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TO AMEND SECTION 14-23-1040, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO QUALIFICATIONS FOR A JUDGE OF PROBATE, SO AS TO CHANGE THE QUALIFICATIONS FOR THIS OFFICE.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 14-23-1040 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Section 3, Part IV, Act 678 of 1988, is further amended to read:
"Section 14-23-1040. (A) Before January 1, 2007, No a person is not eligible to hold the office of judge of probate who is not unless the person at the time of his election a citizen of the United States and of this State, has not attained the age of twenty-one years upon his election, has not become a qualified elector of the county in which he is to be a judge, and has not received a four-year bachelor's degree from an accredited post-secondary institution or if he has received no degree he must have four years' experience as an employee in a probate judge's office in this State.:
(1) is a citizen of the United States and a resident of this State;
(2) is twenty-one years of age;
(3) is a qualified elector of the county in which he is to be a judge;
(4) has received a high school diploma or GED or, if he has no such diploma or GED, has four years' experience as a full-time probate judge or associate probate judge in a probate judge's office in this State; and
(5) has not been convicted of a felony offense or an offense involving moral turpitude under the laws of this State, any other state, or the United States.
(B) From January 1, 2007, through December 31, 2008, a person is not eligible to hold the office of judge of probate unless the person at the time of his election:
(1) is a citizen of the United States and a resident of this State;
(2) is twenty-one years of age;
(3) is a qualified elector of the county in which he is to be a judge;
(4) has obtained a degree from an accredited college or community college or, if he has no degree, has four years' experience as a full-time probate judge or associate probate judge in a probate judge's office in this State; and
(5) has not been convicted of a felony offense or an offense involving moral turpitude under the laws of this State, any other state, or the United States.
(C) After December 31, 2008, a person is not eligible to hold the office of judge of probate unless the person at the time of his election:
(1) is a citizen of the United States and a resident of this State;
(2) is twenty-one years of age;
(3) is a qualified elector of the county in which he is to be a judge;
(4) has obtained a four-year bachelor's degree from an accredited post-secondary institution or, if he has no degree, has four years' experience as a full-time probate judge or associate probate judge in a probate judge's office in this State; and
(5) has not been convicted of a felony offense or an offense involving moral turpitude under the laws of this State, any other state, or the United States.
(D) The provisions of this section do not apply to a person holding the office of probate judge as of July 1, 2005, during the person's tenure in office. Tenure in office continues at the expiration of a term if the person is reelected in a consecutive election. However, if a person qualified for the office of probate judge pursuant to the provisions of this section has a break in service for a term or a portion of a term before seeking reelection, the person must satisfy the applicable requirements of this section at the time of filing for reelection."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2005.
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