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S. 1182
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Senators Richardson, Scott, Mescher, Sheheen, Cleary, Lourie and Fair
Document Path: l:\council\bills\gjk\20875sd06.doc
Introduced in the Senate on February 23, 2006
Currently residing in the Senate Committee on Judiciary
Summary: First Responder Interoperability Act
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
Date Body Action Description with journal page number
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2/23/2006 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-3
2/23/2006 Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary SJ-3
2/24/2006 Scrivener's error corrected
2/24/2006 Senate Referred to Subcommittee: Moore (ch), Ford, Mescher,
Rankin, Scott
View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
TO AMEND TITLE 23, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO LAW ENFORCEMENT AND PUBLIC SAFETY, BY ADDING CHAPTER 50 SO AS TO ENACT THE SOUTH CAROLINA FIRST RESPONDER INTEROPERABILITY ACT WHICH PROVIDES FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A STATEWIDE 800 MHZ COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK ALLOWING STATE AND LOCAL FIRST RESPONDER PUBLIC SAFETY ENTITIES TO COMMUNICATE ACROSS A SINGLE MOBILE TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORK, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE FUNDING OF THE PALMETTO 800 NETWORK TO BE DERIVED IN PART FROM UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUNDS AND INTERIM LEC FUNDS DERIVED PURSUANT TO SECTION 58-9-280; AND TO AMEND SECTION 58-9-280, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO TELEPHONE UTILITIES AND TELECOMMUNICATION SERVICES, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION SHALL REQUIRE ALL PROVIDERS OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES, INCLUDING WIRELESS AND CABLE PROVIDERS, TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND BASED ON A FORMULA DETERMINED BY THE COMMISSION AND TO PROVIDE THAT NO MORE THAN TWENTY MILLION DOLLARS ANNUALLY IN TOTAL USF ASSESSMENTS MAY BE IMPOSED ON ALL TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE PROVIDERS SUBJECT TO THE USF IN ANY FISCAL YEAR.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Title 23 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 23-50-10. This chapter is known and may be cited as the 'South Carolina First Responder Interoperability Act.'
Section 23-50-20. The General Assembly has determined that it is in the best interest of the State of South Carolina to establish a statewide 800 MHz communications network allowing state and local law enforcement, public safety, fire, emergency medical services, and other similar first responder public safety entities to communicate across a single mobile telecommunications network. Such a network would enable first responders to effectively communicate in emergency situations such as natural disasters and acts of terrorism and coordinate their resources using the same communication frequencies. Furthermore, the establishment of such a network is necessary for adequate compliance with homeland security standards. Therefore, in furtherance of these goals, the General Assembly hereby establishes continued funding for the Palmetto 800 Network to be administered according to the State First Responder Interoperability Act.
Section 23-50-30 (A) As used in this act, the following terms shall apply:
(1) The 'advisory committee' means the statewide 800 MHz advisory committee established by the 800 MHz Trunking Contract with the chief information officer.
(2) 'Chief Information Officer' means the South Carolina Budget and Control Board, Division of the State Chief Information Officer.
(3) 'First Responder' means state, county, municipal, local, public service district, volunteer law enforcement, fire service, emergency medical service, or rescue service and governmental support agencies that are initial responders during public safety emergencies.
(4) The 'Palmetto 800 Fund' means those funds deposited with the State Treasurer in the account established pursuant to Sections 58-9-280 and 23-50-50.
(5) The 'Palmetto 800 Network' means a statewide shared radio communications network, including a trunked voice and data system and includes such other functions and features as are consistent with this act.
(6) 'Private Systems' mean those 800MHz trunked systems owned and operated by a county, municipality, or other local governmental entity of this State.
Section 23-50-40. (A) There is created the Interoperability Committee to be composed of seven members. The members of the Interoperability Committee must be appointed as follows: the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall appoint one member, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate shall appoint one member, and the Governor shall appoint one member. Ex officio members include the state's Director of Homeland Security, or his designee, the chairman and the vice chairman of the advisory committee, and the chairman of the Private 800 MHz County Systems Association. The chief information officer or his designee shall serve as a nonvoting member of the Interoperability Committee.
(B)(1) All appointed Interoperability Committee members shall be appointed for two year terms and until their successors are appointed and qualify. All ex officio members shall serve throughout the term of their qualifying office.
