Archives > 1976 South Carolina Code of Laws - Previous Versions > 2015 Session > Title 40

The South Carolina Legislative Council is offering access to the South Carolina Code of Laws on the Internet as a service to the public. The South Carolina Code on the General Assembly's website is now current through the 2015 session. The South Carolina Code, consisting only of Code text, numbering, history, and Effect of Amendment, Editor�s, and Code Commissioner�s notes may be copied from this website at the reader's expense and effort without need for permission.

The Legislative Council is unable to assist users of this service with legal questions. Also, legislative staff cannot respond to requests for legal advice or the application of the law to specific facts. Therefore, to understand and protect your legal rights, you should consult your own private lawyer regarding all legal questions.

While every effort was made to ensure the accuracy and completeness of the South Carolina Code available on the South Carolina General Assembly's website, this version of the South Carolina Code is not official, and the state agencies preparing this website and the General Assembly are not responsible for any errors or omissions which may occur in these files. Only the current published volumes of the South Carolina Code of Laws Annotated and any pertinent acts and joint resolutions contain the official version.

Please note that the Legislative Council is not able to respond to individual inquiries regarding research or the features, format, or use of this website. However, you may notify the Legislative Services Agency at [email protected] regarding any apparent errors or omissions in content of Code sections on this website, in which case LSA will relay the information to appropriate staff members of the South Carolina Legislative Council for investigation.





SECTION 40-28-5. Application of other provisions to this chapter.

Unless otherwise provided for in this chapter, Article 1, Chapter 1, Title 40 applies to the profession regulated under this chapter.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-10. Board of Landscape Architectural Examiners; creation; appointment of members; terms.

(A) There is created the Board of Landscape Architectural Examiners. The Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation shall administer the provisions of this chapter.

(B) The Governor shall appoint a board of five licensed landscape architects and two members of the general public.

(C) A professional member of the board must be a licensed landscape architect who has been actively engaged in the practice of landscape architecture for a period of at least five years and who has been responsible for landscape architecture for at least three years. The two members of the public may not be engaged in the practice of landscape architecture, have no financial interest in the profession of landscape architecture, and have no immediate family member in the profession of landscape architecture.

(D) At the end of their respective terms, successors must be selected in the same manner and appointed for terms of four years and until their successors are appointed and qualify. The Governor may replace a board member for cause. An appointment to fill a vacancy on the board is for the balance of the unexpired term in the manner of the original appointment.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698, Sections 3, 4, 6; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 3; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Sections 40-28-30, 40-28-40, 40-28-60.

SECTION 40-28-20. Definitions.

In addition to the definitions provided in Section 40-1-20, as used in this chapter, unless the context indicates otherwise:

(1) "Board" means the Board of Landscape Architectural Examiners.

(2) "Department" means the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.

(3) "Emeritus landscape architect" means a landscape architect who has been licensed for ten consecutive years or longer and who is sixty-five years of age or older and who is not engaging or offering to engage in the practice of landscape architecture as defined in this section.

(4) "Firm" means a business entity functioning as a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability partnership, professional association, professional corporation, business corporation, limited liability company, joint venture, or other legally constituted organization that practices or offers to practice landscape architecture.

(5) "Landscape architect" means a person licensed to practice landscape architecture in this State.

(6) "Landscape architecture" means the performance of professional services, such as consultation, investigation, research, planning, design, preparation of drawings and specifications, and responsible inspection in connection with the development of land areas where, and to the extent that, the dominant purpose of the services is the preservation, enhancement, or determination of proper site design, natural land features, planting, naturalistic and aesthetic values, the settings and approaches to structures or other improvements, the setting of grades and determining drainage and providing for drainage structures, and the consideration and determining of environmental problems. This practice includes the design of tangible objects, drainage structures and systems, and features as are incidental and necessary to an overall or ongoing landscape plan and site design, and the landscape architect may certify the design of the tangible objects, drainage structures and systems, features as to structural soundness and as to compliance with all requirements and standards of a government or subdivision of it. This practice does not include the design of structures, drainage structures and systems, and features which are not incidental and necessary to an overall landscape plan and site design and which have separate and self-contained purposes such as are ordinarily included in the practice of engineering or architecture and does not include the making of land surveys or final plats for official approval or recordation. Nothing contained in this definition precludes a duly licensed landscape architect from performing the services described in the first sentence of this definition in connection with the settings, approaches, or environment for buildings, structures, or facilities. Nothing contained in this chapter may be construed as authorizing a landscape architect to engage in the practice of architecture, engineering, or surveying as these terms are defined in Section 40-28-210 of this chapter, except that a landscape architect may prepare and certify all design, grading, drainage, and construction plans for roads and site-related projects which are incidental and necessary to an overall or ongoing landscape plan and site design.

