MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2026 Regular Session
To: Universities and Colleges; Appropriations A
By: Representative Newman
AN ACT TO AUTHORIZE JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY TO PLAN, DESIGN, CONSTRUCT, OWN AND OPERATE A FOOTBALL STADIUM AT A LOCATION SEPARATE AND INDEPENDENT FROM THE MISSISSIPPI VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM PROPERTY; TO REQUIRE THE UNIVERSITY TO RAISE A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF PRIVATE OR NONSTATE FUNDS AS A CONDITION PRECEDENT TO STATE PARTICIPATION IN CONSTRUCTION COSTS, SUBJECT TO LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATION; TO AUTHORIZE THE SALE, LEASE AND USE OF ADVERTISING AND NAMING RIGHTS FOR THE STADIUM AND STADIUM PROPERTY; TO CREATE THE JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY STADIUM CONSTRUCTION FUND AND PROVIDE FOR THE DEPOSIT AND EXPENDITURE OF CERTAIN FUNDS THEREIN; TO AMEND SECTIONS 55-23-1, 55-23-5, 55-23-6, 55-23-7 AND 55-23-19, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY TO THE PRECEDING PROVISIONS, TO REVISE LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS, PROVIDE FOR THE TRANSITION AND DISSOLUTION OF THE MISSISSIPPI VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM COMMISSION UPON COMPLETION OF A JACKSON STATE UNIVERSITY STADIUM, PROVIDE FOR THE TRANSFER OF PROPERTY, POWERS AND DUTIES RELATING TO THE MISSISSIPPI VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM PROPERTY, AUTHORIZE AND REGULATE THE DEMOLITION OF VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM, ASSIGN EXCLUSIVE FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR DEMOLITION TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MEDICAL CENTER WITHOUT USE OF STATE GENERAL FUND MONIES, AND PROVIDE FOR CERTIFICATION AND FISCAL SAFEGUARDS; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 55-23-8 AND 55-23-11, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR PURPOSES OF CONTINUITY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. (1) Jackson State University is authorized to plan, design, construct, own and operate a football stadium, which may be located upon the university's campus or a separate and independent site, excluding its current location within Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property, which has been deemed, by the university with approval of the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, to be logistically suitable and economically feasibly for the construction of a football stadium that serves the best interest of the university's student population and the residents of the community within its immediate and adjacent vicinities without causing undue harm.
(2) Jackson State University shall raise not less than Ten Million Dollars ($10,000,000.00) in private or nonstate funds for capital construction costs associated with the stadium within five (5) years from the effective date of this act. Upon certification that the funding requirement of this section has been met, the State of Mississippi shall be responsible for funding the remaining construction costs, subject to legislative appropriation. Failure to meet the requirement in this subsection within the prescribed period shall render the authorization in this section null and void unless extended by act of the Legislature.
SECTION 2. (1) Jackson State University may allow a federal, state or local governmental entity, or a public, private, commercial or charitable entity to use, publish or advertise the entity's name on football stadium property. Furthermore, subject to approval by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, the university may lease to any public, private, commercial or charitable entity, for a term not to exceed twenty (20) years, naming rights for the football stadium or property, including, but not limited to, new construction, improvements, grounds and/or objects located on property where the stadium is constructed in return for consideration benefitting the university. The lessee shall pay the cost of erecting, maintaining and removing signage related to the property.
(2) Any funds received from the advertising or lease of naming rights shall be deposited into the Jackson State University Stadium Construction Fund created in Section 3 of this act and expended for the construction and subsequent improvements to the football stadium and for marketing and promotion programs for events at the football stadium upon appropriation by the Legislature. The university shall not enter into any such agreement with any vendor whose products are illegal for participation in or use by persons eighteen (18) years of age and under.
SECTION 3. (1) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be designated as the "Jackson State University Stadium Construction Fund." The fund shall consist of naming rights proceeds, private donations, grants, gifts and any other funds designated by the Legislature. Monies in the fund shall be expended solely for planning, design, construction and related capital costs of the Jackson State University football stadium, upon legislative appropriation. Monies in the fund shall not lapse into the State General Fund.
SECTION 4. Section 55-23-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
55-23-1. The Legislature hereby finds and determines:
(a) * * *
Veterans Memorial Stadium has served the State of Mississippi for decades as
a venue for athletic and civic events;
(b) * * * The long-term public interest is best
served by requiring Jackson State University to develop and maintain a stadium
owned and operated by the university, supported by private fundraising and
state capital participation subject to appropriation;
(c) The University of Mississippi Medical Center has an institutional need for property suitable for expansion and related public purposes;
(d) It is necessary and proper to authorize the demolition of Veterans Memorial Stadium and to require that the University of Mississippi Medical Center bear the full and exclusive financial responsibility for such demolition, without reliance upon the State General Fund; and
(e) It is further necessary to provide for the orderly transition of property interests and governmental responsibilities under this chapter upon completion and commissioning of a Jackson State University stadium.
