H 4565 Session 109 (1991-1992)
H 4565 General Bill, By K.G. Kempe and D.W. Beatty
A Bill to enact the South Carolina "Computer Technology and Data Management
Act"; to amend the Code of Laws of South Carolina, 1976, by adding Sections
30-4-52, 30-4-54, and 30-4-56 so as to provide for the impact of information
management technology on access to public records, information dissemination
and services by government agencies, use of government owned information
management systems for commercial purposes, and the joint development and
financing of information management systems by counties, municipalities, state
agencies, and other units of government; and to amend Section 30-4-20,
relating to definitions used in the Freedom of Information Act, so as to
include within the definition of "public record" identifiable information
related to the performance, activities, and decisions of public officials, to
provide that when records are digitally stored in computer systems access to
certain software necessary to access these records must be granted under
certain circumstances, and to provide that nothing in this Section authorizes
or requires the copies and delivery of entire databases for commercial use or
requires the pr ovision of electronic products and services.
03/17/92 House Introduced and read first time HJ-9
03/17/92 House Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-10
A BILL
TO ENACT THE SOUTH CAROLINA "COMPUTER
TECHNOLOGY AND DATA MANAGEMENT ACT"; TO
AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY
ADDING SECTIONS 30-4-52, 30-4-54, AND 30-4-56 SO AS TO
PROVIDE FOR THE IMPACT OF INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
TECHNOLOGY ON ACCESS TO PUBLIC RECORDS,
INFORMATION DISSEMINATION AND SERVICES BY
GOVERNMENT AGENCIES, USE OF GOVERNMENT OWNED
INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS FOR COMMERCIAL
PURPOSES, AND THE JOINT DEVELOPMENT AND FINANCING
OF INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS BY COUNTIES,
MUNICIPALITIES, STATE AGENCIES, AND OTHER UNITS OF
GOVERNMENT; AND TO AMEND SECTION 30-4-20, RELATING
TO DEFINITIONS USED IN THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION
ACT, SO AS TO INCLUDE WITHIN THE DEFINITION OF
"PUBLIC RECORD" IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION
RELATED TO THE PERFORMANCE, ACTIVITIES, AND
DECISIONS OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS, TO PROVIDE THAT WHEN
RECORDS ARE DIGITALLY STORED IN COMPUTER SYSTEMS,
ACCESS TO CERTAIN SOFTWARE NECESSARY TO ACCESS
THESE RECORDS MUST BE GRANTED UNDER CERTAIN
CIRCUMSTANCES, AND TO PROVIDE THAT NOTHING IN THIS
SECTION AUTHORIZES OR REQUIRES THE COPIES AND
DELIVERY OF ENTIRE DATABASES FOR COMMERCIAL USE
OR REQUIRES THE PROVISION OF ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS
AND SERVICES.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. This act may be cited as the "Computer
Technology and Data Management Act".
SECTION 2. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 30-4-52. `Electronic products and services' mean
computer-related services and products developed or maintained, or
both, provided by a public body, and include any of the following:
(1) electronic manipulation or duplication of the data
contained in public records in order to tailor the data to a request, or to
develop a new information product that did not exist but for the request
and meets the needs of the requestor;
(2) duplicating public records in alternative formats not used
by the public body, providing periodic updates of an electronic file or
database or duplicating an electronic file or database;
(3) providing on-line access to an electronic file or database;
(4) providing information that cannot be retrieved or generated
by the existing computer application or operation programs of the public
body;
(5) providing functional electronic access to the information
system of the public body. In this subsection `functional access'
includes the capability for alphanumeric query and printing, graphic
query and plotting, nongraphic data input and analysis, and graphic data
input and analysis;
(6) providing licenses to operating or application software
developed by the public body or developed by or purchased from a
private contractor for the public body;
(7) generating maps, listings, special reports, and analyses or
other standard or customized products from an electronic geographic
information system or relational database management system.
Section 30-4-54. (A) A county, municipality, state agency, or
other public body may elect to exercise proprietary authority over its
information management system and provide electronic products and
services under the provisions of this chapter.