(7) "Related field" means architecture, civil engineering, horticulture, or other field as determined appropriate by the board.

(8) "Responsible charge" means direct control and personal supervision of landscape architecture.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698, Section 1; 1984 Act No. 421, Section 1; 1990 Act No. 372, Sections 1, 2; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-10.

SECTION 40-28-30. Licensure; qualifications.

(A) In order to safeguard public welfare, health, and property and to promote public good, a person practicing or offering to practice landscape architecture privately or in public service must submit evidence that he is qualified to practice and must become licensed as provided in this chapter. It is unlawful for a person to practice landscape architecture or to use the term or title "Landscape Architect" unless duly licensed under the provisions of this chapter.

(B) To be licensed as a landscape architect in this State an applicant must be able to read and write the English language and:

(1) be a graduate of an accredited landscape architectural curriculum approved by the department and have had two years of varied landscape architectural experience under the supervision of a landscape architect licensed under this chapter or other qualified person, or experience approved by the board, and satisfactorily pass the written examination administered by the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards or an equivalent examination;

(2) be a graduate of a nonaccredited curriculum or a four-year college with a degree in a related field, as considered appropriate by the board and have had at least five years of varied landscape architectural experience under the supervision of a landscape architect licensed under this chapter, or other qualified person, or experience approved by the board, and satisfactorily pass the written examination administered by the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards or an equivalent examination;

(3) hold a license to practice landscape architecture issued upon examination by a legally constituted board of examiners of another state or the District of Columbia, or a territory or possession of the United States and if requirements of the state, district, territory, or possession in which the applicant is licensed are substantially equivalent to those of this State; or

(4) submit certification documents from the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards (CLARB) verifying his qualifications for licensure, and an individual holding such a certification may be accepted at the discretion of the department.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698, Sections 2, 11, 13; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1980 Act No. 502, Section 2; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 6; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Sections 40-28-20, 40-28-110, 40-28-130.

SECTION 40-28-40. Application form for licensure.

The department shall prescribe and furnish an application for licensure that an applicant must use to apply for a license under this chapter.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698, Section 4; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 3; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899.

SECTION 40-28-50. Seal of landscape architect.

A landscape architect, upon licensure, shall obtain a seal of the design authorized by the board, bearing the name of the licensee, number of certificate or license, and the legend "South Carolina Registered Landscape Architect" or "South Carolina Licensed Landscape Architect". The seal only may be used while the licensee's certificate or license is in full force and effect. Nothing in this chapter may be construed to authorize the use or acceptance of the seal of the landscape architect in lieu of the seal of an architect, engineer, or surveyor.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698 Section 14; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 9; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-140.

SECTION 40-28-60. Renewal of license; requirements; reinstatement of license after lapse; return to active practice of emeritus landscape architect.

(A) A license issued under this chapter must be renewed every two years on or before a date set by the department upon the payment of a renewal fee pursuant to Section 40-28-80 and evidence of twenty hours of continuing education as established by the board in regulation. An emeritus landscape architect is exempt from these continuing education requirements.

(B) A licensee who allows his or her license to lapse for less than one year by failing to renew the license in accordance with this section may be reinstated by the department upon satisfactory explanation by the licensee of failure to renew the license and upon payment of a reinstatement fee and the current renewal fee, as established by Section 40-28-80.

(C) If a license has lapsed for more than two years, the applicant must reapply for licensure. A person practicing as a landscape architect in this State during the time that his or her license has lapsed has engaged in unlicensed practice and is subject to penalties provided for in this chapter.

(D) An emeritus landscape architect who wishes to return to active practice shall complete continuing education requirements for an exempted renewal period, not to exceed a total of forty hours of continuing education and upon payment of a reinstatement fee and the current renewal fee, as established by Section 40-28-80.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698 Section 20; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 14; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-200.

SECTION 40-28-70. Landscape architecture firms; certificate of authorization; qualifications; application forms; disciplinary actions.

