Senate Bill 2045

AN ACT TO CREATE A STUDY COMMITTEE TO STUDY THE IMPACT AND SOCIETAL EFFECT OF STUDENT LOAN DEBT IN MISSISSIPPI; TO ESTABLISH THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE STUDY COMMITTEE; TO PROVIDE PROCEDURES FOR THE STUDY COMMITTEE; TO REQUIRE THE STUDY COMMITTEE TO FILE A REPORT WITH THE LEGISLATURE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. (1) The Legislature finds that:

(a) The Legislature acknowledges that data shows a distressing reality concerning debt, particularly with regard to student loans. At fifty-six percent (56%), Mississippi's debt-to-income ratio is the worst in the nation. Additionally, Mississippi has the second-highest delinquency rate in the nation at over twenty-two percent (22%), more than six percentage points higher than the national average;

(b) At over fifteen percent (15%), Mississippi is tied with Georgia as one of the states where residents are most likely to have student loan debt. Over 452,700 Mississippians carry student loan debt at an average of $37,552.00, which is significantly higher than the national average;

(c) Student loan debt often prevents home ownership. Each One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) in debt reduces home ownership rates by 1.8 percentage points;

(d) Over twenty-three percent (23%) of Mississippi teachers owe over Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00), which exceeds the average teacher salary. As a result, teachers with student debt are ten (10) percentage points more likely to leave the profession; and

(e) The State of Mississippi has an interest in ensuring its citizens manage debt responsibly.

(2) There is hereby created a study committee for the purpose of studying the impact and societal effect of student loan debt in the State of Mississippi and to develop a recommendation to the Legislature relative to decreasing student loan debt in the State of Mississippi.

(3) The members of the study committee shall be as follows:

(a) The Chairmen of the Universities and Colleges Committees of the Mississippi State Senate and the Mississippi House of Representatives, or their designees;

(b) The Chairman of the Economic and Workforce Development Committee of the Mississippi State Senate and the Chairman of the Workforce Development Committee of the House of Representatives, or their designees;

(d) The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the State Institutions of Higher Learning, or his or her designee;

(e) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Community College Board, or his or her designee;

(f) The Director of the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid, or his or her designee;

(g) The Deputy Director of the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid, or his or her designee;

(h) The Executive Director of Accelerate Mississippi, or his or her designee;

(i) The Executive Director of the Office of Workforce Development, or his or her designee;

(j) One (1) member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor; and

(k) One (1) member appointed by the Speaker of the House.

(4) Appointments to the study committee shall be made within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this act. At the first meeting, the committee shall elect from among its membership a chairman, a vice chairman and any other officers determined to be necessary, and shall adopt rules for transacting business and keeping records.

(5) A majority of the members of the study committee shall constitute a quorum. The study committee shall develop and report its findings and recommendations to the Legislature on or before December 1, 2026. In the adoption of rules, resolutions and reports, and in the election of a chairman, vice chairman and any other officers determined to be necessary, an affirmative vote of a majority of the members present shall be required.

(6) The PEER Committee shall provide the staff and other support necessary for the study committee to perform its duties.

(7) To effectuate the purposes of this act, any department, division, board, bureau, committee, institution or agency of the state, or any political subdivision thereof, shall, at the request of the chairman of the study committee, provide the facilities, assistance, information and data needed to enable the study committee to carry out its duties.

(8) Upon the presentation of its report, the study committee shall be dissolved.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.