Current StatusView additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.Bill Number: 2400 Ratification Number: 139 Act Number 94 Introducing Body: House Subject: Hunting and fishing licenses, applications for numbers of motorboats and transfer of motorboat registration and certificates of title to watercraft
(A94, R139, H2400)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 50-9-10, 50-9-120, 50-9-130, AS AMENDED, 50-9-150, 50-9-170, AS AMENDED, 50-9-240, 50-9-450, 50-9-460, 50 9-470, 50-9-500, AS AMENDED, 50-9-540, 50-9-550, 50-9-560, 50-21-340, 50-21-380, AS AMENDED, AND 50-23-90, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO HUNTING AND FISHING LICENSES, APPLICATIONS FOR NUMBERS OF MOTORBOATS AND TRANSFER OF MOTORBOAT REGISTRATION AND CERTIFICATES OF TITLE TO WATERCRAFT, SO AS TO INCREASE THE FEES AND INCREASE THE FINE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATIONS OF HUNTING AND FISHING LICENSING LAWS FROM NOT LESS THAN TWENTY-FIVE DOLLARS NOR MORE THAN ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS TO NOT LESS THAN FIFTY DOLLARS NOR MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS, INCREASE THE FEE WHICH AGENTS MAY RETAIN FOR ISSUING NONRESIDENT FISHING LICENSES, ADD THE PARR HYDROELECTRIC PROJECT FISH AND GAME MANAGEMENT AREA RESERVOIRS TO THE RESERVOIRS, LAKES AND STREAMS IN WHICH PERMITS ARE REQUIRED FOR FISHING AND TO DELETE REQUIREMENTS FOR SPACES TO BE PROVIDED ON REVERSE SIDES OF CERTIFICATES OF TITLE RELATING TO SECURITY INTERESTS OF LIENHOLDERS; TO ADD SECTION 50-9-15 SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR A SPORTSMAN LICENSE AND PROVIDE A QUARTERLY REPORT BY THE WILDLIFE AND MARINE RESOURCES COMMISSION TO EACH MEMBER OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AS TO THE STATUS OF EACH COUNTY FISH AND GAME FUND AND WATERCRAFT FUND.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
Resident may obtain fishing and hunting licenses
SECTION 1. Section 50-9-10 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 50-9-10. A resident of this State may obtain, in the same manner as other fishing and hunting licenses are obtained, a combination fishing and hunting license in lieu of separate licenses for each activity. Such combined license shall grant to the licensee the same privileges as that of a statewide fishing license and a statewide hunting license. The cost of such license shall be fourteen dollars and fifty cents.
Fifty cents of such fee shall be retained by the issuing agent and the balance remitted to the South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department. One-half of such fee shall be used in the same manner as statewide fishing license revenue and the other half in the same manner as statewide revenue from hunting licenses."
Statewide license to be issued
SECTION 2. Section 50-9-120 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 50-9-120. (1) For the privilege of hunting throughout the State by a resident of the State, a state-wide license shall be issued for a fee of nine dollars and fifty cents, of which amount fifty cents shall be retained by the issuing agent.
(2) For the privilege of hunting only in the county of which the hunter is a resident, a county license shall be issued upon payment of a fee of three dollars and fifty cents, of which amount fifty cents shall be retained by the issuing agent. No holder of a county license only shall hunt in any county of which he is not a resident."
License fee
SECTION 3. Section 50-9-130 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 216 of 1977 is further amended by striking on line two "forty-two" and inserting "forty-six". When further amended the section shall read:
"Section 50-9-130. Every nonresident of the State shall pay a hunter's license fee of (1) forty-six and one-half dollars for the privilege of hunting in the State during any one season, two dollars of which shall be retained by the issuing agent;
(2) twenty-two dollars for a ten-day temporary license, two dollars of which shall be retained by the issuing agent;
(3) twelve dollars and fifty cents for a three-day temporary license, fifty cents of which shall be retained by the issuing agent. Any type temporary license shall be valid for a period of either ten or three specified consecutive days as indicated on the license and the ten-day temporary license may be purchased only once a season by a single individual. Any person convicted of a violation of this section shall be punished as provided in Section 50-9-250."
Department to promulgate regulations
SECTION 4. Section 50-9-150 of the 1976 Code is amended by striking on line five "five" and inserting "ten" and by striking on line six "twenty" and inserting "twenty-five". When amended the section shall read:
"Section 50-9-150. The South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department shall promulgate regulations requiring each person above the age of fourteen years who hunts on game management areas to purchase a permit. The annual cost of such permits shall be not more than ten dollars and twenty-five cents for state residents and not more than twenty-five dollars and twenty-five cents for non-residents, and the permit shall be valid for the year in which issued. Twenty-five cents of the permit cost shall be retained by the issuing agent and the balance paid to the Department. The funds so derived by the Department shall be retained and used exclusively for the procurement of such areas by rent, purchase or lease and the management thereof. Provided, however, that the number of nonresident permits sold during a particular year shall not exceed the ratio of the number of nonresident permits sold for the previous year versus all permits sold to both residents and nonresidents for the previous year times the total number of permits sold in the previous year to both residents and nonresidents."