(A) The practice of or offer to practice landscape architecture through a firm is permitted only through entities holding a valid certificate of authorization issued by the board. For the purposes of this section, a certificate of authorization is also required for a firm practicing in this State under a fictitious name. However, when an individual is practicing landscape architecture in his name as individually licensed, that person is not required to obtain a certificate of authorization.

(B) The practice or offer to practice of landscape architecture by an individual licensed under this chapter through a firm offering landscape architecture services to the public is permitted if:

(1) one or more of the corporate officers, in the case of a corporation, or one or more of the principal owners, or a full-time employee, in the case of other firms, are designated as being responsible for the professional services regulated by the board and are licensed under this chapter;

(2) all personnel of the firm who act on behalf of the firm as landscape architects in this State are licensed under this chapter; and

(3) the firm has been issued a certificate of authorization by the board as required by this section.

(C) Before the issuance of a certificate of authorization, the board must be in receipt of the firm's appropriate documentation issued by the Secretary of State.

(D) A firm desiring a certificate of authorization shall file with the board an application on forms provided by the board accompanied by the registration fee as provided in Section 40-28-80. A certificate of authorization must be renewed biennially. A renewal form provided by the board must be completed and submitted with the biennial registration fee, the fee being an amount as provided in Section 40-28-80.

(E) A disciplinary action against a firm must be administered in the same manner and on the same grounds as disciplinary action against an individual. A firm may not be relieved of responsibility for the conduct or acts of its agents, officers, or employees by reason of its compliance with this section, and an individual practicing landscape architecture is not relieved of responsibility for professional services performed by reason of his employment or relationship with the firm.

(F) Nothing in this section may be construed to prohibit firms from joining together to offer landscape architectural services to the public, if each separate entity providing the services in this State otherwise meets the requirements of this section. For firms practicing as a professional corporation under the laws of this State, the joint practice of landscape architecture with the professions of architecture, engineering, surveying, and geology is specifically approved by the board.

(G) If the requirements of this section are met, the board shall issue a certificate of authorization to the firm, and the firm may contract for and collect fees for professional landscape architectural services. The board, however, may refuse to issue a certificate or suspend or revoke an existing certificate for due cause. A person or firm aggrieved by an adverse determination of the board may file an appeal as provided for in this chapter.

(H) Nothing in this section may be construed to mean that a firm may practice or offer to practice landscape architecture without meeting individual licensure.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Law: 1976 Act No. 698 Section 16; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 10; 1990 Act No. 435, Section 2; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-160.

SECTION 40-28-80. Administration of licensure program by Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation; annual fees.

(A) The program for licensure of landscape architects must be administered by the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation in accordance with Section 40-1-50.

(B) The department annually shall prescribe reasonable fees, not to exceed the following prescribed limits, in an amount sufficient to pay for the costs of administering the provisions of this chapter in the following categories:

(1) Initial license fee $50.00 (2) Annual license renewal fee $100.00 (3) Initial certificate of authorization fee $200.00 (4) Annual certificate of authorization renewal fee $200.00 (5) Temporary license fee $100.00 (6) Initial examination fee - cost of exam $200.00 (7) Examination retake fee - cost of section(s) $100.00 (8) File transfer fee $ 50.00 (9) Duplicate license/certificate fee $ 25.00 (10) Late fee $ 20.00

An additional amount not to exceed one hundred dollars may be charged each out-of-state applicant in each of the above categories.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698 Section 19; 1981 Act No. 129, Section 1; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 13; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-190.

SECTION 40-28-90. Promulgation of regulations by board authorized.

The board may promulgate regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698, Section 8; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 4; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-80.

SECTION 40-28-100. Power of board or department to seek injunctive relief.

In addition to the powers provided in Chapter 1, Title 40, the board or department may apply in the name of the State for relief by injunction to enforce the provisions of this chapter or to restrain a violation of this section. In these proceedings, the party seeking injunctive relief need not allege or prove that no adequate remedy at law exists or that substantial or irreparable damage would result from the continued violation. A member of the board or employee of the department may not be personally liable under this proceeding.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698, Section 8; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 4; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code 40-28-80.

SECTION 40-28-110. Investigative procedures.

An investigation must be conducted in accordance with Section 40-1-80.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-120. Cease and desist orders and equitable relief.

