South Carolina § 40-11-20 - Definitions.

§ 40-11-20. Definitions.

For purposes of this chapter:

(1) "Ancillary work" means work that is directly associated with the building or structure which the licensee has been engaged to construct.

(2) "Board" means the South Carolina Contractors' Licensing Board.

(3) "Bid" means an offer to furnish labor, equipment, or materials or other services regulated by this chapter.

(4) "Certificate holder" means a qualifying party.

(5) "Contractor" means a general or mechanical contractor regulated under this chapter.

(6) "Construction manager" means an entity working for a fee whose duties are to supervise and coordinate the work of design professionals and multiple prime contractors, while allowing the design professionals and contractors to control individual operations and the manner of design and construction. Services provided by a construction manager may include:

(a) coordination, management, or supervision of design or construction;

(b) cost management, including estimates of construction costs and development of project budgets;

(c) scheduling, which may include critical path techniques, for all phases of a project;

(d) design review, including review of formal design submission and construction feasibility; and

(e) bid packaging and contractor selection. An owner, who performs construction management himself is not considered a construction manager for purposes of this chapter.

(7) "Department" means the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.

(8) "Entity" means a sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, cooperative, corporation, or other legal entity authorized by law and approved by the board.

(9) "GAAP" stands for Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and means accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

(10) "General construction" means the installation, replacement, or repair of a building, structure, highway, sewer, grading, asphalt or concrete paving, or improvement of any kind to real property.

(11) "General contractor" means an entity that performs or supervises or offers to perform or supervise general construction.

(12) "License classification" or "subclassification" means the type of construction for which a contractor may be licensed to do business.

(13) "License group" means the financial limitations for bidding and performing general or mechanical construction.

(14) "Licensee" means an entity that has been issued either a general or mechanical contractor's license by the department.

(15) "Licensed contractor" means an entity that is licensed by the South Carolina Contractor's Licensing Board to engage in general or mechanical contracting within the State.

(16) "Mechanical contractor" means an entity that performs or supervises, or offers to perform or supervise, mechanical construction.

(17) "Mechanical construction" means the installation, replacement, or repair of plumbing, heating, air conditioning, process piping, refrigeration, lightning protection equipment, or electrical components, fixtures, or devices of any kind, excluding burglar alarm work.

(18) "Net worth" means the total wealth of a company taking account of all financial assets and liabilities.

(19) "Individual" means a natural person.

(20) "Prime contractor" means an entity that contracts directly with an owner to perform general or mechanical construction.

(21) "Primary qualifying party" means a qualifying party who has been designated by a licensee as the principal individual responsible for directing or reviewing work performed by the licensee in a particular license classification or subclassification.

(22) "Public owner" means the State and any of its political subdivisions, which includes all counties, municipalities, school districts, public service, or special purpose districts.

(23) "Qualifying party" means an individual who has been issued a certificate to qualify an entity for a license by way of examination in a license classification or subclassification.

(24) "Sole prime contractor" means the prime contractor for a project on which there is only one prime contractor.

(25) "Subcontractor" means an entity who contracts to perform construction services for a prime contractor or another subcontractor.

(26) "Total cost of construction" means the actual cost incurred by the owner, all contractors, subcontractors, and other parties for labor, material, equipment, profit, and incidental expenses for the entire project. This does not include the cost of design services unless those services are included in a construction contract.

(27) "Unlicensed contractor" means an entity performing or overseeing general or mechanical construction without a license.

(28) "Working capital" means the capital of a business calculated as the current assets minus the current liabilities.

HISTORY: 1998 Act No. 440, SECTION 1; 2023 Act No. 69 (H.4115), SECTION 2, eff May 19, 2023.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws:1936 (39) 1675; 1942 Code SECTION 7084-1; 1949 (46) 324; 1952 Code SECTION 56-401; 1956 (49) 1762; 1960 (51) 1537; 1962 Code SECTION 56-401; 1968 (55) 2421; 1977 Act No. 174, SECTION 1; 1983 Act No. 151, Part II, SECTION 39B; 1976 Code SECTION 40-11-10.

Effect of Amendment

2023 Act No. 69, SECTION 2, inserted (1) and redesignated former (1) to (7) as (2) to (8); inserted (9) and redesignated former (8) to (15) as (10) to (17); inserted (18) and redesignated former (16) to (24) as (19) to (27); in (22), added, ", which includes all counties, municipalities, school districts, public service, or special purpose districts" at the end; added (28); and made nonsubstantive changes.