South Carolina H 3174: State Work Program

Bill Text

2025-2026 Bill 3174 Text of Previous Version (Dec. 06, 2024) - South Carolina Legislature Online 

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026

Bill 3174

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 ARTICLE 
17 TO CHAPTER 13, TITLE 24 SO AS TO ESTABLISH A STATE WORK PROGRAM WITHIN THE 
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS.

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

SECTION 1. Chapter 13, Title 24 of the S.C. Code is amended by 
adding:

Article 17

State Work Program

 Section 
24-13-1710. As used in this article:

 (1) 
"Eligible inmate" means a person committed to the South Carolina Department of 
Corrections who:

 (a) 
has been convicted of a nonviolent crime; and

 (b) 
is physically able to participate in the state work program.

 (2) 
"State work program" means a program in which eligible inmates are ordered by 
the court to participate and serve not less than three years and not more than 
five in an incarceration facility and requires an inmate to work an eight-hour 
day for five days a week maintaining state and county roads and property, mow 
grass and pick up litter along state and county roads, and repair potholes 
along state and county roads.

 (3) 
"Director" means the Director of the Department of Corrections.

 Section 
24-13-1720. (A) The director, 
guided by consideration for the safety of the community and the welfare of an 
inmate, shall promulgate regulations, according to procedures set forth in the 
Administrative Procedures Act, for the state work program. The regulations must 
reflect the purpose of the program and include, but are not limited to, 
selection criteria, inmate discipline, programming and supervision, and program 
structure and administration.

 (B) 
The program may be established only at an institution classified by the 
director as a state work facility.

 (C) 
The department shall undertake studies and prepare reports periodically on the 
impact of the program and on whether the programmatic objectives are met.

 Section 
24-13-1730. (A) A court may order 
an eligible inmate be sentenced to the state work program. If an eligible 
inmate is sentenced to the state work program, he must be transferred to the 
custody of the department for evaluation.

 (B) 
The department must evaluate the inmate to determine whether the inmate is 
physically, psychologically, and emotionally able to participate in this 
program.

 (C) 
The director shall notify the court within fifteen working days if the inmate 
is physically, psychologically, or emotionally unsuitable for participation in 
the state work program. An unsuitable inmate must be returned to court for 
sentencing to another term as provided by law.

 (D) 
An applicant may not participate in the program unless he agrees to be bound by 
all of its terms and conditions and indicates this by signing the following:

 "I accept the 
foregoing program and agree to be bound by its terms and conditions. I 
understand that my participation in the program is a privilege that may be 
revoked at the sole discretion of the director. I understand that I shall 
complete the entire program successfully to obtain a certificate of earned 
eligibility upon the completion of the program, and if I do not complete the 
program successfully, for any reason, I will be returned to court for 
sentencing to another term as provided by law."

 (E) 
An inmate who has completed the state work program successfully is eligible to 
receive a certificate of earned eligibility and must be granted parole release 
if he has executed the agreement contained in subsection (D).

 (F) 
Nothing contained in this article confers upon an inmate the right to 
participate or continue to participate in the program.

 Section 
24-13-1740. (A) If an inmate 
sentenced to a state work program:

 (1) 
becomes ill and is unable to work, he will not be required to work during the 
duration of his illness. However, the inmate would not be eligible to receive 
credit towards his sentence while recovering from his illness;

 (2) 
is unable to work due to inclement weather or the facility's inability to find 
suitable work for the inmate, then the inmate would be eligible to receive 
credit towards his sentence during this period; or

 (3) 
refuses to perform assigned tasks for a period of time, he must be terminated 
from the program and resentenced by the judge who initially sentenced him to 
the state work program.

 (B) 
State work program work crews shall not consist of more than five inmates and 
must be monitored by a GPS device.

 (C) 
A Department of Corrections employee who mistreats a member of a state work 
program work crew is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be 
imprisoned for not more than two years.

 (D) 
It is unlawful for a person who is not employe