Emergency scene management

2025-2026 Bill 4684: Emergency scene management - South Carolina Legislature Online

South Carolina General Assembly
126th Session, 2025-2026
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H. 4684
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Reps. M.M. Smith, Pope and Clyburn
Document Path: LC-0360CM26.docx
Introduced in the House on January 13, 2026
Currently residing in the House
Summary: Emergency scene management
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS

Date

Body

Action Description with journal page number

12/16/2025

House

Prefiled

12/16/2025

House

Referred to Committee on
Education and Public Works

1/13/2026

House

Introduced and read first time (
House Journal-page 56
)

1/13/2026

House

Referred to Committee on
Education and Public Works
(
House Journal-page 56
)

1/30/2026

Scrivener's error corrected

View the latest
legislative information
at the website
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
12/17/2025
01/30/2026

A bill

TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING
SECTION
56-5-1538
, RELATING TO EMERGENCY SCENE MANAGEMENT, SO AS TO REVISE THE
PENALTY FOR UNLAWFULLY APPROACHING STATIONARY AUTHORIZED EMERGENCY VEHICLES, TO
DEFINE THE TERM "SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED SPEED," AND TO PROVIDE THE DEPARTMENT OF
PUBLIC SAFETY SHALL COMPILE AND PUBLISH AN ANNUAL REPORT FOR CERTAIN CITATIONS
ISSUED UNDER THIS SECTION; AND BY AMENDING SECTION
56-1-720
, RELATING TO POINTS
ASSESSED AGAINST THE MOTOR VEHICLE OPERATING RECORDS OF DRIVERS FOR DRIVING
OFFENSES, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOUR POINTS MUST BE ASSESSED AGAINST DRIVERS' MOTOR
VEHICLE OPERATING RECORDS FOR UNLAWFULLY APPROACHING STATIONARY AUTHORIZED
EMERGENCY VEHICLES.

B
e it enacted by the
General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

S
ECTION 1.
S
ection
56-5-1538
of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

S
ection
56-5-1538
.
(
A) An emergency scene
is a location designated by the potential need to provide emergency medical
care and is identified by emergency vehicles with flashing lights, rescue
equipment, or emergency personnel on the scene.

(
B)
An emergency scene is a special hazard.

(
C)
An emergency scene is under the authority of the first arriving emergency
personnel, which includes emergency medical services personnel, until the
arrival of the fire or law enforcement officials having jurisdiction. All motor
vehicles passing through an emergency scene and pedestrians observing an
emergency scene must obey and not interfere with the duties of emergency
personnel. Motor vehicles and bystanders may not block access to or exit from
an emergency scene.

(
D)
The management authority of emergency medical services is limited to managing
patient care and preventing further injury to the patients and on-scene
personnel. This authority may be delegated by emergency personnel to provide an
adequate level of safety.

(
E)
A paid or volunteer worker at an emergency scene has proper authority to be at
and control the scene in a manner consistent with his training.

(
F)
The driver of a vehicle shall ensure that the vehicle is kept under control
when approaching or passing an emergency scene or authorized emergency vehicle
stopped on or near the right-of-way of a street or highway with emergency
lights flashing. The exercise of control required for a driver to comply with
this section is that control possible and necessary by the driver to prevent a
collision, to prevent injury to persons or property, and to avoid interference
with the performance of emergency duties by emergency personnel
,
or interfering with the operation of an authorized
emergency vehicle.

(
G)
A person driving a vehicle approaching a stationary authorized emergency
vehicle that is giving a signal by displaying alternately flashing red, red and
white, blue, or red and blue lights, or amber or yellow warning lights shall
proceed with due caution, significantly reduce the speed of the vehicle, and:

(
1)
yield the right-of-way by making a lane change into a lane not adjacent to that
of the authorized emergency vehicle, if possible
,

with due regard to safety and traffic conditions, if on a highway having at
least four lanes with not less than two lanes proceeding in the same direction
as the approaching vehicle; or

(
2)
maintain a safe speed for road conditions, if changing lanes is impossible or
unsafe.

(
H)
A person who violates the provisions of this section is guilty of the
misdemeanor of endangering emergency services personnel or operators of
authorized emergency vehicles and, upon conviction, must be fined not less than
three hundred dollars nor more than
five hundred
one thousand
dollars
, and have four
points assessed against his motor vehicle operating record
.

(
I)
For purposes of this section:

(
1)
"Authorized emergency vehicle" means any ambulance, police, fire, rescue,
recovery, or towing vehicle authorized by this State, county, or municipality
to respond to a traffic incident.

(
2)
"Emergency services personnel" means fire, police, or emergency medical
services personnel (EMS) responding to an emergency incident.

(
3) "Significantly reduce the speed of
the vehicle" means operating the vehicle at least twenty miles an hour below
the posted speed limit.

(
J) The Department of Public Safety
shall compile and publish an annual report containing all citations issued for
violation of this section.

S
ECTION 2.
S
ection
56-1-720
of the S.C. Code is amended to read:

S
ection
56-1-720
.
T
here is established a point system for
the evaluation of the operating record of persons to whom a license to operate
motor vehicles has been granted and for the determination of the continuing
qualifications of these persons for the privileges granted by the license to
operate motor vehicles. The system shall have as its basic element a graduated
scale of points assigning relative values to the various violations in
accordance with the following schedule:

V
IOLATION POINTS

R
eckless driving 6

P
assing stopped school
bus 6

H
it and run, property
damages only 6

D
riving too fast for
conditions, or speeding:

(
1)
No more than 10 m.p.h. above the posted limits 2

(
2)
More than 10 m.p.h. but less than 25

m
.p.h. above
the posted limits 4

(
3)
25 m.p.h. or above the posted limits 6

D
isobedience of any
official traffic control device 4

D
isobedience to officer
directing traffic 4

F
ailing to yield right of
way 4

D
riving on wrong side of
road 4

P
assing unlawfully 4

T
urning unlawfully 4

D
riving through or within
safety zone 4

U
nlawfully approaching a stationary authorized

e
mergency vehicle 4

S
hifting lanes without
safety precaution 2

I
mproper dangerous
parking 2

F
ollowing too closely 4

F
ailing to dim lights 2

O
perating with improper
lights 2

O
perating with improper
brakes 4

O
perating a vehicle in
unsafe condition 2

D
riving in improper lane 2

I
mproper backing 2

E
ndangerment of a highway
worker, no injury 2

E
ndangerment of a highway
worker, injury results 4

S
ECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval
by the Governor.

----XX----

This web page was last updated on January 30, 2026 at 2:01 PM