New ATV law introduced

After  suffering a session-ending defeat on Tuesday, a new version of the Chandler's Law bill was introduced in the Senate today.

Chandler's Law provides that all-terrain vehicle operators between six and 15 years old get training and wear helmets.

The new bill, introduced by Sen. Brad Hutto, D-Orangeburg, removed several provisions opponents objected to in the original legislation.

Hutto said he hoped to get the bill through the process again in the waning days of the session, but it more likely sets the bill up for consideration in the 2008 General Assembly.

This year, the so-called Chandler's Law cleared both chambers of the Legislature, as it did last year, but was vetoed by Gov. Mark Sanford. The Senate failed this week to garner the two-thirds vote needed to override the veto.

Among the changes in the newly-proposed bill are exemptions for three-wheelers and vehicles that go no faster than 20 mph. Also, there would be no arrests for violations on private property unless the infraction is observed by law enforcement. And all-terrain vehicles would not be banned from public beaches.

Minors riding ATVs won't have to wear helmets

The Senate failed Tuesday to override Gov. Mark Sanford's veto of a bill that would have required minors to wear a helmet and get training in order to ride an all terrain vehicle. The override, which would have required a two-thirds vote, fell by a 25-17 vote. "It's a shame that of all the vetoes we sustain here, the most seem to have to do with public health practices," said Sen. Phil Leventis, D-Sumter, who favored the legislation. Gov. Sanford, who said the bill would infringe upon personal freedoms he vetoed the measure, apparently put great pressure on senators to sustain his rejection. "I'm voting with the governor on this," said Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Berkeley, who told the Senate the legislation could open residents up to violations for their children riding certain toys that require their legs be on either side of the riding toy. Sanford vetoed similar legislation last year.

House rejects uniform hunting seasons

The House rejected a bill this morning creating uniform hunting season start dates across the state.

Most controversial was a proposal to start deer season on August 15. Rep. Mike Pitts, R-Laurens, said the bill would draw out-of-state hunters whose seasons begin later. More hunters, he said, would mean higher prices for S.C. hunters to lease land.

The House voted to send the bill back to committee.

Bear-hunting bill advances

Sportsmen would get an extra week to hunt black bears in South Carolina’s mountains under a bill approved by a House subcommittee.

The bill, rejected last year after complaints about animal cruelty and rowdiness from hunters, also gives sportsmen six weeks to train dogs to hunt bears in the woods on fall nights. The bill applies only to Oconee, Pickens and Greenville counties, where most of the state’s black bears live.

Representatives of the Chattooga Conservancy and an Upstate hunt club said the legislation will lead to more conflicts between bear hunters and others, such as hikers and mountain residents. But a four-member subcommittee of the House agriculture committee agreed the bill is worthwhile.
South Carolina’s bear-hunting season is now confined to the last two weeks of October. The new measure adds Dec. 17-23 for additional hunting, as well as the dog-running season from Sept. through mid-October.

The S.C. Department of Natural Resources says South Carolina has about 900 bears in the mountains, up from previous estimates showing only a few hundred. Critics of the legislation question that figure, saying the DNR’s new estimate is based on limited study.

Rep. David Hiott, R-Pickens, said he backs the bill because "bears are starting to become visible’’ across the state.