South Carolina General Assembly
116th Session, 2005-2006

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A382, R427, H4707

STATUS INFORMATION

General Bill
Sponsors: Reps. Govan, Scott, Hosey, Moody-Lawrence, Whipper, Clark, Howard, Mack, Vick, Allen, Battle, Bowers, Brady, Branham, Cato, Ceips, Clemmons, Clyburn, Funderburk, Haskins, Hodges, Jefferson, McLeod, Ott, Perry, Rice, Scarborough, Sinclair, G.M. Smith, J.E. Smith and Townsend
Document Path: l:\council\bills\ggs\22431sj06.doc
Companion/Similar bill(s): 1312

Introduced in the House on February 22, 2006
Introduced in the Senate on April 26, 2006
Last Amended on May 25, 2006
Passed by the General Assembly on May 31, 2006
Governor's Action: June 13, 2006, Vetoed
Legislative veto action(s): Veto overridden

Summary: Financial Literacy Trust Act

HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

     Date      Body   Action Description with journal page number
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   2/22/2006  House   Introduced and read first time HJ-43
   2/22/2006  House   Referred to Committee on Education and Public Works HJ-43
   3/13/2006          Scrivener's error corrected
   4/19/2006  House   Committee report: Favorable with amendment Education and 
                        Public Works HJ-39
   4/25/2006  House   Amended HJ-52
   4/25/2006  House   Read second time HJ-58
   4/26/2006  House   Read third time and sent to Senate HJ-12
   4/26/2006  Senate  Introduced and read first time SJ-10
   4/26/2006  Senate  Referred to Committee on Education SJ-10
   5/24/2006  Senate  Committee report: Favorable with amendment Education 
                        SJ-20
   5/25/2006  Senate  Amended SJ-27
   5/25/2006  Senate  Read second time SJ-27
   5/30/2006          Scrivener's error corrected
   5/31/2006  Senate  Read third time and returned to House with amendments 
                        SJ-311
   5/31/2006  House   Concurred in Senate amendment and enrolled HJ-225
    6/7/2006          Ratified R 427
   6/13/2006          Vetoed by Governor
   6/14/2006  House   Veto overridden by originating body Yeas-66  Nays-30 
                        HJ-131
   6/14/2006  Senate  Veto overridden Yeas-45  Nays-0 SJ-155
   6/20/2006          Copies available
   6/20/2006          Effective date 06/14/06
   6/23/2006          Act No. 382

View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site

VERSIONS OF THIS BILL

2/22/2006
3/13/2006
4/19/2006
4/25/2006
5/24/2006
5/25/2006
5/30/2006


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

(A382, R427, H4707)

AN ACT TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTIONS 59-29-440 THROUGH 59-29-570 SO AS TO ENACT THE "SOUTH CAROLINA FINANCIAL LITERACY TRUST ACT", WHICH IS AN INITIATIVE FOR IMPROVING FINANCIAL LITERACY BY PROVIDING GRANTS TO SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO PROVIDE FINANCIAL LITERACY INSTRUCTION FOR STUDENTS IN KINDERGARTEN THROUGH TWELFTH GRADE; TO ESTABLISH GOALS FOR THIS INITIATIVE; TO ESTABLISH THE SOUTH CAROLINA FINANCIAL LITERACY BOARD OF TRUSTEES, TO PROVIDE THAT IT SHALL OVERSEE THE FINANCIAL LITERACY TRUST, AND TO ESTABLISH THE PURPOSES OF THE BOARD AND ITS COMPOSITION, FUNCTIONS, AND DUTIES; TO PROVIDE FOR A FUND TO ACCEPT PUBLIC AND PRIVATE MONIES, AND PROVIDE THAT NO STATE FUNDS MAY BE USED FOR THE FINANCIAL LITERACY INITIATIVE; TO PROVIDE FOR THE FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES OF THE OFFICE IMPLEMENTING AND OPERATING THE INITIATIVE; AND TO PROVIDE THE PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING FOR A GRANT, ESTABLISH FISCAL GUIDELINES, AND EVALUATION REQUIREMENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 12-6-5060, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO DESIGNATING CONTRIBUTIONS TO CERTAIN CHARITABLE FUNDS THROUGH INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX RETURNS, SO AS TO AUTHORIZE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FINANCIAL LITERACY TRUST; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 59-29-420 AND 59-29-425, BOTH RELATING TO A FINANCIAL LITERACY FUND; AND TO PROVIDE THE INTENT.

