Indicates Matter Stricken

Indicates New Matter

 

Committee Report

March 12, 2026

 

S. 227

 

Introduced by Senators Davis, Kimbrell, Matthews, Turner and Young

 

S. Printed 3/12/26--S.

Read the first time January 15, 2025

 

________

 

The committee on Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry

To whom was referred a Bill (S. 227) to amend the South Carolina Code of Laws by amending Section 6-29-720, relating to zoning ordinances, so as to define "concurrency programs"; and by amending Section, etc., respectfully

Report:

That they have duly and carefully considered the same, and recommend that the same do pass with amendment:

 

   Amend the bill, as and if amended, SECTION 1, by striking Section 6-29-720(C)(8) and inserting:

       (8) "concurrency programs" in which the governing authority conditions approval of land development activities on public facility and service adequacy. A concurrency program also may be referred to as an "adequate public facility program."

           (a) Concurrency programs must ensure public facilities and services necessary to support development are adequate to serve that development, based on reasonable and locally documented level of service standards and proportionate share methodologies.

           (b) A governing authority adopting concurrency may require public facility and service contributions sufficient to offset a development's proportionate share impacts on facilities and services and also may accept excess capacity contributions made pursuant to a written agreement with the property owner.

           (c) However, under this subsection, the governing authority must take into consideration any contributions made by payment of development impact fees or other instruments for the same impacts on relevant facilities and services.

           (d) Local governing authorities and property owners may enter into written proportionate share, cost sharing, or other similar agreements to facilitate exercise of any authority or requirement under this subsection.

       (8) "Concurrency programs" condition land development approval on public facility and service adequacy, also referred to as "adequate public facility programs." Such programs shall ensure that growth and infrastructure investment proceed consistently with locally adopted comprehensive plans and shall not be administered to prevent or delay development where proportionate mitigation is available.

           (a) Concurrency programs may not condition approval on the availability or adequacy of schools, parks, or libraries and are limited to:

               (i) transportation facilities;

               (ii) water supply and distribution;

               (iii) wastewater collection and treatment;

               (iv) stormwater management;

               (v) law enforcement; and

               (vi) fire protection and emergency medical services.

           (b) Facilities are deemed "available" or "adequate" if capacity exists at time of application, is fully funded within the first three years of an adopted capital improvements program or will be provided through a binding agreement under subitem (f).

           (c) Level-of-service standards must be objective, applied uniformly to similarly situated development, and reviewed at least every five years. Standards shall reflect adopted land use policies, may not require facility expansion inconsistent with the comprehensive plan, and may be multimodal or differentiated within designated growth or redevelopment areas. Failure to meet a standard shall not result in denial if the applicant commits to proportionate share mitigation.

           (d) A concurrency program must:

               (i) establish clear application review procedures;

               (ii) credit developer contributions toward concurrency requirements;

               (iii) allow developers to remedy deficiencies through proportionate share contributions or construction of improvements committed in a binding agreement on a schedule concurrent with or prior to the development's impacts;

               (iv) provide exemptions or streamlined review for development with minimal facility impacts;

               (v) establish an appeals process for concurrency determinations; and

               (vi) establish time-limited capacity reservations that expire and revert to available capacity upon failure to demonstrate substantial progress within a defined period.

           (e) A governing authority may require sufficient contributions to offset a development's proportionate share of facility impacts, based on documented impacts, reduced by developer-provided capacity, and applied consistently to similarly situated projects. No development may be required to fund pre-existing deficiencies beyond its proportionate share or to pay twice for the same impact on the same facility; all prior impact fees or other contributions addressing the same impacts must be credited. A proportionate share contribution satisfies concurrency only if the relevant improvement is included in the adopted capital improvements program and scheduled for completion concurrent with or prior to the development's impacts, or if the developer's contribution together with other committed funding is sufficient to fully fund the improvement on that schedule.

           (f) Governing authorities, property owners, and other governmental entities may enter into written agreements providing for phased improvements, reimbursement mechanisms, capacity credits, or excess capacity contributions, subject to the following:

               (i) An agreement is a mechanism for achieving concurrency, not a substitute for it. The governing authority must make a written finding that required improvements will be completed concurrently with or prior to the impacts they serve;

               (ii) The agreement shall correlate each development phase with the infrastructure necessary to serve it. No certificate of occupancy for a given phase may be issued unless the serving infrastructure is complete or contractually secured;

               (iii) Where the agreement relies on future developer construction, the developer shall provide a performance bond, letter of credit, or equivalent security sufficient to complete the committed improvements;

               (iv) Capacity credits may be granted only for improvements constructed and accepted, or for which full funding is secured under item (3); and

               (v) Agreements shall be recorded in county deed records and run with the land, binding all successors. Material default suspends further development approvals until cured or the agreement is renegotiated consistent with this section.

           (g) If a facility fails to meet adopted standards for more than thirty-six consecutive months, the governing authority shall amend its capital improvements program to fund corrections, revise the applicable standard, or adopt a temporary moratorium under applicable state law. Failure to act does not require automatic denial where mitigation is available.

