MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE

2007 Regular Session

To: Judiciary A

By: Representative Moak, Espy, Scott

House Bill 1532

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 25-4-27, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REFORM THE ETHICS LAWS BY EXPANDING THE CONTENT OF INFORMATION INCLUDED IN THE STATEMENTS OF ECONOMIC INTEREST THAT CERTAIN PUBLIC OFFICIALS AND EMPLOYEES MUST FILE; TO REQUIRE REPORTING OF CERTAIN INTERESTS IN SUBSIDIARY BUSINESSES; TO REQUIRE THAT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BE PROVIDED WITH REGARD TO INCOME FROM A TRUSTEE OR TRUST; TO AMEND SECTIONS 25-4-3 AND 25-4-103, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY THERETO; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

     SECTION 1.  Section 25-4-27, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

     25-4-27.  Each person specified under Section 25-4-25 shall file a statement in accordance with the provisions of this chapter which shall be signed under oath as to the accuracy and completeness of the information set forth to the best knowledge of the person submitting such statement.  The statement shall include the following information:

          (a)  The name and residential and business addresses of such person;

          (b)  The title, position and offices whereby such person is required to file;

          (c)  All other occupations of such person and his spouse during the preceding calendar year and up to the date of filing;

          (d)  The positions held by such person or his spouse during the preceding calendar year and up to the date of filing in any business, partnership or corporation organized for profit, listed by name and address;

          (e)  The names and addresses of all businesses or corporations in which such person or his spouse has or had a direct or indirect interest during the preceding calendar year and up to the date of filing which is equal to ten percent (10%) or more of all interests in any such business, including an interest in any subsidiary business when:

              (i)  The parent business has been reported, and the subsidiary business is wholly owned by the parent business; or

              (ii)  The combined percentage of interest that the person or his spouse has in the parent business and interest that the parent business has in the subsidiary business results in the person or spouse having the effective control or ownership of ten percent (10%) or more of the subsidiary business;

          (f)  The types of the gross income sources of such person or his spouse, whether paid directly or indirectly, for the  preceding calendar year in excess of Two Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($2,500.00); each entry under this subsection (f) shall contain the name of the general type of such business or enterprise and the nature of the income as to whether it was salary, fees, dividends, interest, profit, commissions, royalty, rent or other, and in the case in which gross income is paid to a trustee or trust, the names, addresses and nature of the sources of the income;

          (g)  All retainers listed by type, but not amount, received by each person or his spouse during the preceding calendar year and up to the date of filing; for the purposes of this chapter, "retainer" shall mean a consideration or fee paid on a regular and continuing basis to a person for services, whether or not specific services are performed by such person;

          (h)  Any representation or intervention by a person specified under Section 25-4-25(a) and (d) for any person for compensation in the preceding calendar year and up to the date of filing before the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, State Fiscal Management Board, the Public Service Commission, Oil and Gas Board, Commissioner of Banking and Consumer Finance, State Board of Banking Review, the State Personnel Board, the Central Data Processing Authority or the State Tax Commission; provided, however, that this provision shall not apply where such representation involves only uncontested or routine matters.  Such statement shall identify the person represented and the nature of the business involved; and

          (i)  The filing party shall list all public bodies from which he or his spouse received compensation in excess of One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) during the preceding calendar year.

     SECTION 2.  Section 25-4-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

     25-4-3.  As used in this chapter, unless the context requires otherwise:

          (a)  "Advisory boards or commissions"  means committees created solely to provide technical or professional knowledge or expertise to a parent organization, and whose members exercise no direct authority to expend public funds other than reimbursement for personal expenses incurred as a result of a member's service on the advisory board;

          (b)  "Business" * * * means any corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, firm, enterprise, franchise, association, organization, holding company, self-employed individual, joint stock company, receivership, trust or other legal entity or undertaking organized for economic gain; further,  "subsidiary business" means a business that is under the control of, or is owned in part or whole, by another business, and, with respect to such subsidiary business, "parent business" means the business that controls or owns in part or whole the subsidiary business;

          (c)  "Candidate for public office" * * * means an individual who has filed the necessary documents or papers to appear as a candidate for nomination for election or election to any elective office existing under the laws of the State of Mississippi, including primary, special or general elections.  The term "candidate" does not include any person within the meaning of Section 301(b) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971;

          (d)  "Commission" * * * means the Mississippi Ethics Commission;

          (e)  "Compensation" * * * means money or thing of value received, or to be received, from any person for services rendered or to be rendered;

          (f)  "Income" * * * means money or thing of value received, or to be received, from any source, including, but not limited to, any salary, wage, advance, payment, dividend, interest, rent, forgiveness of debt, fee, royalty or any combination thereof;

          (g)  "Person" * * * means any individual, firm, business, corporation, association, partnership, union or other legal entity;

          (h)  "Public employee" * * * means any individual who receives a salary, per diem or expenses paid in whole or in part out of funds authorized to be expended by the Mississippi State Legislature or by the governing body of any political subdivision thereof, or any other body politic within the State of Mississippi;

          (i)  "Public funds" * * * means all monies, whether federal, state, district or local;

          (j)  "Public official" * * * means:

              (i)  Any elected official of the State of Mississippi or any political subdivision thereof or any other body politic within the State of Mississippi; or

              (ii)  Any member, officer, director, commissioner, supervisor, chief, head, agent or employee of the State of Mississippi, or any agency thereof, of any political subdivision of the State of Mississippi, of any body politic within the State of Mississippi, or of any public entity created by or under the laws of the State of Mississippi or by executive order of the Governor of the state, any of which is funded by public funds or which expends, authorizes or recommends the use of public funds.