Whereas, the General Assembly realizes that without proper financial literacy instruction, students have difficulty managing their finances on their own; and

Whereas, the General Assembly recognized the need for financial literacy instruction with the enactment of the Financial Literacy Instruction Act of 2005; and

Whereas, the members of the General Assembly now recognize that improving the financial literacy can best be accomplished with the establishment of a financial literacy initiative for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade and their teachers and schools; to build the capacity to accomplish results; and to establish efficient state accountability, data collection, and administrative systems. Now, therefore,

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

Financial Literacy Trust Act

SECTION    1.    This act may be cited as the "Financial Literacy Trust Act".

Financial Literacy Initiative Board

SECTION    2.    Article 3, Chapter 29, Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:

"Section 59-29-440.    There is established the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative, a comprehensive, results-oriented program for improving financial literacy by providing public and private funds for teachers and schools to provide high-quality financial literacy education for students in kindergarten through twelfth grade.

Section 59-29-450.    The purpose of the Financial Literacy Initiative is to develop, promote, and assist efforts of agencies, private providers, and public and private organizations and entities, at the state level, to collaborate and cooperate in order to focus and intensify services, assure the most efficient use of all available resources, and eliminate duplication of efforts to serve the financial literacy needs of students, teachers, and schools. The South Carolina Financial Literacy Board of Trustees shall assure that collaboration and the sharing and maximizing of resources are occurring before funding for the grants, as provided for in this chapter, is made available.

Section 59-29-460.    The goals for the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative are to:

(1)    provide students in kindergarten through twelfth grade with tools they will need in the real world to manage their finances;

(2)    increase comprehensive services so students have reduced risk for financial failure after high school; and

(3)    promote high quality programs that provide instruction on pertinent financial literacy issues pursuant to Section 59-29-410.

Section 59-29-470.    (A)    There is established the South Carolina Financial Literacy Board of Trustees, an eleemosynary corporation, which shall oversee the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative, a broad range of innovative financial literacy services to meet critical needs of South Carolina's students in kindergarten through twelfth grade through the awarding of grants to school districts as provided for in Section 59-29-530.

(B)    The board may accept gifts, bequests, and grants from a person or foundation. The trust and grants from the trust shall supplement and augment, but not take the place of, services provided by local, state, or federal agencies. The board of trustees shall carry out activities necessary to administer the trust including assessing service needs and gaps, soliciting proposals to address identified service needs, and establishing criteria for the awarding of grants.

Section 59-29-480.    (A)    The South Carolina Financial Literacy Board of Trustees must be chaired by the State Superintendent of Education who shall serve as an ex officio voting member of the board. The board is composed of eight voting members to be appointed by the Superintendent of Education. Initial appointments must be made by the Superintendent of Education with members representing areas of financial literacy instruction. Subsequent appointments must be made by the Superintendent of Education from a slate presented by the sitting members of the board.

(B)    The terms of the members are for four years and until their successors are appointed and qualify, except of those first appointed. When making the initial appointments, the Superintendent of Education shall designate half of his appointments to serve two-year terms only.

(C)    Vacancies for any reason must be filled in the manner of the original appointment for the unexpired term. No member shall serve more than two terms or eight years, whichever is longer. Members who miss more than three consecutive meetings without excuse or members who resign must be replaced in the same manner as their predecessor. Members may be paid per diem, mileage, and subsistence as established by the board not to exceed standards provided by law for boards, committees, and commissions. A complete report of the activities of the Financial Literacy Board of Trustees must be made annually to the General Assembly and the State Auditor.

