(A)(1) There is established a Small Business Regulatory Review Committee within the South Carolina Department of Commerce. For purposes of this article, "committee" is the Small Business Regulatory Review Committee and "department" is the South Carolina Department of Commerce.

(2) The duties of the committee, in determining if a proposed permanent regulation has a significant adverse impact on small businesses, are to:

(a) direct the promulgating agency to prepare the regulatory flexibility analysis described in Section 1-23-270(C)(2) no later than the end of the public comment period that follows the notice of proposed regulation, as provided in Section 1-23-110(A)(3); and

(b) request, at the committee's discretion, the Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office to prepare a final assessment report, as provided in Section 1-23-115(B), of the proposed permanent regulation no later than the end of the public comment period that follows the notice of proposed regulation, as provided in Section 1-23-110(A)(3). The committee may request a final assessment report from the Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office only in cases where the committee determines that information in addition to the agency's economic impact as provided in Section 1-23-270(C)(1) is critical in the committee's determination that a proposed permanent regulation has a significant adverse impact on small business. The Revenue and Fiscal Affairs Office:

(i) within the review and comment period, shall perform a final assessment report of the regulation on small businesses within sixty days of a request for assessment by the committee, and the promulgating agency has sixty days to complete a regulatory flexibility analysis; and

(ii) may request additional information from the agency. The sixty-day final assessment report deadline must be tolled until the time that the Office of Research and Statistics receives the requested additional information. The one-year deadline for submission of regulations to the General Assembly as provided in Section 1-23-120(A) also must be tolled until the time that both analyses are prepared and presented to the committee; and

(c) submit to the promulgating agency, no later than thirty days after receipt of the regulatory flexibility analysis prepared by the promulgating agency and, if requested by the committee, after receipt of the final assessment report prepared by the Office of Research and Statistics, a written statement advising the agency that a proposed permanent regulation has a significant adverse impact on small business.

(3) This subsection does not limit the committee's ability to petition a state agency to amend, revise, or revoke an existing regulation.

(4) Staff support for the committee must be provided by the department. The department shall act only as a coordinator for the committee, and may not provide legal counsel for the committee.

(B) The committee shall consist of eleven members, appointed as follows:

(1) five members to be appointed by the Governor;

(2) three members to be appointed by the President of the Senate; and

(3) three members to be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

(C) In addition, the Chairman of the Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee of the South Carolina Senate and the Chairman of the Labor, Commerce and Industry Committee of the South Carolina House of Representatives, or their designees, shall serve as nonvoting, ex officio members of the committee. During the committee review process, the director or his designee, of the promulgating agency shall be available at the request of the committee for comment on the proposed regulation.

(D) Appointments to the committee must be representative of a variety of small businesses in this State. All appointed members shall be either current or former owners or officers of a small business.

(E) The initial appointments to the committee must be made within sixty days from the effective date of this act. The department shall provide the name and address of each appointee to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Chairmen of the House and Senate Labor, Commerce and Industry Committees.

(F)(1) Members initially appointed to the committee shall serve for terms ending December 31, 2005. Thereafter, appointed members shall serve two-year terms that expire on December thirty-first of the second year.

(2) The Governor shall appoint the initial chairman of the committee from the appointed members for a term ending December 31, 2006, and shall appoint subsequent chairs of the committee from the appointed members for two-year terms that expire on December thirty-first of the second year.

(3) The committee shall meet as determined by its chairman.

(4) A majority of the voting members of the committee constitutes a quorum to do business. The concurrence of a majority of the members of the committee present and voting is necessary for an action of the committee to be valid.

(5) An appointed committee member may not serve more than three consecutive terms.

HISTORY: 2004 Act No. 231, Section 2, eff January 1, 2005; 2019 Act No. 1 (S.2), Sections 7, 8, eff January 31, 2019.

Code Commissioner's Note

At the direction of the Code Commissioner, the reference in subparagraph (A)(2)(a) was changed from "1-23-270(C)(1)" to "1-23-270(C)(2)".

At the direction of the Code Commissioner, references in this section to the offices of the former State Budget and Control Board, Office of the Governor, or other agencies, were changed to reflect the transfer of them to the Department of Administration or other entities, pursuant to the directive of the South Carolina Restructuring Act, 2014 Act No. 121, Section 5(D)(1).

Effect of Amendment

2019 Act No. 1, Section 7, in (B)(2), substituted "President of the Senate" for "President Pro Tempore of the Senate".

2019 Act No. 1, Section 8, in (E), in the second sentence, substituted "President of the Senate" for "President Pro Tempore of the Senate".