SECTION 5. Section 55-23-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
55-23-5. (1) There is hereby created a commission to be known as "The Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Commission," hereinafter sometimes referred to as the commission, which shall consist of six (6) members as follows:
(a) One (1) member shall be appointed by the Mayor of the City of Jackson, Mississippi;
(b) One (1) member shall be selected by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning from among the membership of the board or shall be some other person designated by the board;
(c) Two (2) members shall be appointed by the Governor from the state at large outside of Hinds County, Mississippi, and one (1) member shall be appointed by the Governor from Hinds County, Mississippi. The appointee from Hinds County may be selected from a list of three (3) persons submitted by the Hinds County Board of Supervisors to the Governor;
(d) One (1) member shall be the President of Jackson State University, or his or her designee.
(2) Terms of members shall begin on May 1, 1987, as follows: Of the members appointed by the Governor, one (1) shall serve for a term of one (1) year, one (1) for a term of two (2) years and one (1) for a term of three (3) years; the member appointed by the Mayor of the City of Jackson shall serve for a term of four (4) years; and the member representing the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning shall serve for a term of five (5) years. Upon the expiration of the foregoing terms, members shall serve for terms of five (5) years each. The appointing authority shall fill any vacancy in the above terms by appointment of a member for the unexpired term. Members shall be eligible for reappointment. An appointed member serving on the commission on April 30, 1987, shall be eligible for appointment to the commission for a term beginning May 1, 1987, of either one (1), two (2), three (3), four (4) or five (5) years, if such member is otherwise qualified. One (1) member of the commission appointed by the Governor shall be a person knowledgeable in marketing with at least three (3) years actual experience therein and one (1) member appointed by the Governor shall be a person of recognized ability in a trade or business with at least five (5) years actual experience therein. From and after May 1, 1987, the name of the commission shall be the "Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Commission" and any references in Sections 55-23-3 through 55-23-11 to the Mississippi Memorial Stadium Commission or commission shall mean the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Commission unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning. From and after May 1, 1987, the stadium shall be known as the "Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium." The commission is authorized to accept donations of money, property or services from any public or private source to accomplish any physical replacement or alterations of stadium property necessary to accomplish the renaming of the stadium.
(3) The members of the commission shall serve without compensation except that members shall be paid their actual and necessary expenses in connection with the performance of their duties as members of the commission, including mileage, as authorized in Section 25-3-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, plus a per diem as is authorized by Section 25-3-69, Mississippi Code of 1972, while engaged in the performance of their duties. The expenses, mileage and per diem allowance shall be paid out of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Fund.
(4) The commission shall elect from its membership a chairman who shall preside over meetings and a vice chairman who shall preside in the absence of the chairman. Three (3) members of the commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of any and all business of the commission.
(5) The powers of the commission shall be exercised by a majority of the members thereof, but it may delegate to one or more of its members, or to its agents and employees, such powers and duties as it may deem proper, and may adopt rules and regulations for the conduct of its business and affairs. The commission shall contract with a certified public accounting firm to conduct audits of concession and novelty sales by vendors at the stadium. The commission shall, as far as is practicable, provide that the cost of such audits shall be paid by the vendor of such concessions or novelties, or both.
(6) The commission shall appoint a director who shall have at least a bachelor's degree from an accredited university or college. The director shall have the responsibility for insuring the marketing of tickets to events conducted in the stadium, in addition to such other duties as the commission may designate. Before entering upon the duties of his office, the director shall give bond to the State of Mississippi in the sum of Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), and said bond shall be conditioned upon the faithful discharge and performance of his official duty. The principal and surety on said bond shall be liable thereunder to the state for double the amount of value of any money or property which the state may lose, if any, by reason of any wrongful or criminal act of said director. Said bond, when approved by the commission, shall be filed with the Secretary of State, and the premium thereon shall be paid from the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Fund.
(7) The Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Commission shall continue to exercise the powers and duties provided in this chapter until the occurrence of the transition event described in subsection (8).
(8) Upon completion and commissioning of a football stadium owned and operated by Jackson State University, and upon the certification described in Section 55-23-6(4), the commission shall be dissolved and all remaining powers and duties of the commission shall cease.
(9) Upon dissolution, all records, contracts, accounts and property of the commission shall be transferred as provided in Section 55-23-6 and any other applicable provision of this chapter.
