(A) The district must be governed by a commission to be known as the West Florence Fire District Commission (commission). The commission shall consist of five resident electors of the district who shall be elected by the qualified electors of the district.

(B) The five commissioners shall be elected in a nonpartisan special election to be conducted on the first Tuesday following the first Monday in September 2014, and thereafter in nonpartisan elections to be conducted at the same time as the general election every two or four years thereafter beginning in 2016, in a manner required by this article and other applicable provisions of law.

(C) The election shall be conducted by the Florence and Darlington County Election Commissions. The commissions shall give notice by publication sixty days prior to the election and a second notice two weeks after the first notice, in one or more newspapers with general circulation in the district. Filing for election to the commission opens on July 1, 2014 at noon to run for a period of fifteen days until noon on July 15, 2014. The election commissions in both counties shall certify the candidates receiving the highest number of votes as the election commissioners of the district as provided by this section. In order to stagger the terms, the terms of the three commissioners who receive the highest number of votes in 2014, shall serve initial terms of four years each and the two commissioners receiving the next highest number of votes in 2014, shall serve initial terms of two years each. At the expiration of these initial terms which shall expire at the time the commissioners elected in either 2016 or 2018 qualify and take office, all commissioners shall be elected for terms of four years. The results of the elections shall be determined in accordance with the nonpartisan plurality method provided in Section 5-15-61.

(D) Any vacancy occurring by reason of death, resignation, or otherwise must be filled by the Senators and members of the House of Representatives representing any portion of the district for the remainder of the unexpired term or until the next scheduled election if the remainder of the unexpired term runs past this date. Commissioners shall take office on the Monday following their election. Upon any commissioner moving out of the area of the district, his position shall become vacant.

(E) Any resident qualified elector of the district may be a candidate for the position of commissioner by filing with the election commission of the county in which he resides at least thirty days prior to the election.

(F) After taking office in 2014, the commissioners shall meet within ten days of their election to organize, select officers and determine the tax millage levy for 2014. The commission shall elect from among its membership a chairman, vice chairman and such other officers as they consider necessary.

HISTORY: 2014 Act No. 183 (H.5225), Section 1, eff May 28, 2014.

Validity

For validity of this section, see County of Florence v. West Florence Fire District, 422 S.C. 316, 811 S.E.2d 770 (2018).