South Carolina General Assembly
108th Session, 1989-1990

Bill 1207

                    Current Status

Bill Number:               1207
Ratification Number:       586
Act Number                 490
Introducing Body:          Senate
Subject:                   Relating to the procedure for changing
                           the number or method of election
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.

(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)

(A490, R586, S1207)

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 5-15-30, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE PROCEDURE FOR CHANGING THE NUMBER OR METHOD OF ELECTION OF MUNICIPAL COUNCIL MEMBERS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE QUESTION ON A REFERENDUM FOR CHANGING THE NUMBER OF COUNCIL MEMBERS OR THE METHOD OF ELECTION OF COUNCIL MEMBERS MAY BE HELD NO SOONER THAN TWO YEARS, RATHER THAN FOUR YEARS, AFTER AN ELECTION ON THE SAME QUESTION.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

Election for changes, time for

SECTION 1. Section 5-15-30 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 455 of 1988, is further amended to read:

"Section 5-15-30. If by action of a majority of council, or if fifteen percent of the registered municipal electors present to the municipal election commission a duly executed petition on which none of the signatures is more than six months old, in which an election is sought to change the number of council members to a number authorized by the form of government under which the municipality is then operating or to change the method of election of council members, then the municipal governing body shall call a referendum not later than ninety days nor earlier than thirty days after the petition has been certified and delivered to the governing body by the municipal election commission. A petition must be certified as valid or rejected by the municipal election commission within sixty days after it has been delivered to the commission. There may be only one question framed by the municipal governing body for the referendum in a format similar to that provided by Section 5-5-40, and no other election on the same question may be held for two years after that time. If more than one petition is received before publication of a notice of special election, the change sought in the petition bearing the highest number of qualified signatures must be submitted on the ballot. A change receiving a majority of the votes cast is effective at the next general election of the municipality."

Time effective

SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

Approved the 29th day of May, 1990.