Amend the bill, as and if amended, by striking all after the enacting language and inserting:
/ Whereas petroleum and petroleum products are a national commodity, yet are commodities that may pose a threat to the property and health of South Carolinians if not properly transported or stored;
Whereas questions have recently arisen regarding petroleum pipeline siting in South Carolina, as well as questions regarding responsibility for monitoring and for inspecting these pipelines;
Whereas the General Assembly recognizes the importance of economic development in this State, yet recognizes there must be a balance between economic development and the protection of the health, safety, welfare, and property of this State's citizens;
Whereas, the General Assembly also recognizes the importance of, and intends to defend, the rights of private property owners within this State, rights which have been established within the South Carolina Constitution, the laws of this State, and case law;
Whereas the South Carolina Attorney General's Office issued an opinion on July 1, 2015 which states there is "substantial doubt" that Section 58-7-10 intended to extend the public power of eminent domain to any private pipeline company pipeline that is not defined in, or otherwise outside of the regulatory scope of, Title 58 of the South Carolina Code of Laws;
Whereas, the General Assembly does not find that a private, for-profit pipeline company, which includes a publicly traded for-profit company, that is not defined as a "public utility" in Title 58 of the 1976 Code of Laws could meet the current "public use" requirement for purposes of eminent domain;
Whereas, the General Assembly finds that South Carolina Code Section 58-7-10 was not intended to confer the right of eminent domain to a private, for-profit company, including a publicly traded for-profit company, that is not defined as a "public utility" in Title 58 of the 1976 Code of Laws;
Whereas, a recent pipeline leak of over 300,000 gallons of petroleum product near Belton, South Carolina has demonstrated the risks inherent in pipeline transportation of refined petroleum products;
Whereas, the cleanup of refined petroleum products from soil and groundwater is an expensive, imperfect and time consuming process;
Whereas, the financial and technical abilities of the party responsible for the cleanup of any refined petroleum products released from a pipeline are critical to ensure that the responsibility for the cleanup is not imposed upon the citizens of South Carolina.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. To amend Section 58-7-10 of the 1976 Code of Laws to read:
Subject to the same duties and liabilities, all the rights, powers and privileges conferred upon telegraph and telephone companies under Article 17 of Chapter 9 of this Title are hereby granted to pipeline companies incorporated under the laws of this State or to such companies incorporated under the laws of any other state when such companies have complied with the laws of this State regulating the doing of business herein by foreign corporations. The provisions of this section do not apply to private, for-profit pipeline companies, including publicly traded for-profit companies, that are not defined within this Title as a public utility.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon approval by the Governor. /
Renumber sections to conform.
Amend title to conform.