MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2014 Regular Session
To: Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency
By: Senator(s) Doty
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 25-7-19, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THE USE OF CERTAIN FEES CHARGED BY SHERIFFS; TO AMEND SECTION 25-3-25, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE THE COMPENSATION OF COUNTY SHERIFFS; TO AMEND SECTION 45-6-13, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CONFORM TO THE PRECEDING SECTION; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 25-7-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-7-19. (1) The sheriffs of the various counties of the State of Mississippi shall charge the following fees:
(a) A uniform total fee in all criminal and civil cases for the service of any process, summons, warrant, writ or other notice as may be required by law or the court, each....................................................... $35.00
(b) In all cases where there is more than one (1) defendant residing at the same household, service on each additional defendant.................................... $1.00
(c) After final judgment has been enrolled, notice of further proceedings involving levy of execution on judgments, and attachment and garnishment proceedings, shall be deemed a new suit and the sheriff shall be entitled to the following fee.......................................... $35.00
(d) Taking bonds of every kind (for purposes of this fee multiple bonds for criminal charges arising out of a single incident or transaction shall be considered a single
bond).................................................. $25.00
(e) Attendance in habeas corpus proceeding in vacation, eminent domain court and commitment cases.... $25.00
(f) On all money made by virtue of any decree, execution or attachment, or other process, the following commissions, to wit:
On the first One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), five percent (5%),
On the second One Hundred Dollars ($100.00), four percent (4%),
On all sums over Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00), three percent (3%).
(g) For all service of all process of every kind and nature issued from without the county wherein it is to be served, a fee of....................................... $35.00
In civil cases, all process sent out of the county, where issued to another county for service, shall be accompanied by a fee of Thirty-five Dollars ($35.00) to pay the sheriff's fee for his execution of such process unless the clerk or justice shall endorse on the process that the party at whose instance it issued had filed an affidavit of inability to pay costs thereof. All fees sent and unearned, and the whole of it, shall be unearned if the writ be not legally and properly executed and returned, and shall be remitted by the sheriff with the writ at his own expense.
(2) (a) The sheriff shall keep a complete account of every fee of every nature, commission or charge collected by him, and shall file an itemized statement thereof monthly, under oath, with the clerk of the board of supervisors of his county who shall preserve same as a part of the records of his office, and he shall make a remittance to the clerk of the board of supervisors of his county on or before the fifteenth of each month for deposit into the general fund of the county of all said fees, commissions and charges collected during the preceding month.
(b) At least Ten Dollars ($10.00) from each fee collected and deposited into the county's general fund under the provisions of paragraphs (a), (c) and (g) of subsection (1) of this section shall be used for the sheriffs' salaries authorized in Section 25-3-25; as such Ten Dollar ($10.00) amount was authorized during the 2007 Regular Session in Senate Bill No. 2268 for the purpose of providing additional monies to the counties for sheriffs' salaries.
(3) Any sheriff who shall knowingly fail to collect any fee established by law which was in fact collectible by him or having collected the fee shall fail to keep account of such fee or fail to deposit the fee with the clerk of the board of supervisors as provided by subsection (2), or such other person or office entitled thereto, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor in office and, upon conviction therefor, shall be fined in an amount not to exceed double the amount he failed to collect or pay over, or imprisoned for not to exceed six (6) months in the county jail, or be punished by both such fine and imprisonment.
This provision shall in no way lessen the sheriff's civil liability on his bond, but shall be an additional penalty for misfeasance or nonfeasance in office.
SECTION 2. Section 25-3-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
25-3-25. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsections (2) through (9), the salaries of sheriffs of the various counties are fixed as full compensation for their services.
* * * The
annual salary for each sheriff shall be based upon the total population of his
county according to the latest federal decennial census in the following
categories and for the following amounts; however, no sheriff shall be paid
less than the salary authorized under this section to be paid the sheriff based
upon the population of the county according to the * * * most recent federal decennial
census:
* * *
( * * *a) For counties with a total
population of more than one hundred thousand (100,000) * * *,
a salary of * * * Ninety-nine Thousand Dollars
($99,000.00).
( * * *b) For counties with a total
population of more than forty-five thousand (45,000) and not more than one
hundred thousand (100,000), a salary of * * * Ninety
Thousand Dollars ($90,000.00).