(2) If a vacancy arises on the Interoperability Committee, it must be filled for the remainder of the term in the manner of the original appointment.
(3) An ex officio Interoperability Committee member who ceases to hold the office which qualified him for appointment or membership shall cease immediately to be a member of the Interoperability Committee.
(4) The Interoperability Committee shall establish its own procedures with respect to the selection of officers, quorum, place, and conduct of meetings provided that all Interoperability Committee decisions must be made by a majority vote.
(5) Interoperability Committee members shall serve without compensation and shall not receive expense reimbursement or per diem payment for the performance of their duties.
(6) If the advisory committee ceases to exist because of the termination or expiration of 800 MHz trunking contract with the chief information officer or otherwise, then the chairman and vice chairman of the advisory committee shall no longer be members of the Interoperability Committee and any responsibilities related to the advisory committee as set forth in this act shall terminate.
(C) The responsibilities of the Interoperability Committee include the following:
(1) coordinate the establishment of funding for the Palmetto 800 Network in conjunction with homeland security goals and standards;
(2) have approval authority, upon recommendations from the chief information officer, for funding the operation and administration of the Palmetto 800 Network;
(3) establish and approve the proper distribution of funds deposited in the Palmetto 800 Fund including, but not limited to, assuring that Palmetto 800 Funds are first used to pay for the voice and data subscriber costs of first responders that participate in or interoperate with the Palmetto 800 Network and for the administration of the Palmetto 800 Network;
(4) approve the use of Palmetto 800 Funds to expand the coverage of the Palmetto 800 Network, improve interoperability between the Palmetto 800 Network and private systems and integrate private systems that desire to become part of the Palmetto 800 Network. When the voice and data subscriber costs for first responders that participate in or interoperate with the Palmetto 800 Network and the administrative costs of the Palmetto 800 Network have been paid for any given year, the Interoperability Committee may approve the use of available Palmetto 800 Funds to pay some portion of the voice and data subscriber costs of those state, county, municipal, or other local agencies which provide support to first responders and may approve interoperability equipment grants to local and state agencies on a fair and equitable basis;
(5) assure that equipment purchased with Palmetto 800 Funds is compatible and interoperates with the Palmetto 800 Network;
(6) require that Palmetto 800 Funds be used only to fund those services, including site and coverage configurations, that are essential to a recipient agency's responsibilities and jurisdictional boundaries, and ensure that these services conform to system management requirements;
(7) require that any entity receiving voice or data subscriber costs through the Palmetto 800 Fund include in their radio programming the mutual aid talk groups and mutual aid frequencies set forth in interoperability guidelines recommended by the advisory committee and approved by the Interoperability Committee. The Interoperability Committee may withhold payment of voice or data subscriber costs for any entity that does not abide by and conform to interoperability guidelines;
(8) take other actions as are consistent with the requirements and purposes of this act.
Section 23-50-50. The Palmetto 800 Network must be funded from the state Universal Service Fund (USF) and Interim LEC fund as provided in Section 58-9-280. Funding may also be derived from other funding as the General Assembly may appropriate or those funds as are received from grants or other sources. On or before the sixteenth day of each month, the Office of Regulatory Staff shall deposit with the State Treasurer an amount equal to the twenty-five percent of the USF collected in the preceding month, but not less than one million two hundred fifty thousand dollars each month. The State Treasurer shall hold these funds in a separate and distinct interest bearing account designated as the Palmetto 800 Fund which must be separate and distinct from the state general fund. Funds held in the account must be used for the operation of the Palmetto 800 Network as established by this act and may be carried forward from the prior fiscal year into succeeding fiscal years and used for the same purposes. Further, during its existence, the Interim LEC Funds must be used to fund the Palmetto 800 Fund to the extent the twenty--five percent USF contribution does not equal fifteen million dollars for each fiscal year so that the Palmetto 800 Fund shall receive at least fifteen million dollars each year from the USF and Interim LEC Fund with maximum funding each year not to exceed twenty million dollars from these two sources.
Section 23-50-60. (A) The chief information officer is responsible for the daily management and administration of the Palmetto 800 Network. In accordance with Section 1-11-430, and subject to the availability of Palmetto 800 Funds, the chief information officer shall award those contracts and conduct those purchases as necessary to establish, operate, and maintain the Palmetto 800 Network.
