
Section 57-5-830. In every case of a proposed permanent improvement, construction, reconstruction, or alteration by the department of any highway or highway facility within a municipality, the municipality may review and approve the plans before the work is started, but in no event shall such review and approval of the plans delay the project schedule as communicated by the department to the municipality; except that a municipality may not have the right to review and approve plans to remove, replace, or improve a bridge and its approaches within its limits where such bridge and its approaches have been certified by the department to be functionally obsolete or structurally deficient and if the bridge crosses the intracoastal waterway. Any costs incurred by the department caused by the unreasonable delay in the review and approval of the plans shall be the responsibility of the municipality.
Choice lane facilities
SECTION 38. Sections 57-5-1320 through 57-5-1360 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 57-5-1320. As used in this article:
(1) "Department" means the Department of Transportation;
(2) "Choice lane facility" means any express highway or limited access highway or any specified lanes or portion thereof, designated and ratified or approved as such under the provisions of this article, whether or not financed with bonds, including any bridge, tunnel, overpass, underpass, interchange, entrance plaza, approach, access house, service station and administration and storage and other buildings and facilities which the department considers necessary or desirable. A choice lane facility constitutes a portion or extension of any existing or proposed highway in the state highway system;
(3) "Bonds" means revenue bonds of the State authorized under the provisions of this article and Paragraph (9), Section 13, Article X of the South Carolina Constitution;
(4) "Authority" means the State Fiscal Accountability Authority;
(5) "Choice lane facility revenues" means all revenues resulting from usage charges or other charges derived from the operation of a choice lane facility, including revenues derived from concession leases or other concessionaire operated facilities, and, to the extent designated by the bond resolution, such nontax revenues or other legally available funds as are or may be made available to the department from whatever source for the purpose of operating, financing, enforcing, and maintaining, or any combination thereof, choice lane facilities;
(6) "Bond resolution" means the resolution or resolutions of the authority making provision for the issuance of bonds, as may be supplemented or amended from time to time;
(7) "General obligation bonds" means state highway bonds issued pursuant to Paragraph (6)(a), Section 13, Article X of the South Carolina Constitution;
(8) "State" means the State of South Carolina.
Section 57-5-1330. (A) The department may designate, establish, plan, improve, construct, maintain, operate, and regulate choice lane facilities as a part of the state highway system or any federal aid system whenever the department determines the traffic conditions, present or future, justify the facilities, except that the department may not designate as a choice lane facility any highway, road, bridge, or other transportation facility funded in whole or in part by a then imposed local option sales and use tax imposed pursuant to Chapter 37 of Title 4, unless by agreement with the applicable county government. The department may utilize choice lane facilities revenues and funds available for the maintenance of the state highway system for the maintenance and operation of any choice lane facility. The authority to designate choice lane facilities under this section shall at all times be subject to the provisions of Section 57-3-615, and such designation shall not be effective until ratified or approved by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority.
(B) If the department determines it is feasible to make all or part of any construction project a choice lane facility, then it may engage in the preliminary estimates and studies incident to the determination of the feasibility or practicability of constructing any choice lane facility as it from time to time considers necessary and the cost of the preliminary estimates and studies must be paid from the general highway fund and must be reimbursed from funds provided under this authority only if the studies and estimates lead to the construction of a choice lane facility.
(C) The department may acquire such lands and property including rights of access as may be needed for choice lane facilities by gift, devise, purchase, or condemnation by easement or in fee simple in the same manner as now or hereafter authorized by law for acquiring property or property rights in connection with other state highways.
(D) In designating, establishing, planning, abandoning, improving, constructing, maintaining and regulating choice lane facilities the department may exercise authorizations granted to the department by the provisions of other statute law applicable to the state highway system, except as they may be inconsistent with the provisions included herein.
(E)(1) The department may contract with any person, partnership, association or corporation desiring the use of any part of the choice lane facility, including the right of way adjoining the paved portion, for placing thereon telephone, telegraph, electric light or power lines, gas stations, garages, stores, hotels and restaurants or for any other purpose, except tracks for railroad or railway use and to fix the terms, conditions, rents and rates of charges for such use provided that a sufficient number of the aforementioned facilities shall be authorized to be established in each service area along any such choice lane project to permit reasonable competition by private business in the public interest. Revenues from these contracts would be included in choice lane facility revenues.
(2) The department may contract with any political subdivision desiring to assist the department, whether financially, in kind, or otherwise, in any of the designating, establishing, planning, abandoning, financing, improving, constructing, maintaining, and regulating choice lane facilities as may be set forth in a short-term or long-term intergovernmental agreement between the department and the political subdivision. Revenues from these contracts may be pledged for the term thereof and may be included in choice lane facility revenues should the contract so provide. The right to receive any payments under such an intergovernmental agreement may be maintained by the department or assigned to the trustee for the bonds, as may be provided or authorized in the bond resolution. The authority to enter into such an intergovernmental agreement is concurrent and supplementary to those general powers granted political subdivisions and the department in the South Carolina Code of Laws including, without limitation, Title 57.
Section 57-5-1335. The department, before constructing a bridge or replacing an existing bridge which is or is anticipated to be designated as a choice lane facility, shall conduct the feasibility study referenced in Section 57-5-1330 and shall forward copies of the study to the Chairman of the Transportation and Finance Committees of the Senate and the Education and Public Works and Ways and Means Committees of the House of Representatives within fifteen days of the completion of the study.
Section 57-5-1340. In addition to the powers listed above, the South Carolina Department of Transportation may:
(1) request the issuance of bonds for the purpose of paying all or any part of the cost of any one or more choice lane projects;
(2) fix and revise from time to time and charge and collect a program of usage charges for transit over each designated choice lane facility; and each program may provide for dynamic charges, scheduled charges, variable charges, uniform charges, or some combination thereof, and may take into account the weight and class of certain vehicles, real-time and planned usage, and any other factors deemed appropriate by the department;
(3) combine, for the purposes of financing any choice lane facilities, any two or more choice lane facilities;
(4) control access to choice lane facilities;
(5) to the extent permitted by a bond resolution, expend choice lane facility revenues in advertising the choice lane facilities and services of the choice lane facility or facilities to the traveling public;
(6) receive and accept from any federal agency grants for or in the aid of the construction of any choice lane facility;
(7) establish a separate division to administer choice lane facilities and a separate choice lane facility account;
(8) do all acts and things necessary or convenient to carry out the powers expressly granted in this article.
