House Bill 729

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 37-9-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF ALL SCHOOL DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENTS BEGINNING ON JULY 1, 2008, AND TO PROVIDE THAT ELECTED SUPERINTENDENTS HOLDING OFFICE ON THAT DATE MAY SERVE UNTIL THE EXPIRATION OF THE TERM FOR WHICH THEY WERE ELECTED; TO AMEND SECTION 37-9-25, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY THERETO; TO AMEND SECTION 37-5-61, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT ELECTED COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS OF EDUCATION HOLDING OFFICE ON JULY 1, 2008, MAY SERVE THE ENTIRE TERM FOR WHICH THEY WERE ELECTED, TO PROVIDE FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF SUCCESSORS TO ELECTED COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS UPON THE EXPIRATION OF THEIR TERM, TO DELETE THE PROVISION OF LAW THAT PROVIDES FOR THE ELECTION OF COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS OF EDUCATION IN THE SAME MANNER AND TIME AS OTHER COUNTY OFFICERS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE REPEAL OF THE SECTION EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, 2012; TO REPEAL SECTION 37-9-12, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR A REFERENDUM ON THE QUESTION OF RETAINING THE ELECTIVE METHOD OF CHOOSING THE COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF EDUCATION; TO REPEAL SECTIONS 37-5-63 THROUGH 37-5-75, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDE FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF CERTAIN COUNTY SUPERINTENDENTS OF EDUCATION, ON JULY 1, 2008; TO AMEND SECTION 23-15-297, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY TO THE PROVISIONS OF THIS ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 37-9-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-9-13. (1) From and after July 1, 2008, in all public school districts, the school board shall appoint the superintendent of the school district. Any school district superintendent in office on July 1, 2008, who was elected to the office for a term that expires after July 1, 2008, may continue to hold the office until the expiration of the term of office for which the superintendent was elected, at which time the school board shall appoint a successor school district superintendent.

(2) No person shall be eligible to the office of superintendent of schools unless such person shall hold a valid administrator's license by the State Department of Education and shall have had not less than four (4) years of classroom or administrative experience.

SECTION 2. Section 37-9-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-9-25. The school board shall have the power and authority, in its discretion, to employ the superintendent * * * for not exceeding four (4) scholastic years and the principals or licensed employees for not exceeding three (3) scholastic years. In such case, contracts shall be entered into with such superintendents, principals and licensed employees for the number of years for which they have been employed. All such contracts with licensed employees shall for the years after the first year thereof be subject to the contingency that the licensed employee may be released if, during the life of the contract, the average daily attendance should decrease from that existing during the previous year and thus necessitate a reduction in the number of licensed employees during any year after the first year of the contract. However, in all such cases the licensed employee must be released before July 1 or at least thirty (30) days prior to the beginning of the school term, whichever date should occur earlier. The salary to be paid for the years after the first year of such contract shall be subject to revision, either upward or downward, in the event of an increase or decrease in the funds available for the payment thereof, but, unless such salary is revised prior to the beginning of a school year, it shall remain for such school year at the amount fixed in such contract. However, where school district funds, other than adequate education program funds, are available during the school year in excess of the amount anticipated at the beginning of the school year the salary to be paid for such year may be increased to the extent that such additional funds are available and nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit same.

SECTION 3. Section 37-5-61, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-5-61. (1) There shall be a county superintendent of education in each county.

(2) The superintendent shall serve as the executive secretary of the county board of education, but shall have no vote in the proceedings before the board and no voice in fixing the policies thereof.

(3) In addition, the superintendent shall be the director of all schools in the county outside the municipal separate school districts.

(4) The superintendent shall be elected at the same time and in the same manner as other county officers are elected and shall hold office for a term of four (4) years.

(5) County superintendents of education holding office on July 1, 2008, may continue to serve for the remainder of the term for which they were elected in November 2007. However, if any county superintendent holding office on July 1, 2008, ceases to hold such office before the expiration of that term of office, the school board of the school district shall appoint a successor school district superintendent in accordance with Section 37-9-13. Upon the expiration of the term of office in effect on July 1, 2008, the superintendent will be appointed in accordance with Section 37-9-13. Persons previously elected to the office of county superintendent of education may apply and be considered for appointment to the position by the school board.

(6) This section shall stand repealed on January 1, 2012.

SECTION 4. Section 37-9-12, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides for a referendum on the question of retaining the elective method of choosing the county superintendent of education, isrepealed.

SECTION 5. Sections 37-5-63, 37-5-65, 37-5-67, 37-5-69, 37-5-71 and 37-5-75, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provide for the appointment of certain county superintendents of education, are repealed.

SECTION 6. Section 23-15-297, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

23-15-297. All candidates upon entering the race for party nominations for office shall first pay to the proper officer as provided for in Section 23-15-299 for each primary election the following amounts:

(a) Candidates for Governor not to exceed Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00).

(b) Candidates for Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Treasurer, Auditor of Public Accounts, Commissioner of Insurance, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce, State Highway Commissioner and State Public Service Commissioner, not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00).

(d) Candidates for State Senator, State Representative, sheriff, chancery clerk, circuit clerk, tax assessor, tax collector, county attorney * * * and board of supervisors, not to exceed Fifteen Dollars ($15.00).

(e) Candidates for county surveyor, county coroner, justice court judge and constable, not to exceed Ten Dollars ($10.00).

(f) Candidates for United States Senator, not to exceed Three Hundred Dollars ($300.00).

(g) Candidates for United States Representative, not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00).

SECTION 7. The Attorney General of the State of Mississippi shall submit this act, immediately upon approval by the Governor, or upon approval by the Legislature subsequent to a veto, to the Attorney General of the United States or to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in accordance with the provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended.

SECTION 8. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2008, or the date it is effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended, whichever is later.