Myrtle Beach lawmaker wins support for efforts to boost public burning penalties
HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — A push to enhance penalties for people convicted of burning on public lands spearheaded by a Myrtle Beach lawmaker has early support in Columbia.
A House Judiciary subcommittee on Wednesday had its first look at Republican Tim McGinnis' proposal to update a 63-year-old law that only sets fines of between $200 and $500 and a maximum jail time of 30 days.
'The penalties for doing that, I don't believe meet the damage that is done,' McGinnis said. 'It's cost millions of dollars, put lives at risk. Put homes at risk.'
McGinnis' measure would enhance fines and prison terms for offenders. Legislators on Wednesday said they wanted a bit longer to review the proposal before voting, but spoke favorably on it.
Their remarks came amid two headline-grabbing wildfires over the past several weeks: First, the 2,059-acre Covington Drive blaze in Carolina Forest that sparked March 1 and then the 13,845-acre Table Rock fire that began March 21.
Both are suspected to have begun because of human activity.
Carolina Forest blaze is latest chapter in Horry County's dramatic wildfire history
McGinnis said Wednesday his proposal would also bar the use of things like outdoor fire pits and chimneys during burn bans.
'It's too easy for those embers to blow onto that lake of gasoline (forests) and destroy lives, destroy homes,' he said.
McGinnis' bill picked up a key sponsor after House Majority Leader David Hiott, R-Pickens, signed on.
'I think what Rep. McGinnis is going to do is a good start to hopefully keep some of this stuff from happening again intentionally,' Hiott said.
With more than 12.8 million acres of forestland statewide, officials say taking care of that land must be a shared responsibility. A 2023 Congressional Research Service paper said 89% of all wildfires between 2018 and 2022 were human-caused.
State Forester Scott Phillips has repeatedly backed tougher public burning rules as well.
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Adam Benson joined the News13 digital team in January 2024. He is a veteran South Carolina reporter with previous stops at the Greenwood Index-Journal, Post & Courier and The Sun News in Myrtle Beach. Adam is a Boston native and University of Utah graduate. Follow Adam on X, formerly Twitter, at @AdamNewshound12. See more of his work here.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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