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Bill 1082

                    Current Status

Bill Number:                      1082
Type of Legislation:              General Bill GB
Introducing Body:                 Senate
Introduced Date:                  20000127
Primary Sponsor:                  Thomas
All Sponsors:                     Thomas
Drafted Document Number:          l:\council\bills\ggs\22461cm00.doc
Residing Body:                    Senate
Current Committee:                Corrections and Penology Committee 03 SCP
Subject:                          Inmates, work wages, repayment procedure 
                                  revised regarding costs required to repay; 
                                  Prisons and Prisoners


                        History

Body    Date      Action Description                     Com     Leg Involved
______  ________  ______________________________________ _______ ____________
Senate  20000127  Introduced, read first time,           03 SCP
                  referred to Committee


              Versions of This Bill

TO AMEND SECTION 24-13-80, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO CERTAIN DEDUCTIONS THAT CAN BE MADE FROM MONEY CREDITED TO AN INMATE'S ACCOUNT TO REPAY CERTAIN COSTS INCURRED DURING HIS INCARCERATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE COSTS INCURRED BY A MUNICIPALITY OR COUNTY F0R AN INMATE'S ELECTIVE MEDICAL TREATMENT MAY BE COLLECTED BY AN ADMINISTRATOR OR DIRECTOR DURING ANY PERIOD OF AN INMATE'S INCARCERATION, TO PROVIDE THAT AN INMATE'S ACCOUNT CAN BE CREDITED TO REPAY CERTAIN COSTS OF ANY OTHER PROGRAMS OR SERVICES THAT ARE VOLUNTARILY OFFERED BY A MUNICIPALITY OR COUNTY TO AN INMATE, AND TO DELETE THE PROVISION THAT REQUIRES THAT ALL SUMS COLLECTED FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT MUST BE REIMBURSED TO THE INMATE IF THE INMATE IS ACQUITTED OR EXONERATED OF ALL CHARGES FOR WHICH HE IS HELD.

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

SECTION 1. Section 24-13-80 of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Section 44, Part II, Act 7 of 1995, is further amended to read:

"Section 24-13-80. (A) As used in this section:

(1) 'Detention facility' means a municipal or county jail or state correctional facility used for the detention of persons charged with or convicted of a felony, misdemeanor, municipal offense, or violation of a court order.

(2) 'Inmate' means a person who is detained in a detention facility by reason of being charged with or convicted of a felony, a misdemeanor, a municipal offense, or violation of a court order.

(3) 'Medical treatment' means each visit initiated by the inmate to an institutional physician, physician's extender including a physician's assistant or a nurse practitioner, dentist, optometrist, or psychiatrist for examination or treatment.

(4) 'Administrator' means the county administrator, city administrator, or the chief administrative officer of a county or municipality.

(5) 'Director' means the agency head of the Department of Corrections.

(B) The administrator or director, whichever is appropriate, may establish, by rules, criteria for a reasonable deduction from money credited to the account of an inmate to:

(1) repay the costs of:

(a) public property wilfully damaged or destroyed by the inmate during his incarceration;

(b) medical treatment for injuries inflicted by the inmate upon himself or others;

(c) searching for and apprehending the inmate when he escapes or attempts to escape. The costs must be limited to those extraordinary costs incurred as a consequence of the escape; or

(d) quelling a riot or other disturbance in which the inmate is unlawfully involved;

(2) defray the costs paid by a municipality or county for elective medical treatment for an inmate, which has been requested by him, if the deduction does not exceed five dollars for each occurrence of treatment received by the inmate at the inmate's request. If the balance in an inmate's account is five dollars or less, the fee must not be charged. This fee may be collected during any subsequent period of an inmate's incarceration. This item does not apply to medical costs incurred as a result of injuries sustained by an inmate or other medically necessary treatment for which that inmate is determined not to be responsible.

(3) repay any other programs or services that are voluntarily offered by a municipality or county to an inmate, the ongoing costs of which would be borne by the detention facility if funds are available in the inmate's account.

(C) All sums collected for medical treatment must be reimbursed to the inmate if the inmate is acquitted or otherwise exonerated of all charges for which the inmate was being held.

(D)(C) The detention facility may initiate an action for collection of recovery of medical costs incurred pursuant to this section against an inmate upon his release or his estate if the inmate was executed or died while in the custody of the detention facility.

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

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