Penalty
SECTION 5. Section 50-9-170 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 65 of 1979, is further amended by striking on line four "twenty-five" and inserting "fifty". The section when amended shall read:
"Section 50-9-170. No person shall postdate or after any license issued by the Department. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or imprisoned not to exceed thirty days."
Penalty
SECTION 6. Section 50-9-240 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 50-9-240. Any resident of the State who violates any of the provisions of Sections 50-9-190, 50-9-210 or 50-9-15 shall upon conviction, be fined not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or be imprisoned not more than thirty days."
License fee
SECTION 7. Section 50-9-450 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 50-9-450. The license fee for residents of this State for fishing by use of manufactured tackle, equipment or artificial bait other than hook and line, shall be seven dollars and fifty cents. Such license shall entitle the holder to fish in any of the fresh waters of this State without purchasing any other license or permit. Such license shall be obtained from the Wildlife and Marine Resources Department or its agents. Fifty cents of such fee shall be retailed by the agent issuing the license and the remaining portion of the proceeds of the sale of the license shall be remitted to the South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department for use only for the rearing, protection, propagation and distribution of fish and game and the enforcement of the laws pertaining thereto, including salaries of enforcement and administrative personnel of the Department and the publicity and dissemination of such information, facts and findings as the Department may deem wise. Provided, that residents of this State may purchase a temporary license to permit them to fish for fourteen consecutive days for a fee of three dollars and twenty-five cents, the sales agent retaining twenty-five cents of the fee and the remaining proceeds remitted to the Department to be used as above provided."
Nonresident fishing license
SECTION 8. Section 50-9-460 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 50-9-460. All nonresidents of this State, before fishing for game or other fish in any manner in the inland streams or waters of this State, shall first procure a nonresident fishing license, the fee for which shall be twenty dollars and fifty cents, fifty cents of which shall be retained by the issuing agent. The license shall be in form and design as designated by the Director and shall be carried upon the person of the licensee at all times when fishing. It shall be unlawful for the licensee, the selling agent or any other person to alter or to change the date or to back date any license. Upon violation of this section the license shall immediately be forfeited to the State. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or be imprisoned for a period not exceeding thirty days for each and every offense. All proceeds from the sale of nonresident fishing licenses and from fines and forfeitures from convictions of violations of this section shall be credited to the county game fund of any county in which the licenses are sold and the funds shall be expended in the respective counties for the purposes of propagation of fish and game, for the promotion and conservation of wildlife resources, and for the enforcement of game laws."
Temporary nonresident license
SECTION 9. Section 50-9-470 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 50-9-470. In lieu of obtaining a regular annual nonresident fishing license provided for by Section 50-9-460, a nonresident of this State may procure a temporary nonresident license for the purpose of fishing for game fish or other fish in this State. Such temporary license shall authorize the licensee thereof to fish in any of the waters of this State for a period of ten specified consecutive days, in accordance with other regulations provided by law, and such license shall be valid for the period so specified. The fee for such license shall be seven dollars and fifty cents. Of this amount fifty cents shall be retained by the agent selling a license and seven dollars shall be remitted by such agent to the Division of Game and by it deposited in the State Treasury in the game protection fund. The Director of the Division of Game shall, at the end of each calendar year, credit the Santee-Cooper funds with an amount equal to the sum collected during the calendar year 1956 from the temporary license then in effect for these waters; provided, however, that should there be a general decline in revenue from all sources of the Division of Game, the amount credited may be reduced by the same percent of such decline."
Special fishing permit
SECTION 10. Section 50-9-500 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 99 of 1979, is further amended to read:
"Section 50-9-500. It shall be unlawful for any resident of the State to fish in any of the waters of this State described in this section with nonmanufactured tackle or natural bait unless he has first obtained a special 'reservoirs, lakes and streams fresh water permit'; provided, however, that no person licensed under the provisions of Sections 50-9-450, 50-9-10 or 50-9-15 shall be required to purchase a permit.