Section 57-5-1350. Whenever it becomes necessary that monies be raised for a choice lane facility, the department may make request to the State Fiscal Accountability Authority for the issuance of turnpike bonds. The request shall set forth on the face thereof or by schedule attached thereto:
(1) the choice lane facility proposed to be constructed or designated;
(2) the amount required for feasibility studies, planning, design, right of way acquisition, and construction of the choice lane facility;
(3) a tentative time schedule setting forth the period of time for which the sum requested is expected to be expended;
(4) a debt service table showing the estimated annual principal and interest requirements for the requested bonds;
(5) any feasibility study obtained by the department relating to the proposed choice lane facility;
(6) the department's recommendations relating to any covenant to be made in the bond resolution of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority respecting competition between the proposed choice lane facility and possible future highways whose construction would have an adverse effect upon the choice lane facility revenues which would otherwise be derived by the proposed choice lane facility.
Section 57-5-1360. Following the receipt of a request pursuant to Section 57-5-1350, the State Fiscal Accountability Authority shall review the request and, to the extent that it approves the request, it may effect, by bond resolution duly adopted, the issuance of bonds, or pending their issuance, may effect the issuance of bond anticipation notes pursuant to Title 11, Chapter 17.
Choice lane facilities revenues and bonds
SECTION 39. Sections 57-5-1380 through 57-5-1460 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 57-5-1380. (A) For the payment of the principal of and interest on all bonds, there is irrevocably pledged choice lane facility revenues to the extent and in the manner prescribed by the bond resolution. Any interest earned on choice lane facility account balances must be credited to the choice lane facility account as prescribed in the bond resolution.
(B) The bonds authorized by this article are special limited obligations of the State. The principal and interest are payable solely out of the choice lane facility revenues. The bonds issued do not constitute an indebtedness of the State, State Fiscal Accountability Authority, or department within the meaning of any state constitutional provision or statutory limitation, except indebtedness payable solely from a revenue producing source or from a special source that does not include revenues from any tax within the meaning of Paragraph (9), Section 13, Article X of the South Carolina Constitution. The full faith, credit, and taxing powers of the State, State Fiscal Accountability Authority, or department are not pledged to the payment of the bonds and this fact must be plainly stated on the face of each bond. The State Fiscal Accountability Authority and the department each lack taxing power. The General Assembly finds that choice lane facilities constitute a revenue producing project for the purposes of Paragraph (9), Section 13, Article X of the South Carolina Constitution.
Section 57-5-1390. Bonds shall bear interest, payable on occasions prescribed by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, at a rate not exceeding the maximum prescribed by the bond resolution. Each issue of bonds shall mature on the occasion prescribed by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, not exceeding forty years from the date the bonds are issued. Bonds may, in the discretion of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, be made subject to redemption at par and accrued interest, plus such redemption premium as it approves and on occasions and under conditions it prescribes. Bonds are not redeemable before maturity unless they contain a statement to that effect.
Section 57-5-1400. Bonds must be sold at private or public sale under conditions prescribed by the bond resolution. For the purpose of bringing about successful sales of the bonds, the State Fiscal Accountability Authority may do, or cause to be done, all things ordinarily and customarily done in connection with the sale of state or municipal bonds. All expenses incident to the sales of the bonds must be paid from the proceeds of the sale of the bonds or choice lane facility revenues.
Section 57-5-1410. All bonds must be executed in the name of and on behalf of the State and must be signed by the Governor and the State Treasurer. The Great Seal of the State must be affixed to, impressed, or reproduced upon each of them and they must be attested by the Secretary of State. If approved by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, the officers may, in lieu of manually signing, employ the use of the facsimile of their signatures in executing any bonds.
Section 57-5-1420. The proceeds derived from the sale of bonds must be applied only to the purposes authorized by this article and provided in the bond resolution.
Section 57-5-1430. Bonds must each be in the denomination of one thousand or five thousand dollars or some multiple thereof or such larger denominations as may be authorized by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority in the bond resolution.
Section 57-5-1440. Bonds may be issued as fully registered bonds with both principal and interest made payable only to the registered holder. The fully registered bonds are subject to transfer under conditions the State Fiscal Accountability Authority prescribes.
Section 57-5-1450. (A) The State Fiscal Accountability Authority, by bond resolution duly adopted, may make provision for the issuance of bonds. In the bond resolution, the State Fiscal Accountability Authority may prescribe:
(1) the amount, denomination, and numbering of bonds to be issued;
(2) the method or manner of dating the bonds;
(3) the estimated maturity schedule for the retirement of the bonds and a pro forma table of anticipated principal and interest payments for such bonds;
(4) the form or forms of the bonds of the particular issue;
(5) the redemption provisions or manner of determining the same, if any, applicable to the bonds;
(6) the maximum rate or rates of interest the bonds shall bear;
(7) the specific purposes for which the bonds must be issued;
(8) the purposes for which the proceeds of the bonds must be expended, in the discretion of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, a portion of the proceeds may be used as capitalized interest during the period of construction and initial operation and for the creation of appropriate debt service reserves and other funds and accounts as the State Fiscal Accountability Authority deems necessary or expedient from the bonds and the proper operation and functioning of the choice lane facilities;
(9) the extent to which and the conditions under which additional parity bonds may be issued;
(10) any covenant considered necessary protecting the choice lane facility so financed from possible future competition from other highways or comparable facilities;
(11) the authorized method or methods by which the bonds must be sold and such other matters as may be considered necessary in order to effect the sale, issuance, and delivery of the bonds;
(12) the conditions under which refunding bonds may be issued.
(B) The bond resolution shall set forth further a finding on the part of the State Fiscal Accountability Authority that the estimate of choice lane facility revenues made by the department and approved by the State Fiscal Accountability Authority indicates that collection from choice lane facility revenues for applicable fiscal years is expected to be not less than that required for annual debt service requirements of the requested bonds. In making such finding, the department and the authority may rely in whole or in part on the work product of third-party professionals engaged to provide financial, feasibility, or practicability studies related to the choice lane facilities or the financing thereof through bonds.
