MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2024 Regular Session
To: Appropriations
By: Senator(s) Hopson, Butler
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 27-104-323, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DIRECT THE STATE FISCAL OFFICER TO TRANSFER TO THE CORONAVIRUS STATE FISCAL RECOVERY FUND THE FULL AMOUNT OF ANY INTEREST EARNED ON AMOUNTS IN THE CORONAVIRUS LOCAL FISCAL RECOVERY FUND THAT ARE REMAINING IN THE LOCAL FUND ON JULY 1, 2024; TO PROVIDE THAT ANY INTEREST EARNED ON AMOUNTS IN THE CORONAVIRUS LOCAL FISCAL RECOVERY FUND AFTER JULY 1, 2024, SHALL BE DEPOSITED TO THE CREDIT OF THE CORONAVIRUS STATE FISCAL RECOVERY FUND; TO AUTHORIZE THE STATE FISCAL OFFICER TO TRANSFER TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ANY FUNDS IN THE CORONAVIRUS LOCAL FISCAL RECOVERY FUND THAT HAVE NOT BEEN USED FOR THE PURPOSE FOR WHICH THEY WERE RECEIVED; TO AMEND SECTION 37-106-64, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE ELIGIBILITY FOR THE SKILLED NURSING HOME AND HOSPITAL NURSES RETENTION LOAN REPAYMENT PROGRAM; TO AMEND SECTION 41-3-16.1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DIRECT THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH'S DISTRIBUTION OF FUNDS APPROPRIATED TO THE ARPA RURAL WATER ASSOCIATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE GRANT PROGRAM; TO REQUIRE THE STATE FISCAL OFFICER TO TRANSFER CERTAIN FUNDS; TO CREATE THE "ARPA-MDOT MAINTENANCE PROJECT FUND" AS A SPECIAL FUND WITHIN THE STATE TREASURY; TO DIRECT THE STATE TREASURER, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE STATE FISCAL OFFICER, TO TRANSFER CERTAIN FUNDS TO THE CORONAVIRUS STATE FISCAL RECOVERY FUND; TO DIRECT THE STATE TREASURER, IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE STATE FISCAL OFFICER, TO TRANSFER CERTAIN FUNDS TO THE CORONAVIRUS STATE FISCAL RECOVERY LOST REVENUE FUND; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 27-104-323, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
27-104-323. (1) All funds received by or on behalf of the State of Mississippi through the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund in Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law No. 117-2) for distribution to nonentitlement units of local government shall be deposited into the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund created in subsection (2) of this section.
(2) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be designated as the "Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund" to be administered by the Department of Finance and Administration. The special fund shall consist of funds required to be deposited into the special fund by subsection (1) of this section, funds appropriated or otherwise made available by the Legislature in any manner, and funds from any other source designated for deposit into the special fund. The Department of Finance and Administration shall distribute the funds to the nonentitlement units of local government in accordance with the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund in Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law No. 117-2) and any applicable federal guidelines. Such funds shall only be used as provided in the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund in Section 9901 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law No. 117-2) or as authorized by federal rule or regulation or guidelines.
(3) Unexpended amounts remaining
in the special fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General
Fund but shall remain in the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund. The State
Fiscal Officer shall transfer to the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund the
full amount of any investment earnings or interest earned on amounts in the Coronavirus
Local Fiscal Recovery Fund that are remaining in the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery
Fund on July 1, 2024. Any investment earnings or interest earned on amounts
in the * * *
Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund after July 1, 2024, shall be deposited
to the credit of the * * * Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund created in Section 27-104-321.
(4) The State Fiscal Officer is authorized, in his or her discretion, to transfer to the federal government any funds in the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Fund that have not been used for the purpose for which they were received.
SECTION 2. Section 37-106-64, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-106-64. (1) There is established
the "Skilled Nursing Home and Hospital Nurses Retention Loan Repayment Program"
for * * * nursing
graduates to be administered by the Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial
Assistance Board.
(2) Subject to the availability of funds, an eligible applicant for an initial award must have:
(a) Legal residency in the State of Mississippi;
(b) Gained employment * * * as a full-time
licensed practical nurse or licensed registered nurse at a skilled nursing home
in the State of Mississippi or a general acute care hospital in the State of Mississippi
that is licensed by the Mississippi State Department of Health;
(c) A current relevant Mississippi professional license; and
(d) Outstanding qualifying educational loans, received at any point during the recipients postsecondary education career, which may include the principal, interest and related expenses such as the required interest premium on the unpaid balances of government and commercial loans obtained by the recipient for educational expense.
(3) Persons who have received funds from state-forgivable loan programs established under Mississippi law, or who are in default or delinquent on any federal, state, local or commercial qualifying educational loan, shall not be eligible for this program.
(4) Recipients in the program shall be selected on a first-come, first-served basis from all eligible applicants. The Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board shall renew eligible applicants approved in prior years only if the renewal applicant continues to meet the standards set forth in this act, and the renewal applicant has not received full funding provided by this subsection (4).
