COLOMBIA – After nearly a year of trying, business groups successfully submitted a bill in the South Carolina Senate on February 25 that would help protect them from COVID-19 lawsuits by customers and workers if they follow the guidelines of security.
But it faces an uncertain future in the Chamber, where leading lawmakers questioned the need for this.
The measure would promise “a safe haven of responsibility” for employers who follow guidelines published by state health agencies. The passage would add South Carolina to at least 32 other states, including eight in the southeast, which have passed similar laws since the coronavirus outbreak began last year.
The Senate voted 40-3 in favor of the bill, with three Democratic state senators voting against: Dick Harpootlian of Columbia, Marlon Kimpson of Charleston and Mia McLeod of Columbia.
During a few hours of debate, Kimpson and McLeod spoke out against the project. But Harpootlian said he found the proposal so useless that it was not even worth fighting for.
The argument of Harpootlian and other judicial lawyers is that it would be very difficult for anyone to prove that he contracted the coronavirus at a specific company. If someone has a strong case, added Harpootlian, competent lawyers will easily be able to bypass the bill.
“This was a bill that made me feel good and we spent days dealing with something that has no practical effect and that offends me,” said Harpootlian. “The Chamber wants to say that they did something for their constituency, but that is not really going to help their constituency. They are not going to be prosecuted in any way.”
But Swati Patel, interim CEO of the pro-business SC Chamber of Commerce, said the project will go a long way in ensuring that companies can remain open during the pandemic.
“As many companies have struggled to stay open, this bill includes a degree of certainty that if an employer follows public health guidelines to keep customers and employees safe, they will not be victims of frivolous lawsuits,” said Patel .
At least 36 coronavirus-related lawsuits have been filed in South Carolina since last March, according to a national tracker compiled by law firm Hunton Andrews Kurth. But it is not clear how many of these processes would be dealt with under the liability law.
Business groups are now turning their attention to the Chamber, where they can receive a skeptical audience.
Asked whether the bill would receive a hearing from the House subcommittee, Judiciary President Chris Murphy was evasive.
“Let’s take a look at this,” said Murphy, R-North Charleston, saying they would need to evaluate the final product after it left the Senate.
The Chamber is probably the final obstacle that the bill will have to overcome. During his annual state of the state address in January, Governor Henry McMaster asked lawmakers to pass a bill under COVID’s responsibility, suggesting that he sign it if it arrives at his desk.
“Our businesses, our healthcare providers and educational institutions should not be placed at risk or competitive disadvantage through no fault of their own, especially after following safety protocols,” said McMaster. “We must be careful not to allow litigation to kill what the pandemic has failed to achieve.”
Business groups tried to pass a COVID liability bill last year, when the outbreak forced many companies to temporarily close, but lawmakers failed to approve it before time ran out.
Many companies in South Carolina have now reopened, and health officials are hopeful that most South Carolinaians will be able to be vaccinated by summer or fall.
Follow Jamie Lovegrove on Twitter @jslovegrove.