MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

1997 Regular Session

To: Education; Appropriations

By: Representative Martinson

House Bill 1362

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 37-43-19, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION SHALL REQUIRE SUPPLIERS OF READING AND LANGUAGE ARTS INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMS AND MATERIALS THAT ARE PURCHASED WITH STATE FUNDS OR FEDERAL FUNDS THAT ARE ADMINISTERED BY THE STATE TO PROVIDE DOCUMENTATION OF THE EFFECTIVENESS OF THE PROGRAMS AND MATERIALS IN TEACHING THE ELEMENTS OF EFFECTIVE READING USING NATIONALLY STANDARDIZED MEASURES OF PHONEMIC AWARENESS, WORD ATTACK, WORD IDENTIFICATION, VOCABULARY, SPELLING AND READING COMPREHENSION; TO AMEND SECTION 37-43-41, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE LEGISLATURE SHALL APPROPRIATE FOR FISCAL YEAR 1997-1998 AN AMOUNT EQUAL TO EIGHTY DOLLARS PER KINDERGARTEN THROUGH THIRD GRADE STUDENT FOR SUPPLEMENTAL TEXTBOOKS TO PROVIDE EACH STUDENT WITH A FULL SET OF READING AND LANGUAGE ARTS INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS AND EACH KINDERGARTEN THROUGH THIRD GRADE TEACHER OF READING WITH THE CORRESPONDING TEACHER'S MANUALS THAT ARE BASED ON AND CONSISTENT WITH NATIONAL RESEARCH ON THE ACQUISITION OF READING SKILLS AND ABILITY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. Section 37-43-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-43-19. The board shall have the power and is hereby authorized:

(a) To promulgate rules and regulations for the purchase, care, use, disposal, distribution and accounting for all books to be furnished under the terms of this chapter, and to promulgate such other rules and regulations as may be necessary for the proper administration of this chapter.

(b) To adopt, contract for, and make available for purchase, cash or credit, basal, supplementary or alternative textbooks through twelve (12) grades as provided in the school curriculum, or for any other course that it may add thereto.

(c) To determine the period of contract for rated and adopted textbooks which shall not be for less than four (4) years nor more than five (5) years, with the right of the board, in its discretion, to renew or extend such contract from year to year for a period not exceeding two (2) additional years and to determine the conditions of the approval or forfeiture of a contract and such other terms and conditions as may be necessary and not contrary to law.

(d) To have complete power and authority over additions and amendments to textbooks, advertising for bids and the contents thereof, including auxiliary materials and workbooks, advertising on the protective covers of textbooks, bids and proposals, prices of textbooks, specimen copies, cash deposits, selection and adoption, distribution, fumigation, emergencies, selling to others, return of deposits, forfeiture of deposits, regulations governing deposits, renovation and repair of books, requisition, transportation or shipment of books, and any other acts or regulations, not contrary to law, that may be deemed necessary for furnishing and loaning free textbooks to the school children, as provided in this chapter.

(e) The board shall require all suppliers of reading and language arts instructional programs and materials, which are purchased with either (i) state funds or (ii) federal funds that are administered by the state to provide documentation of the effectiveness of their programs in teaching the elements of reading using nationally standardized measures of phonemic awareness, word attack, word identification, vocabulary, spelling and reading comprehension.

SECTION 2. Section 37-43-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-43-41. (1) The State Textbook Fund of Mississippi shall consist of the amounts appropriated by the Legislature for the same, all monies accruing from the sale of disused books from other than public schools, all monies derived from the purchase of books by both public and private schools trustees, and by private individuals, all monies collected in damage suits under the terms of this chapter, and all other monies collected in any way whatsoever under the terms of this chapter.

(2) There is * * * created a special fund in the State Treasury to be designated as the "Local School District Textbook Carryover Fund." The fund shall be credited with any funds which were appropriated by the Legislature to the State Textbook Fund for any fiscal year in which the funds were allocated to local school districts but unexpended by said districts. The unexpended funds shall be deposited by the board into the Local School District Textbook Carryover Fund to the credit of the local school districts which were originally allocated such funds. All carryover funds which exist on June 30, 1997, that belong to public school districts shall be disbursed to the respective school districts. Carryover funds for other than public schools shall be handled in the same manner as previously described in this section.

(3) The Legislature shall appropriate for fiscal year 1997-1998 an amount equal to Eighty Dollars ($80.00) per kindergarten through third grade student for supplemental textbooks to provide each student with a full set of reading and language arts instructional materials and each kindergarten through third grade teacher of reading with the corresponding teacher's manual based on and consistent with national research regarding the acquisition of reading skills and ability. The amount appropriated under this subsection (3) shall be in addition to the amount the Legislature appropriates for the State Textbook Fund for fiscal year 1997-1998.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 1997.