( * * *c) For counties with a total
population of more than thirty-four thousand (34,000) and not more than forty-five
thousand (45,000), a salary of * * * Eighty-five
Thousand Dollars ($85,000.00).
* * *
( * * *d) For counties with a total
population of more than fifteen thousand (15,000) and not more than thirty-four
thousand (34,000), a salary of * * * Eighty
Thousand Dollars ($80,000.00).
* * *
( * * *e) For counties with a total
population of not more than * * * fifteen
thousand (15,000), a salary of * * * Seventy-five
Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00).
(2) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Leflore County, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county for the following reasons:
(a) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains a restitution center within the county;
(b) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains a community work center within the county;
(c) There is a resident circuit court judge in the county whose office is located at the Leflore County Courthouse;
(d) There is a resident chancery court judge in the county whose office is located at the Leflore County Courthouse;
(e) The Magistrate for the Fourth Circuit Court District is located in the county and maintains his office at the Leflore County Courthouse;
(f) The Region VI Mental Health-Mental Retardation Center, which serves a multicounty area, calls upon the sheriff to provide security for out-of-town mental patients, as well as patients from within the county;
(g) The increased activity of the Child Support Division of the Department of Human Services in enforcing in the courts parental obligations has imposed additional duties on the sheriff; and
(h) The dispatchers of the enhanced E-911 system in place in Leflore County have been placed under the direction and control of the sheriff.
(3) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Rankin County, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county for the following reasons:
(a) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility within the county;
(b) The State Hospital is operated and maintained within the county at Whitfield;
(c) Hudspeth Regional Center, a facility maintained for the care and treatment of persons with an intellectual disability, is located within the county;
(d) The Mississippi Law Enforcement Officers Training Academy is operated and maintained within the county;
(e) The State Fire Academy is operated and maintained within the county;
(f) The Pearl River Valley Water Supply District, ordinarily known as the "Reservoir District," is located within the county;
(g) The Jackson International Airport is located within the county;
(h) The patrolling of the state properties located within the county has imposed additional duties on the sheriff; and
(i) The sheriff, in addition to providing security to the nearly one hundred thousand (100,000) residents of the county, has the duty to investigate, solve and assist in the prosecution of any misdemeanor or felony committed upon any state property located in Rankin County.
(4) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Neshoba County shall pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county an amount equal to Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00).
(5) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Tunica County, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county an amount equal to Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00), payable beginning April 1, 1997.
(6) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Hinds County shall pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount equal to Fifteen Thousand Dollars ($15,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county for the following reasons:
(a) Hinds County has the greatest population of any county, two hundred fifty-four thousand four hundred forty-one (254,441) by the 1990 census, being almost one hundred thousand (100,000) more than the next most populous county;
(b) Hinds County is home to the State Capitol and the seat of all state government offices;
(c) Hinds County is the third largest county in geographic area, containing eight hundred seventy-five (875) square miles;
(d) Hinds County is comprised of two (2) judicial districts, each having a courthouse and county office buildings;
(e) There are four (4) resident circuit judges, four (4) resident chancery judges, and three (3) resident county judges in Hinds County, the most of any county, with the sheriff acting as chief executive officer and provider of bailiff services for all;
(f) The main offices for the clerk and most of the judges and magistrates for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi are located within the county;
(g) The state's only urban university, Jackson State University, is located within the county;
(h) The University of Mississippi Medical Center, combining the medical school, dental school, nursing school and hospital, is located within the county;
(i) Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, the state's largest sports arena, is located within the county;
(j) The Mississippi State Fairgrounds, including the Coliseum and Trade Mart, are located within the county;
(k) Hinds County has the largest criminal population in the state, such that the Hinds County Sheriff's Department operates the largest county jail system in the state, housing almost one thousand (1,000) inmates in three (3) separate detention facilities;
(l) The Hinds County Sheriff's Department handles more mental and drug and alcohol commitment cases than any other sheriff's department in the state;
(m) The Mississippi Department of Corrections maintains a restitution center within the county;
(n) The Mississippi Department of Corrections regularly houses as many as one hundred (100) state convicts within the Hinds County jail system; and
(o) The Hinds County Sheriff's Department is regularly asked to provide security services not only at the Fairgrounds and Memorial Stadium, but also for events at the Mississippi Museum of Art and Jackson City Auditorium.