(C) The authority, by bond resolution duly adopted, may ratify and approve, in whole or in part, or modify in any way, the designation of choice lane facilities proposed pursuant to Section 57-5-1350.
(D) The authority, by bond resolution duly adopted, may ratify and approve, in whole or in part, the combining of any choice lane facilities then existing or proposed pursuant to Section 57-5-1350; provided, however, that prior to ratifying and approving such a combination from time to time the authority shall make a finding that it is in the best interest of the State after taking into account factors including, but not limited to, geographic connection, regional transportation planning, operational efficiencies, revenue stability, bonding capacity, and such other factors as it finds relevant.
Section 57-5-1460. If following presentation of a certified copy of the bond resolution it appears to the satisfaction of the Governor and the State Treasurer that the estimated collection from the choice lane facility revenues in applicable future fiscal years are not less than that required for annual debt service requirements for the requested bonds, then the Governor and State Treasurer may effect the delivery of bonds in accordance with the bond resolution.
Choice lane facilities
SECTION 40. Sections 57-5-1480 through 57-5-1495 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 57-5-1480. It is lawful for all executors, administrators, guardians, and other fiduciaries and all sinking fund commissions, including the Retirement System Investment Commission and Public Employee Benefit Authority in their capacities as cotrustees of the funds of the South Carolina Retirement System and any manager and administrator of state sinking funds, to invest any monies in their hands in bonds.
Section 57-5-1490. Any person who uses any choice lane facility and fails or refuses to pay any usage charge then due shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not more than two hundred dollars or by imprisonment for not more than thirty days, and in addition thereto the department shall have a lien upon the vehicle driven by such person for the amount of such usage charge and may take and retain possession thereof.
Section 57-5-1495. (A) As used in this section:
(1) "Electronic collection system" means a system of collecting usage charges which is capable of charging an account holder or person the appropriate usage charge by electronic means.
(2) "Lessor" means any person, corporation, firm, partnership, agency, association, or organization renting or leasing vehicles to a lessee under a rental agreement, lease, or otherwise wherein the said lessee has the exclusive use of the vehicle for any period of time.
(3) "Lessee" means any person, corporation, firm, partnership, agency, association, or organization that rents, leases, or contracts for the use of one or more vehicles and has exclusive use of the vehicles for any period of time.
(4) "Owner" means a person, other than a lienholder, having the property interest in or title to a vehicle. The term includes a person entitled to the use and possession of a vehicle subject to a security interest in another person, but excludes a lessee under a lease not intended as security.
(5) "Photo-monitoring system" means a vehicle sensor installed to work in conjunction with a choice lane facility which automatically produces one or more photographs, one or more microphotographs, a videotape, or other recorded images of a vehicle at the time it is used or operated in violation of usage charge collection regulations.
(6) "Violation" means the passage of a vehicle through a usage fee collection point without payment of the required charge.
(7) "Motor vehicle" or "vehicle" means every vehicle which is self-propelled.
(B) Notwithstanding another provision of law, when a vehicle is driven through a choice lane facility without payment of the required charge, the owner of the vehicle is responsible to the Department of Transportation to pay the required charge, administrative fees, and civil penalty as provided in this section. The department or its authorized agent may enforce collection of the required charge as provided for in this section.
(C) A certificate, sworn to or affirmed by an agent of the department, or a facsimile of it, that a toll violation has occurred, based upon inspection of photographs, microphotographs, videotape, or other recorded images, or other electronic means, produced by a photo-monitoring system, is prima facie evidence of the violation and is admissible in any proceeding charging a toll violation pursuant to this section. A photograph, microphotograph, videotape, or other recorded image evidencing a violation must be available for inspection by the party charged and is admissible into evidence in a proceeding to adjudicate liability for a violation.
(D) The department or its authorized agent may assess and collect administrative fees of:
(1) not more than ten dollars for the first violation within a period of one year;
(2) not more than twenty-five dollars for each subsequent violation within a period of one year.
(E) Upon failure to pay the required charge and administrative fees to the department within thirty days of the notice, the owner or operator may be cited for failure to pay a charge pursuant to this subsection and, upon an adjudication of liability, is subject to a civil penalty not to exceed fifty dollars for each violation as contained in subsection (F). Upon an adjudication of liability, a judgment must be entered against the owner or operator, and the court must mail a copy of the judgment to the owner or operator unless the owner has opted into receiving electronic notifications based on the Department of Motor Vehicles' records, at which time the court must notify the owner electronically. Upon failure to satisfy the judgment within thirty days, the court shall notify via electronic methods pursuant to the Department of Motor Vehicles' standards, the Department of Motor Vehicles and the authorized agent, and the Department of Motor Vehicles shall suspend the registration of the vehicle that was operated when the charge was not paid and deny the vehicle's registration or reregistration pursuant to Section 56-3-1335. The suspension shall remain in effect until the judgment is satisfied and evidence of its satisfaction has been electronically submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles and the authorized agent, and the owner pays the applicable reinstatement fee pursuant to Section 56-3-1335. An owner or operator who has been convicted of a violation of Section 57-5-1490 is not liable for the penalty imposed by this subsection.
(F) If a magistrate or municipal judge determines that the person or entity charged with liability under this section is liable, the magistrate or municipal judge shall collect the unpaid charges and administrative fee and forward them to the department or its authorized agent. The magistrate or municipal judge also may impose a civil penalty of up to fifty dollars for each violation, plus court costs and attorney's fees. The civil penalty must be distributed in the same manner as other fines and penalties collected by the magistrate. Notwithstanding another provision of law:
(1) adjudication of liability pursuant to this section must be made by the magistrate's court of the county in which the toll facility is located or the municipal court of the city in which the choice lane facility is located; and
(2) an imposition of liability pursuant to this section must be based upon a preponderance of evidence submitted and is not a conviction as an operator pursuant to Section 57-5-1490.
