House Bill 231

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 43-13-407, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE ANY COURT-ORDERED TOBACCO LITIGATION SETTLEMENT PAYMENT TO BE PAID INTO THE STATE TREASURY TO THE CREDIT OF THE HEALTH CARE EXPENDABLE FUND CREATED BY THE LEGISLATURE; TO AMEND SECTIONS 27-103-103 AND 27-104-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THAT COURT-ORDERED PAYMENTS TO ANY STATE AGENCY SHALL BE CONSIDERED "STATE-SOURCE SPECIAL FUNDS" AND SUBJECT TO BUDGETING AND LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 43-13-407, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

43-13-407. (1) In accordance with the purposes of this article, there is established in the State Treasury the Health Care Expendable Fund, into which shall be transferred from the Health Care Trust Fund the following sums:

(a) In fiscal year 2005, Four Hundred Fifty-six Million Dollars ($456,000,000.00);

(b) In fiscal year 2006, One Hundred Eighty-six Million Dollars ($186,000,000.00);

(d) In fiscal year 2008, One Hundred Six Million Dollars ($106,000,000.00);

(e) In fiscal year 2009, Sixty-six Million Dollars ($66,000,000.00);

(f) In fiscal year 2010 and each fiscal year thereafter, a sum equal to the average annual amount of the dividends, interest and other income, including increases in value of the principal, earned on the funds in the Health Care Trust Fund during the preceding four (4) fiscal years.

(2) In any fiscal year in which interest, dividends and other income from the investment of the funds in the Health Care Trust Fund are not sufficient to fund the full amount of the annual transfer into the Health Care Expendable Fund as required in subsection (1)(f) of this section, the State Treasurer shall transfer from tobacco settlement installment payments an amount that is sufficient to fully fund the amount of the annual transfer.

(3) (a) On March 6, 2002, the State Treasurer shall transfer the sum of Eighty-seven Million Dollars ($87,000,000.00) from the Health Care Trust Fund into the Health Care Expendable Fund. In addition, at the time the State of Mississippi receives thetobacco settlement installment payments for each of the calendar years 2002 and 2003, the State Treasurer shall deposit the full amount of each of those installment payments into the Health Care Expendable Fund.

(b) If during any fiscal year after March 6, 2002, the general fund revenues received by the state exceed the general fund revenues received during the previous fiscal year by more than five percent (5%), the Legislature shall repay to the Health Care Trust Fund one-third (1/3) of the amount of the general fund revenues that exceed the five percent (5%) growth in general fund revenues. The repayment required by this paragraph shall continue in each fiscal year in which there is more than five percent (5%) growth in general fund revenues, until the full amount of the funds that were transferred and deposited into the Health Care Expendable Fund under the provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection have been repaid to the Health Care Trust Fund.

(4) The total sum of Two Hundred Forty Million Dollars ($240,000,000.00) plus interest at the rate of five percent (5%) per annum shall be transferred into the Health Care Trust Fund from the State General Fund during fiscal years 2007 through 2013 to repay the trust fund for Two Hundred Forty Million Dollars ($240,000,000.00) of the total sum that is transferred from the trust fund to the Health Care Expendable Fund during fiscal year 2005 under subsection (1)(a) of this section. The repayment shall be made according to the following schedule: During each of fiscal years 2007 through 2012, the State Fiscal Officer shall transfer from the General Fund to the Health Care Trust Fund the sum of Thirty-eight Million Dollars ($38,000,000.00), and during fiscal year 2013 the State Fiscal Officer shall transfer from the State General Fund to the Health Care Trust Fund a sum in the amount certified by the State Treasurer as necessary to fully repay the balance of the Two Hundred Forty Million Dollars ($240,000,000.00) plus interest at the rate of five percent (5%) per annum.

(5) All income from the investment of the funds in the Health Care Expendable Fund shall be credited to the account of the Health Care Expendable Fund. Any funds in the Health Care Expendable Fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund.

(6) The funds in the Health Care Expendable Fund shall be available for expenditure under specific appropriation by the Legislature beginning in fiscal year 2000, and shall be expended exclusively for health care purposes.

(7) The Attorney General of the State of Mississippi shall not petition any court or other agency to order that any portion of the tobacco settlement monies be diverted or paid to any person, agency or corporation other than the State of Mississippi or be deposited into any account other than into the State Treasury to the credit of the Health Care Expendable Fund established under this section. No chancellor or judge of this state shall order that any portion of the tobacco settlement monies be diverted or paid to any person, agency or corporation other than the State of Mississippi or be deposited into any account other than into the State Treasury to the credit of the Health Care Expendable Fund established under this section.

(8) The provisions of subsection (1) of this section may not be changed in any manner except upon amendment to that subsection by a bill enacted by the Legislature with a vote of not less than three-fifths (3/5) of the members of each house present and voting.

(9) Subsections (1), (2), (5) and (6) of this section shall stand repealed on July 1, 2009.

SECTION 2. Section 27-103-103, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

27-103-103. (1) For the purpose of Sections 27-103-101 through 27-103-139 and 27-104-1 through 27-104-27, the term "state general-fund agency" or "general-fund agency" shall mean any agency, department, institution, board or commission of the State of Mississippi which is supported in whole or in part by appropriations from the General Fund; but such term shall not include the Legislature.

(2) For the purposes of Sections 27-103-101 through 27-103-139 and 27-104-1 through 27-104-27, the term "state special-fund agency" or "special-fund agency" shall mean any agency, department, institution, board or commission of the State of Mississippi which receives no appropriation from the General Fund, but which is supported entirely from special-fund sources, by appropriation, or otherwise, but such term shall not include the Mississippi Department of Transportation; nor shall such term include the Mississippi Industries for the Blind.