     SECTION 3.  Section 25-4-103, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

     25-4-103.  The following definitions apply in this article unless the context otherwise requires:

          (a)  "Authority" means any component unit of a governmental entity.

          (b)  "Benefit" means any gain or advantage to the beneficiary, including any gain or advantage to a third person pursuant to the desire or consent of the beneficiary.

          (c)  "Business" means any corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, firm, enterprise, franchise, association, organization, holding company, self-employed individual, joint stock company, receivership, trust or other legal entity or undertaking organized for economic gain, a nonprofit corporation or other such entity, association or organization receiving public funds; further, "subsidiary business" means a business that is under the control of, or is owned in part or whole, by another business, and, with respect to such subsidiary business, "parent business" means the business that controls or owns in part or whole the subsidiary business.

          (d)  "Business with which he is associated" means any business of which a public servant or his relative is an officer, director, owner, partner, employee or is a holder of more than ten percent (10%) of the fair market value or from which he or his relative derives more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) in annual income or over which such public servant or his relative exercises control.

          (e)  "Compensation" means money or thing of value received, or to be received, from any person for services rendered.

          (f)  "Contract" means:

              (i)  Any agreement to which the government is a party; or

              (ii)  Any agreement on behalf of the government which involves the payment of public funds.

          (g)  "Government" means the state and all political entities thereof, both collectively and separately, including, but not limited to:

              (i)  Counties;

              (ii)  Municipalities:

              (iii)  All school districts;

              (iv)  All courts; and

              (v)  Any department, agency, board, commission, institution, instrumentality, or legislative or administrative body of the state, counties or municipalities created by statute, ordinance or executive order including all units that expend public funds.

          (h)  "Governmental entity" means the state, a county, a municipality or any other separate political subdivision authorized by law to exercise a part of the sovereign power of the state.

          (i)  "Income" means money or thing of value received, or to be received, from any source derived, including, but not limited to, any salary, wage, advance, payment, dividend, interest, rent, forgiveness of debt, fee, royalty, commission or any combination thereof.

          (j)  "Intellectual property" means any formula, pattern, compilation, program, device, method, technique or process created primarily as a result of the research effort of an employee or employees of an institution of higher learning of the State of Mississippi.

          (k)  "Material financial interest" means a personal and pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, accruing to a public servant or spouse, either individually or in combination with each other.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, the following shall not be deemed to be a material financial interest with respect to a business with which a public servant may be associated:

              (i)  Ownership of any interest of less than ten percent (10%) in a business where the aggregate annual net income to the public servant therefrom is less than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00);

              (ii)  Ownership of any interest of less than two percent (2%) in a business where the aggregate annual net income to the public servant therefrom is less than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00);

              (iii)  The income as an employee of a relative if neither the public servant or relative is an officer, director or partner in the business and any ownership interest would not be deemed material pursuant to subparagraph (i) or (ii) herein; or

              (iv)  The income of the spouse of a public servant when such spouse is a contractor, subcontractor or vendor with the governmental entity that employs the public servant and the public servant exercises no control, direct or indirect, over the contract between the spouse and such governmental entity.

          (l)  "Pecuniary benefit" means benefit in the form of money, property, commercial interests or anything else the primary significance of which is economic gain.  Expenses associated with social occasions afforded public servants shall not be deemed a pecuniary benefit.

          (m)  "Person" means any individual, firm, business, corporation, association, partnership, union or other legal entity, and where appropriate a governmental entity.

          (n)  "Property" means all real or personal property.

          (o)  "Public funds" means money belonging to the government.

          (p)  "Public servant" means:

              (i)  Any elected or appointed official of the government;

              (ii)  Any officer, director, commissioner, supervisor, chief, head, agent or employee of the government or any agency thereof, or of any public entity created by or under the laws of the state of Mississippi or created by an agency or governmental entity thereof, any of which is funded by public funds or which expends, authorizes or recommends the use of public funds; or

              (iii)  Any individual who receives a salary, per diem or expenses paid in whole or in part out of funds authorized to be expended by the government.

          (q)  "Relative" means the spouse, child or parent.

          (r)  "Securities" means stocks, bonds, notes, convertible debentures, warrants, evidences of debts or property or other such documents.

     SECTION 4.  This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2007.