SOUTH CAROLINA REVENUE AND FISCAL AFFAIRS OFFICE
S
TATEMENT OF ESTIMATED FISCAL IMPACT
WWW.RFA.SC.GOV • (803)734-3793
This fiscal impact statement is produced in compliance with the South Carolina Code of Laws and House and Senate rules. The focus of
the analysis is on governmental expenditure and revenue impacts and may not provide a comprehensive summary of the legislation.
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S. 0371
Fiscal Impact Summary
This bill directs the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to create and issue mobile drivers’
licenses and mobile special identification cards to individuals who voluntarily request mobile
cards and who meet all requirements for issuance of a driver’s license or identification card. The
department must ensure the integrity and security of the mobile cards and shall charge a fee to
offset the cost of providing the mobile drivers’ licenses and mobile special identification cards.
DMV indicates that the costs to implement the provisions of the bill are unknown at this time.
DMV conducted a study in FY 2022-23 and determined that the agency will need a new
modernized IT system in place prior to implementing a mobile card process. DMV notes that
once it secures a provider for the new system, the agency will have more information with which
to determine a cost to implement the process for issuing mobile cards. If the new system cannot
meet the requirements for mobile cards, DMV will need to procure a vendor to integrate a
mobile card platform.
The State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) indicates that any increase in workload due to the
provisions of the bill can be managed with existing staff and resources.
The Department of Public Safety (DPS) indicate that this bill will have no expenditure impact
since it does not impose additional responsibilities on the agency. Likewise, Judicial indicates
that the bill will have no expenditure impact since it does not impose additional responsibilities
on the court system.
Once mobile drivers’ licenses and mobile identification cards are issued, DMV expects that the
fees charged will offset the costs to administer the mobile cards. Therefore, there will be no
overall fiscal impact to the agency after initial implementation.
The expenditure impact on local governments is undetermined. The Revenue and Fiscal Affairs
Office (RFA) surveyed the counties and contacted the Municipal Association of South Carolina
(MASC) as to the potential expenditure impact of the bill and received a response from Horry
County and MASC. Horry County indicates that the provisions of the bill may require additional
equipment in police vehicles, law enforcement offices, court offices, and jails to validate mobile
driver’s licenses and identification cards but cannot quantify the costs at this time. Likewise,
Bill Number: S. 0371 Introduced on Februar
y 20, 2025
Subject: Mobile Driver’s License
Requestor: Senate Transportation
RFA Analyst(s): Griffith and Gardner
Impact Date: March 7, 2025
__________________________________
Frank A. Rainwater, Executive Director
DISCLAIMER: THIS FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT REPRESENTS THE OPINION AND INTERPRETATION OF THE
AGENCY OFFICIAL WHO APPROVED AND SIGNED THIS DOCUMENT. IT IS PROVIDED AS INFORMATION TO
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY AND IS NOT TO BE CONSIDERED AS AN EXPRESSION OF LEGISLATIVE INTENT.
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S. 0371
MASC indicates that this bill may require municipal offices to update software or purchase new
equipment to integrate mobile driver’s licenses and identification cards into existing systems.
Explanation of Fiscal Impact
Introduced on February 20, 2025
State Expenditure
This bill directs DMV to create and issue mobile drivers’ licenses and mobile special
identification cards to individuals who voluntarily request mobile cards and who meet all
requirements for issuance of a driver’s license or identification card. The department must
ensure the integrity and security of the mobile cards and shall charge a fee to offset the cost of
providing the mobile drivers’ licenses and mobile special identification cards.
Department of Motor Vehicles. DMV indicates that the costs to implement the provisions of
the bill are unknown at this time. DMV conducted a study in FY 2022-23 and determined that
the agency will need a new modernized IT system in place prior to implementing a mobile card
process. DMV notes that once it secures a provider for the new system, the agency will have
more information with which to determine a cost to implement the process for issuing mobile
cards. If the new system cannot meet the requirements for mobile cards, DMV will need to
procure a vendor to integrate a mobile card platform.
Department of Public Safety. There will be no expenditure impact to DPS since the bill does
not impose additional responsibilities on the agency.
State Law Enforcement Division. There will be no expenditure impact to SLED since any
increase in workload can be managed with existing staff and resources.
Judicial. There will be no expenditure impact to Judicial since the bill does not impose
additional responsibilities on the court system.
State Revenue
This bill allows DMV to set a fee for the issuance of mobile drivers’ licenses and mobile
identification cards. While the bill will increase Other Funds revenue of DMV once the agency
is able to undertake the project, the fees collected for issuance of the mobile driver’s licenses and
identification cards will offset the costs to administer the mobile cards.
Local Expenditure
N/A
Local Revenue
N/A