House Bill 1365

AN ACT TO CREATE THE TASK FORCE ON ENVIRONMENTAL SPENDING; TO PROVIDE FOR APPOINTMENT OF THE MEMBERSHIP; TO DESCRIBE THE PURPOSE OF THE TASK FORCE; TO PROVIDE HOW MEMBERS OF THE TASK FORCE MAY BE PAID; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. (1) There is created the Task Force on Environmental Spending, which will be responsible for studying state fund appropriations to the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality for programs under the regulation of the Department of Environmental Quality and the Commission on Environmental Quality. The task force will serve as a consensus group designed to study efforts by the state to reduce state funding of programs that the federal government can regulate effectively.

(2) The task force will consist of ten (10) members. Membership of the task force will include one (1) representative from each of the following agencies or entities, as designated by each respective agency or entity:

(a) State Department of Environmental Quality;

(b) Commission on Environmental Quality.

(3) In addition to the members designated in subsection (2) of this section, membership of the task force will consist of the following persons:

(a) Two (2) members of the Conservation and Water Resources Committee, of the Mississippi House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House;

(b) Two (2) members of the Environmental Protection, Conservation and Water Resources Committee of the Mississippi State Senate, appointed by the Lieutenant Governor;

(c) Two (2) members of the Appropriations Committee of the Mississippi House of Representatives, appointed by the Speaker; and

(d) Two (2) members of the Appropriations Committee of the Mississippi State Senate, appointed by the Lieutenant Governor.

(4) At its first meeting, the task force shall elect a chairman and other necessary officers from among its membership. The chairman and other officers shall be elected annually by the task force. The task force shall adopt bylaws and rules for its efficient operation. The task force may establish committees that will be responsible for conducting specific task force programs or activities.

(5) The task force shall meet and conduct business at least quarterly. All meetings of the task force and any committees of the task force will be open to the public, with opportunities for public comment provided on a regular basis. Notice of all meetings shall be given as provided in the Open Meetings Act in Section 25-41-1 et seq., and appropriate notice also shall be given to all persons requesting the date, time and place of each meeting. Six (6) members of the task force will constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.

(6) The task force is assigned to the State Legislature for administrative purposes only, and the State Legislature shall designate staff to assist the task force.

(7) Members of the task force who are not legislators, may be compensated at the per diem rate authorized by Section 25-3-69 and may be reimbursed in accordance with Section 25-3-41 for mileage and actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties. Legislative members of the task force will be paid from the contingent expense funds of their respective houses in the same manner as provided for committee meetings when the Legislature is not in session. However, legislative members will not be paid per diem or expenses for attending meetings of the task force while the Legislature is in session. No task force member may incur per diem, travel or other expenses unless previously authorized by vote at a meeting of the task force that must be recorded in the official minutes of the meeting. SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2004.