By: Josh Stephens, APA South Carolina Director-At-Large and Legislative Liaison
The 2015-2016 Legislative Session 121 has come to a close. Bills were passed while others languish in the legislative process, vetoes were issued and overridden and a budget was adopted. Six bills that were adopted have been identified as being of interest to APA South Carolina members. The bills have been compiled here. There is one bill that needs to specifically mentioned. H 3972 “Clarifies that a Land Use Plan is not Required to Execute or Record a Deed.” It is recommended that each jurisdiction asses how this bill may or may not impact existing policies and procedures.
Though the Legislative Session has ended, the next one is right around the corner. APA South Carolina leadership is going to make a concerted effort to ensure APA South Carolina and the priorities of its members are part of legislative/policy discussions. Please reach out to me at jstephens@oconeesc.com if you have ideas, suggestions or topics of interests as they relate to APA South Carolina’s legislative stance and activities.
Also, I would like to encourage you to attend one of MASC’s Regional Advocacy days. There are a number of upcoming meetings which represent an opportunity for APA South Carolina to let its presence be known, support our MASC partners and make new friends. I plan on attending the event in the Appalachian COG region on 9/7. Locations and meeting days can be found here: http://www.masc.sc/advocacy-legislation/get-involved/regional-advocacy-meetings.