(G) The department or its authorized agent shall send:
(1) a "First Notice of Violation" to the owner or operator of a vehicle which, on one occasion in any twelve-month period, is identified as having been involved in a violation. The first notice must require payment to the department of the required charge, plus an administrative fee as provided for in subsection (D), within thirty days of the mailing of the notice;
(2) a "Second Notice of Violation" to the owner or operator of a vehicle which is identified as having been involved in a second violation in a twelve-month period, or who has failed to respond to a "First Notice of Violation" within the required time period. The second notice must require payment to the department of the required charges, plus an administrative fee as provided for in subsection (D) for each violation within thirty days of the mailing or sent date of the notice;
(3) a "Failure to Pay" citation to the owner or operator of a vehicle which is identified as having been involved in a third violation in a twelve-month period, or who has failed to respond to the second notice within the required time period. The citation requires payment to the department of the unpaid charges, plus an administrative fee of not more than twenty-five dollars for each violation, within thirty days, or the recipient's appearance in magistrate's court of the county in which the violation occurred or the municipal court of the city in which the violation has occurred to contest the citation. A "Failure to Pay" citation constitutes the summons and complaint for an action to recover the charges and all applicable fees allowed pursuant to this section;
(4) notwithstanding another provision of law, the notices and citation required by this subsection by first-class mail to the owner or operator of the vehicle identified as being involved in the violation, unless the owner has opted into receiving electronic notification based on the Department of Motor Vehicles' records, at which time the court must notify the owner electronically. If a vehicle is registered in two or more names, the notices or citation must be sent to the first name listed on the registration records. Notwithstanding another provision of law, personal delivery of the notices and citation is not required. A manual or automatic record of the mailing or sending of the notices or citation prepared in the ordinary course of business is prima facie evidence of the mailing of the notices or citation; and
(5) the notices and citation required by this subsection must contain the following information:
(a) the name and address of the person or entity alleged to be liable for a failure to pay a charge pursuant to this section;
(b) the registration number of the vehicle involved in the violation;
(c) the location where the violation took place;
(d) the date and time of the violation;
(e) the identification number of the photo-monitoring system which recorded the violation or other document locator number;
(f) information advising of the manner and time in which liability may be contested;
(g) warning advising that failure to contest liability in the manner and time provided in this section is an admission of liability; and
(h) information advising that failure to pay a charge may result in the suspension of vehicle registration.
(H) If a vehicle owner receives a notice or citation pursuant to this section for a period during which the vehicle involved in the toll violation was:
(1) reported to any law enforcement agency as having been stolen, a valid defense to an allegation of liability for a failure to pay a charge is that the vehicle had been reported to any law enforcement agency as stolen before the time the violation occurred and had not been recovered by the time of the violation. If an owner receives a notice or citation pursuant to this section for a violation which occurred during a time period in which the vehicle was stolen, but which had not been reported to any law enforcement agency as having been stolen, a valid defense to an allegation of liability for a violation pursuant to this section is that the vehicle was reported as stolen within two hours after the discovery of the theft by the owner. For purposes of asserting the defense provided by this item, a certified copy of the police report on the stolen vehicle, sent by first-class mail or submitted electronically to the department, its agent, the Department of Motor Vehicles or the magistrate's court or the municipal court having jurisdiction of the citation within thirty days after receipt of the notices or citation, is sufficient;
(2) leased to another person or entity, the lessor is not liable for the violation if the lessor sends to the department or to the court having jurisdiction over the citation a copy of the rental, lease, or another contract document covering the vehicle on the date of the violation, with the name and address of the lessee clearly legible, within thirty days after receiving the notices or citation. Failure to send the information within the thirty-day period renders the lessor liable for the unpaid charges and any administrative fees or penalties assessed pursuant to this section. If the lessor complies with the provisions of this item, the lessee of the vehicle on the date of the violation is subject to liability for the failure to pay the charge if the department or its agent mails a notice of liability to the lessee within thirty days after receipt of a copy of the rental, lease, or other contract document.
(I) If a person or entity receives a notice or citation pursuant to this section, it is a valid defense to liability that the person or entity that receives the notice was not the owner of the vehicle at the time of the violation.
(J) If an owner who pays the required charges, fees, or penalties, or all of them pursuant to this section was not the operator of the vehicle at the time of the violation, the owner may maintain an action for indemnification against the operator.
(K) An owner of a vehicle is not liable for a penalty imposed pursuant to this section if the operator of the vehicle has been convicted of a violation of Section 57-5-1490 for the same incident.
(L) On choice lane facilities where electronic charge collection systems are utilized:
(1) a person who wants to make payment of charges electronically must apply to the department or its authorized agent to become an account holder. The department or its authorized agent, in its discretion, may deny the application of a person. A person whose application is accepted must execute an account holder's agreement. The terms of the account holder's agreement must be established by the department;
(2) the department shall ensure that adequate and timely notice is given to all electronic charge collection system account holders to inform them when their accounts are delinquent. The owner of a vehicle who is an account holder under the electronic charge collection system is not liable for a failure to pay a charge pursuant to the provisions of this section unless the department or its authorized agent has first sent a notice of delinquency to the account holder and the account holder was delinquent at the time of the violation;
(3) the department shall not sell, distribute, or make available the names and addresses of electronic charge collection system account holders, without the account holder's consent, to any entity that uses the information for commercial purposes. However, this restriction does not preclude the exchange of this information between entities with jurisdiction over or operating a toll highway bridge or tunnel;
(4) information or data collected by the department or its authorized agent for the purpose of establishing and monitoring electronic charge collection accounts is not subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act;
(5) notwithstanding another provision of law, all information, data, photographs, microphotographs, videotape, or other recorded images prepared pursuant to this section must be for the exclusive use of the department or its authorized agent in the discharge of its duties under this section and must not be open to the public, subject to the disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act, nor used in a court in an action or a proceeding pending unless the action or proceeding relates to the imposition of or indemnification for liability pursuant to this section.
(M) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, school buses transporting school children for a school event, shall be exempt from the payment of any tolls or usage charges.
Phased design-build
SECTION 41. Article 11, Chapter 5, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-5-1710. (A) As used in this section, "phased design-build" means a project delivery method that uses a stepped or progressive qualifications-based selection process, followed by a progression to a contract price. The department must select the phased design-build contractor exclusively on qualifications and technical approach, without consideration of schedule or costs, which must deliver the project in multiple phases.
(1) The phased design-build contractor is initially under contract for preconstruction activities including, but not limited to, project validation, designing and developing plans, performing constructability reviews, and developing construction schedules and pricing.