           (h) A concurrency program may not interfere with development approvals within the jurisdiction of another local government, as provided in Section 6-29-330.

           (i) A concurrency program adopted in compliance with this subsection is presumed to be a valid exercise of police power and not an unconstitutional taking or equal protection violation. This presumption may be rebutted only by clear and convincing evidence that the program, as applied, denies all economically viable use, is arbitrary or capricious, discriminates against similarly situated properties without rational basis, or operates as a de facto moratorium by systematically denying approvals where proportionate mitigation has been offered.

           (j) A development in which at least fifty percent of units are deed-restricted at or below eighty percent of area median income, or that receives federal, state, or local affordable housing financing, is exempt from concurrency requirements, subject to applicable building codes, life-safety standards, and utility connection obligations.

Renumber sections to conform.

Amend title to conform.

 

THOMAS DAVIS for Committee.

 

_______

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A bill

 

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 6-29-720, RELATING TO ZONING ORDINANCES, SO AS TO DEFINE "CONCURRENCY PROGRAMS"; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 6-29-1130, RELATING TO REGULATIONS, SO AS TO INCLUDE A REFERENCE TO AN ADOPTED CONCURRENCY PROGRAM.

 

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

 

SECTION 1.  Section 6-29-720(C) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    (C) The zoning ordinance may utilize the following or any other zoning and planning techniques for implementation of the goals specified above. Failure to specify a particular technique does not cause use of that technique to be viewed as beyond the power of the local government choosing to use it:

       (1) "cluster development" or the grouping of residential, commercial, or industrial uses within a subdivision or development site, permitting a reduction in the otherwise applicable lot size, while preserving substantial open space on the remainder of the parcel;

       (2) "floating zone" or a zone which is described in the text of a zoning ordinance but is unmapped. A property owner may petition for the zone to be applied to a particular parcel meeting the minimum zoning district area requirements of the zoning ordinance through legislative action;

       (3) "performance zoning" or zoning which specifies a minimum requirement or maximum limit on the effects of a land use rather than, or in addition to, specifying the use itself, simultaneously assuring compatibility with surrounding development and increasing a developer's flexibility;

       (4) "planned development district" or a development project comprised of housing of different types and densities and of compatible commercial uses, or shopping centers, office parks, and mixed-use developments. A planned development district is established by rezoning prior to development and is characterized by a unified site design for a mixed-use development;

       (5) "overlay zone" or a zone which imposes a set of requirements or relaxes a set of requirements imposed by the underlying zoning district when there is a special public interest in a particular geographic area that does not coincide with the underlying zone boundaries;

       (6) "conditional uses" or zoning ordinance provisions that impose conditions, restrictions, or limitations on a permitted use that are in addition to the restrictions applicable to all land in the zoning district. The conditions, restrictions, or limitations must be set forth in the text of the zoning ordinance; and

       (7) "priority investment zone" in which the governing authority adopts market-based incentives or relaxes or eliminates nonessential housing regulatory requirements, as these terms are defined in this chapter, to encourage private development in the priority investment zone. The governing authority also may provide that traditional neighborhood design and affordable housing, as these terms are defined in this chapter, must be permitted within the priority investment zone; and

       (8) "concurrency programs" in which the governing authority conditions approval of land development activities on public facility and service adequacy. A concurrency program also may be referred to as an "adequate public facility program."

           (a) Concurrency programs must ensure public facilities and services necessary to support development are adequate to serve that development, based on reasonable and locally documented level of service standards and proportionate share methodologies.

           (b) A governing authority adopting concurrency may require public facility and service contributions sufficient to offset a development's proportionate share impacts on facilities and services and also may accept excess capacity contributions made pursuant to a written agreement with the property owner.

           (c) However, under this subsection, the governing authority must take into consideration any contributions made by payment of development impact fees or other instruments for the same impacts on relevant facilities and services.

           (d) Local governing authorities and property owners may enter into written proportionate share, cost sharing, or other similar agreements to facilitate exercise of any authority or requirement under this subsection.

 

SECTION 2.  Section 6-29-1130(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 

    (A) When at least the community facilities element, the housing element, and the priority investment element of the comprehensive plan as authorized by this chapter have been adopted by the local planning commission and the local governing body or bodies, the local planning commission may prepare and recommend to the governing body or bodies for adoption regulations governing the development of land within the jurisdiction. These regulations may provide for the harmonious development of the municipality and the county; for coordination of streets within subdivision and other types of land developments with other existing or planned streets or official map streets; for the size of blocks and lots; for the dedication or reservation of land for streets, school sites, and recreation areas and of easements for utilities and other public services and facilities, including by an adopted concurrency program; and for the distribution of population and traffic which will tend to create conditions favorable to health, safety, convenience, appearance, prosperity, or the general welfare. In particular, the regulations shall prescribe that no land development plan, including subdivision plats, will be approved unless all land intended for use as building sites can be used safely for building purposes, without danger from flood or other inundation or from other menaces to health, safety, or public welfare.

 

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

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