South Carolina Servicemembers Civil Relief Act

2019 Act No. 23 built a state Servicemembers Civil Relief Act as Article 21 of Chapter 1, Title 25. It does three things the federal Act does not. First, it makes a federal violation a state violation. Section 25-1-4040: "The rights, benefits, and protections of the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, 50 U.S.C. Section 3901, et seq., apply to a servicemember engaged in military service", and "a violation of the federal Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, as expanded by this section, is a violation of this article." That matters because it opens the state remedies in Section 25-1-4070 to conduct that would otherwise require a federal action. Second, it reaches state duty. The definition of military service in Section 25-1-4030 includes service the federal Act does not, and for those categories the article imposes a notice condition: a person is not subject to the remedies or penalties "unless the servicemember gives to the person a written or electronic copy of the order to military service." So a Guard member on state active duty gets the protections, but has to put the orders in the counterparty's hands first. Third, and most useful day to day, it adds a consumer contract termination right the federal Act does not carry. Section 25-1-4060(A): in addition to the federal protections, "a servicemember may terminate a contract described in subsection (B) of this section at any time after the date the servicemember receives military orders to relocate for a period of service of at least ninety days to a location that does not support the contract." Subsection (B) lists five categories: telecommunication services; Internet services; television services including cable, direct satellite and comparable services; athletic club or gym memberships; and satellite radio services. The mechanics are in subsections (C) through (G) and they are all in the member's favour. The member gives the provider written or electronic notice of termination, a copy of the relocation order, and the termination date. The provider may not impose an early termination penalty, charge or fee. Within sixty days of the termination date the provider must refund any fee paid for service extending beyond that date. The member still owes taxes and any contractual obligation already due and unpaid. And if the member resubscribes within ninety days of returning from military service, the provider may not impose any charge beyond the usual and customary installation or equipment charges other subscribers pay. Section 25-1-4060(C) adds an information duty: if the terminating person is a servicemember as defined in Section 25-1-4030(4), the provider must tell the servicemember about the rights posted on the South Carolina National Guard's website under Section 25-1-4080. Dependents are covered. Section 25-1-4050 gives a dependent of a servicemember engaged in military service the same rights and protections the servicemember has under Section 25-1-4060 and under the federal Act's Subchapter II. Enforcement, in Section 25-1-4070, is the part that gives the article teeth. A servicemember, a dependent, or the Attorney General may bring a civil action against a person who intentionally violates the article. The court may order an injunction, or restitution of money unlawfully received from or required to be refunded to the servicemember, unless the servicemember already recovered that amount in a separate federal SCRA action. For an intentional violation the court may assess a civil penalty not to exceed five thousand dollars per violation. The Attorney General may seek a temporary restraining order, a temporary injunction or a permanent injunction, in the county where the person resides, has a principal place of business or transacts business, and each day a violation continues is a separate violation. The penalty is split fifty-fifty between the general fund and the Attorney General's office, which may carry its half forward for enforcement or public education about the article. That is a funding structure worth knowing about, because it means the office has a standing interest in taking these cases. One limit to note: the whole article turns on an intentional violation for the civil action and the penalty. A provider's clerical failure to refund is not automatically inside it. The act applies to contracts entered into on or after April 26, 2019.