Reference is to Printer's Date 4/14/15-S.
Amend the bill, as and if amended, by deleting SECTION 2 in its entirety.
Amend the bill further by deleting
SECTION 4 in its entirety and inserting:
/SECTION 4. Section 56-5-2941 of the 1976 Code as last amended by Act 158 of 2014, is further amended to read:
"(A) The
Department of Motor Vehicles shall require a person who is a
resident of this State and who is convicted of violating the
provisions of Section 56-5-2930, 56-5-2933, 56-5-2945, 56-5-2947
except if the conviction was for Section 56-5-750, or a law of
another state that prohibits a person from driving a motor
vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, to
have installed on any motor vehicle the person drives an
ignition interlock device designed to prevent driving of the
motor vehicle if the person has consumed alcoholic beverages.
This section does not apply to a person convicted of a first
offense violation of Section 56-5-2930 or 56-5-2933, unless the
person submitted to a breath test pursuant to Section 56-5-2950
and had an alcohol concentration of fifteen one-hundredths of
one percent or more. The department may waive the requirements
of this section if the department determines that the person has
a medical condition that makes the person incapable of properly
operating the installed device. If the department grants a
medical waiver, the department shall suspend the person's
driver's license for the length of time that the person would
have been required to hold an ignition interlock restricted
license. The department may withdraw the waiver at any time that
the department becomes aware that the person's medical condition
has improved to the extent that the person has become capable of
properly operating an installed device. The department also
shall require a person who has enrolled in the Ignition
Interlock Device Program in lieu of the remainder of a driver's
license suspension or denial of the issuance of a driver's
license or permit to have an ignition interlock device installed
on any motor vehicle the person drives.
The length of time that a device is
required to be affixed to a motor vehicle as set forth in
Sections 56-1-286, 56-5-2945, 56-5-2947 except if the conviction
was for Section 56-5-750, 56-5-2951, and 56-5-2990.
(B) Notwithstanding the
pleadings, for purposes of a second or a subsequent offense, the
specified length of time that a device is required to be affixed
to a motor vehicle is based on the Department of Motor Vehicle's
records for offenses pursuant to Section 56-1-286, 56-5-2930,
56-5-2933, 56-5-2945, 56-5-2947 except if the conviction was for
Section 56-5-750, 56-5-2950, or 56-5-2951.
(C) If a resident of
this State is convicted of violating a law of another state that
prohibits a person from driving a motor vehicle while under the
influence of alcohol or other drugs, and, as a result of the
conviction, the person is subject to an ignition interlock
device requirement in the other state, the person is subject to
the requirements of this section for the length of time that
would have been required for an offense committed in South
Carolina, or for the length of time that is required by the
other state, whichever is longer.
(D) If a person from
another state becomes a resident of South Carolina while subject
to an ignition interlock device requirement in another state,
the person may only obtain a South Carolina driver's license if
the person enrolls in the South Carolina Ignition Interlock
Device Program pursuant to this section. The person is subject
to the requirements of this section for the length of time that
would have been required for an offense committed in South
Carolina, or for the length of time that is required by the
other state, whichever is longer.
(E) The person must be
subject to an Ignition Interlock Device Point System managed by
the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services. A
person accumulating a total of:
(1)
two points or more, but less than three points, must have
the length of time that the device is required extended by two
months;
(2)
three points or more, but less than four points, must have
the length of time that the device is required extended by four
months, shall submit to a substance abuse assessment pursuant to
Section 56-5-2990, and shall successfully complete the plan of
education and treatment, or both, as recommended by the
certified substance abuse program. Should the person not
complete the recommended plan, or not make progress toward
completing the plan, the Department of Motor Vehicles shall
suspend the person's ignition interlock restricted license until
the plan is completed or progress is being made toward
completing the plan;
(3)
four points or more must have the person's ignition
interlock restricted license suspended for a period of six
months, shall submit to a substance abuse assessment pursuant to
Section 56-5-2990, and successfully shall complete the plan of
education and treatment, or both, as recommended by the
certified substance abuse program. Should the person not
complete the recommended plan or not make progress toward
completing the plan, the Department of Motor Vehicles shall
leave the person's ignition interlock restricted license in
suspended status, or, if the license has already been reinstated
following the six-month suspension, shall resuspend the person's
ignition interlock restricted license until the plan is
completed or progress is being made toward completing the plan.
The Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services is
responsible for notifying the Department of Motor Vehicles of a
person's completion and compliance with education and treatment
programs. Upon reinstatement of driving privileges following the
six-month suspension, the Department of Probation, Parole and
Pardon Services shall reset the person's point total to zero
points, and the person shall complete the remaining period of
time on the ignition interlock device.
(F) The cost of the
device must be borne by the person. However, if the person is
indigent and cannot afford the cost of the device, the person
may submit an affidavit of indigency to the Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services for a determination of
indigency as it pertains to the cost of the device. The
affidavit of indigency form must be made publicly accessible on
the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services'
Internet website. If the Department of Probation, Parole and
Pardon Services determines that the person is indigent as it
pertains to the device, the Department of Probation, Parole and
Pardon Services may authorize a device to be affixed to the
motor vehicle and the cost of the initial installation and
standard use of the device to be paid for by the Ignition
Interlock Device Fund managed by the Department of Probation,
Parole and Pardon Services. Funds remitted to the Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services for the Ignition Interlock
Device Fund also may be used by the Department of Probation,
Parole and Pardon Services to support the Ignition Interlock
Device Program. For purposes of this section, a person is
indigent if the person is financially unable to afford the cost
of the ignition interlock device. In making a determination
whether a person is indigent, all factors concerning the
person's financial conditions should be considered including,
but not limited to, income, debts, assets, number of dependents
claimed for tax purposes, living expenses, and family situation.
A presumption that the person is indigent is created if the
person's net family income is less than or equal to the poverty
guidelines established and revised annually by the United States
Department of Health and Human Services published in the Federal
Register. "Net income" means gross income minus
deductions required by law. The determination of indigency is
subject to periodic review at the discretion of the Department
of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services.
(G) The ignition
interlock service provider shall collect and remit monthly to
the Ignition Interlock Device Fund a fee as determined by the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services not to
exceed thirty dollars per month for each month the person is
required to drive a vehicle with a device. A service provider
who fails to properly remit funds to the Ignition Interlock
Device Fund may be decertified as a service provider by the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services. If a
service provider is decertified for failing to remit funds to
the Ignition Interlock Device Fund, the cost for removal and
replacement of a device must be borne by the service
provider.
(H)(1) The person shall
have the device inspected every sixty days to verify that the
device is affixed to the motor vehicle and properly operating,
and to allow for the preparation of an ignition interlock device
inspection report by the service provider indicating the
person's alcohol content at each attempt to start and running
retest during each sixty-day period. Failure of the person to
have the interlock device inspected every sixty days must result
in one ignition interlock device point.
(2)
Only a service provider authorized by the Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services to perform inspections on
ignition interlock devices may conduct inspections. The service
provider immediately shall report devices that fail inspection
to the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services. The
report must contain the person's name, identify the vehicle upon
which the failed device is installed, and the reason for the
failed inspection.
(3)
If the inspection report reflects that the person has
failed to complete a running retest, the person must be assessed
one ignition interlock device point.
(4)
If any inspection report or any photographic images
collected by the device shows that the person has violated
subsection (M), (O), or (P) of this section, the person must be
assessed one and one-half ignition interlock device points.
(5)
The inspection report must indicate the person's
alcohol content at each attempt to start and running retest
during each sixty-day period. If the report reflects that the
person violated a running retest by having an alcohol
concentration of:
(a)
two one-hundredths of one percent or more but less than
four one-hundredths of one percent, the person must be assessed
one-half ignition interlock device point;
(b)
four one-hundredths of one percent or more but less than
fifteen one-hundredths of one percent, the person must be
assessed one ignition interlock device point; or
(c)
fifteen one-hundredths of one percent or more, the person
must be assessed two ignition interlock device points.
(5)(6) A
person may appeal less than four ignition interlock device
points received to an administrative hearing officer with the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services through a
process established by the Department of Probation, Parole and
Pardon Services. The administrative hearing officer's decision
on appeal is final and no appeal from such decision is
allowed.
(I)(1) If a person's
license is suspended due to the accumulation of four or more
ignition interlock device points, the Department of Probation,
Parole and Pardon Services must provide a notice of assessment
of ignition interlock points which must advise the person of his
right to request a contested case hearing before the Office of
Motor Vehicle Hearings. The notice of assessment of ignition
interlock points also must advise the person that, if he does
not request a contested case hearing within thirty days of the
issuance of the notice of assessment of ignition interlock
points, he waives his right to the administrative hearing and
the person's driver's license is suspended pursuant to Section
56-5-2941(E).