Cease and desist orders and equitable relief may be obtained in accordance with Section 40-1-100.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-130. Grounds for disciplinary action.

In addition to the grounds provided in Section 40-1-110, a person holding a license or certificate under this chapter may be subject to discipline for:

(1) practicing in violation of the provisions of this chapter;

(2) obtaining the certificate or license by fraud or misrepresentation;

(3) aiding or abetting, in the practice of landscape architecture, a person not authorized to practice landscape architecture under the provisions of this chapter;

(4) being found guilty of fraud or deceit, negligence, wilful misconduct, or gross incompetence in the practice of landscape architecture; or

(5) affixing his seal to a plan, drawing, specification, or other instrument of service that has not been prepared by him or under his immediate and responsible direction or has permitted his name to be used for the purpose of assisting a person, not a landscape architect, to evade the provisions of this chapter.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698 Section 18; 1990 Act No. 372, Section 12; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-180.

SECTION 40-28-140. Board may impose sanctions for violations.

Upon determination by the board that one or more of the grounds for discipline exists, the board may impose a sanction pursuant to Sections 40-1-110 and 40-1-120.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-150. Denial of licensure.

The board may deny licensure to an applicant based on:

(1) the same grounds for which it may take disciplinary action against a licensee; and

(2) his prior criminal record as provided in Section 40-1-140.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-160. Voluntary surrender of license when under investigation for violation.

A licensee under investigation for a violation of this chapter or a regulation promulgated under this chapter may voluntarily surrender the license to practice in accordance with and subject to the provisions of Section 40-1-150.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-170. Person found in violation to pay costs of investigation and prosecution.

A person found in violation of this chapter or a regulation promulgated under this chapter may be required to pay costs associated with the investigation and prosecution of the case pursuant to Section 40-1-170.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-180. Payment of cost and fine for violation.

A cost and fine imposed pursuant to this chapter must be paid in accordance with and are subject to the collection and enforcement provisions of Section 40-1-180. A person against whom a cost or fine is levied may not be eligible for the issuance or reinstatement of an authorization to practice until the cost or fine has been paid in full.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-190. Confidentiality of investigations and proceedings.

An investigation and proceeding conducted under this chapter is confidential and all communications are privileged as provided in Section 40-1-190.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-200. Department may institute civil action for injunctive relief, fine.

The department, in addition to instituting a criminal proceeding, may institute a civil action through the Administrative Law Court, in the name of the State, for injunctive relief against a person violating this chapter or a regulation promulgated under this chapter. For a violation the administrative law judge may impose a fine of no more than ten thousand dollars.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

SECTION 40-28-210. Persons exempt from licensure requirements of chapter.

This chapter may not be construed to require a license under this chapter for:

(1) the practice of landscape architecture by a person who acts under the supervision of a licensed landscape architect or by an employee of a person lawfully engaged in the practice of landscape architecture and who in either event does not assume responsible charge of design or supervision;

(2) the practice of architecture by a duly licensed professional architect and the performing of landscape architectural work by a licensed architect or by an employee under supervision of a licensed architect, when this work is incidental to their practice;

(3) the practice of engineering by a duly licensed professional engineer and the performing of landscape architectural work by a licensed engineer or by an employee under supervision of a licensed engineer, when this work is incidental to their practice;

(4) the practice of surveying by a duly licensed professional surveyor and the performing of landscape architectural work by a licensed professional surveyor or by an employee under supervision of a licensed professional surveyor, when this work is incidental to their practice;

(5) the practice of landscape architecture by an employee of the United States or South Carolina Government while engaged within this State in the practice of landscape architecture for the government or projects sanctioned by or totally sponsored by the government;

(6) planning as customarily done by regional or urban planners;

(7) an arborist, forester, gardener, home builder, or horticulturist; and

(8) a nurseryman, general or landscape contractor, such practice to include design, planning, location, and arrangements of plantings or other ornamental features.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws: 1976 Act No. 698 Section 15; 1993 Act No. 181, Section 899; 1976 Code Section 40-28-150.

SECTION 40-28-220. Transfer of functions, powers, duties, responsibilities, and authority to board.

The functions, powers, duties, responsibilities, and authority statutorily exercised by the Department of Natural Resources concerning the registration and regulation of landscape architects are transferred to the board.

HISTORY: 2010 Act No. 249, Section 1, eff June 11, 2010.