(7) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Wilkinson County, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county because the Mississippi Department of Corrections contracts for the private incarceration of state inmates at a private correctional facility within the county.
(8) In addition to the salary provided for in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Marshall County, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county because the Mississippi Department of Corrections contracts for the private incarceration of state inmates at a private correctional facility within the county.
(9) In addition to the salary provided in subsection (1) of this section, the Board of Supervisors of Greene County, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The Legislature finds and declares that the annual supplement authorized by this subsection is justified in such county for the following reasons:
(a) The Mississippi Department of Corrections operates and maintains the South Mississippi Correctional Facility within the county;
(b) In 1996, additional facilities to house another one thousand four hundred sixteen (1,416) male offenders were constructed at the South Mississippi Correctional Facility within the county; and
(c) The patrolling of the state properties located within the county has imposed additional duties on the sheriff justifying additional compensation.
(10) In addition to the salary provided in subsection (1) of this section, the board of supervisors of any county, in its discretion, may pay an annual supplement to the sheriff of the county in an amount not to exceed Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00). The amount of the supplement shall be spread on the minutes of the board. The annual supplement authorized in this subsection shall not be in addition to the annual supplements authorized in subsections (2) through (9).
(11) (a) The salaries provided in this section shall be payable monthly on the first day of each calendar month by chancery clerk's warrant drawn on the general fund of the county; however, the board of supervisors, by resolution duly adopted and entered on its minutes, may provide that such salaries shall be paid semimonthly on the first and fifteenth day of each month. If a pay date falls on a weekend or legal holiday, salary payments shall be made on the workday immediately preceding the weekend or legal holiday.
(b) At least Ten Dollars ($10.00) from each fee collected and deposited into the county's general fund under the provisions of paragraphs (a), (c) and (g) of subsection (1) of this section shall be used for the sheriffs' salaries authorized in Section 25-3-25; as such Ten Dollar ($10.00) amount was authorized during the 2007 Regular Session in Senate Bill No. 2268 for the purpose of providing additional monies to the counties for sheriffs' salaries.
(12) (a) All sheriffs, each year, shall attend twenty (20) hours of continuing education courses in law enforcement. Such courses shall be approved by the Mississippi Board on Law Enforcement Officers Standards and Training. Such education courses may be provided by an accredited law enforcement academy or by the Mississippi Sheriffs' Association.
(b) The Mississippi Board on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Training shall reimburse each county for the expenses incurred by sheriffs' and deputy sheriffs' for attendance at any approved training programs as required by this subsection.
SECTION 3. Section 45-6-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
45-6-13. (1) The board shall establish, provide or maintain law enforcement training programs through such agencies and institutions as the board may deem appropriate.
(2) The board shall authorize, but only from such funds authorized and appropriated by the Legislature, the reimbursement to each political subdivision and to state agencies of at least fifty percent (50%) of the allowable salary and allowable tuition, living and travel expense incurred by law enforcement officers in attendance at approved training programs, provided said political subdivisions and state agencies do in fact adhere to the selection and training standards established by the board. The board shall authorize, but only from such funds authorized and appropriated by the Legislature, the direct funding of a part-time law enforcement officer training program. The board shall require the payment of a reasonable tuition fee to aid in funding the costs of administering the part-time law enforcement officer training program.
(3) The board is authorized to expend funds for the purpose of providing a professional library and training aids that will be available to state agencies and political subdivisions.
(4) If any full- or part-time law enforcement officer in this state who is employed by a municipality, county or other governmental entity shall, within three (3) years after the date of his employment, resign from, or be terminated from, employment by such entity and immediately become employed by another governmental entity in a law enforcement capacity, then the governmental entity by which the resigned or terminated officer is employed shall reimburse the governmental entity from which the officer resigned or was terminated a proportionate share of the officer's law enforcement training expenses which were incurred by such entity, if any.
(5) The Mississippi Board on Law Enforcement Officer Standards and Training shall reimburse each county for the expenses incurred by sheriffs and deputy sheriffs for attendance at approved training programs as provided in Section 25-3-25.
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2014.