(2)
The person may seek relief from the Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services determination that a
person's license is suspended due to the accumulation of four or
more ignition interlock device points by filing a request for a
contested case hearing with the Office of Motor Vehicle Hearings
pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act. The filing of the
request for a contested case hearing will stay the driver's
license suspension pending the outcome of the hearing. However,
the filing of the request for a contested case hearing will not
stay the requirements of the person having the ignition
interlock device.
(3)
At the contested case hearing:
(a)
the assessment of driver's license suspension can be
upheld;
(b)
the driver's license suspension can be overturned, or any
or all of the contested ignition interlock points included in
the device inspection report that results in the contested
suspension can be overturned, and the penalties as specified
pursuant to Section 56-5-2941(E) will then be imposed
accordingly.
(4)
A contested case hearing must be held after the request
for the hearing is received by the Office of Motor Vehicle
Hearings. Nothing in this section prohibits the introduction of
evidence at the contested case hearing on the issue of the
accuracy of the ignition interlock device. However, if the
ignition interlock device is found to not be in working order
due to failure of regular maintenance and upkeep by the person
challenging the accumulation of ignition interlock points
pursuant to the requirement of the ignition interlock program,
such allegation cannot serve as a basis to overturn point
accumulations.
(5)
A written order must be issued by the Office of Motor
Vehicle Hearings to all parties either reversing or upholding
the assessment of ignition interlock points.
(6)
A contested case hearing is governed by the Administrative
Procedures Act, and a person has a right to appeal the decision
of the hearing officer pursuant to that act to the
Administrative Law Court in accordance with its appellate rules.
The filing of an appeal does not stay the ignition interlock
requirement.
(J) Five years from the
date of the person's driver's license reinstatement and every
five years thereafter a fourth or subsequent offender whose
license has been reinstated pursuant to Section 56-1-385 may
apply to the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services
for removal of the ignition interlock device and the removal of
the restriction from the person's driver's license. The
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services may, for
good cause shown, notify the Department of Motor Vehicles that
the person is eligible to have the restriction removed from the
person's license.
(K)(1) Except as
otherwise provided in this section, it is unlawful for a person
who is subject to the provisions of this section to drive a
motor vehicle that is not equipped with a properly operating,
certified ignition interlock device. A person who violates this
subsection:
(a)
for a first offense, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon
conviction, must be fined not less than one thousand dollars or
imprisoned not more than one year. The person must have the
length of time that the ignition interlock device is required
extended by six months;
(b)
for a second offense, is guilty of a misdemeanor, and,
upon conviction, must be fined not less than five thousand
dollars or imprisoned not more than three years. The person must
have the length of time that the ignition interlock device is
required extended by one year; and
(c)
for a third or subsequent offense, is guilty of a felony,
and, upon conviction, must be fined not less than ten thousand
dollars or imprisoned not more than ten years. The person must
have the length of time that the ignition interlock device is
required extended by three years.
(2)
No portion of the minimum sentence imposed pursuant to
this subsection may be suspended.
(3)
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a first or
second offense punishable pursuant to this subsection may be
tried in summary court.
(L)(1) A person who is
required in the course and scope of the person's employment to
drive a motor vehicle owned by the person's employer may drive
the employer's motor vehicle without installation of an ignition
interlock device, provided that the person's use of the
employer's motor vehicle is solely for the employer's business
purposes.
(2)
This subsection does not apply to:
(a)
a person convicted of a second or subsequent
violation of Section 56-5-2930, 56-5-2933, 56-5-2945, or a law
of another state that prohibits a person from driving a motor
vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or other drugs,
unless the person's driving privileges have been suspended for
not less than one year or the person has had an ignition
interlock device installed for not less than one year on each of
the motor vehicles owned or operated, or both, by the
person.
(b)
a person who is self employed or to a person who is
employed by a business owned in whole or in part by the person
or a member of the person's household or immediate family unless
during the defense of a criminal charge, the court finds that
the vehicle's ownership by the business serves a legitimate
business purpose and that titling and registration of the
vehicle by the business was not done to circumvent the intent of
this section.
(2)(3)
Whenever the person operates the employer's vehicle
pursuant to this subsection, the person shall have with the
person a copy of the Department of Motor Vehicles' form
specified by Section 56-1-400(B).
(3)(4) This
subsection will be construed in parallel with the requirements
of Section 56-1-400(B). A waiver issued pursuant to this
subsection will be subject to the same review and revocation as
described in Section 56-1-400(B).