SECTION 6. Section 55-23-6, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
55-23-6. (1) From and after March 16, 2011:
(a) (i) The Department of Finance and Administration as managing agency for the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, upon consultation with Jackson State University and the Department of Health, shall transfer the operational, administrative and managing powers and duties over the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium to Jackson State University, subject to an agreement reached by the Department of Finance and Administration, Jackson State University and the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
(ii) The Department of Finance and Administration as managing agency for the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, upon consultation with Jackson State University, the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the Department of Health, shall transfer the real property located in Hinds County, Mississippi, generally known as the "Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property," being any property under the jurisdiction of the Department of Finance and Administration as of July 1, 2008, and any other state-owned property located in the area bounded on the north by Taylor Street, on the west by North West Street, on the south by Woodrow Wilson Avenue and on the east by North State Street used as part of or in connection with the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, to Jackson State University and the University of Mississippi Medical Center in accordance with the provisions of this section and Sections 55-23-8 and 55-23-9 and subject to an agreement reached by the Department of Finance and Administration, the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the developer of the property with whom the Department of Finance and Administration entered into a development lease agreement on July 13, 1993, as amended by an agreement on August 19, 1994, less and except any portion of real property excluded from the development agreement pursuant to a settlement agreement issued in the Circuit Court of Hinds County, Mississippi, on September 16, 2009, better described as Parcel B recorded in Book 4216, page 330, at Hinds County Courthouse, First Judicial District, Jackson, Mississippi;
(b) (i) The property that is the subject of the development agreement entered into on July 13, 1993, as amended by an agreement on August 19, 1994, less and except any portion of real property excluded from the development agreement pursuant to a settlement agreement issued in the Circuit Court of Hinds County, Mississippi, on September 16, 2009, better described as Parcel B recorded in Book 4216, page 330, at Hinds County Courthouse, First Judicial District, Jackson, Mississippi, shall be transferred to the University of Mississippi Medical Center;
(ii) The remainder of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property shall be transferred from the Department of Finance and Administration to Jackson State University, until such time as Jackson State University relocates its home football games to another venue. Once Jackson State University relocates its home football games to another venue, the portion of Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property conveyed to Jackson State University under this subsection (1) shall be transferred to the University of Mississippi Medical Center. From and after March 16, 2011, and at the point Jackson State University assumes possession of an operation of the real property transferred in this paragraph, Jackson State University shall have a three-year option to transfer said property back to the State of Mississippi;
(c) All necessary records, property, funds and other assets of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium shall be transferred from the Department of Finance and Administration to Jackson State University and/or the University of Mississippi Medical Center as applicable, in proportion to the interests that each such entity retains in the real property transferred under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection; and
(d) Unless otherwise provided in the provisions of this section and Sections 55-23-8 and 55-23-9, any personal service, management or other contracts of like nature entered into by the Department of Finance and Administration, as such may apply to the properties transferred under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection, shall be transferred to, acknowledged and complied with by Jackson State University and the University of Mississippi Medical Center as applicable to the interests that each such entity retains in the real property transferred under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection.
(2) Any agreement reached by the Department of Finance and Administration, the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the current developer shall comply with all requirements of this section and Sections 55-23-8 and 55-23-9.
(3) From and after March 16, 2011, wherever the term "Department of Finance and Administration," the term "Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Commission" or the term "commission," when referring to the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Commission, appears in the laws of the state, the terms shall mean "Jackson State University" or the "University of Mississippi Medical Center," which shall be applicable to the interests that each such entity retains in the property transferred under subsection (1)(b) as stipulated in any agreement entered into by the Department of Finance and Administration, Jackson State University, the University of Mississippi Medical Center and the developer of the property for the transfer of such property and the administration and operations relating thereto.
(4) (a) The transfer of property, powers and duties provided in this section from the Department of Finance and Administration to Jackson State University shall remain in effect except as otherwise provided in this section.
(b) Upon completion and commissioning of a football stadium owned and operated by Jackson State University at another venue separate and independent of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property, the real property commonly known as the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property, together with any appurtenances and interests associated therewith, shall be transferred to the University of Mississippi Medical Center for institutional use, as required under Section 55-23-6(b)(ii).
(c) The Department of Finance and Administration, on behalf of the State of Mississippi, shall execute and deliver all instruments necessary to effectuate the transfer authorized by paragraph (b) of this subsection.
(d) The transfer authorized by paragraph (b) of this subsection shall occur only after Jackson State University certifies in writing to the Department of Finance and Administration and the Legislative Budget Office that the Jackson State University stadium has been completed and placed into service.
SECTION 7. Section 55-23-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
55-23-7. (1) Any construction, renovation, repair and reconstruction to the facilities and property of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium shall be carried on under the direction of the commission, which is authorized to make and enter into such contracts, agreements and undertakings as may be necessary to effect this purpose. The commission may take any action authorized in Section 55-23-8 relating to the facilities and property of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium.
(2) In addition to any other authority provided in this chapter, the demolition of Veterans Memorial Stadium is authorized as a component of reconstruction and redevelopment of the site.
(3) The University of Mississippi Medical Center shall be responsible for executing or procuring the demolition, including planning, engineering, environmental assessments, permitting, asbestos abatement, demolition, debris removal, site remediation and post-demolition stabilization.