(3) For the purposes of Sections 27-103-101 through 27-103-139 and 27-104-1 through 27-104-27, the term "state agency" shall mean any general-fund agency or special-fund agency as defined in this section, or the Mississippi Department of Transportation, or the Office of State Aid Road Construction of the Mississippi Department of Transportation as is evident from the context in which it is used.

(4) For the purposes of Sections 27-103-101 through 27-103-139 and 27-104-1 through 27-104-27, the term "special funds" shall mean all revenues and/or income other than appropriations from the State General Fund which are received, collected by, or available for the support of or expenditure by any state general-fund agency or special-fund agency or the Mississippi Department of Transportation or the Office of State Aid Road Construction of the Mississippi Department of Transportation, whether such funds be derived from taxes or fees collected by or for such general-fund agency or special-fund agency or the Mississippi Department of Transportation or the Office of State Aid Road Construction of the Mississippi Department of Transportation, as the case may be, or from any other types of revenue from any other source.

(5) For the purposes of Sections 27-103-101 through 27-103-139 and 27-104-1 through 27-104-27, the term "special funds" shall include revolving funds and all funds received from the United States Government by any state general-fund agency or special-fund agency, but shall not include any revolving fund established prior to July 1, 1984, for the purpose of paying or retiring any indebtedness as is authorized by statute.

(6) For the purposes of Sections 27-103-101 through 27-103-139 and 27-104-1 through 27-104-27, the term "special funds" shall include any court-ordered settlement payments or other payments received by any state general-fund agency or special-fund agency as the result of litigation.

SECTION 3. Section 27-104-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

27-104-13. (1) The State Fiscal Officer may disapprove or reduce and revise the estimates of general funds and state-source special funds for any general fund or special fund agency and for the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation, in an amount not to exceed five percent (5%), if at any time he finds that funds will not be available within the period for which the budget is drawn, or if at any time he finds that the requested expenditures, or any part thereof, are not authorized by law, and that action shall be reported to the Legislative Budget Office.

The State Fiscal Officer may, upon his determination of need based upon a finding that funds will not be available within the period for which the budget is drawn, transfer funds as provided in Section 27-103-203, from the Working Cash-Stabilization Reserve Fund to the General Fund to supplement the general fund revenue. If the estimates of general funds and state-source special funds of all general fund and special fund agencies and of the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation have been reduced by five percent (5%), additional reductions may be made, but shall consist of a uniform percentage reduction of general funds and state-source special funds to all general fund and special fund agencies and to the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation.

Any state-source special funds reduced under the provisions of this subsection (1) shall be transferred to the State General Fund upon requisitions for warrants signed by the respective agency head, and the transfer shall be made within a reasonable period to be determined by the State Fiscal Officer.

(2) The State Tax Commission and University Research Center, utilizing all available revenue forecast data, shall annually develop a general fund revenue estimate to be adopted by the Legislative Budget Office as of the date of sine die adjournment. If, at the end of October, or at the end of any month thereafter of any fiscal year, the revenues received for the fiscal year fall below ninety-eight percent (98%) of the Legislative Budget Office general fund revenue estimate at the date of sine die adjournment, the State Fiscal Officer shall reduce allocations of general funds and state-source special funds to general fund and special fund agencies and to the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation, in an amount necessary to keep expenditures within the sum of actual general fund receipts, including any transfers to the General Fund from the Working Cash-Stabilization Reserve Fund for the fiscal year.

The State Fiscal Officer may, upon his determination of need based on the revenue shortfall, transfer funds as provided in Section 27-103-203 from the Working Cash-Stabilization Reserve Fund to the General Fund to supplement the general fund revenue. State-source special funds in an amount equal to any reduction made under the provisions of this subsection (2) shall be transferred to the State General Fund upon requisitions for warrants signed by the respective agency head, and the transfer shall be made within a reasonable period to be determined by the State Fiscal Officer.

No agency's allocation shall be reduced in an amount to exceed five percent (5%); however, if the allocations of general funds and state-source special funds to all general fund and special fund agencies and to the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation have been reduced by five percent (5%), any additional reductions required to be made under this subsection (2) shall consist of a uniform percentage reduction of general funds and state-source special funds to all general fund and special fund agencies and to the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation. Any receipt from loans authorized by Sections 31-17-101 through 31-17-123 shall not be included as revenue receipts.

The State Fiscal Officer shall immediately send notice of any action taken under authority of this subsection (2) to the Legislative Budget Office.

The provisions of this subsection (2) requiring the State Fiscal Officer to reduce allocations of general funds and state-source special funds to general fund and special fund agencies and to the "administration and other expenses" budget of the Mississippi Department of Transportation shall be suspended during the period from the effective date of this act through June 30, 2006.

(3) For the purpose of this section, the term "state-source special funds"means any special funds in any agency derived from any source, including any court-ordered settlement payments or other payments received by a state general-fund agency or special-fund agency as the result of litigation, but shall not include the following special funds: special funds derived from federal sources, from local or regional political subdivisions, from agricultural commodity assessments, or from donations; special funds held in a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of specific persons or classes of persons; self-generated special funds of the state institutions of higher learning or the state community or junior colleges; special funds of Mississippi Industries for the Blind, the State Port at Gulfport, Yellow Creek Inland Port, Pat Harrison Waterway District, Pearl River Basin Development District, Pearl River Valley Water Management District, Tombigbee River Valley Water Management District, Yellow Creek Watershed Authority, or Coast Coliseum Commission; special funds of the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks derived from the issuance of hunting or fishing licenses; and special funds generated by agencies whose primary function includes the establishment of standards and the issuance of licenses for the practice of a profession within the State of Mississippi.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.