(5) Awards for recipients who are employed at a skilled nursing home or a licensed general acute care hospital in the state may be a maximum of Six Thousand Dollars ($6,000.00) for each year of employment up to three (3) years.
(6) A recipient shall not be penalized for ending employment at a skilled nursing home or a licensed general acute care hospital in the State of Mississippi if the recipient begins working for another skilled nursing home or licensed general acute care hospital in the State of Mississippi during the year on which the award is based.
(7) Awards shall be granted on a year-to-year basis, and recipients have no obligation to seek a subsequent award.
(8) Awards shall be paid annually, after the expiration of the year of employment for which the award was granted, to the recipient's lender or loan service provider, to be applied to the outstanding balance. Monies paid by the recipient or on the recipient's behalf toward qualifying educational loans before payment of the award shall not be eligible for reimbursement through the program.
(9) During the employment year for which the award is granted, a recipient shall at all times keep the State Financial Aid Board informed of any changes to the recipient's current, correct and complete employment information and status.
(10) Recipients, who fail to maintain a relevant Mississippi professional license or fail to fulfill the year of employment on which the award was based, forfeit any right to the award.
(11) The Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board, in collaboration with the State Board of Nursing and any other applicable state agency as determined by the Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board, shall attempt to track award recipients under this program through their third employment year, unless the recipient leaves employment at a skilled nursing home or a licensed general acute care hospital in the state at an earlier date. Data collected shall include each recipients' place of employment and any other pertinent information necessary to determine the efficacy of the program in retaining nurses in skilled nursing homes or licensed general acute care hospitals in the State of Mississippi.
(12) The Mississippi Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board shall promulgate regulations necessary for the proper administration of this section, including setting a fiscal year policy for the program and application dates and deadlines.
(13) This section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2027.
SECTION 3. Section 41-3-16.1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
41-3-16.1. (1) (a) The State Department of Health (department) shall establish a grant program to be known as the ARPA Rural Water Associations Infrastructure Grant Program (program) to assist rural water associations and entities in the construction of eligible drinking water infrastructure projects as provided in the Final Rule for the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds as established by the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
(b) Rural water associations and any entity that received funding under the ARPA Rural Water Associations Infrastructure Grant Program or the Mississippi Municipality and County Water Infrastructure (MCWI) Grant Program before April 14, 2023, shall be ineligible for additional grants under this section.
(2) The program shall be funded from appropriations by the Legislature to the department from the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund, and the department shall expend all such funds for the purposes provided in subsection (1) of this section.
(3) The department shall obligate the funds by the deadline set by the rules and guidelines of the United States Department of the Treasury and will adhere to the Treasury's rules and guidelines for reporting and monitoring projects funded through ARPA.
(4) (a) The department shall develop a system for use in ranking the grant applications received. The ranking system shall include the following factors, at a minimum: (a) the environmental impact of the proposed project; (b) the proposed project's ability to address noncompliance with state/federal requirements; (c) the extent to which the project promotes economic development; (d) the number of people served by the project (both new and existing users); (e) impacts of the proposed project on disadvantaged/overburdened communities; (f) the grant applicant's prior efforts to secure funding to address the proposed project's objectives; (g) the grant applicant's proposed contribution of other funds or in-kind cost-sharing to the proposed project; (h) the grant applicant's long-term plans for the financial and physical operation and maintenance of the project; and (i) the grant applicant's capacity to initiate construction in a timely manner and complete the proposed project by the deadline specified by rules and guidelines of the United States Department of the Treasury for ARPA funds.
(b) For the second round of grant awards, the department shall apply a greater weight to grant applications that promote consolidation of separate systems. In order to receive the additional weight, the systems that will consolidate shall be in a proximity of each other as determined by the department.
(c) In addition to the points awarded under paragraph (b) of this subsection, an additional ten (10) points shall be added to any application with at least one (1) system that has consolidated after January 1, 2018, and before application to this program and is otherwise eligible under this section.
(5) An application for a grant under this section shall be submitted at such time, be in such form, and contain such information as the department prescribes.
(6) (a) Upon the approval of an application for a grant under this section, the department shall enter into a project grant agreement with each grantee to establish the terms of the grant for the project, including the amount of the grant.
(b) (i) For the first award of grants, the maximum amount of funds that may be provided to any rural water association or entity from all grants under the program is Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($2,500,000.00).
(ii) For the second round of grant awards, the maximum amount of funds that may be provided to any eligible association or entity from all grants under the program is Two Million Dollars ($2,000,000.00).
(c) Associations or entities that received funding under the first round of grant awards for this program or received funding in the Mississippi Municipality and County Water Infrastructure Grant Program Act of 2022 are ineligible to receive funding under the second round.
(7) With any funds appropriated to the department for the program after April 1, 2024, the department shall distribute the funds to projects from the second round of grant awards in the order in which the applications were ranked for grants as long as the department determines that the project can obligate the funds by October 1, 2024, and expend the funds by December 31, 2026. Where the department determines that a project cannot obligate or expend the funds by the required dates, the department shall not fund the project, and it shall continue from the second round of grant awards in the order in which the applications were ranked for grants.