(2) The department and the phased design-build contractor shall establish a guaranteed maximum construction cost. The guaranteed maximum construction cost is the total dollar amount within which the phased design-build contractor shall complete the final design and construction of the project including the contractor's direct costs, overhead, and profit, plus any authorized contingency. Upon agreement of the guaranteed maximum construction cost, the department and the phased design-build contractor will execute a second contract or an amendment to the initial contract for completion of the final designs and construction of the project consistent with subsection (C). Before execution of a construction contract, the department shall retain an independent third party to develop a cost estimate to verify the guaranteed maximum price submitted by the contractor.
(3) If the department and phased design-build contractor cannot reach agreement on a guaranteed maximum construction cost, then the department shall take ownership and assume liability of the design work product. Nothing shall prohibit the department from pursuing the project under any other legally allowed method.
(B) The department may only award a contract under this section if the department:
(1) determines that it is in the public's interest to use the phased design-build project delivery method; and
(2) prequalifies the prime contractor and lead designer firm that will be awarded the contract.
(C) The method for the department to award a contract using phased design-build procedures shall be:
(1) Prior to the initiating a phased design-build procurement under this section, the department shall submit a report to the Joint Bond Review Committee on the nature and scope of the project and the reasons the phased design-build procurement project delivery method will best serve the public interest. The department shall not initiate a procurement until the Joint Bond Review Committee has provided its review and comment.
(2) Upon completion of a project awarded under subsection (B), the department shall submit a postcompletion report to the Joint Bond Review Committee detailing the project results, including any cost and time efficiencies achieved using the phased design-build project delivery method. This report must include a cost analysis comparing the use of phased design-build for awarding contracts with the award of contracts under the existing procedure.
(D) The department may promulgate regulations to implement the phased design-build method.
Section 57-5-1720. (A) The department may award highway construction contracts using a construction manager/general contractor (CM/GC) procedure. Under a CM/GC contract, the department shall perform preconstruction services via department personnel or via contract. A CM/GC contractor is responsible for providing advisory preconstruction services of the department's design including, but not limited to, constructability review, scheduling, pricing, and phasing. The CM/GC contractor shall be able to perform construction should the department and the contractor agree to a guaranteed maximum price.
(B) Should a guaranteed maximum price agreement be reached, construction services shall commence under a subsequent contract instrument. The contract instrument may be in the form of a CM/GC contract, a franchise agreement, or any other form of contract approved by the department. Before execution of a construction contract, the department shall retain an independent third party to develop a cost estimate to verify the guaranteed maximum price submitted by the contractor.
(C) Selection criteria shall include the contractor's cost for preconstruction services associated with the project, contractor qualifications, experience, past performance, best value, or any combination of the aforementioned criteria, or any other combination of selection criteria considered appropriate by the department.
(D) The department may promulgate regulations to implement the CM/GC project delivery method.
Road restrictions
SECTION 42. Sections 56-5-4210 through 56-5-4220 of the S.C. Code are amended to read:
Section 56-5-4210. (A) Anything in this article to the contrary notwithstanding, the Department of Transportation with respect to state highways and local authorities with respect to highways under their jurisdiction may prescribe, by notice as herein provided, loads and weights and speed limits lower than the limits prescribed in this chapter and other laws, whenever in their judgment any road or part thereof or any bridge or culvert shall by reason of its design, deterioration, rain or other climatic or natural causes be liable to be damaged or destroyed by motor vehicles, trailers or semitrailers, if the gross weight or speed limit thereof shall exceed the limits prescribed in such notice. And the Department of Transportation or such local authority may, by like notice, regulate or prohibit, in whole or in part, the operation of any specified class or size of motor vehicle, trailer, or semitrailer on any highways or specified parts thereof under its jurisdiction, whenever in its judgment, such regulation or prohibition is necessary to provide for the public safety and convenience on such highways or parts thereof by reason of traffic density, intensive use thereof by the traveling public or other reasons of public safety and convenience. The notice or the substance thereof shall be posted at conspicuous places at terminals of and all intermediate cross-roads and road junctions with the section of highway to which such notice shall apply. After any such notice shall have been posted, the operation of any motor vehicle or combination contrary to its provisions shall constitute a violation of this chapter.
(B) The imposition of any restrictions pursuant to subsection (A) must first be approved by the Department of Transportation on any highways transferred to local authorities after July 2026.
Section 56-5-4220. No limitation shall be established by any county, municipal, or other local authority pursuant to the provisions of Section 56-5-4210 that would interfere with or interrupt traffic as authorized hereunder along public state highways, including officially established detours for such highways and cases where such traffic passes over roads, streets or thoroughfares within the sole jurisdiction of such county, municipal, or other local authority, unless such limitations and further restrictions shall have first been approved by the Department of Transportation, except that with respect to county roads, other than such as are in use as state highway detours, the respective county road authorities shall have full power and authority to further limit the weights of vehicles upon bridges and culverts that have failed to meet the National Bridge Inspection Standards as administered by the Department of Transportation upon such public notice as they deem sufficient, and existing laws applicable thereto shall not be affected by the terms of this article.
Consolidated procurement code exemptions
SECTION 43. Section 11-35-710 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 11-35-710. (A) The board, upon the recommendation of the chief procurement officer, may exempt governmental bodies from purchasing certain items through the respective chief procurement officer's area of responsibility. The board may exempt specific supplies, services, information technology, or construction from the purchasing procedures required in this chapter and for just cause by unanimous written decision limit or may withdraw exemptions provided for in this section. The following exemptions are granted from this chapter:
(1) the acquisition by the Department of Transportation of: transportation planning; the construction, maintenance, design, financing, operation, and repair of bridges, highways, roads, and other improvements within the state's rights of way; technology related to operations within the state's rights of way; and vehicle and road equipment maintenance and repair and other emergency-type parts and equipment;
(2) the purchase of raw materials by the South Carolina Department of Corrections, Division of Prison Industries;
(3) South Carolina State Ports Authority;
(4) Division of Public Railways of the Department of Commerce;
(5) South Carolina Public Service Authority;
(6) expenditure of funds at state institutions of higher learning derived wholly from athletic or other student contests, from the activities of student organizations, and from the operation of canteens and bookstores, except as the funds are used for the procurement of construction, architect-engineer, construction-management, and land surveying services;
(7) livestock, feed, and veterinary supplies;
(8) articles for commercial sale by all governmental bodies;
(9) fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, milk, and eggs;
(10) South Carolina Arts Commission and South Carolina Museum Commission for the purchase of one-of-a-kind items such as paintings, antiques, sculpture, and similar objects. Before a governmental body procures the objects, the head of the purchasing agency shall prepare a written determination specifying the need for the objects and the benefits to the State. The South Carolina Arts Commission shall review the determination and forward a recommendation to the board for approval;
(11) published books, periodicals, and technical pamphlets;
(12) South Carolina Research Authority;
(13) the purchase of supplies, services, or information technology by state offices, departments, institutions, agencies, boards, and commissions or the political subdivisions of this State from the South Carolina Department of Corrections, Division of Prison Industries;
(14) Medical University Hospital Authority, if the Medical University Hospital Authority has promulgated a procurement process in accordance with its enabling provision;
(15) if approved in writing by the State Engineer in advance, and if some aspect of the overall transaction is otherwise approved by the board in advance of the acquisition, an acquisition of construction from an eleemosynary corporation or foundation, or a wholly owned business thereof, established solely for the governmental body's benefit, but only if the eleemosynary corporation or foundation acquires the construction on behalf of or for the use of the governmental body and does so pursuant to this code, as required by Section 11-35-40(4);
(16) the acquisition by the Department of Public Safety of vehicle and road equipment maintenance and repair and other emergency-type parts and equipment.
