MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2022 Regular Session
To: Appropriations
By: Representatives Read, Shanks, Stamps, Foster
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-31, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE SALARIES OF THE ELECTED STATE AND DISTRICT OFFICERS SHALL BE FIXED AT THE LEVEL RECOMMENDED BY THE STATE PERSONNEL BOARD TO THE JOINT LEGISLATIVE BUDGET COMMITTEE TO THE EXTENT SUFFICIENT FUNDS ARE AVAILABLE; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-39, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE CEILING ESTABLISHED FOR SALARIES OF PUBLIC OFFICERS; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-71, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REMOVE THE REPORTING REQUIREMENT ON SALARY INCREASES FOR COUNTY ELECTED OFFICIALS; TO AMEND SECTION 25-9-133, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REMOVE AN INCORRECT STATUTORY REFERENCE; TO AMEND SECTION 37-3-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE AUTHORITY OF THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION TO SET THE SALARIES OF CERTAIN PERSONNEL; TO AMEND SECTIONS 47-5-20 AND 47-5-28, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REMOVE A PROVISION THAT IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT GRANTING AN EXEMPTION FROM STATE PERSONNEL BOARD PROCEDURES FOR THE COMMISSIONER OF CORRECTIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 57-1-5, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REMOVE THE AUTHORITY OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE MISSISSIPPI DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY TO SET SALARIES OF CERTAIN PERSONNEL; TO AMEND SECTION 65-1-2, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REMOVE A PROVISION THAT IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT GRANTING AN EXEMPTION FROM STATE PERSONNEL BOARD PROCEDURES FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION; TO AMEND SECTION 81-1-69, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE SALARY OF THE COMMISSIONER OF BANKING AND CONSUMER FINANCE SHALL BE FIXED BY THE GOVERNOR IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE STATE COMPENSATION PLAN; TO AMEND SECTION 25-9-147, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DESIGNATE A NEW NAME FOR THE VARIABLE COMPENSATION PLAN; TO REPEAL SECTION 25-3-34, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR EDUCATION BENCHMARK AWARDS FOR APPOINTIVE STATE AND DISTRICT OFFICIALS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 25-3-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-31. (1) The annual salaries of the following elected state and district officers are fixed as follows:
Governor....................................... $122,160.00
Attorney General................................ 108,960.00
Secretary of State.............................. 90,000.00
Commissioner of Insurance....................... 90,000.00
State Treasurer................................. 90,000.00
State Auditor of Public Accounts................ 90,000.00
Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce......... 90,000.00
Transportation Commissioners.................... 78,000.00
Public Service Commissioners.................... 78,000.00
If the person serving as Governor on December 31, 2003, is reelected to the Office of Governor for the term beginning in the year 2004, he may choose not to receive the salary increase authorized by this section, but to receive, instead, an annual salary of One Hundred One Thousand Eight Hundred Dollars ($101,800.00) during his new term of office by filing a written request with the Department of Finance and Administration.
(2) Beginning July 1, 2022, and every four (4) years thereafter, the annual salaries of the elected state and district officers in subsection (1) of this section shall be fixed at the level of compensation recommended by the State Personnel Board to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee for the Legislative Budget Recommendation for the requisite fiscal year terms after examination and evaluation of the neighboring states and relevant economic data, to the extent that sufficient funds are available. The annual salaries fixed in accordance with this subsection (2) shall not become effective until the commencement of the next immediately succeeding term of office.
(3) To assist the elected state and district officers in subsection (1) of this section in efficiently performing the official duties imposed upon him by law, he may employ suitable and competent persons who possess the professional skill and expert knowledge needed to fulfill those duties. The State Personnel Board, based upon its findings of fact, shall exempt those persons from the provisions of Section 25-3-39 when the acquisition of such professional services is precluded based upon the prevailing wage in the relevant labor market. This subsection (3) shall stand repealed on July 1, 2024.
