HB1796_S_Amend

SECTION 1. (1) There is established the Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag (commission) for the sole purpose of developing, designing and reporting to the Governor and the Legislature three (3) recommendations for the new design for the official Mississippi State Flag not later than January 1, 2021. The three (3) new designs for the Mississippi State Flag recommended by the commission shall be placed on the ballot in a statewide special election as provided for in Section 2 of this act. The new designs for the Mississippi State Flag recommended by the commission shall not include the design of the Confederate Battle Flag, but shall include the words "In God We Trust." The commission is charged with a sensitive and responsible task that it shall conduct in an objective manner. The new design for the Mississippi State Flag shall honor the past while embracing the promise of the future.

(2) The Commission to Redesign the Mississippi State Flag shall consist of seventeen (17) members, to be appointed as follows:

(a) Three (3) members of the Mississippi House of Representatives appointed by the Speaker of the House;

(b) Three (3) members of the Mississippi Senate appointed by the Lieutenant Governor;

(i) Two (2) university or college students;

(ii) A Mississippi public schoolteacher and a Mississippi public university instructor;

(iii) A representative from the Mississippi NAACP;

(iv) A representative from the Mississippi Arts Commission;

(v) A representative of the League of Women Voters of Mississippi;

(vi) One (1) representative from the Board of Trustees of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History;

(vii) A representative from business and industry; and

(viii) Two (2) members from the state at large.

All appointments to the commission shall be made not later than July 15, 2020. The chair of the commission shall be chosen by majority vote of the members of the commission. The commission shall meet as soon as practicable after the appointments have been made upon the call of the chairman, and shall organize for business. A quorum of the membership of the commission shall be required for the adoption of any reports and recommendations. The Mississippi Department of Archives and History shall provide meeting space and clerical support for the operation of the commission.

(3) The commission shall have the following functions and duties:

(a) To hold regular, public meetings when and where it sees fit;

(b) To receive written, public comment, in a manner that it sees fit, and to hold public hearings, under the terms and conditions that it sees fit;

(c) To collect, examine and consider all information that it determines may be helpful in making a recommendation for the new design for the Mississippi State Flag;

(d) To consult with experts, social science experts, representatives of organizations and associations, and others, as it sees fit, whose knowledge or expertise may assist the commission in making its recommendation;

(e) To make any inquiries and conduct any business that may assist the commission in developing the new designs for the Mississippi State Flag; however, the new design for the Mississippi State Flag recommended by the commission shall not include the design of the Confederate Battle Flag, but shall include the words "In God We Trust";

(f) Keep minutes of its meetings, and make those minutes available to the public; and

(g) To make a written recommendation for the new designs for the official Mississippi State Flag, which shall be presented to the Governor and the Legislature not later than January 1, 2021.

(4) Members of the commission shall receive no compensation for their service on the commission, but may receive reimbursement for mileage and actual expenses as provided in Section 25-3-41, to the extent that funds are available for that purpose.

SECTION 2. (1) There shall be a statewide special election for the purpose of determining whether to retain the present state flag or which of the three (3) new designs for the Mississippi State Flag recommended by the commission shall be the design for the official Mississippi State Flag. The special election shall be held on Tuesday, April 6, 2021, concurrent with municipal primary elections in Mississippi and shall be conducted in the same manner as general elections are held. The question put before the voters at the special election shall read on the ballots as follows:

PROPOSITION A

"PLEASE VOTE 'YES' OR 'NO'

The current Mississippi flag shall be removed as the official State Flag.