(B) The State Fiscal Accountability Authority shall maintain and post publicly a running list of all currently effective actions taken by the board pursuant to subsection (A).
"C" funds
SECTION 44. Section 12-28-2740 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 12-28-2740. (A) The proceeds from three and ninety-nine one-hundredths cents a gallon of the user fee on gasoline only as levied and provided for in this chapter must be deposited with the State Treasurer and expended for purposes set forth in this section. The monies must be apportioned among the counties of the State in the following manner:
(1) one-third distributed in the ratio which the land area of the county bears to the total land area of the State;
(2) one-third distributed in the ratio which the population of the county bears to the total population of the State as shown by the latest official decennial census;
(3) one-third distributed in the ratio which the mileage of all rural roads in the county bears to the total rural road mileage in the State as shown by the latest official records of the Department of Transportation. The Department of Revenue shall collect the information required pursuant to Section 12-28-1390 regarding the number of gallons sold in each county for use in making allocations of donor funds as provided in subsection (I). The Department of Revenue shall submit the percentage of the total represented by each county to the Department of Transportation and to each county transportation committee annually by May first of the following calendar year. Upon request of a county transportation committee, the Department of Transportation shall continue to administer the funds allocated to the county.
(B) All interest earnings on the County Transportation Fund in the State Treasury must be added to the distribution to counties under this section in proportion to each county's portion of the entire County Transportation Fund. Except for those funds being used in connection with highway projects administered by the Department of Transportation on behalf of counties administering their own "C" funds, these distributions of earnings and the calculation required to determine the appropriate amount shall not include those counties administering their own "C" funds.
(C)(1) The funds expended must be approved by and used in furtherance of a countywide transportation plan adopted by a county transportation committee.
(2) The county legislative delegation shall appoint the county transportation committee, and shall ensure that the committee includes fair representation from municipalities and unincorporated areas of the county. All members of the county transportation committee must be residents of the county. The Department of Transportation shall publish a register on its website of members of the respective county transportation committees. The county transportation committee shall publish on the county website the members of the county transportation committee.
(3) The countywide transportation plan shall list the criteria by which projects shall be selected by the county transportation committee. The criteria shall include, but not be limited to, the condition of state and local highway roads and bridges, safety, efficient traffic operations, and economic development. The plan shall be updated at least every four years. Expenses related to preparing a plan may be incurred from "C" funds. This subsection does not prohibit the county legislative delegation from making project recommendations to the county transportation committee. The county transportation committee shall publish on the county website the countywide transportation plan.
(4) County transportation committees may join in approving a regional transportation plan, and the funds must be used in furtherance of the regional transportation plan. The regional transportation plan shall be updated every four years. Expenses related to preparing a plan may be incurred from "C" funds. This subsection does not prohibit the county legislative delegation from making project recommendations to the county transportation committee.
(5) A county transportation committee may expend from the funds allocated under this section an amount not to exceed ten thousand dollars for reasonable administrative expenses directly related to the activities of the committee. Administrative expenses may include costs associated with copying, mailings, public notices, correspondence, and recordkeeping but do not include the payment of per diem or salaries for members of the committee.
(6) A county transportation committee shall comply with notice requirements under Section 30-4-80(a). The agenda shall include the proposed actions of the county transportation committee and include the requested amount of "C" funds to be allocated.
(7) A county transportation committee shall comply with the minutes requirements of Section 30-4-90. The minutes shall include the final amount of "C" funds allocated to each recipient.
(8) A county transportation committee shall meet at least twice annually.
(D) At least thirty-three percent of a county's apportionment of "C" funds, based on a biennial averaging of expenditures, must be expended on the state highway system for construction, improvements, and maintenance. The Secretary of Transportation, or his designee, shall approve the proposed expenditure based on the anticipated improvement to the existing condition and operations of the state highway system. The Department of Transportation shall administer all funds expended on the state highway system unless the department has given explicit authority to a county or municipal government or other agent acting on behalf of the county transportation committee to design, engineer, construct, and inspect projects using their own personnel. The county transportation committee, at its discretion, may expend up to sixty-seven percent of "C" construction funds for activities including other local paving or improving county roads, for street and traffic signs, and for other road and bridge projects.
(E) The funds allocated to the county also may be used to issue county bonds or state highway bonds as provided in subsection (K), pay directly for appropriate highway projects, including engineering, contracting, and project supervision, and match federal funds available for appropriate projects. Beginning July 1, 2002, for any new "C" fund allocations received on or after this date, the balance of uncommitted funds carried forward from one year into the next may not exceed three hundred percent of the county's total apportionment for the most recent year. Expenditures must be documented on a per-project basis upon the completion of each project in reports to the respective county transportation committees. This documentation must be provided by the agency or local government actually expending the funds and it shall include a description of the completed project and a general accounting of all expenditures made in connection with the project summaries of these reports then must be forwarded by each county transportation committee to the department using guidelines established by the department and the department shall compile these reports into an annual statewide report to be submitted to the General Assembly by the second Tuesday of January of each year. The documentation and reporting requirements of this subsection apply only to counties administering their own "C" funds. For purposes of this section, "uncommitted funds" means funds held in the county's "C" fund account that have not been designated for specific projects.