SECTION 2. Section 25-3-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
[Beginning July 1, 2022, through December 31, 2023, this section shall read as follows:]
25-3-39. (1) (a) Except
as otherwise provided in this section, no public officer, public employee,
administrator, or executive head of any arm or agency of the state, in the
executive branch of government, shall be paid * * * an annual salary * * * greater
than one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the salary fixed in Section 25-3-31
for the Governor, nor shall the salary of any public officer, public employee,
administrator, or executive head of any arm or agency of the state, in the
executive branch of government, be supplemented with any funds from any source,
including federal or private funds. Such salaries shall be completely paid by the
state. All academic officials, members of the teaching staffs and employees of
the state institutions of higher learning, the Mississippi Community
College Board, and community and junior colleges, and licensed physicians who are
public employees, shall be exempt from this subsection. All professional
employees who hold a bachelor's degree or more advanced degree from an
accredited four-year college or university or a certificate or license issued
by a state licensing board, commission or agency and who are employed by the
Department of Mental Health shall be exempt from this subsection if the State
Personnel Board approves the exemption. The Commissioner of Child Protection
Services is exempt from this subsection. From and after July 1, 2018, the Executive
Director of the Public Employees' Retirement System and the Chief Investment
Officer of the Public Employees' Retirement System shall be exempt from this
subsection.
(b) The Governor shall fix the annual salary of the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority, the annual salary of the Commissioner of Child Protection Services, and the annual salary of the Chief of Staff of the Governor's Office. The salary of the Governor's Chief of Staff shall not be greater than one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the salary of the Governor and shall be completely paid by the state without supplementation from another source. The salary of the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority may be greater than one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the salary of the Governor and may be supplemented with funds from any source, including federal or private funds; however, any state funds used to pay the salary of the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority shall not exceed one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the salary of the Governor. If the executive director's salary is supplemented with private funds, the Mississippi Development Authority shall publish on its website the amount of the supplement and the name of the donor of the private funds.
(2) No public officer, employee or administrator shall be paid a salary or compensation, directly or indirectly, in excess of the salary authorized to be paid the executive head of the state agency or department in which he is employed. The State Personnel Board, based upon its findings of fact, may exempt physicians and actuaries from this subsection when the acquisition of such professional services is precluded based on the prevailing wage in the relevant labor market.
(3) The executive head of any state agency or department appointed by the Governor, in such executive head's discretion, may waive all or any portion of the salary or compensation lawfully established for the position.
[Beginning January 1, 2024, this section shall read as follows:]
25-3-39. * * *
(1) (a) Except
as otherwise provided in this section, no public officer, public employee,
administrator, or executive head of any arm or agency of the state, in the
executive branch of government, shall be paid an annual salary greater than one
hundred twenty-five percent (125%) of the salary fixed in Section 25-3-31 for
the Governor, nor shall the salary of any public officer, public employee,
administrator, or executive head of any arm or agency of the state, in the
executive branch of government, be supplemented with any funds from any source,
including federal or private funds. Such salaries shall be completely paid by the
state. All academic officials, members of the teaching staffs and employees of
the state institutions of higher learning, the Mississippi Community
College Board, and community and junior colleges, and licensed physicians who
are public employees, shall be exempt from this subsection. All professional
employees who hold a bachelor's degree or more advanced degree from an
accredited four-year college or university or a certificate or license issued
by a state licensing board, commission or agency and who are employed by the
Department of Mental Health shall be exempt from this subsection if the State
Personnel Board approves the exemption. The Commissioner of Child Protection
Services is exempt from this subsection. The Executive Director of the Public
Employees' Retirement System and the Chief Investment Officer of the Public Employees'
Retirement System shall be exempt from this subsection.
(b) The Governor shall fix the annual salary of the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority, the annual salary of the Commissioner of Child Protection Services, and the annual salary of the Chief of Staff of the Governor's office. The salary of the Governor's Chief of Staff shall not be greater than one hundred twenty-five percent (125%) of the salary of the Governor and shall be completely paid by the state without supplementation from another source. The salary of the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority may be greater than one hundred twenty-five percent (125%) of the salary of the Governor and may be supplemented with funds from any source, including federal or private funds; however, any state funds used to pay the salary of the Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority shall not exceed one hundred twenty-five percent (125%) of the salary of the Governor. If the executive director's salary is supplemented with private funds, the Mississippi Development Authority shall publish on its website the amount of the supplement and the name of the donor of the private funds.
