South Carolina S 1102: Mental Health Advocacy Day

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 1102 Text of Previous Version (Apr. 01, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 1102

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 
27-48-10 SO AS TO PROVIDE DEFINTIONS FOR THE CHAPTER; BY ADDING SECTION 
27-48-20 SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A COUNTY, MUNICIPALITY, OR OTHER POLITICAL 
SUBDIVISION MAY DESIGNATE PROPERTY TO BE USED FOR NO LONGER THAN ONE YEAR FOR 
THE PURPOSES OF PUBLIC CAMPING OR SLEEPING FOR PEOPLE EXPERIENCING UNSHELTERED 
HOMELESSNESS; BY ADDING SECTION 27-48-30 SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT A RESIDENT OF 
THE COUNTY, MUNICIPALITY, POLITICAL SUBDIVISION, OR AN OWNER OF A BUSINESS 
LOCATED IN THE COUNTY, MUNICIPALITY, OR POLITICAL SUBDIVISION, OR THE ATTORNEY 
GENERAL MAY BRING A CIVIL ACTION IN ANY COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION TO 
ENFORCE THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 27-48-20.

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

SECTION 1. Title 27 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

CHAPTER 48

Authorized Temporary Shelter Sites Act

 Section 
27-48-10. (A) This act shall be 
known as the "Authorized Temporary Shelter Sites Act".

 (B) 
The purpose of this act is to provide for a county, municipality, or other 
political subdivision to establish safe, regulated, and authorized locations in 
which homeless persons can have temporary shelter. As used in this chapter:

 (1) 
"Campsite" means a regular location of public grounds designated as a 
recreational camping ground, area, or facility, that allows temporary overnight 
occupancy without a permanently fixed structure.

 (2) 
"Public camping" means to sleep upon, occupy, or otherwise use as a substitute 
for regular shelter public property not designated as a campsite.

 (3) 
"Unsheltered homeless" means those homeless persons whose primary nighttime 
residences are places not meant for human habitation, including, but not 
limited to, tents, cars, recreational vehicles, makeshift shelters, parks, 
rights-of-way, campsites, and abandoned buildings.

 Section 
27-48-20. (A) A county, 
municipality, or other political subdivision may designate property owned by 
the county, municipality, or political subdivision, within its boundaries, to 
be used for a continuous period of no longer than one year for the purposes of 
public camping or sleeping for people experiencing unsheltered homelessness. 
This designation is based on the following factors:

 (1) 
there are not sufficient open beds in homeless shelters in the county, 
municipality, or political subdivision for the unsheltered homeless population 
of the county, municipality, or political subdivision;

 (2) 
the designation would not adversely and materially affect the property value or 
safety and security of other existing residential or commercial property in the 
county, municipality, or political subdivision, and would not negatively affect 
the safety of children; and

 (3) 
the county, municipality, or political subdivision has developed a plan to 
satisfy the requirements of subsection (B).

 (B) If 
a county, municipality, or political subdivision designates public property to 
be used for public camping or sleeping for unsheltered homeless, it must 
establish and maintain minimum standards and procedures related to the 
designated property for the purposes of:

 (1) 
ensuring the safety and security of the designated property and the persons 
camping on such property;

 (2) 
assigning specific sublots, parking spots, or other locations, as applicable, 
to persons within the property;

 (3) 
maintaining a register of persons who have utilized the property and on which 
dates;

 (4) 
maintaining sanitation, which must include, at a minimum, providing access to 
clean and operable restrooms, showers, and running water;

 (5) 
facilitating access to behavioral health services, including but not limited 
to, substance abuse and mental health treatment resources;

 (6) 
prohibiting the use of unlawful substances on the designated property and 
enforcing such prohibitions; and

 (7) 
ensuring adherence to and enforcement of all federal, state, and local laws and 
regulations.

 Section 
27-48-30. (A) A resident of the 
county, municipality, or political subdivision, an owner of a business located 
in the county, municipality, or political subdivision, or the Attorney General 
may bring a civil action in any court of competent jurisdiction against any 
county, municipality, or political subdivision to enforce the requirements of 
Section 27-48-20(B).

 (B) An 
application for an injunction filed pursuant to this section must be 
accompanied by an affidavit attesting that:

 (1) 
the applicant has provided written notice of the alleged violation of Section 
27-48 20(B) to the county, municipality, or political subdivision;

 (2