(B) A public body may elect to establish a jointly owned and
managed database, geographic information system, or other information
management system and enter into contracts under which the
participating public bodies share one or all of the following aspects of
an information management system: use, capital costs, staff costs,
system implementation, and data conversion and maintenance duties.
(C) A public body or multi-agency consortium may elect to
license rights to dissemination of all or part of a database or for the
provision of electronic products and services to a nonprofit or for profit
corporation, individual, or government agency, and enter into contracts
and technology licensing agreements necessary to establish the public
enterprise relationships. Exclusive licensing arrangements are subject
to bid and other applicable procurement regulations, and are limited to
terms not to exceed four years.
(D) A public body or multi-agency consortium may enforce
copyrights in databases, electronic products, or software, may limit
liability through warranty disclaimers or other appropriate contract
provisions with customers, and may enter into agreements for data
maintenance or other like kind services in lieu of user fees.
Section 30-4-56. A public body that elects to provide electronic
products and services independently, jointly, or through licensing
arrangements with other service providers may establish user fees for the
products and services subject to:
(1) User fees for electronic products and services must be
established by publication of a fee schedule. The fee schedule must be
promulgated as a regulation, ordinance, or other appropriate rule-making
activity subject to notice, public hearing, affirmative consideration of
comments, and other public participation activities normal for the
rule-making activities.
(2) User fees must be based on the actual capital cost of the
information management system including hardware, software,
communications, data conversion, and other implementation costs; and
operational costs including the costs of staff, database creation or
maintenance, or both, communication links, software licenses, and
hardware upgrades. User fees must be based on the anticipated demand
for products and services, and on the estimated value of the use of the
information management system by the public bodies owning and using
the system. User fees may not exceed the actual incremental costs of
providing the electronic services and products plus a reasonable portion
of the capital and operational costs of the information management
system.
(3) User fees must be reduced or waived by the public body
if the electronic products and services are to be used for a public
purpose, including public agency program support, nonprofit activities,
journalism and academic teaching and research. Fee reductions and
waivers must be uniformly applied among persons and organizations
which are similarly situated.
(4) All fees collected by the public body for the provision of
electronic products and services and not disbursed or transferred to
another agency or organization must be used to support the maintenance
and enhancement of the information management system used to
generate the electronic products and services."
SECTION 3. Section 30-4-20(c) of the 1976 Code is amended to
read:
"(c) `Public record' includes all identifiable information
related to the performance, activities, and decisions of public officials
or the formation of public policy in the form of books, papers,
maps, photographs, cards, tapes, recordings, or other documentary
materials regardless of physical form or characteristics prepared, owned,
used, in the possession of, or retained by a public body. When
records are digitally stored in computer systems, access to operational
or application software necessary to access records for journalism or
other noncommercial purposes must be granted. Records such as
income tax returns, medical records, hospital medical staff reports,
scholastic records, adoption records, records related to registration, and
circulation of library materials which contain names or other personally
identifying details regarding the users of public, private, school, college,
technical college, university, and state institutional libraries and library
systems, supported in whole or in part by public funds or expending
public funds, or records which reveal the identity of the library patron
checking out or requesting an item from the library or using other library
services, except nonidentifying administrative and statistical reports of
registration and circulation, and other records which by law are required
to be closed to the public are not considered to be made open to the
public under the provisions of this act; nothing herein in this
subsection authorizes or requires the disclosure of those records
where the public body, prior to January 20, 1987, by a favorable vote of
three-fourths a majority of the membership, taken after
receipt of a written request, concluded that the public interest was best
served by not disclosing them. Nothing herein in this
subsection authorizes or requires the disclosure of records of the
Board of Financial Institutions pertaining to applications and surveys for
charters and branches of banks and savings and loan associations or
surveys and examinations of the institutions required to be made by law.
Nothing in this subsection authorizes or requires the copying and
delivery of entire databases for commercial use, or requires the provision
of electronic products and services as defined in this chapter."
SECTION 4. If a provision of this act or the application of it to a
person is held invalid, the invalidity does not affect other provisions or
applications of the act which can be given effect without the invalid
provision or application and to this end the provisions of this act are
severable.
SECTION 5. This act takes effect January 1, 1993, and only governs
transactions which take place after December 31, 1992.
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