(2) No public officer, employee or administrator shall be paid a salary or compensation, directly or indirectly, in excess of the salary authorized to be paid the executive head of the state agency or department in which he is employed. The State Personnel Board, based upon its findings of fact, may exempt physicians and actuaries from this subsection when the acquisition of such professional services is precluded based on the prevailing wage in the relevant labor market.
(3) The executive head of any state agency or department appointed by the Governor, in such executive head's discretion, may waive all or any portion of the salary or compensation lawfully established for the position.
SECTION 3. Section 25-3-71, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-71. The State Personnel
Board shall prepare a written legislative report to be submitted to the members
of the Mississippi Legislature on December 1, 1988, and on December 1 of every
year thereafter, making recommendations on any salary increases and the amounts
deemed necessary for all state * * *
elected officials and state appointed officials whose salaries are established
by statute.
SECTION 4. Section 25-9-133, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-9-133. (1) The board
shall recommend policies and procedures for the efficient and economical use of
employment positions. The board shall report to the State Fiscal Management
Board and the Legislative Budget Office recommendations for the number of
employment positions and costs within each department, agency or institution. Such
recommendation shall include the job title and salary of each position. The
board shall conduct periodic position audits within each department, agency or
institution to ensure the effective and efficient use of all personnel
resources and to determine compliance with organization and staffing plans by
agencies * * *.
(2) No person shall be employed by any agency for any period for any purpose except in an employment position authorized by legislative appropriation or by the body authorized by law to escalate budgets and approve employment positions under the guidelines established by the Legislature. Each employment position so authorized shall be classified and assigned a pay range on the basis of actual job content, according to the State Classification Plan.
SECTION 5. Section 37-3-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-3-13. * * * The deputy
superintendents, associate superintendents and directors shall be selected by
and hold office subject to the will of the State Superintendent of Public
Education subject to the approval of the State Board of Education. All other
personnel shall be competitively appointed by the State Superintendent and
shall be dismissed only for cause in accordance with the rules and regulations
of the State Personnel Board. The State Board of Education shall set the
salary of * * *
the members of the teaching staffs and employees of the Mississippi School of
the Arts, the Mississippi School for the Blind, the Mississippi School for the
Deaf, and the Mississippi School for Math and Sciences. The State
Superintendent, subject to the approval of the State Personnel Board, shall fix
the amount of compensation of all other employees of the State Department of
Education. All salaries, compensation or expenses of any of the personnel of
the department shall be paid upon the requisition of the State Superintendent
of Public Education and warrant issued thereunder by the State Auditor out of
funds appropriated by the Legislature in a lump sum upon the basis of budgetary
requirements submitted by the Superintendent of Education or out of funds
otherwise made available. The entire expense of administering the department
shall never exceed the amount appropriated therefor, plus funds received from
other sources other than state appropriations. For a violation of this
provision, the superintendent shall be liable, and he and the sureties on his
bond shall be required to restore any such excess.
* * *
SECTION 6. Section 47-5-20, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
47-5-20. The commissioner shall have the following powers and duties:
(a) To establish the general policy of the department;
(b) To approve proposals for the location of new facilities, for major renovation activities, and for the creation of new programs and divisions within the department as well as for the abolition of the same; provided, however, that the commissioner shall approve the location of no new facility unless the board of supervisors of the county or the governing authorities of the municipality in which the new facility is to be located shall have had the opportunity with at least sixty (60) days' prior notice to disapprove the location of the proposed facility. If either the board of supervisors or the governing authorities shall disapprove the facility, it shall not be located in that county or municipality. Said notice shall be made by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the members of the board or governing authorities and to the clerk thereof;
(c) Except as otherwise
provided or required by law, to open bids and approve the sale of any products
or manufactured goods by the department according to applicable provisions of
law regarding bidding and sale of state property, and according to rules and
regulations established by the State Fiscal Management Board; * * *
(d) To adopt administrative rules and regulations including, but not limited to, offender transfer procedures, award of administrative earned time, personnel procedures, employment practices.
