South Carolina H 3393: Littering, civil offense

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 3393 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 06, 2024) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 3393

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

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

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY ADDING SECTION 
16-11-705 SO AS TO ESTABLISH A CIVIL OFFENSE FOR LITTERING; AND BY AMENDING 
SECTION 16-11-700, RELATING TO DUMPING LITTER ON PRIVATE OR PUBLIC PROPERTY, SO 
AS TO REVISE THE PENALTIES FOR LITTERING OFFENSES.

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

SECTION 1. Article 7, Chapter 11, Title 16 of the S.C. Code is 
amended by adding:

 Section 
16-11-705. (A) A local law enforcement 
agency may issue a civil penalty citation to the registered owner of a vehicle 
from which litter is unlawfully discarded or disposed of in violation of any 
provision of Section 16-11-700 when the offense is not committed in the 
presence of a law enforcement officer.

 (B) A 
person may be found guilty and held liable for the civil offense of littering 
under this section if it is established by a preponderance of the evidence that 
the person littered in violation of any provision of Section 16-11-700. A 
violation may be based in whole or in part on eyewitness evidence and 
information submitted to the local law enforcement agency.

 (C) 
When litter is improperly discarded or disposed of from a motor vehicle, there 
is a rebuttable presumption that the registered owner of the vehicle is the 
person who committed the offense in violation of this section.

 (D) A 
mandatory civil penalty in the amount of fifty dollars must be assessed and 
collected for a violation of this section.

 (E) A 
civil penalty citation issued pursuant to this section must:

 (1) 
be sent via first class mail to the registered owner of the vehicle at the 
address provided by the Department of Motor Vehicles;

 (2) 
notify the registered owner of the vehicle that within thirty days of receipt 
the owner must either pay the fine or challenge the citation; and

 (3) 
notify the registered owner of the manner in which the citation may be 
challenged, in which case a hearing must be scheduled before the appropriate 
magistrate or municipal court.

 (F) 
Magistrates and municipal courts have exclusive jurisdiction to try violations 
of this section.

 (G) 
Funds collected under this section must be remitted or used in the manner 
provided in Section 16 11 700 for fines and fees from criminal littering 
provisions.

 (H) A 
person may not be held liable for the civil offense of littering pursuant to 
the provisions of this section if the person is convicted of littering in 
violation of any provision of Section 16-11-700 for the same incident.

SECTION 2. Section 16-11-700(C), (D), and (E) of the S.C. Code is 
amended to read:

 (C) A person who violates the provisions of 
this section in an amount not more than fifteen pounds, including cigarette 
butts and cigarette components, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon 
conviction, must be fined not less than twenty-fiveseventy-five dollars and not more than one hundred and fifty dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty 
days. In addition to the fine or term of imprisonment, the court also must 
impose eight hours of litter-gathering labor or other form of community 
service.

 (D) 
The fine for a deposit of a collection of litter or garbage in an amount not 
more than fifteen pounds in an area or facility not intended for public deposit 
of litter or garbage is not less than fifty one hundred dollars and not more than one two hundred and fifty dollars. The provisions of this subsection 
apply to a deposit of litter or solid waste, as defined by Section 44-96-40(2), 
(6), (32), (33), (43), (46), (73), and (74), including cigarette butts and 
cigarette components, in an area or facility not intended for public deposit of 
litter or garbage. This subsection does not prohibit a private property owner 
from depositing litter or garbage as a property enhancement if the depositing 
does not violate applicable local or state health and safety regulations. In 
addition to a fine and for each offense pursuant to the provisions of this 
subsection, the court also shall impose a minimum of sixteen hours of 
litter-gathering labor or other form of community service.

 (1) 
The court, instead of payment of the monetary fine imposed for a violation of 
this section, may direct the substitution of additional litter-gathering labor 
or other form of community service.

 (2) 
In addition to other punishment authorized by this section, in the discretion 
of the court in which conviction is obtained, the person may be directed by the 
judge to pick up and remove from any public place or any private property, with 
prior permission of the legal owner of the property upon which it is 
established by competent evidence