(F) All unexpended "C" funds allocated to a county remain in the account allocated to the county for the succeeding fiscal year and must be expended as provided in this section.
(G) The countywide and regional transportation plans provided for in this section must be reviewed and approved by the Department of Transportation. Before the expenditure of funds by a county transportation committee, the committee shall adopt specifications for local road projects. In counties electing to expend their allocation directly pursuant to subsection (A), specifications of roads built with "C" funds are to be established by the countywide or regional transportation committee. In counties in which the county transportation committee elects to have "C" funds administered by the Department of Transportation, primary and secondary roads built using "C" funds must meet Department of Transportation specifications.
(H) This section must not be construed as affecting the plans and implementation of plans for a Statewide Surface Transportation System as developed by the Department of Transportation.
(I)(1) For purposes of this subsection, "donor county" means a county that contributes to the "C" fund an amount in excess of what it receives under the allocation formula as stated in subsection (A). In addition to the allocation to the counties pursuant to subsection (A), the Department of Transportation annually shall transfer to the donor counties an amount equal to seventeen million dollars in the ratio of the individual donor county's contribution in excess of "C" fund revenue allocated to the county under subsection (A) to the total excess contributions of all donor counties.
(2) A county is eligible for an additional allocation from the Department of Transportation if the county contributed to the "C" fund an amount in excess of what it receives under the allocation formula as stated in subsection (A) plus what it receives under item (1). The Department of Transportation annually shall transfer to the eligible counties an amount up to three and one-half million dollars in the ratio of the individual eligible county's contribution to the "C" fund in excess of the eligible county's total allocations under subsection (A) and item (1) to the total excess contributions of all eligible counties remaining after all allocations under subsection (A) and item (1) have been made. Under no circumstances can an allocation under this item result in an eligible county receiving total allocations in excess of what the county contributed to the "C" fund.
(J)(1) In expending funds pursuant to this section, counties that administer their own "C" funds shall use a procurement system that requires competitive sealed bids, no bid preferences not required by state or federal law, and public advertisement of all projects. All bids for contracts in excess of one hundred thousand dollars must be accompanied by certified bid bonds, and all work awarded under the contracts must be covered by performance and payment bonds for one hundred percent of the contract value. Bid summaries must be published in a newspaper of general distribution following each award.
(2) The requirement of a bond for bid security or a bond for payment and performance may not include the requirement that the surety bond be furnished by a particular surety company or through a particular agent or broker.
(K) State highway bonds may be issued for the completion of projects for which "C" funds may be expended for projects as determined by the county transportation committee. The application for the bonds must be filed by the county transportation committee with the Department of Transportation and the State Treasurer, which shall forward the application to the State Fiscal Accountability Authority. The Department of Transportation shall review the request and ensure it includes the information and schedules contemplated by Section 57-11-220 and that estimated principal and interest on the proposed bonds may be met from such county's "C" funds, and if it, through the Secretary of Transportation, finds that such request, as submitted or as supplemented by the department, includes the required information, demonstrates that available "C" funds will satisfy estimated principal and interest on the proposed bonds, and does not unreasonably impact the published plans of the Department of Transportation, then it shall submit such request for state highway bonds to the State Fiscal Accountability Authority. The State Fiscal Accountability Authority shall consider the request in the same manner that it considers state highway bonds, mutatis mutandis. The county transportation committee shall allocate and apply from its share of "C" fund revenues available for use by the county transportation committee the amount of principal and interest on the state highway bonds. The department shall provide notice of the debt service requirements of such state highway bonds upon the issuance thereof to the county transportation committee.
(L) Members of the committee are insulated from all personal liability arising out of matters related directly to and within the scope of the performance of official duties and functions conferred upon the committee pursuant to this section.
(M) Notwithstanding other provisions of this section, the legislative delegation of a county may by delegation resolution devolve its powers and duties to appoint the members of the committee to the governing body of the county. This devolution may be reversed by a subsequent delegation resolution.
(N) The Department of Transportation shall perform reviews to ensure compliance with subsections (C)(3), (C)(4), (C)(5), (C)(6), (C)(7), (C)(8), (D), (E), (G), and (J). A county failing to comply with these subsections must have all subsequent "C" fund allocations withheld until the requirements of those subsections are met. If a county fails to comply with those subsections within twenty-four months, then the county forfeits fifty percent of its allocations for the following year and the forfeited amount must be divided among the other counties as provided in subsection (A).
(O) A county subject to a proposed withholding or forfeiture of "C" fund allocations pursuant to this section must be notified in writing of the department's decision. The county, within sixty days of receipt of notice of the decision, may request a review of the decision by a panel consisting of the state highway engineer or his designee, the chairman of the affected county's transportation committee or his designee, and a third person named by mutual agreement between the state highway engineer and the county transportation committee chairman. The panel shall meet and render a decision within ninety days of the request by the county transportation committee. The decision of the panel may be appealed by requesting a contested case hearing before the Administrative Law Court pursuant to Section 1-23-600 and the rules of procedure for the Administrative Law Court. The request for a hearing must be made within thirty days of receipt of the panel's decision.
(P) The legislative delegation of the county, by resolution, may rename the county transportation committee established by this section as the (insert name of county) Legislative Delegation transportation committee. Upon the adoption of such a resolution, all references in this section and any other provisions of law to the county transportation committee, for purposes of that county, are deemed references to that county's legislative delegation transportation committee.
(Q) It is unlawful for a member of a county transportation committee, an engineer, agent, or other employee, acting for or on behalf of a committee, to accept or agree to accept, receive or agree to receive, or ask or solicit, either directly or indirectly, with the intent to have his decision or action on any question, matter, cause, or proceeding which at the time may be pending or which by law may be brought before him in his official capacity or in his place of trust or profit influenced, any:
(1) money;
(2) contract, promise, undertaking, obligation, gratuity, or security for the payment of money or for the delivery or conveyance of anything of value;
(3) political appointment or influence, present, or reward;
(4) employment; or
(5) other thing of value.
A person violating the provisions of subsection is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be imprisoned not more than five years and is disqualified forever from holding any office of trust or profit under the Constitution or laws of this State.