(B) The chief information officer shall submit an annual budget for its management, administrative, and other statutory responsibilities for the Palmetto 800 Network to the Interoperability Committee for approval no later than May first of each year for the succeeding fiscal year. The Interoperability Committee shall approve this budget at least thirty days before the beginning of each new fiscal year. Funding, as approved by the Interoperability Committee, must be transferred by the State Treasurer, in equal quarterly installments, to the chief information officer from the Palmetto 800 Fund established pursuant to this act. Upon request, the Interoperability Committee also shall have the authority to approve distribution of additional funds from the Palmetto 800 Fund for any nonbudgeted nonrecurring expenses incurred by the division of the chief information officer in performing its responsibilities under this act, and the State Treasurer is authorized to make this transfer upon the direction of the Interoperability Committee.
(C) The duties of the chief information officer include the following:
(1) direct the State Treasurer to distribute available Palmetto 800 Funds to the state contract vendor to pay up to one hundred percent, the percentage to be determined by the Interoperability Committee, of the voice and data subscriber costs of first responders that participate in the Palmetto 800 Network. The Interoperability Committee shall periodically review and approve those first responders receiving a percentage of their voice and data costs paid through the Palmetto 800 Fund. The Interoperability Committee may approve, at its discretion, the use of Palmetto 800 funds to pay for a percentage of the voice and data subscriber costs of those agencies that indirectly support first responders during emergency situations;
(2) direct the State Treasurer to distribute designated Palmetto 800 Funds to reimburse first responder agencies participating in private systems for purchases of equipment that supports interoperability with the Palmetto 800 Network. The designation of available Palmetto 800 Funds and all reimbursement requests must be reviewed and approved by the Interoperability Committee and must be processed in the following manner:
(a) first responder agencies participating in private systems shall certify in writing to the chief information officer no later than July first of each year the number of 800 MHz radios that the first responder agency has assigned to and that are actively used by its first responder personnel. The Interoperability Committee shall designate the amount of Palmetto 800 Funds available to reimburse a first responder agency participating in a private system by multiplying the certified number of 800 MHz radios assigned to and actively used by first responder personnel by the appropriate Palmetto 800 user fee, including any applicable discounts, established by the 800 MHz trunking contract. The determination of the appropriate Palmetto 800 user fee must be made by the Interoperability Committee in its sole discretion and must be based on the site and coverage configurations that are essential to the first responder agency's responsibilities and jurisdictional boundaries, and any system management requirements All decisions made by the Interoperability Committee pursuant to this subsection are final; and
(b) first responder agencies participating in private systems seeking reimbursement of Palmetto 800 Funds, as designated in Section 23-50-60(C)(2)(a), shall submit reimbursement requests to the chief information officer. All reimbursement requests shall include invoices detailing the 800 MHz radio equipment purchased by the agency to support interoperability with the Palmetto 800 Network and the costs of the equipment. The chief information officer shall submit the reimbursement request to the Interoperability Committee for review and approval. All decisions made by the Interoperability Committee pursuant to this subitem are final;
(3) utilize available Palmetto 800 Funds, as approved by the Interoperability Committee, to upgrade and improve coverage and enhance the Palmetto 800 Network;
(4) utilize available Palmetto 800 Funds, as approved by the Interoperability Committee, to maintain a supply of spare 800 MHz handheld radios, portable generators, communications tower systems, transmitters, support vehicles, and other accessories for use in emergencies, disasters, or special events and to support redundancy and interoperability; and
(5) exercise and perform other powers and duties as granted to it, imposed upon it by law or necessary to carry out the purposes of this act.
Section 23-50-70. The Interoperability Committee, with assistance from the chief information officer, shall submit an annual report by October thirty-first of each year to the House Ways and Means Committee and the Senate Finance Committee outlining the money disbursed from the Palmetto 800 Fund for the previous fiscal year."
SECTION 2. Section 58-9-280(E) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 6 of 2003, is further amended by adding:
"(10) The commission shall require all providers of telecommunications services, including wireless and cable providers, to contribute to the USF based on a formula determined by the commission.
(11) No more than twenty million dollars annually in total USF assessments may be imposed on all telecommunications service providers subject to the USF in any fiscal year, and the USF assessments in any year must be computed accordingly."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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