The Committee on Ways and Means proposes the following amendment (LC-31.SA0005H):

Amend the bill, as and if amended, by adding an appropriately numbered SECTION to read:

SECTION X. Section 4-9-150 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

 Section 4-9-150.The council shall provide for an independent annual audit of all financial records and transactions of the county and any agency funded in whole by county funds and may provide for more frequent audits as it considers necessary. Special audits may be provided for any agency receiving county funds as the county governing body considers necessary. The audits must be made by a certified public accountant or public accountant or firm of these accountants who have no personal interest, direct or indirect, in the fiscal affairs of the county government or  any of its officers. The council may, without requiring competitive bids, designate the accountant or firm annually or for a period not exceeding three years. The designation for any particular fiscal year must be made no later than thirty days after the beginning of the fiscal year. The report of the audit must be made available for public inspection. A copy of the report of the audit must be submitted to the Comptroller GeneralState Treasurer no later than January first each year following the close of the books of the previous fiscal year. Upon a showing of proper cause, as determined by the State Treasurer, the State Treasurer shall grant a county an extension of ninety days. To be considered, a request for extension must be signed by the chair of the council before the deadline for filing.

If the report is not  timely filed with the State Treasurer by January first, or within the time extended for filing the report, funds distributed by the Comptroller GeneralState Treasurer to the county in the current fiscal year must be withheld pending receipt of a copy of the report.