* * *
SECTION 7. Section 47-5-28, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
47-5-28. The commissioner shall have the following powers and duties:
(a) To implement and administer laws and policy relating to corrections and coordinate the efforts of the department with those of the federal government and other state departments and agencies, county governments, municipal governments, and private agencies concerned with providing offender services;
(b) To establish standards, in cooperation with other state agencies having responsibility as provided by law, provide technical assistance, and exercise the requisite supervision as it relates to correctional programs over all state-supported adult correctional facilities and community-based programs;
(c) To promulgate and publish such rules, regulations and policies of the department as are needed for the efficient government and maintenance of all facilities and programs in accord insofar as possible with currently accepted standards of adult offender care and treatment;
(d) To provide the
Parole Board with suitable and sufficient office space and support resources
and staff necessary to * * * conduct Parole
Board business under the guidance of the Chairman of the Parole Board;
(e) To contract for transitional reentry center beds that will be used as noncorrections housing for offenders released from the department on parole, probation or post-release supervision but do not have appropriate housing available upon release. At least one hundred (100) but no more than eight hundred (800) transitional reentry center beds contracted by the department and chosen by the Parole Board shall be available for the Parole Board to place parolees without appropriate housing;
(f) To designate deputy commissioners while performing their officially assigned duties relating to the custody, control, transportation, recapture or arrest of any offender within the jurisdiction of the department or any offender of any jail, penitentiary, public workhouse or overnight lockup of the state or any political subdivision thereof not within the jurisdiction of the department, to the status of peace officers anywhere in the state in any matter relating to the custody, control, transportation or recapture of such offender, and shall have the status of law enforcement officers and peace officers as contemplated by Sections 45-6-3, 97-3-7 and 97-3-19.
For the purpose of
administration and enforcement of this chapter, deputy commissioners of the
Mississippi Department of Corrections, who are certified by the Mississippi
Board on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Training, have the powers of a
law enforcement officer of this state. Such powers shall include to make arrests
and to serve and execute search warrants and other valid legal process anywhere
within the State of Mississippi while performing their officially assigned
duties relating to the custody, control, transportation, recapture or arrest of
any offender within the jurisdiction of the department or any offender of any
jail, penitentiary, public workhouse or overnight lockup of the state or any
political subdivision thereof not within the jurisdiction of the department in
any matter relating to the custody, control, transportation or recapture of
such offender * * *;
(g) To make an annual report to the Governor and the Legislature reflecting the activities of the department and make recommendations for improvement of the services to be performed by the department;
(h) To cooperate fully with periodic independent internal investigations of the department and to file the report with the Governor and the Legislature; and
* * *
( * * *i) To perform such other duties necessary
to effectively and efficiently carry out the purposes of the department as may
be directed by the Governor.
SECTION 8. Section 57-1-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
57-1-5. (1) The Governor shall, with the advice and consent of the Senate, appoint an executive director who:
(a) Shall have at least a bachelor's degree, and
(b) Shall be an experienced administrator and have at least five (5) years' experience in at least one (1) of the following areas:
(i) Industrial development, or
(ii) Economic development.
(2) The executive director shall be the executive officer of the department in the execution of any and all provisions of this chapter, and his salary shall be fixed by the Governor.
(3) The executive director shall have the following powers and duties:
(a) To formulate the policy of the department regarding the economic and tourist development of the state.
(b) To use and expend any funds from state, federal or private sources coming into the department for the purposes herein provided. State funds appropriated for the department shall be expended in accordance with the regulations governing the expenditures of other state funds.
(c) To implement the duties assigned to the department and consistent with specific requirements of law, including, but not limited to:
(i) Support services to include legal, finance, data processing, personnel, communications and advertising, purchasing and accounting;
(ii) Research and planning;
(iii) Outreach, agency liaison and community development;
(iv) Tourism, business travel, and film;
(v) Programs and assistance for existing state business and industry;
(vi) Recruiting new business and industry into the state;
(vii) Fostering and promoting of entrepreneurship and the creation of new business in the state;
(viii) Programs aimed at competing effectively in the international economy by increasing exports of state products and services and by promoting, developing and creating the conditions and programs that will bring about significant increases in investment in the state from other countries;
(ix) Programs relating to the development of ports;
(x) Such other areas as are within the jurisdiction and authority of the department and will foster and promote the economic development of this state;
(xi) * * * The positions of associate directors, deputy
directors and bureau directors shall not be state service positions.
