House Bill 981

AN ACT TO CREATE THE MISSISSIPPI MUNICIPAL POVERTY TASK FORCE; TO PROVIDE THAT THE TASK FORCE SHALL STUDY THE RATE AND LEVELS OF POVERTY IN MUNICIPALITIES WITHIN THIS STATE THAT HAVE PERSISTENT POVERTY LEVELS OF TWENTY PERCENT OR GREATER; TO PROVIDE THE COMPOSITION OF THE TASK FORCE; TO REQUIRE THE TASK FORCE TO MAKE CERTAIN RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE LEGISLATURE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

SECTION 1. (1) There is hereby created the Mississippi Municipal Poverty Task Force, which shall study the burden of poverty in the lives of Mississippi citizens who reside in municipalities that are deemed to have populations with persistent poverty rates of twenty percent (20%) or greater. The task force shall also prioritize strategies to reduce the burdens imposed by such an impoverished state. The task force shall make a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature during the 2016 Regular Legislative Session, including any recommended legislation.

(2) The task force shall be composed of the following sixteen (16) members:

(a) Five (5) members appointed by the Speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives as follows:

(i) The Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, or a designee;

(ii) The Chairman of the House Public Health and Welfare Committee, or a designee; and

(iii) Three (3) other members of the Mississippi House of Representatives.

(b) Five (5) members appointed by the Lieutenant Governor of the State of Mississippi as follows:

(i) The Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, or a designee;

(ii) The Chairman of the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee, or a designee; and

(iii) Three (3) other members of the Senate.

(d) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority, or a designee;

(e) The Executive Director of the Division of Medicaid, or a designee;

(f) One (1) person living in poverty appointed by the Mississippi Department of Human Services;

(g) A representative of the Mississippi Center for Justice; and

(h) A representative of the aging and adult day services industry.

(3) The members of the task force shall be inclusive and reflect the racial, gender, geographic, urban/rural and economic diversity of the state.

(4) The task force shall assess the current and future impact of poverty on the residents of municipalities as prescribed under Section 1 of this act, shall examine the existing barriers, services and resources addressing the needs of persons living in poverty and their families, and shall develop a strategy to mobilize a state response to the poverty crisis. In its assessments and recommendations, the task force shall include an examination of the following:

(a) A determination of the economic and human impact of poverty in municipalities that are deemed to have populations with persistent poverty rates of twenty percent (20%) or greater;

(b) A review of remedies to reduce the number of individuals and families living in poverty in such municipalities;

(d) Needed state policies or responses, including, but not limited to, directions for the provisions of clear and coordinated services and supports to persons and families living in municipalities that have a high poverty rate and strategies to address any identified gaps in services in those areas.

(5) Appointments shall be made within thirty (30) days after the adoption of this resolution, and, within fifteen (15) days thereafter on a day to be designated jointly by the Speaker of the House and the Lieutenant Governor, the task force shall meet and organize by selecting from its membership a chairman and a vice chairman. The vice chairman shall also serve as secretary and shall be responsible for keeping all records of the task force. A majority of the members of the task force shall constitute a quorum. In the selection of its officers and the adoption of rules, resolutions and reports, an affirmative vote of a majority of the task force shall be required. All members must be notified in writing of all meetings, such notices to be mailed at least ten (10) days before the date on which a meeting is to be held.

(6) Members of the task force who are not legislators, state officials or state employees shall be compensated at the per diem rate authorized by Section 25-3-69 and shall 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 committee shall 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, no per diem or expense for attending meetings of the committee may be paid while the Legislature is in session. A committee member may not incur per diem, travel or other expenses unless previously authorized by vote, at a meeting of the committee, which action must be recorded in the official minutes of the meeting. Nonlegislative members will be paid from any funds made available to the committee for that purpose.

(7) The task force shall use clerical and legal staff already employed by the Legislature and any other staff assistance made available to it. To effectuate the purposes of this section, any department, division, board, bureau, commission or agency of the state or of any political subdivision thereof shall, at the request of the chairman of the task force, provide to the task force such facilities, assistance and data as will enable the task force to properly carry out its task.

(8) The task force shall make a report of its findings and recommendations, including any recommended legislation, to the House of Representatives before December 1, 2015. Upon presentation of its report to the Legislature, the committee shall be dissolved.

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