Section effective January 1, 2026.

1. (1) "Personal contact information" means the home address, personal cellular telephone number, or property tax map number, if applicable, of the eligible requesting party.
2. (2) "Eligible requesting party" means an active or former law enforcement officer who has filed a formal request under the provisions of this article.
3. (3) "Law enforcement officer" means an active or former federal, state, or local certified law enforcement officer or corrections officer.
4. (4) "Disclosed records" means records accessible by a database or an image of an official record, that are placed on a publicly available internet website maintained by or operated on behalf of a state or local government agency. Disclosed records for the purpose of this article do not include records available for purchase or through an account, by registration or subscription, from a state or local government agency.

For the purposes of this article:

HISTORY: 2023 Act No. 56 (S.252), SECTION 1, eff July 1, 2025; 2025 Act No. 4 (S.126), SECTION 1, eff January 1, 2026.

Editor's Note

2024 Act No. 220 SECTION 1, provides as follows:

"SECTION 1. The effective date of Act No. 56 of 2023, which enacted the 'Law Enforcement and Personal Privacy Protection Act' and the 'Judicial Privacy Protection Act', is delayed from July 1, 2024, until July 1, 2025."

2025 Act No. 4, SECTION 3, provides as follows:

"SECTION 3. The effective date of Act 56 of 2023, which enacted the 'Law Enforcement Personal Privacy Protection Act' and the 'Judicial Personal Privacy Protection Act,' is delayed from July 1, 2025, until January 1, 2026."

2025 Act No. 4, SECTION 4, provides as follows:

"SECTION 4. The Office of Court Administration and the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy shall collaborate to create the designated form for law enforcement officers and for judges to use to request a state or local government agency restrict public access to personal contact information in disclosed records. The form shall include a disclaimer to inform the requesting party the request is specific to the state or local government agency and will not be provided to other entities or apply to changes in personal contact information. The form must contain fields for the following:

"(1) the requesting party's personal information including, but not limited to, legal name, date of birth, home address, driver's license information, personal email address, and where applicable, tax map numbers;

"(2) the dates of service and status of service;

"(3) the location of personal contact information in disclosed records by instrument number, book and page number of the copy or image, docket number, file number, vehicle identification number or title number; and

"(4) an exception section to notify a state or local government agency of rescission of the request to restrict personal contact information and to permit disclosure of personal contact information for a specific purpose and for a limited time.

"A state or local government agency may provide a supplemental form for the purposes of identifying information needed by the state or local government agency to address the eligible requesting party's request."

Effect of Amendment

2025 Act No. 4, SECTION 1, in (1), substituted "address, personal cellular telephone number, or property tax map number, if applicable" for "address or, personal cellular telephone number"; and added (4).