Section 59-29-490.    To carry out its assigned functions, the board is authorized, but not limited to:

(1)    develop a comprehensive long-range initiative for improving the financial literacy of students in kindergarten through twelfth grade;

(2)    promulgate regulations, establish guidelines, policies, and procedures for implementation of the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative;

(3)    provide oversight on the implementation of the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative at the state and school district levels;

(4)    establish criteria and procedures for awarding grants from the Financial Literacy Trust;

(5)    create an annual revision of school district needs assessments and identify assets from other funding sources;

(6)    assess and develop recommendations for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of financial literacy programs and funding and other programs and funding sources, as allowable, as necessary to carry out the Financial Literacy Initiative, including additional fiscal strategies, redeployment of state resources, and development of new programs;

(7)    establish results-oriented measures and objectives and assess whether services provided are meeting the goals and achieving the results established for the Financial Literacy Initiative;

(8)    receive gifts, bequests, and devises for deposit in the Financial Literacy Trust; and

(9)    report annually to the General Assembly by January first on activities and progress to include recommendations for changes and legislative initiatives and results of program evaluations.

Section 59-29-500.    The South Carolina Financial Literacy Board of Trustees may employ, by a majority vote, a Director of the Financial Literacy Office and other staff as necessary to carry out the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative and other duties and responsibilities as assigned by the board. The director, with the approval of the board, may hire staff necessary to carry out the provisions of the initiative.

Section 59-29-510.    (A)    No state funds may be used to support or operate the Financial Literacy Initiative. This prohibition does not prevent the Department of Education from housing the offices of the Financial Literacy Initiative. A separate fund must be established to accept nongovernmental grants, gifts, and donations from a public or private source for the South Carolina Financial Literacy Trust. All funds may be carried forward from fiscal year to fiscal year. The State Treasurer shall invest the monies in the Financial Literacy Trust in the same manner as other funds under his control are invested and all interest derived from the investment of these funds shall remain in the trust. The South Carolina Financial Literacy Board of Trustees shall administer and authorize any disbursements from the trust. Private individuals and groups shall be encouraged to contribute to this endeavor.

(B)    All interest derived from the investment of the funds in subsection (A) shall remain a part of the trust.

Section 59-29-520.    Within the Department of Education, an Office of South Carolina Financial Literacy is established. The office shall:

(1)    provide to the board information on best practice, successful strategies, model programs, and financing mechanisms;

(2)    provide technical assistance and recommendations regarding grant proposals and improvement in meeting goals;

(3)    recommend to the board the applicants meeting the criteria for Financial Literacy grants to be awarded;

(4)    submit an annual report to the board by December first, which includes, but is not limited to, the statewide needs and resources available to meet the goals and purposes of the Financial Literacy Initiative, the ongoing progress and results of the Financial Literacy Initiative, fiscal information on the expenditure of funds, and recommendations and legislative proposals to further implement the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative;

(5)    provide for on-going data collection and contract for an in-depth performance audit due January 1, 2010, and every three years thereafter, to ensure that statewide goals and requirements of the Financial Literacy Initiative are being met; and

(6)    coordinate the Financial Literacy Initiative with all other state, federal, and local public and private efforts to promote and improve financial literacy.

Section 59-29-530.    (A)    To obtain a grant, a school district shall submit an application to the Financial Literacy Office in a format specified by the Financial Literacy Board of Trustees. The application shall include, as appropriate to the level of grant applied for, the level of funding requested, a description of needs of the school, assets and resources available, and the proposed strategies to address needs as they relate to the goals of the Financial Literacy Initiative.

(B)    The allocations for the grants must take into consideration the quality of the grant proposal; the percentage of students who are eligible for the free and reduced price lunch program; and average per capita income. The criteria also must take into account the standing of the geographical area in relation to the statewide Kids Count indicators.

Section 59-29-540.    Grants provided to school districts must be used to address the financial literacy needs of students in kindergarten through twelfth grade. Grant funds may not supplant current expenditures by counties or state agencies for financial literacy, and may not be used where other state or federal funding sources are available or could be made available. In awarding grants, every effort must be made to ensure that all geographic areas of the State are represented.

Section 59-29-550.    To ensure effective use of funds and with the approval of the Financial Literacy Office, awards may be carried forward and used in the following fiscal year. Funds appropriated to the Financial Literacy Trust also may be carried forward into subsequent years.

Section 59-29-560.    (A)    Schools shall demonstrate to the Financial Literacy Office the accountability of funds distributed pursuant to this chapter.

(B)    Disbursements may be made only on the written authorization of the individual designated by the school district and only for the purposes specified. A person violating this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined five thousand dollars or imprisoned for six months, or both.

