Brief Summary
A South Carolina public official bond has to be approved, recorded and in place before you take up the office. County officers get thirty days from notice of election or appointment to record it, and state law bars both drawing a salary and performing the duties until the bond is given. When a county official uses a surety company, the county pays the premium out of ordinary county funds.
South Carolina requires an official bond from any state or county officer whose office is required by law to be bonded, under Chapter 3 of Title 8 of the South Carolina Code. The State of South Carolina is the obligee, and the penal sum is the amount required by law for each office, so it differs from one position to the next. The bond guarantees the officer will faithfully perform the duties of the office, and anyone harmed by the officer's misconduct can sue on it.
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Detailed Information About the South Carolina Public Official Bond:
The amount depends on the office
There is no single statewide figure for a South Carolina public official bond. The statutory form in S.C. Code 8-3-30 binds the officer and sureties to the State of South Carolina in a penal sum to be filled in with the amount required by law for the particular office. Before the bond is written, get the required amount from the body that will approve it.
Deadlines and consequences
S.C. Code 8-3-150 gives every bonded county officer thirty days after notification of election or appointment to have the bond recorded with the register of deeds, or with the clerk of the circuit court in a county without a register of deeds. The recording fee is one dollar. Section 8-3-60 makes it a misdemeanor to take up the duties of a bonded office without giving the bond, and 8-3-70 withholds all pay until the officer is commissioned, qualified and bonded. If a surety dies, leaves the state or appears insolvent, the officer has thirty days after notice to replace it or the office is declared vacant under 8-3-180.
Who approves and where it is filed
Under 8-3-130, bonds of executive department officers go to the Governor for approval. County officer bonds are examined and approved by the county governing body, and bonds of the governing body's own members go to the clerk of court or the Attorney General. Section 8-3-140 requires the Attorney General or a solicitor to certify the form and execution of state officers' bonds, which are then filed with the Secretary of State and the State Treasurer. County officer bonds are recorded locally and then sent on to the Secretary of State and the State Treasurer.
Surety company or personal bond
Section 8-3-80 requires county officials who must be bonded to secure the bond from a surety company authorized to do business in South Carolina. Magistrates, constables and rural county policemen are the stated exceptions. If an official applies properly and is refused by the surety companies, a personal bond may be accepted once approved. Section 8-3-100 then makes the county governing body responsible for paying the surety company's premium from ordinary county funds.
What the bond guarantees
The statutory bond is conditioned on the officer well and truly performing the duties of the office. Under 8-3-220 the bond may be sued on by the public or by any person or corporation harmed by the officer's misconduct. The surety pays valid claims up to the penal sum and then looks to the officer for repayment. Premium is set by the surety as a rate on the penal sum after it reviews the office, the funds the officer handles and the officer's personal credit.
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