Panel advances bill to increase penalties for driving without a license; ‘curing’ provision remains

The Senate Transportation Committee voted to give a favorable report to S59, a bill that increases penalties for driving without a license in South Carolina, after a subcommittee presentation and committee discussion on enforcement and the interaction of multiple statutes.

Subcommittee Chairman Greg Embry summarized changes proposed in S59, which the committee advanced to the Senate calendar pending further review. Embry said the bill would raise the first-offense penalty from a $50 fine to $300 and increase penalties for second and subsequent offenses; he described the proposed second-offense penalty as $600 or 45 to 60 days (or both) and said third-and-subsequent penalties would include longer confinement (the transcript record for the exact third-offense fine figure is unclear). Embry also described an operative practice in state law: if a person charged obtains a valid license before their court date and produces it in court, the charge is dismissed.

Committee members questioned whether that “get-out-of-court” practice — which some senators described as a generous cure — should apply after repeated offenses. "Should there be any consideration that if the first time’s a mistake … on the second and third offenses, it's no longer a mistake?" asked the senator identified in the transcript as the senator from Florence.

Major Sean Stankus of the Highway Patrol clarified that two different statutes address different conduct: the statute for an unlicensed driver (cited in the transcript as “56 120”) addresses people who do not hold a license; a separate statute (cited as “56 1190” or similar in the transcript) governs failure to have a license in possession. Stankus and other senators explained that for some possession-related charges, a driver must show they were licensed at the time of the stop to obtain dismissal, while other statutes allow curing by obtaining a license before court.

Committee procedure: after discussion, members moved, seconded and approved a motion for a favorable report; the chair announced, “the ayes have it.” Members directed staff and interested senators to continue discussions, including consulting the Highway Patrol and considering potential floor amendments that would adjust the cure rules or jurisdictional language.

Ending: Senators flagged related enforcement topics (uninsured motorists, use of tag-reader technology) for follow-up; the committee will address those separately.