Two registered lobbyists in Raleigh and two in Columbia, full-time staff members of Carolina AGC, monitor thousands of bills during each legislative session in both Carolinas. They are guided by a Legislative Committee of contractor members in each state, who help set our legislative goals each session.
Two-year sessions in both Carolinas concluded this summer. As the dust settled, the lobbyists prepared a detailed look at the progress of the bills in each state that could affect area contractors.
The second year of the 113th Session of the South Carolina General Assembly proved to be a lively one. However, at times throughout the year, the debates were driven more by the media than the members of the legislature. During this session alone we saw the removal of the Confederate flag from the atop the State House dome, a NAACP statewide economic boycott, the fury of an election year, 1437 bills filed (but only 260 that passed), and the budget process which took weeks and weeks to complete. This has been one of the oddest sessions in SC history, a legislative session that is sure to find its way into the history books.
Confederate Flag
A compromise on the Confederate flag was reached near the end of May. Governor Hodges signed the bill (S. 1266) May 22. The bill, as amended and adopted by both bodies, removed the Confederate flag from the dome of the State House and from both House and Senate Chambers at 12 noon on July 1. The battle flag of the Army of Northern Virginia is being flown on a 30-foot flagpole located on the South side of the Confederate Soldiers Monument, at the corner of Main and Gervais streets, 10 feet from the base of the monument. The flagpole and the area adjacent to it must be illuminated at night and an appropriate decorative iron fence has been erected around the flagpole.
NAACP Boycott
The decision to remove the flag from the State House dome and from both the House and Senate Chambers does not set well with members of the NAACP. They have said removing the flag from the dome and the chambers and then placing it on a 30-foot pole at the front of the State House is not good enough. The NAACP says it cannot live with the placement of the flag, but the members of the General Assembly, who voted to remove the flag, say that this is the compromise.
2000 State Budget
The General Assembly passed the $6-billion budget just minutes before adjourning on June 22. The budget includes a decrease in the sales tax on food, aid to students and senior citizens, an additional tax cut to homeowners 65 years and older, as well as tax cuts for working families. Also included was a $138-million bond bill to fund capital projects for Higher Education, Technical Schools, and other building projects throughout the State.
Budget Provisos:
The following proviso(s) were passed as a part of the State Budget:
Section 50.5. Current law requires that the Professional and Occupational Licensing boards/commissions that fall under the SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation (SCDLLR) must remit annually an amount equal to 10 percent of the expenditures to the General Fund. Section 50.5 requires that the Contractors’ Licensing Board must remit all revenues above their expenditures to the General Fund, except $100,000, which must be allocated to the College of Engineering at Clemson University for research pertaining to the construction industry. The revenue remitted by the Contractors’ Licensing Board to the General Fund includes the 10 percent. Thus, before any monies are submitted to the General Fund, from the revenues generated by the licensing board, Clemson receives $100,000. The AGC has tried for several years to stop this proviso, but they are unable to receive any help from the SCDLLR when the issue is brought up. The plan to file legislation in the upcoming session that will allow the licensing board to either use this funding ($100K) solely for their licensing program or either take the opportunity to reduce the licensing fees since there seems to be such a large amount of remaining revenue at the end of each fiscal year.
Section 98 states that all fees and penalties collected by the highway department must be placed in the state highway account of the South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank (except for those fees and penalties, which must be credited to a different account as, otherwise provided for by law). Of the fees and penalties distributed, 20 percent ($12.1 million) must be credited to the State Highway Fund of the Department of Transportation and 80 percent to the general fund of the State, beginning in fiscal year 2000-2001.
Section 100 amends the current state procurement code by adding competitive on-line bidding to the methods of source selection permitted, in addition to competitive sealed bidding. The criteria for using competitive on-line bidding are also provided in the proviso. In conversations with staff at the Budget and Control Board the AGC has been assured that this type of bidding will only be used in emergency situations, such as hurricanes and other natural disasters.
Legislation of Interest
• S. 565 (Act 240), also known as the Fair Notice/Payment Bond bill, was signed by the Governor on March 29. The bill creates a fair notice provision under state law. The creation of this requirement will insure bonded contractors and subcontractors will be notified upfront of all potential claimants who do not hold direct contractual relationships with the bonded contractor. This will ensure the subcontractor is paid and at the same time will protect the bonded contractor from paying twice. The bill went into effect on April 20.
• S. 767 (Act 295), known also as the Subcontractors’ and Suppliers’ Payment Protection Act, was signed by the Governor on May 26. The language in the bill states that a contract between a contractor and subcontractor/supplier cannot require a pay when paid clause. An agreement between CAGC and the Subcontractors’/Suppliers’ was reached, prior to the Session, on S. 565 and S. 767. Both groups agreed not to oppose the other group’s legislative efforts on these 2 pieces of legislation.
• S. 263, know as the State Highway Systems and Interstates bill, requires the placement of construction work zone signs to notify motorists of ongoing construction. The bill also requires that work zone signs (the signs that state “work zone $200 fine and 30 days imprisonment for speeding”) be removed or covered with weather resistant material when the work zone becomes inactive for more than 3 days. The bill passed and was ratified on the last day of session.
• During this session, 4 mechanics lien bills were filed in the Senate and 1 was filed in the House (S. 110, S. 152, S. 362, S. 1052, and H. 4805). All 4 Senate bills were referred to the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee; however, none received any legislative action. The House bill was referred to the House Judiciary Committee, but it also received no legislative action.
• H. 4617, the “Engaging in Construction”; “Glass and Glazing” bill. The bill defines “engaging in construction” and requires that a licensed contractor engaging in construction must use the exact name under which they are licensed. The bill also amends current law by deleting “glass” and “glazing” from the sub-classification of “interior renovation” and to add and define “glass and glazing” as a sub-classification of “general contractors specialty.” This bill passed the House and made it through the sub and full committee process in the Senate. However, it never received final approval on the Senate floor, where it was held hostage and then died upon adjournment of the Session.
Looking Ahead
The 114th session of the General Assembly will convene on Tuesday, January 9, 2001. The House will organize in early December and the Senate will organize when they return in January. Critical to the organization of both bodies will be which party will have a majority. Since the majority in both Houses is small, a swing in the election could affect the majority leadership of both Houses.
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