(R) Any official or employee of a county transportation committee is subject to the provisions of Chapter 13, Title 8, the State Ethics Act.
Roads financed with usage charges
SECTION 45. Section 12-28-2920 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 12-28-2920. The department shall review projects for the possibility of constructing roads financed with usage charges pursuant to the authority granted the department in Article 9, Chapter 5, Title 57, as well as Sections 57-3-200 and 57-3-205. No project may be funded in whole or in part by means of imposing a usage charge on the users of the project unless it is determined to be substantially feasible by the department, taking into account all funding sources. The funds derived from usage charges must be:
(1) credited to the State Highway Fund;
(2) retained and applied by the entity or entities developing the applicable road pursuant to an agreement authorized under Section 57-3-200 or 57-3-205 for the purpose of funding the cost of construction, financing, operation, and maintenance of the applicable project;
(3) used to service bonded indebtedness for highway transportation purposes incurred pursuant to Paragraph 9, Section 13, Article X of the South Carolina Constitution; or
(4) used to pay for the operation and maintenance costs of the applicable project.
Pothole Mitigation Program
SECTION 46. Article 11, Chapter 5, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-5-1800. (A) There is established within the Department of Transportation the Pothole Mitigation Program for the purposes of public reporting of pothole locations along the state highway system. The department must implement the program in each county.
(B) The Pothole Mitigation Program must provide means for the public to report the location of potholes to the department via telephone, the internet, a website application, or other electronic means as determined by the department. Within one year of adoption of this act, the department shall make available on the commercial mobile application stores a free application that allows the public to report the location of a pothole. The department must post notices in conspicuous locations including the department website, the State Highway Map, rest areas, and other facilities that provide information about the means for the public to report potholes.
(C) The department must ensure that, within seven days of receiving notice of the location of a pothole, the pothole is repaired. Each pothole repair must be a permanent repair unless weather conditions, emergency events, supplier availability, or other exigent circumstance requires a temporary repair until a permanent repair can be made. The department may use its own personnel or may contract with outside parties for pothole repair pursuant to the Pothole Mitigation Program.
(D) From the Infrastructure Maintenance Trust Fund, the department shall annually allocate fifteen million dollars for full depth pavement repairs of repetitive potholes as identified in subsection (B). These funds shall be in addition to existing funds allocated for pavement rehabilitation.
Choice lane facilities, conforming change
SECTION 47. Section 57-5-1370 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-1370. Bonds may be issued from time to time under the conditions prescribed by this article.
Choice lane facilities, conforming change
SECTION 48. Section 57-5-1470 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
Section 57-5-1470. All bonds issued under this article, and the interest thereon, are exempt from all state, county, municipal, school district, and other taxes or assessment, direct or indirect, general or special, imposed by the State of South Carolina, whether imposed for the purpose of general revenue or otherwise, except inheritance, estate, or transfer taxes. Each choice lane facility constitutes a portion of the state highway system and as such is not subject to ad valorem or other forms of taxation by the State or any of its political subdivisions.
County-funded projects
SECTION 49. Chapter 1, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:
Section 57-1-375. (A) Upon notification from a county that the county has appropriated funds for projects to improve the state highway system, the department must review the priority list for projects to be undertaken pursuant to Section 57-1-370(B)(8) to see if the projects proposed by the county are also on the department's priority list of projects to be undertaken pursuant to Section 57-1-370(B)(8).
(B) The department shall provide certification within ninety days to the county if a project proposed to be funded from funds appropriated by that county is also on the department's priority list of projects to be undertaken pursuant to Section 57-1-370(B)(8).
(C) In the event the county funds in its entirety a project certified by the department pursuant to subsection (B), the department shall reprioritize the next project within that county that is also on the department's priority list of projects to be undertaken pursuant to Section 57-1-370(B)(8) in place of the project funded by the county. This subsection does not apply to bridges that are closed, load posted, or structurally deficient.
Redesignation
SECTION 50. Article 9, Chapter 5, Title 57 of the S.C. Code is redesignated "Choice Lane Facilities."
One subject
SECTION 51.The General Assembly finds that the sections presented in this act constitute one subject as required by Article III, Section 17 of the South Carolina Constitution, in particular finding that each change and each topic relates directly to or in conjunction with other sections to the subject of improving the state's transportation system as clearly enumerated in the title. The General Assembly further finds that a common purpose or relationship exists among the sections, representing a potential plurality but not disunity of topics, notwithstanding that reasonable minds might differ in identifying more than one topic contained in the act.
Severability
SECTION 52.If any section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this act is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such holding shall not affect the constitutionality or validity of the remaining portions of this act, the General Assembly hereby declaring that it would have passed this act, and each and every section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, and word thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more other sections, subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, sentences, clauses, phrases, or words hereof may be declared to be unconstitutional, invalid, or otherwise ineffective.
Time effective
SECTION 53. (A)(1) The amendments made to the following S.C. Code Sections, as contained in this act, take effect January 1, 2027: Sections 57-1-410, 1-30-10, 1-30-105, 11-43-150, 57-1-10, 57-1-40, 57-1-430, 57-1-500, 57-3-50, 57-1-90, 57-3-210, 57-3-700, 57-5-10, 57-5-50, 57-5-90, 57-5-310, 57-5-340, 57-13-10, 57-13-20, 57-13-40, 57-13-50, 57-25-120, 57-25-140, 57-25-150, 57-25-170, 57-25-200, 57-25-210, 57-1-360, 57-1-370, and 57-5-1800.
(2) The uncodified provisions relating to the currently serving Secretary of the Department of Transportation, the abolition of the Commission of the Department of Transportation, and the repeal of certain statutes, as contained in SECTIONS 2, 4, and 29, take effect January 1, 2027.
(B) The amendments made to the following S.C. Code Sections or additions thereto, as contained in this act, take effect on July 1, 2026: Sections 11-43-140, 57-3-205, 57-5-1480, 57-5-1710, 57-5-1720, and 11-35-710.
(C) Except where specified otherwise, this act takes effect July 1, 2027. County legislative delegations have ninety days from the effective date of this act to comply with the provisions of Section 12-28-2740(C)(2).
Ratified the 14th day of May, 2026.
Approved the _____________ day of _________________________________________2026.
This web page was last updated on May 14, 2026 at 8:42 PM