( * * *8) The department shall have all powers
necessary to implement and administer the program. Of the funds appropriated to
the department for the program, not more than five percent (5%) may be used by the
department to cover the department's costs of administering the program.
( * * *9) In carrying out its responsibilities
under the program, for any contract under the purview of the Public Procurement
Review Board (PPRB), the department shall be exempt from any requirement that the
PPRB approve any personal or professional services contracts or pre-approve any
solicitation of such contracts. This subsection shall stand repealed on July 1,
2026.
( * * *10) The department shall submit an annual
report regarding the program no later than December 31 of each year to the Lieutenant
Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the Chairmen of the Senate and House Appropriations
Committees.
( * * *11) For the purposes of this section,
"entity" means:
(a) Any entity operating as a rural water association, regardless of whether such entities were user created, were initially organized not for profit, or have been granted tax-exempt status under state or federal law.
(b) Any nonprofit water or sewer provider not owned by the municipality or county and are not a Rural Water Association.
(c) Any entity eligible under this program shall be currently operating as a not-for-profit entity.
(d) "Entity" under this subsection does not include any state agency. No state agency shall be eligible under this program.
SECTION 4. (1) The Legislature, based upon current United States Treasury guidance, has determined that all Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds must be obligated by December 31, 2024, and expended by December 31, 2026.
(2) (a) In order to meet the obligation deadline set forth by the United States Treasury, the State Fiscal Officer shall determine the amount of Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds appropriated to various agencies that will not be obligated as of October 1, 2024.
(b) In making the determination required by this section, the State Fiscal Officer shall use the guidance released by the United States Treasury to determine if the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds are not obligated.
(3) If at any time during the period from passage of this act to October 1, 2024, a state agency determines that Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds will not be obligated by October 1, 2024, the state agency shall notify the State Fiscal Officer.
(4) If at any time the State Fiscal Officer determines that funds will be unobligated as of October 1, 2024, under subsection (2) or (3) of this section, the State Treasurer, in coordination with the State Fiscal Officer, shall transfer these funds to the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund (Fund No. 682111300) by no later than October 5, 2024. The State Fiscal Officer may retain an amount not to exceed the lesser of the estimated cost of ARPA administration or Twenty-five Million Dollars ($25,000,000.00) in the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund to be utilized for administrative and reporting costs. No later than October 6, 2024, the State Treasurer, in conjunction with the State Fiscal Officer, shall transfer the funds to the ARPA-MDOT Maintenance Project Fund.
SECTION 5. There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be designated as the "ARPA-MDOT Maintenance Project Fund," which shall consist of funds made available by the Legislature in any manner and funds from any other source designated for deposit into such fund. The fund shall be maintained by the State Treasurer as a separate and special fund, separate and apart from the General Fund of the state. Unexpended amounts remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund, and any investment earnings or interest earned on amounts in the fund shall be deposited to the credit of the fund. Monies in the fund shall be used by the Department of Transportation for eligible Surface Transportation maintenance projects included in the Maintenance Program of the Three-Year Plan as adopted by, amended by, or reissued by the Mississippi Transportation Commission under the authority of Section 65-1-141. The Department of Transportation may escalate its budget upon receiving Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds and expend such funds in accordance with rules and regulations of the Department of Finance and Administration in a manner consistent with the escalation of federal funds.
The Department of Transportation shall determine if a project is eligible based upon Section 602 of the federal Social Security Act as added by Section 9901 of the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA) and its implementing guidelines, guidance, rules, regulations and/or other criteria, as may be amended or supplemented from time to time, by the United States Department of the Treasury, including, but not limited to, Federal Register Volume 88, Issue 181, September 20, 2023, which allows for Surface Transportation projects.
SECTION 6. Upon the effective date of this act, the State Treasurer, in conjunction with the State Fiscal Officer, shall transfer to the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund (Fund No. 6821113000) from the following named funds the following sums:
FUND FUND NUMBER AMOUNT
Mississippi Municipal
and County Water
Infrastructure Fund 6822147000.......... $ 25,265,726.00
ARPA- Tourism Fund 6822113300.......... $ 861,050.00
Mississippi Hospital
Sustainability
Grant Program Fund 6822130500.......... $ 39,460,629.00
MH SB Corona State Fiscal
Rec Funds ARPA Fund 6822437100.......... $ 29,384,500.00
MH CO Corona State Fiscal
Rec Funds ARPA Fund 6822337100.......... $ 18,057,096.00
Mississippi Law Enforcement
and Fire Fighters
Premium Pay Fund 6822171100.......... $ 3,316,000.00
Trial Judges-ARPA 2021-
(CPS) Fund 6822105100.......... $ 1,500,000.00
Trial Judges-ARPA 2021-
Temporary Courts Fund 6822105200.......... $ 3,063,505.00
TOTAL.................................. $120,908,506.00
SECTION 7. Upon the effective date of this act, the State Treasurer, in conjunction with the State Fiscal Officer, shall transfer the sum of Fifty-four Million One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($54,100,000.00) from the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund (Fund No. 6821113000) to the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Lost Revenue Fund (Fund No. 3822113000).
SECTION 8. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.