South Carolina S 695: Commissioners of Public Works in municipalities

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 695 Text of Previous Version (May. 08, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 695

Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter

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

Amended

May 7, 2026

S. 695

Introduced 
by Senators Young, Graham, Devine, Walker and Sutton 

S. Printed 5/7/26--H. [SEC 
5/8/2026 1:36 PM]

Read the first time February 11, 2026

________

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS SO AS TO ENACT 
THE "SOUTH CAROLINA SAFEGUARDING AMERICAN VETERANS' BENEFITS ACT"; AND BY 
ADDING ARTICLE 8 TO CHAPTER 11, TITLE 25, SO AS TO PROVIDE DEFINITIONS, SET 
GUIDELINES AND LIMITS FOR COMPENSATION, MEMORIALIZE TERMS, AND STATE PENALTIES 
FOR NONCOMPLIANCE.

 Amend Title To Conform

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

SECTION 1. This act may be cited as the "South Carolina Safeguarding American 
Veterans' Benefits Act".

SECTION 2. Chapter 11, Title 25 of the S.C. Code is amended by 
adding:

Article 8

 Section 
25-11-810. For the purposes of this article:

 (1) 
"Claim" means any application for any benefits administered by the United 
States Department of Veterans Affairs, the United States Department of Defense, 
or the United States Department of Homeland Security, and includes any 
associated appeals regarding such benefits.

 (2) 
"Compensation" means payment of money, a thing of value, or a financial 
benefit.

 (3) 
"Person" means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, 
partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, public 
corporation, government, governmental subdivision, agency, instrumentality, or 
any other legal or commercial entity.

 (4) 
"Veterans' benefits matter" means the preparation, presentation, or prosecution 
of a claim affecting an individual who has filed or expressed an intent to file 
a claim for benefits, to include any program, service, commodity, function, or 
status, administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, the 
United States Department of Defense, or the United States Department of 
Homeland Security pertaining to veterans, their dependents, their survivors, 
and any other individual eligible for such benefits.

 (5) 
"Claimant" means the veteran or the surviving spouse, dependent children, 
dependent parents, fiduciary, or legal representative of the veteran who is 
applying for, or submitting a claim for, any benefit under this Article.

 Section 
25-11-820. (A) No person shall 
receive compensation for preparing, advising, presenting, or prosecuting a 
claim for any individual regarding any veterans' benefits matter, except as 
permitted under federal law.

 (B) 
No person shall receive compensation for referring any individual to another 
person for preparing, advising, presenting, or prosecuting a claim for the 
individual with any veterans' benefits matter. This subsection does not apply 
to licensed attorneys representing an individual regarding veterans' benefits 
under a joint contract of representation that complies with the South Carolina 
Rules of Professional Conduct.

 (C) 
No person shall guarantee, either directly or by implication, that any 
individual is certain to receive specific veterans' benefits, or that any 
individual is certain to receive a specific level, percentage, or amount of 
veterans' benefits.

 (D) No 
person may charge an upfront fee or non-refundable fee. A person seeking to 
receive compensation for advising, assisting, or consulting with any veterans' 
benefits matter, before rendering any services, shall memorialize the specific 
terms that specify that the amount to be paid must be determined in a written 
agreement signed by both parties. Compensation must be capped at a one-time fee 
that is contingent upon an increase in benefits awarded and shall not exceed 
five times the amount of the monthly increase in benefits awarded based on the 
claim or twelve thousand five hundred dollars, whichever is the lesser amount. 
Any installment payment plan agreed upon by the parties must be interest free, 
not to exceed twelve months.

 (E) 
No person may receive any compensation for any services rendered in connection 
with any claim filed within the one year presumptive period of active-duty 
release, unless the veteran acknowledges by signing a waiver that he is within 
this period and choosing to deny free services available to him. 

 (F) 
Any person advising, assisting, or consulting on veterans' benefits matters for 
compensation must provide the following disclosure at the outset of the 
business relationship:

"This business is not 
sponsored by, or affiliated with, the United States Department of Veterans 
Affairs or the South Carolina Department of Veterans' Affairs, or any other 
federally chartered veterans' service organization. Other organizations 
including, but not limit