(M) It is unlawful for
a person to tamper with or disable, or attempt to tamper with or
disable, an ignition interlock device installed on a motor
vehicle pursuant to this section. Obstructing or obscuring the
camera lens of an ignition interlock device constitutes
tampering. A person who violates this subsection is guilty of a
misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than
five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than thirty days, or
both.
(N) It is unlawful for
a person to knowingly rent, lease, or otherwise provide a person
who is subject to this section with a motor vehicle without a
properly operating, certified ignition interlock device. This
subsection does not apply if the person began the lease contract
period for the motor vehicle prior to the person's arrest for a
first offense violation of Section 56-5-2930 or Section
56-5-2933. A person who violates this subsection is guilty of a
misdemeanor, and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than
five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than thirty days, or
both.
(O) It is unlawful for
a person who is subject to the provisions of this section to
solicit or request another person, or for a person to solicit or
request another person on behalf of a person who is subject to
the provisions of this section, to engage an ignition interlock
device to start a motor vehicle with a device installed pursuant
to this section or to conduct a running retest while the
vehicle is in operation. A person who violates this
subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction,
must be fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned
not more than thirty days, or both.
(P) It is unlawful for
another person on behalf of a person subject to the
provisions of this section to engage an ignition interlock
device to start a motor vehicle with a device installed pursuant
to this section or to conduct a running retest while that
vehicle is in operation. A person who violates this
subsection is guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction,
must be fined not more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned
not more than thirty days, or both.
(Q) Only ignition
interlock devices certified by the Department of Probation,
Parole and Pardon Services may be used to fulfill the
requirements of this section.
(1)
The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services
shall certify whether a device meets the accuracy requirements
and specifications provided in guidelines or regulations adopted
by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, as
amended from time to time. All devices certified to be used in
South Carolina must be set to prohibit the starting of a motor
vehicle when an alcohol concentration of two one-hundredths of
one percent or more is measured and all running retests must
record violations of an alcohol concentration of two
one-hundredths of one percent or more, and must capture a
photographic image of the driver as the driver is operating the
ignition interlock device. The photographic images recorded by
the ignition interlock device may be used by the Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services to aid in the Department
of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services' management of the
Ignition Interlock Device Program; however, neither the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services' employees,
nor any other political subdivision of this State may be held
liable for any injury caused by a driver or other person who
operates a motor vehicle after the use or attempted use of an
ignition interlock device.
(2)
The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services
shall maintain a current list of certified ignition interlock
devices and manufacturers. The list must be updated at least
quarterly. If a particular certified device fails to continue to
meet federal requirements, the device must be decertified, may
not be used until it is compliant with federal requirements, and
must be replaced with a device that meets federal requirements.
The cost for removal and replacement must be borne by the
manufacturer of the noncertified device.
(3)
Only ignition interlock installers certified by the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services may install
and service ignition interlock devices required pursuant to this
section. The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services
shall maintain a current list of vendors that are certified to
install the devices.
(R) In addition to
availability under the Freedom of Information Act, any
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services policy
concerning ignition interlock devices must be made publicly
accessible on the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon
Services' Internet website. Information obtained by the
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services and ignition
interlock service providers regarding a person's participation
in the Ignition Interlock Device Program is to be used for
internal purposes only and is not subject to the Freedom of
Information Act. A person participating in the Ignition
Interlock Device Program or the person's family member may
request that the Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon
Services provide the person or family member with information
obtained by the department and ignition interlock service
providers. The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon
Services may release the information to the person or family
member at the department's discretion. The Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services and ignition interlock
service providers must purge all photographic images collected
by the device no later than twelve months from the date of the
person's completion of the Ignition Interlock Device Program.
The Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services may
retain the images past twelve months if there are any pending
appeals or contested case hearings involved with that person,
and at their conclusion must purge the images. The
Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services and ignition
interlock service providers may retain must
purge all personal information regarding a person's
participation in the Ignition Interlock Device Program
for a period not to exceed eighteen no later
than twelve months from the date of the person's completion
of the Ignition Interlock Device Program except for that
information which is relevant for pending legal matters.
(S) The Department of
Probation, Parole and Pardon Services shall develop policies
including, but not limited to, the certification, use,
maintenance, and operation of ignition interlock devices and the
Ignition Interlock Device Fund.
(T) This
section shall apply retroactively to any person currently
serving a suspension or denial of the issuance of a license or
permit due to a suspension listed in subsection (A). /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.