'YES': ________ 'NO': ________"

PROPOSITION B

"ONLY IF YOU VOTE 'YES' ON PROPOSITION A, PLEASE VOTE 'YES' OR 'NO' ON WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING DESIGNS SHALL BE THE OFFICIAL MISSISSIPPI STATE FLAG:

DESIGN NO. 1: 'YES': ________ 'NO': ________

DESIGN NO. 2: 'YES': ________ 'NO': ________

DESIGN NO. 3: 'YES': ________ 'NO': ________"

THE BALLOT SHALL INCLUDE A PICTURE OF EACH DESIGN RECOMMENDED BY THE COMMISSION IN COLOR WHICH SHALL BE PRINTED NEXT TO EACH DESIGN NUMBER. THE QUALIFIED ELECTORS MAY INDICATE THEIR PREFERENCE ON THE LINE FOLLOWING THE ANSWER THAT THEY PREFER.

If a majority of the qualified electors voting on Proposition "A" in the special election vote "Yes" as certified by the Secretary of State, then the Legislature shall enact into law the new design receiving the largest number of votes on Proposition "B" as the official Mississippi State Flag during the next regular session of the Legislature after the election. If a majority of the qualified electors voting on Proposition "A" in the special election vote "No" as certified by the Secretary of State, then the official state flag in present law described in Section 3-3-16, Mississippi Code of 1972, shall continue to be the state flag of Mississippi.

(2) The statewide special election for voting on the design for the official Mississippi State Flag shall be administered by means of ballots containing a uniform representation of the new designs for the official Mississippi State Flag recommended by the commission, which shall be provided by the Secretary of State to the election commissioners of each county. The Secretary of State shall determine whether, in each county, it would be more efficient to administer the election by paper ballots, voting machines, electronic voting systems, optical mark reading equipment or other mechanized equipment. The method used in each county shall be as uniform as practicable when compared to any other county in which the same method is used. In any event, the Secretary of State shall include a color picture or drawing of the new designs for the Mississippi State Flag on all ballots provided for in this section. The Secretary of State is authorized to enter into any necessary contracts for providing the required color picture or drawing of the new designs for the official Mississippi State Flag on all ballots in all counties of this state. The costs incurred in providing the ballots that are required to include a color picture or drawing of the new design for the official Mississippi State Flag shall be borne by the State of Mississippi, and the Legislature shall appropriate the funds necessary for this purpose. The Secretary of State shall determine whether, in each county, it would be more efficient to administer the election by paper ballots or voting machines, and shall determine if the question put before the voters shall be included on the ballot for municipal primary elections, in order to save costs. All other costs associated with the holding of the statewide special election shall be borne by each individual county.

(3) The county election commissioners shall transmit to the Secretary of State, in the same manner as the vote for state officers is transmitted, a statement of the total number of votes cast for Proposition "A" and Proposition "B" in the statewide special election for voting on the design for the official Mississippi State Flag. The Secretary of State shall tabulate those returns and certify the results to the Governor and to each house of the Legislature.

SECTION 3. Section 23-15-351, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-351. It shall be the duty of the chair of the election commission of each county to have printed all necessary ballots for use in elections, except ballots in municipal elections which shall be printed as herein provided by the authorities of the respective municipalities; and the election commissioner shall cause the official ballot to be printed by a printer sworn to keep the ballots secret under the penalties prescribed by law. The printer shall deliver to the election commissioners for holding elections, a certificate of the number of ballots printed for each precinct, and shall not print any additional ballots, except on instruction of proper election commissioners; and failure to observe either of these requirements shall be a misdemeanor.

In the case of a statewide special election on the design for the official Mississippi State Flag provided for in Section 2 of this act, the provisions of this article regarding the printing and distribution of the official ballots shall be governed by the provisions of Section 2(3) of this act.

SECTION 4. Section 23-15-355, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-355. Ballots in all elections shall be printed and distributed at public expense and shall be known as "official ballots." The expense of printing the ballots shall be paid out of the county treasury, except that in municipal elections such expenses shall be paid by the respective cities, towns and villages.

In the case of a statewide special election on the design for the official Mississippi State Flag provided for in Section 2 of this act, the provisions of this section regarding payment of the expenses of printing the official ballots shall be governed by the provisions of Section 2(3) of this act.

SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.