(4) Demolition shall not commence until the fiscal certification and acceptance requirements set forth in Section
55-23-19(5) through (7) have been satisfied.
SECTION 8. Section 55-23-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
55-23-19. (1) Prior to July 1, 1989, the commission shall contract with the University of Mississippi Medical Center for provision by the medical center of funds in an amount reasonable and necessary to provide the following maintenance of parking facilities at the stadium:
(a) Adequate lighting;
(b) Routine care of the parking surface;
(c) Long-term resurfacing of any parking area utilized by medical center employees, students and patients; and
(d) Security.
(2) In consideration of the funds provided by the medical center, the University of Mississippi Medical Center students, employees, patients and visitors, and all other state employees, will be exempt from payment of any fees imposed by the commission for the use of the parking facilities at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium when there are no special events being held on the stadium grounds.
(3) Jackson State University shall:
(a) Continue to provide such maintenance and support for the Veterans Memorial Stadium facility as required under the authority of Section 55-23-9 until demolition is commenced; and
(b) Assume full and exclusive financial responsibility for the demolition of Veterans Memorial Stadium.
(4) All costs associated with demolition, including but not limited to planning, engineering, environmental assessments, permitting, asbestos abatement, demolition, debris removal, site remediation and post-demolition stabilization, shall be paid solely from funds legally available to UMMC.
(5) No funds appropriated from the State General Fund, nor any funds appropriated to another state agency or institution of higher learning, shall be used, transferred, encumbered, or obligated for any purpose related to the demolition of Veterans Memorial Stadium.
(6) Prior to commencement of demolition, UMMC shall certify in writing to the Department of Finance and Administration and the Legislative Budget Office that sufficient non-General Fund resources are available and have been obligated to fully fund the demolition project.
(7) Demolition activities shall not commence until the certification required under subsection (6) has been reviewed and accepted by the Department of Finance and Administration for fiscal sufficiency.
(8) Failure to provide the certification required under this section shall not create any obligation, express or implied, on the State of Mississippi to provide substitute funding for demolition.
SECTION 9. Section 55-23-8, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
55-23-8. (1) Jackson State University and the University of Mississippi Medical Center shall comply fully with the terms of any lease agreement entered into by the Department of Finance and Administration with any public or private entity for that portion of the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property transferred to and under its jurisdiction as provided in Section 55-23-6, including the existing lease agreement between the Department of Finance and Administration and the University of Mississippi Medical Center entered into on February 23, 2009, as amended from time to time, unless and except that public or private entity breaches the terms of the lease agreement or defaults on lease payments or upon an agreement of the parties to terminate.
(2) The University of Mississippi Medical Center may enter into agreements with any developer for the property conveyed to the University of Mississippi Medical Center under Section 55-23-6, or any lessee or lessees (or any designee of any such lessee or lessees), which agreements may extend over any period of time not exceeding the term of such lease (including renewals and extensions), pursuant to which the state shall be obligated to purchase contractual rights and/or improvements constructed on such property and/or any residual rights in connection with such improvements upon terms and for a purchase price, not to exceed Ten Million Dollars ($10,000,000.00).
(3) The University of Mississippi Medical Center, in its discretion, is authorized to enter into all other agreements as may be necessary or appropriate in connection with any financing by any lessee or lessees (or any designee of any such lessee or lessees) of any improvements to be constructed on property leased from the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
(4) Any lease, renewal thereof, or other agreement entered into by the University of Mississippi Medical Center under this section shall not be valid unless approved by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning.
(5) Any lessee or lessees (or any designee of any such lessee or lessees) of property leased from the University of Mississippi Medical Center under this section shall not be considered as being the state, any political subdivision of the state or any officer or servant of the state for the purposes of any liability that may be waived under Section 11-46-1 et seq.
(6) The University of Mississippi Medical Center, or the Department of Finance and Administration, acting on behalf of the state or any state agency, is authorized to perform any additional steps and necessary duties to fully implement the provisions of this section and Sections 55-23-6 and 55-23-9, as the exercise of such authority relates to the negotiation or renegotiation of certain leases or acquiring rights in any property under any existing lease with the Department of Finance and Administration.
(7) In addition to the requirement imposed upon the University of Mississippi Medical Center and Jackson State University to fully comply with the terms of all lease agreements entered into concerning the "Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Property," the process of eminent domain shall not be used to acquire possession of any property interest leased under the provision of any existing development lease entered into on the property at any time before the expiration of the term of the original lease or any amendment made thereto.
SECTION 10. Section 55-23-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
55-23-11. The commission shall promulgate rules and regulations governing the use of the lands and facilities under its supervision. The commission may take any action authorized in Section 55-23-8 relating to the property described in such section.
SECTION 11. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2026.