SECTION 9. Section 65-1-2, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
65-1-2. (1) There is hereby created the Mississippi Department of Transportation, which shall include the following offices:
(a) Office of Administrative Services.
(b) Office of Highways.
(c) Office of State Aid Road Construction.
(d) Office of Intermodal Planning.
(e) Office of Enforcement.
(2) Each office shall be composed of such bureaus as deemed necessary by the executive director of the department.
(3) The department is designated as the single state agency to receive and expend any funds made available by the United States Department of Transportation or any agency of the federal government for transportation purposes and to cooperate with federal, state, interstate and local agencies, organizations and persons performing activities relating to transportation. This subsection shall not apply to motor carrier safety assistance program funds made available by the federal government to the Public Service Commission.
(4) The powers, duties and responsibilities of the State Highway Department with respect to the construction and maintenance of the state highway system are transferred to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
(5) The powers, duties and
responsibilities of the * * * Mississippi Development Authority with respect to
aeronautics are transferred to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
(6) The powers, duties and responsibilities of the State Tax Commission with respect to the weighing of motor vehicles along the highways of this state at inspection stations and by means of portable scales are transferred to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
(7) The powers, duties and
responsibilities of the * * * Mississippi Development Authority with respect to
transportation matters, except with respect to ports, are transferred to the
Mississippi Department of Transportation.
(8) The powers, duties and responsibilities of the State Aid Engineer and the Office of State Aid Road Construction are transferred to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
(9) All powers, duties and responsibilities of the Public Service Commission with regard to railroads, except rate-making authority, are transferred to the Mississippi Department of Transportation. The Mississippi Transportation Commission may perform any act and issue any rule, regulation or order which the commission is permitted to do by the Federal Railroad Safety Act of 1970 (45 USCS et seq.). A copy of any new rule, regulation or order passed by the Mississippi Transportation Commission shall be furnished to members of the Transportation Committees of the Mississippi House of Representatives and the Mississippi Senate. Individuals, corporations or companies affected by the order, rule or regulation shall be notified in accordance with the Mississippi Administrative Procedures Law.
(10) All records, personnel, property and unexpended balances of appropriations, allocation or other funds of all those agencies, boards, commissions, departments, offices, bureaus and divisions that are transferred by Chapter 496, Laws of 1992, shall be transferred to the Mississippi Department of Transportation. The transfer of segregated or special funds shall be made in such a manner that the relation between program and revenue source as provided by law shall be retained.
* * *
SECTION 10. Section 81-1-69, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
81-1-69. The * * * salary
of the commissioner * * * shall be fixed by
the * * * Governor in conjunction with the
State Compensation Plan, and shall be payable monthly out of the funds of
the department.
SECTION 11. Section 25-9-147, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-9-147. The State Personnel Board shall review on an annual basis the variable compensation plan adopted by the Legislature at the regular session of 1981 and subsequently implemented by the State Personnel Board. Each state department or agency subject to the variable compensation plan shall prepare an annual written report under the direction of the head of that department or agency outlining the impact which the plan has had on that department or agency during the preceding fiscal year. Such department or agency report shall be submitted to the State Personnel Board and shall become a part of the board's annual review of the variable compensation plan. After conducting its annual review of the plan and studying the report of each department or agency, the State Personnel Board shall prepare a written legislative report, to be submitted to the members of the Mississippi Legislature prior to January 1 of each year. This written report shall accurately reflect the effect of the variable compensation plan on the various departments or agencies subject to the plan. From and after July 1, 1985, the plan shall be named the "Colonel Guy Groff State Variable Compensation Plan." From and after July 1, 2022, the plan shall be named the "Colonel Guy Groff/Neville Kenning Variable Compensation Plan."
SECTION 12. Section 25-3-34, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides for education benchmark awards for appointive state and district officials, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 13. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2022, and shall stand repealed on June 30, 2022.