(C)    The offenses of misuse, misappropriation, and embezzlement of public funds, apply to this chapter.

Section 59-29-570.    (A)    The Financial Literacy Board of Trustees shall establish internal evaluation policies and procedures for an annual review of the implementation of strategies and progress toward the interim goals and benchmarks. In instances where no progress has been made, the Financial Literacy Board shall provide targeted assistance or the board may terminate the grant. In addition, a program evaluation of the Financial Literacy Initiatives at the state and local levels must be conducted every three years by an independent, external evaluator under contract with the Financial Literacy Board of Trustees. However, the selected evaluator must be approved, and the evaluation overseen, by a committee consisting of three members, one appointed by the Financial Literacy Board, one appointed by the Chairman of the Senate Education Committee, and one appointed by the Chairman of the House Education and Public Works Committee. These committee members must be professionally recognized as proficient in accounting, finance, banking, tax, insurance, or a closely related field. The first report must be provided no later than January 1, 2010.

(B)    Grantees shall agree to participate in an evaluation in order to receive a Financial Literacy grant. Subsequent grant approval and grant allocations must be dependent, in part, on the results of the evaluations. If an evaluation finds no progress has been made in meeting goals or implementing strategies as agreed to in the grant, the grant must be terminated.

(C)    The purpose of the evaluation is to assess progress toward achieving the Financial Literacy goals and to determine the impact of the initiative on students at the state and local levels. The impact assessment shall include, but is not limited to, end-of-course evaluations and projects. During the course of the evaluation, if an evaluator determines that a state agency has failed to comply with the coordination and collaboration provisions as required in this chapter, the final report must reflect that information. Program evaluation reports must be reported to the General Assembly no later than three months after conclusion of the evaluation."

Contribution on tax return

SECTION    3.    Section 12-6-5060(A) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 161 of 2005, is further amended to read:

"(A)    Each taxpayer required to file a state individual income tax return may contribute to the War Between the States Heritage Trust Fund established pursuant to Section 51-18-115, the Nongame Wildlife and Natural Areas Program Fund established pursuant to Section 50-1-280, the Children's Trust Fund of South Carolina established pursuant to Section 20-7-5010, the Eldercare Trust Fund of South Carolina established pursuant to Section 43-21-160, or the First Steps to School Readiness Fund established pursuant to Section 20-7-9740, the South Carolina Military Family Relief Fund established pursuant to Article 3, Chapter 11 of Title 25, the Gift of Life Trust Fund of South Carolina established pursuant to Section 44-43-1310, the Veterans' Trust Fund of South Carolina established pursuant to Chapter 21 of Title 25, the South Carolina Litter Control Enforcement Program (SCLCEP) and used by the Governor's Task Force on Litter only for the SCLCEP Program, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Assistance Program (SCLEAP) and used as provided in Section 23-3-65, the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism for use in the South Carolina State Park Service in the manner the General Assembly provides, K-12 public education for use in the manner the General Assembly provides by law, South Carolina Conservation Bank Trust Fund established pursuant to Section 48-59-60, or the Financial Literacy Trust Fund as established pursuant to Section 59-29-510, by designating the contribution on the return. The contribution may be made by reducing the income tax refund or by remitting additional payment by the amount designated."

Repeal

SECTION    4.    Sections 59-29-420 and 59-29-425 of the 1976 Code are repealed.

Intent

SECTION    5.    It is the intent of the General Assembly that state agencies involved in financial matters shall actively provide nonfinancial support to the South Carolina Financial Literacy Initiative. In addition to those agencies answering directly to the Governor, those agencies headed by boards and commissions or constitutional officers shall use their resources to provide nonfinancial support, as appropriate, toward the goals of the Financial Literacy Initiative reflected in Section 59-29-460 and the long-term plans of the initiative and to assure that relevant planning documents or processes are consistent with, and supportive of financial literacy.

Time effective

SECTION    6.    This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.

Ratified the 7th day of June, 2006.

Vetoed by the Governor -- 6/13/06.

Veto overridden by House -- 6/14/06.

Veto overridden by Senate -- 6/14/06.

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This web page was last updated on Friday, December 4, 2009 at 3:51 P.M.