Motor Vehicle Registration, the official text

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

(A125, R144, S585)

AN ACT TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ENACTING THE "SAFEGUARDING AMERICAN FAMILIES EVERYWHERE (SAFE) ACT" BY AMENDING SECTION 56-3-115, RELATING TO DEAF OR HARD OF HEARING NOTATIONS ADDED TO MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATIONS, SO AS TO PROVIDE THE NOTATION "SAFE" MAY BE ADDED TO MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRATIONS TO INDICATE OWNERS OF VEHICLES OR OTHER PERSONS HAVE BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH CERTAIN DISABILITIES, AND TO MAKE TECHNICAL CHANGES; BY AMENDING SECTION 56-3-1910, RELATING TO LICENSE PLATES FOR HANDICAPPED PERSONS, SO AS TO REVISE THE DEFINITION OF THE TERM "HANDICAPPED" TO INCLUDE PERSONS WHO HAVE AUTISM; BY AMENDING SECTION 56-3-14950, RELATING TO THE ISSUANCE OF SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES REFLECTIVE OF MILITARY CAMPAIGN MEDALS, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE ISSUANCE OF "OPERATION INHERENT RESOLVE" SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES; AND BY AMENDING SECTION 56-3-14970, RELATING TO THE ISSUANCE OF MILITARY SERVICE SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR THE ISSUANCE OF "ARMED FORCES SURVIVING SPOUSE" SPECIAL LICENSE PLATES.

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

"Safeguarding American Families Everywhere (SAFE) Act"

SECTION 1. This act may be cited as the "Safeguarding American Families Everywhere (SAFE) Act."

Safeguarding American Families Everywhere

SECTION 2. Section 56-3-115 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

Section 56-3-115. (A) The registered owner or co-owner of a private passenger carrying automobile may voluntarily disclose to the department that he or his child or ward has been diagnosed with certain disabilities or disorders. Upon presenting an original certificate from a licensed physician as defined in Section 40-47-20 and other documentation determined necessary by the department, the department may add the notation "SAFE" to the vehicle registration to indicate that the person has been diagnosed with any of the following disabilities or disorders:

(1) deaf or hard of hearing. The application for a registration notation pursuant to this subsection must include an original certificate from a licensed physician as defined in Section 40-47-20, or a licensed audiologist as defined in Section 40-67-20, that certifies that the registered owner or his child or ward has a permanent, uncorrectable hearing loss of forty decibels or more in one or both ears;

(2) autism;

(3) attention deficit hyperactivity disorder;

(4) Down syndrome;

(5) Alzheimer's disease;

(6) traumatic brain injury;

(7) post-traumatic stress disorder;

(8) diabetes;

(9) an autoimmune disorder;

(10) blindness; or

(11) any other mentally or physically limiting disorder.

(B) The "SAFE" notation must only appear when law enforcement runs a check on the vehicle's license plate through the department's online interface to alert the officer that the driver or a passenger may have a disability or disorder contained in subsection (A). The department may not include in the vehicle registration personal identifying information of, or any diagnosis of, a person for whom a diagnosis is indicated.

(C) The department must allow a motor vehicle owner or co-owner to update a motor vehicle registration to include or remove the "SAFE" notation at any time. The child or ward may remove himself as a designee of the "SAFE" notation upon attaining the age of eighteen and submitting documentation determined necessary by the department.

(D) No cause of action may arise nor may liability be imposed against any person, government entity, or government entity officer, agent, or employee arising from any action taken by any person in reliance upon information indicated on a person's vehicle registration when the registered owner or co-owner or his child or ward, a licensed physician, or a licensed audiologist provided the information on the forms required pursuant to this section.

Handicapped defined

SECTION 3. Section 56-3-1910(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

(A) As used in this article, "handicapped" means a person who has one or more of the following conditions:

(1) an inability to ordinarily walk one hundred feet nonstop without aggravating an existing medical condition, including the increase of pain;

(2) an inability to ordinarily walk without the use of, or assistance from a brace, cane, crutch, another person, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or other assistive device;

(3) a restriction by lung disease to the extent that the person's forced expiratory volume for one second when measured by spirometry is less than one liter, or the arterial oxygen tension is less than sixty mm/hg on room air at rest;

(4) requires use of portable oxygen;

(5) a cardiac condition to the extent that the person's functional limitations are classified in severity as Class III or Class IV according to standards established by the American Heart Association. If the person's status improves to a higher level, for example as a result of bypass surgery or transplantation, he no longer meets this criteria;

(6) a substantial limitation in the ability to walk due to an arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition, for example, coordination problems and muscle spasticity due to conditions that include Parkinson's disease, cerebral palsy, or multiple sclerosis;

(7) blindness; or

(8) autism if the condition causes significant safety or mobility risks in parking environments.

Operation Inherent Resolve special license plates

SECTION 4.A. Section 56-3-14950(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

(A) The department may issue the following special license plates reflective of campaign medals for private passenger vehicles and motorcycles to active service members or prior service members who participated in the following military campaigns:

(1) World War II Veteran

(2) Pearl Harbor Survivor

(3) Normandy Invasion Survivor

(4) Korean War

(5) Vietnam War

(6) Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm

(7) Operation Iraqi Freedom

(8) Operation Enduring Freedom

(9) Operation Inherent Resolve.

B. This SECTION takes effect six months after approval of the license plate design.

Armed Forces Surviving Spouse special license plates

SECTION 5.A. Section 56-3-14970(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

(A) The department may issue the following special license plates reflective of military service for private passenger vehicles and motorcycles to active or prior service members associated with the following military components or designations:

(1) Veteran or Veteran wheelchair if the registrant qualifies for handicapped parking pursuant to Section 56-3-1910(H)

(2) Female Veteran or Female Veteran wheelchair if the registrant qualifies for handicapped parking pursuant to Section 56-3-1910(H)

(3) Combat-Related Disabled Veteran - the registrant must have a combat-related disability as evidenced by a letter from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs defining a combat and operations-related disability

(4) Army

(5) Marine Corps

(6) Navy

(7) Air Force

(8) Coast Guard

(9) US Space Force

(10) National Guard- Army

(11) National Guard- Air

(12) National Guard- Retired

(13) US Military Reserve- Army

(14) US Military Reserve- Marine Corps

(15) US Military Reserve- Navy

(16) US Military Reserve- Air Force

(17) US Military Reserve- Coast Guard

(18) US Armed Forces- Retired

(19) State Guard

(20) Armed Forces Surviving Spouse - available to the surviving spouse of a military veteran.

B. This SECTION takes effect six months after approval of the license plate design.

Time effective

SECTION 6. This act takes effect one year after approval by the Governor.

Ratified the 14th day of May, 2026.

Approved the 15th day of May, 2026.

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