Such permits shall be obtained from the Wildlife and Marine Resources Department at a fee of one dollar and seventy-five cents. Fifty cents of such fee shall be retained by the agent issuing the permit and the remaining portion of the proceeds of the sale of the permit shall be remitted to the Department and held in a separate fund for use in the protection and propagation of game and fish within the waters described herein in the counties adjacent thereto. The provisions of this section shall apply to the following bodies of water within this State:
(1) The waters or backwaters of the Catawba and Wateree Rivers within Chester, Fairfield, Kershaw and Lancaster Counties, except waters lying more than one hundred yards south of the Wateree Dam in Kershaw County;
(2) Lake Marion;
(3) Lake Moultrie, the Diversion Canal and the Tail Canal;
(4) Lake Murray;
(5) All of the waters of the Savannah River between the Stevens Creek Dam and the highway bridge between Calhoun Falls, South Carolina, and Elberton, Georgia, including the waters impounded between Stevens Creek Dam and Clark Hill Dam;
(6) Keowee-Toxaway Lake in Oconee and Pickens Counties;
(7) Lake Jocassee;
(8) Lake Greenwood;
(9) Hartwell Reservoir;
(10) Lake Wiley;
(11) The Parr Hydroelectric Project Fish and Game Management Area:
(a) Parr Reservoir
(b) Monticello Reservoir
(c) Monticello Reservoir Sub-Impoundment.
Provided, that the provisions of this section shall not affect in any way any reciprocal agreement with the State of Georgia as to recognition of residents' fishing licenses or permits. Any person exempt from licensing requirements under Article 9 of this chapter shall be exempt from the requirement to purchase a permit as provided in this section. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be punished by a fine of not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars, or by imprisonment for not more than thirty days."
Penalty
SECTION 11. Section 50-9-540 of the 1976 Code is amended by striking on line four "twenty-five" and inserting "fifty" and by striking "one" and inserting "two". The section when amended shall read:
"Section 50-9-540. Any person violating any provision of Sections 50-9410, 50-9-450 or 50-9-530 unless otherwise provided by law shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined at least fifty dollars but not more than two hundred dollars or imprisoned for at least ten days but not more than thirty days."
Penalty
SECTION 12. Section 50-9-550 of the 1976 Code is amended by striking on line three "twenty-five" and inserting "fifty" and striking 'one" and inserting "two". The section when amended shall read:
"Section 50-9-550. Anyone convicted of violating any of the provisions of Sections 50-9-420 and 50-9-510 shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than fifty dollars nor more than two hundred dollars or to serve not less than ten days nor more than thirty days."
Penalty
SECTION 13. Section 50-9-560 of the 1976 Code is amended by striking on line three "twenty-five" and inserting "fifty" and by striking "one" and inserting "two". The section when amended shall read:
"Section 50-9-560. Any person violating the provisions of Sections 50-9-470 and 50-9-480 shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than fifty dollars, nor more than two hundred dollars, or by imprisonment for a period not exceeding thirty days."
Applications for numbering of motor boat
SECTION 14. Section 50-21-340 of the 1976 Code is amended by striking on line four "five" and inserting "ten". The section when amended shall read:
"SECTION 50-21-340. The owner of each motorboat requiring numbering by this chapter shall file an application for a number with the Division on forms approved by it. The application shall be signed by the owner of the motorboat and shall be accompanied by a fee of ten dollars. Upon receipt of the application in approved form, the Division shall enter the same upon the records of its office and issue to the applicant a certificate of member stating the number awarded to the motorboat and the name and address of the owner. The certificate of number shall be pocket size.
Application for transfer of registration
SECTION 15. Section 50-21-380 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 66 of 1979, is further amended by striking on line three "two" and inserting "three". The section when amended shall read:
"Section 50-21-380. Should the ownership of a motorboat change, the purchaser shall file an application for transfer of registration, together with the payment of a fee of three dollars, and a certificate of transfer shall be awarded. Such application for transfer shall be made by the purchaser within twenty days from date of purchase. The purchaser may operate the motorboat for a period of thirty days while the transfer of registration is being completed and may prove his ownership by producing the bill of sale or cow during such thirty-day period."
Sportsman license
SECTION 16. The 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 50-9-15. A resident of this State may obtain, in the same manner as other fishing and hunting licenses are obtained, a sportsman license in lieu of separate licenses for statewide fishing, statewide hunting and hunting on game management areas. The cost of such license shall be twenty-two dollars and fifty cents.
Fifty cents of such fee shall be retained by the issuing agent and the balance remitted to the South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Department."
Commission to file quarterly report
SECTION 16A. The South Carolina Wildlife and Marine Resources Commission shall file a quarterly report to each member of the General Assembly explaining the status of each county fish and game fund and watercraft fund, to include total funds for each county and an itemized list of expenditures for the past quarter.
Certificates of title, form
SECTION 17. Item 6 of subsection (a) of Section 50-23-90 of the 1976 Code is amended by striking beginning on line five "Spaces shall also be provided on the reverse side of the certificate for application for title by a new owner subject to the security interests of any lienholders as are named and for the assignment or release of the security interest of a lienholder". When amended the item shall read:
"(6) On the reverse side of the certificate, spaces for assignment of title by the owner or by the dealer and for a warranty that the signer is the owner and that there are no mortgages, liens or encumbrances on the watercraft or outboard motor except as are noted on the face of the certificate of title; and".
Time effective
SECTION 18. This act shall take effect upon approval by the Governor.