Did three unexcused absences remove a Valley Public Service Authority board member in 1998?

Plain-English summary

A legislator asked whether the statutory rule removing a member of a state board after three consecutive unexcused absences applied to the Valley Public Service Authority. The Attorney General answered no. The rule's text covered state boards, councils, commissions and committees; the Authority was not one of those state bodies.

The letter described the Authority as created by a separate act to provide water, sewage and solid-waste services in its designated area. That act set out its appointments, powers and service area. The AG's answer was limited to whether Section 1-3-245 applied to this Authority; it did not decide any separate attendance rule in the Authority's creating act.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 1998. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: Did missing three meetings automatically vacate a Valley Authority seat under this statute?
A: The AG said no. The three-absence provision applied to state boards, and the Valley Public Service Authority was not a state board.

Q: Why did the state-board attendance statute not reach the Authority?
A: The letter relied on the word “state” in Section 1-3-245 and on the Authority's creation under its own act.

Q: Did the opinion decide every attendance rule for Authority members?
A: No. It answered only whether the cited state-board statute applied.

Background and statutory framework

The letter quoted Section 1-3-245's removal rule for members of state boards and its exception for ex officio members. It then concluded that the Valley Public Service Authority fell outside the statute's definition of covered bodies. The letter identified itself as an informal assistant attorney general opinion.

Citations and references

• Section 1-3-245, the state-board attendance rule at issue.

Official title

Asking whether Section 1-3-245 of the South Carolina Code of laws applies to members serving on the Valley Public Service Authority.

Requester

The Honorable J. Roland Smith, Member, House of Representatives

Source

• Landing page: https://www.scag.gov/opinions/opinions-archive/july-28-1998/
• Original PDF: https://www.scag.gov/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/98july28smith.pdf

Original opinion text

The State of South Carolina

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
CHARLES M. CONDON
ATTORNEY GENERAL

July 28, 1998

The Honorable J. Roland Smith
Member, House of Representatives
183 Edgar Street
Warrenville, South Carolina 29851

Re:

Informal Opinion

Dear Representative Smith:
Your opinion request has been forwarded to me for reply. You have asked whether Section 1-3-245 of the South Carolina Code of Laws applies to members serving on the Valley Public Service Authority (hereinafter the "Authority"). The Authority was created by Act No. 476 of 1969, as amended. Its purpose is to supply water and provide sewage and solid waste collection and disposal, or a combination of such, to individuals, public and private corporations and political subdivisions within the geographical area specified in the act. The Act provides the manner in which members are appointed, a description of the Authority's powers, its service area, and many other items. Section 1-3-245 provides: (A) A member of a state board, council, comm1ss10n, or committee who has three consecutive unexcused absences from regularly scheduled meetings held by the particular board, council, commission, or committee is considered removed from the board, council, commission, or committee and a vacancy is created. The chairman of the board, council, commission, or committee immediately shall notify the Governor or appropriate appointing authority of the member's three consecutive unexcused absences and of the resulting vacancy. An unexcused absence Rl:Mlll'RT

c. DENNIS BUILDING

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POST OFFICE Box 11549

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COLUM!llA, S.C. 29211-1549

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TELEPHONE: 801- 714-:l'J7()

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FACSIMILE: 803-253-6283

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The Honorable J. Roland Smith
Page 2
July 28, 1998
must be defined by each respective board, council, comm1ss10n, or committee in the rules governing its operation. (emphasis added).

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(B)
This section does not apply to an ex officio member of a state board, council, commission, or committee or to a designee of an ex officio member. As you can see, Section 1-3-245 applies only to "state" boards, councils, commissions and committees. The Authority does not fall under this section as it i not a "state" board council, commission, or committee. Therefore, the provisions of Section 1-3-245 would not be applicable to members of the Authority. This letter is an informal opinion only. It has been written by a designated assistant attorney general and represents the position of the undersigned attorney as to the specific questions asked. It has not, however, been personally scrutinized by the Attorney General nor officially published in the manner of a formal opinion.
· With kindest regards, I remain
Very truly yours,

Et_ 4. ;(,J.
Paul M. Koch
Assistant Attorney General