County and city residents will no longer be asked to pay the cost of commemorative highway signs if a Lexington County legislator’s bill becomes law.

Rep. Mac Toole has filed a bill that would require the signs, which name roads, bridges and interchanges across the state, to be paid for privately. Currently, the Legislature can approve the designation, and the state Transportation Department bills the cost to the local government once the signs are installed.

“I just feel that taxpayers’ money should not be used,” said Toole, a Republican. “We’re doing so many of them that I think it’s losing its value, its meaning.”

The signs commemorate the service of military, law enforcement, political and community leaders among other South Carolinians.

Officials in Lexington and Richland counties have questioned the process, as many of the designees are still alive and some are still in office.

Most of all, though, local officials bristle at having to foot the bill for the Legislature’s decision. Last year, 28 locations were dedicated, according to Transportation records, at an average cost of $402.

“That’s another valid reason,” Toole said. “It’s a mandate.”

Rep. Bob Walker, R-Spartanburg, heads the Education and Public Works committee, which will consider the bill.

Walker said that in his area, the honor has been mostly given to those, such as soldiers, killed in the line of duty. Requiring private fundraising, he said, might be too much of a burden.

“I would not ask the families or anybody privately to do that,” Walker said. In most cases, he said, the cost is a minor expense for local transportation funds. The money is allocated by the Legislature to be spent by a local committee.

This is the second time Toole has introduced the measure. It is one of dozens of bills submitted before next week’s return of the General Assembly.

Other notable legislation would:

• Make $300 million in bonds available to the poorest school districts to build or renovate facilities. Sponsored by Reps. Gilda Cobb-Hunter, D-Orangeburg, and Herb Kirsh, D-York.

• Create a pilot program to test county voting centers that allow residents more flexibility in where they cast their ballot. Sponsored by Rep. Scott Talley, R-Spartanburg.

• Create a tiered penalty system for drunken drivers based on their blood-alcohol level; the higher the percentage, the stiffer the penalties. Sponsored by Rep. Doug Smith, R-Spartanburg.

• Allow landlords to more quickly eject delinquent tenants if a judge decides the tenant is a threat to people or property. Sponsored by Rep. Chip Huggins, R-Lexington.

Reach O’Connor at (803) 771-8358.