H 4813

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
Bill 4813
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
(Text matches printed bills. Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)
Indicates Matter Stricken
Indicates New Matter
Committee Amendment Adopted
May 5, 2026
H. 4813
Introduced
by Reps. Pope, C. Mitchell, Robbins and Oremus
S. Printed 5/5/26--S.
Read the first time February 19, 2026
________
A bill
TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING
SECTIONS 8-21-1010 AND 8-21-1060, BOTH RELATING TO FEES AND COSTS TO BE
COLLECTED BY MAGISTRATES, BOTH SO AS TO INCREASE VARIOUS FEES AND COSTS; AND BY
AMENDING SECTION 22-3-340, RELATING TO ASSESSMENTS ON FILINGS IN MAGISTRATES
COURT, SO AS TO INCREASE THE ASSESSMENT ON SUMMONS AND COMPLAINT FILINGS AND
ALL OTHER CIVIL FILINGS.
    Amend Title To Conform
Be it enacted by the
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION
1.A.  Section 8-21-1010 of the S.C. Code is amended
to read:
    Section
8-21-1010. (A) Except as otherwise
expressly provided, the following fees and costs must be collected by the
magistrates and deposited in the general fund of the county:
       (1)
for taking civil recognizance, with or without sureties, five dollars;
       (2)
for granting an order for civil special bail, with or without sureties, five
dollars;
       (3)
for receiving and filing bond in claim and delivery, attachment, five ten dollars; if
justification of sureties required, an additional five dollars;
       (4)
for administering and certifying oaths or documents in writing, two dollars;
       (5)
for issuing any prerogative writ, five dollars;
       (6)
in all civil actions, for issuing a summons and a copy for defendant, and for
giving judgment with or without a hearing, forty-five sixty-five dollars;
       (7)
for issuing execution and renewal thereof, ten twenty dollars;
       (8)
for making up, certifying, and forwarding a transcript of record and judgment
in a case for purpose of appeal, ten dollars;
       (9)
for proceedings by a landlord or lessor against a tenant or lessee, including
notices to quit, eviction orders, or recovery of rents,
twenty forty dollars;
       (10)
for proceedings on a coroner's inquest, as prescribed by law, ten dollars, if
inquest is demanded by a party other than the State or county or authorized
officer of either;
       (11)
for proceeding on estrays, including judgment for possession, sale, or damages,
ten dollars;
       (12)
for qualifying appraisers to set off homestead or qualifying sureties on a bond
posted in a case, including bail bonds, five dollars;
       (13)
for each tax execution collected, five dollars; and
       (14)
for filing or issuing any other paper not provided for in this section, five ten dollars.
    (B)
Fees or costs may not be assessed against a party for summoning jurors or
expense of jury service in a criminal case in which a trial by jury is had.
    (C) Any increase in fees and costs
under subsection (A) which takes effect January 1, 2027, must be used to
supplement, and not supplant, existing funds utilized to provide sufficient
facilities, personnel, and security for the necessary and proper operation of
the magistrates courts in each county.
B.Section 8-21-1060 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
    Section
8-21-1060. (A) Except as otherwise expressly provided, the following
fees and costs must be collected by the magistrate or his officers and
deposited in the general fund of the county:
    (1)
for summoning a witness to magistrate court in a civil action, three dollars,
plus mileage at the current state rate;
    (2)
for summoning the jury panel to try a civil action in magistrate court, five
dollars, to be taxed against the losing party;
    (3)
for summoning a coroner's jury and witnesses, five dollars, and mileage, to be
paid only if inquest is demanded by person other than the State, county, or
authorized officer thereof;
    (4)
for serving a summons, rule, order, or notice by a magistrate in a civil
action, five twenty dollars, plus mileage;
    (5)
for serving an attachment or civil arrest on a person and making return
thereof, five dollars, plus mileage;
    (6)
for selling an estray, five percent of the sale proceeds;
    (7)
for levying execution, posting notice of sale, conducting sale, and paying over
proceeds in a magistrate court action, ten twenty dollars;
    (8)
for serving warrants, or any other criminal process, and for conveying
prisoners by order of the magistrate or other court, mileage as permitted under
Section 8-21-1040.
    (B) Any increase in fees and costs
under subsection (A) which takes effect January 1, 2027, must be used to
supplement, and not supplant, existing funds utilized to provide sufficient
facilities and personnel for the necessary and proper operation of the magistrates
courts in each county.
SECTION 2.  Section 22-3-340 of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
    Section
22-3-340.  An assessment equal to twenty-five forty dollars is imposed on all summons and complaint
filings in magistrates court and an assessment equal to ten
fifteen dollars is imposed on all other civil
filings in magistrates court, except for restraining orders. The fees must be
collected by the magistrates court and forwarded monthly to the county
treasurer and remitted in turn by the county treasurer to the State Treasurer
for allocation to the judicial department.
SECTION 3.  Section 22-2-5(A) of the S.C. Code is amended to read:
    (A) The South Carolina Court
Administration, in cooperation with the technical college system, shall select
and administer an eligibility examination to test basic skills of persons
seeking an initial appointment as magistrate on or after July 1, 2001. In
determining the persons to be recommended to the Governor for initial
appointments as magistrates on or after July 1, 2001, a senatorial delegation
must use the results of these eligibility examinations to assist in its
selection of nominees. No person is eligible to be appointed as a magistrate
unless he receives a passing score on the eligibility examination. The results
of these eligibility examinations are valid for sixeighteen months before and sixeighteen months after the time the appointment is to be
made.
SECTION 4.  This act takes effect on January 1,
2027.
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