MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2016 Regular Session
To: Accountability, Efficiency, Transparency
By: Senator(s) Gollott
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 5-3-72, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO INCLUDE THE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY SERVICES IN REQUIRED PEER REPORTS ON PROCUREMENT PROCESS; TO AMEND SECTION 31-7-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DEFINE THE TERM NET-OF-FEE CONTRACT; TO AMEND SECTION 31-7-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE OFFICE OF PURCHASING, TRAVEL, AND FLEET MANAGEMENT TO IDENTIFY ALL EMPLOYEES OF STATE AGENCIES INVOLVED IN PROCUREMENT ACTIONS, TO ESTABLISH A TIMELINE FOR CURRENT AND NEW SAID EMPLOYEES TO COMPLETE THE MISSISSIPPI CERTIFIED PURCHASING PROGRAM, TO AUTHORIZE THE STATE PERSONNEL BOARD TO CONDUCT POSITION AUDITS AS PRESCRIBED BY SECTION 25-9-133, WHICH SHALL INCLUDE AN ASSESSMENT OF UNAUTHORIZED EMPLOYEE PROCUREMENT ACTIONS, TO REQUIRE THAT THE OFFICE OF PURCHASING, TRAVEL, AND FLEET MANAGEMENT PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE PROCUREMENT AND OVERSIGHT OF NET-OF-FEE CONTRACTS OF STATE AGENCIES AS DEFINED BY SECTION 31-7-1(L); TO AUTHORIZE THE STATE PERSONNEL BOARD TO REVOKE THE PURCHASING AUTHORITY OF EMPLOYEES FOUND TO BE IN NONCOMPLIANCE WITH THIS SECTION; TO CREATE NEW CODE SECTION 31-7-74, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THE PERSONAL SERVICE CONTRACT REVIEW BOARD, THE DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES, AND THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION TO COMPILE AND REPORT IMPACTS HEREIN PRESCRIBED RESULTING FROM NEW LEGISLATION PASSED IN THE 2015 REGULAR SESSION OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE AND SUBSEQUENT YEARS AS PRESCRIBED HEREIN; TO AMEND SECTION 37-101-15, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE THAT ALL INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING SUBMIT ALL NET-OF-FEE CONTRACTS AS DEFINED BY SECTION 31-7-1(L) TO THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF STATE INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING FOR APPROVAL IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 31-7-1(L); TO AMEND SECTION 47-5-109, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO DEFINE A CONTRACT FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF A CANTEEN FACILITY OR FACILITIES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS TO BE A NET-OF-FEE CONTRACT AS DEFINED BY SECTION 31-7-1(L); AND TO REPEAL SECTION 47-5-109.1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, WHICH PROVIDES FOR A CONTRACT FOR ADMINISTRATION OF INMATE CANTEEN SERVICES; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 5-3-72, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
5-3-72. The Joint Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review (PEER) shall evaluate on a biennial basis the procurement process utilized by all state agencies, including, but not limited to, the contract review, reporting and recordkeeping requirements in Section 25-9-120, and the bid requirements in Section 31-7-13. Upon completion of its evaluation, the PEER Committee shall submit a report to the Legislature with recommendations for improving the procurement process. The Department of Finance and Administration and the Personal Service Contract Review Board and the Department of Information Technology Services shall cooperate with the PEER Committee to carry out the provisions of this section.
SECTION 2. Section 31-7-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
31-7-1. The following terms are defined for the purposes of this chapter to have the following meanings:
(a) "Agency" means any state board, commission, committee, council, university, department or unit thereof created by the Constitution or statutes if such board, commission, committee, council, university, department, unit or the head thereof is authorized to appoint subordinate staff by the Constitution or statute, except a legislative or judicial board, commission, committee, council, department or unit thereof; except a charter school authorized by the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board; and except the Mississippi State Port Authority.
(b) "Governing authority" means boards of supervisors, governing boards of all school districts, all boards of directors of public water supply districts, boards of directors of master public water supply districts, municipal public utility commissions, governing authorities of all municipalities, port authorities, Mississippi State Port Authority, commissioners and boards of trustees of any public hospitals, boards of trustees of public library systems, district attorneys, school attendance officers and any political subdivision of the state supported wholly or in part by public funds of the state or political subdivisions thereof, including commissions, boards and agencies created or operated under the authority of any county or municipality of this state. The term "governing authority" shall not include economic development authorities supported in part by private funds, or commissions appointed to hold title to and oversee the development and management of lands and buildings which are donated by private individuals to the public for the use and benefit of the community and which are supported in part by private funds. The term "governing authority" also shall not include the governing board of a charter school.
(c) "Purchasing agent" means any administrator, superintendent, purchase clerk or other chief officer so designated having general or special authority to negotiate for and make private contract for or purchase for any governing authority or agency.
(d) "Public funds" means and includes any appropriated funds, special funds, fees or any other emoluments received by an agency or governing authority.
(e) "Commodities" means and includes the various commodities, goods, merchandise, furniture, equipment, automotive equipment of every kind, and other personal property purchased by the agencies of the state and governing authorities, but not commodities purchased for resale or raw materials converted into products for resale.
(i) "Equipment" shall be construed to include: automobiles, trucks, tractors, office appliances and all other equipment of every kind and description.
(ii) "Furniture" shall be construed to include: desks, chairs, tables, seats, filing cabinets, bookcases and all other items of a similar nature as well as dormitory furniture, appliances, carpets and all other items of personal property generally referred to as home, office or school furniture.
(f) "Emergency" means any circumstances caused by fire, flood, explosion, storm, earthquake, epidemic, riot, insurrection or caused by any inherent defect due to defective construction, or when the immediate preservation of order or of public health is necessary by reason of unforeseen emergency, or when the immediate restoration of a condition of usefulness of any public building, equipment, road or bridge appears advisable, or in the case of a public utility when there is a failure of any machine or other thing used and useful in the generation, production or distribution of electricity, water or natural gas, or in the transportation or treatment of sewage; or when the delay incident to obtaining competitive bids could cause adverse impact upon the governing authorities or agency, its employees or its citizens; or in the case of a public airport, when the delay incident to publishing an advertisement for competitive bids would endanger public safety in a specific (not general) manner, result in or perpetuate a specific breach of airport security, or prevent the airport from providing specific air transportation services.
(g) "Construction" means the process of building, altering, improving, renovating or demolishing a public structure, public building, or other public real property. It does not include routine operation, routine repair or regularly scheduled maintenance of existing public structures, public buildings or other public real property.
(h) "Purchase" means buying, renting, leasing or otherwise acquiring.
(i) "Certified purchasing office" means any purchasing office in which fifty percent (50%) or more of the purchasing agents hold a certification from the Universal Public Purchasing Certification Council or other nationally recognized purchasing certification, and in which, in the case of a state agency purchasing office, in addition to the national certification, one hundred percent (100%) of the purchasing officials hold a certification from the State of Mississippi's Basic or Advanced Purchasing Certification Program.
(j) "Certified Mississippi Purchasing Agent" means a state agency purchasing official who holds a certification from the Mississippi Basic Purchasing Certification Program as established by the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management.
(k) "Certified Mississippi Procurement Manager" means a state agency purchasing official who holds a certification from the Mississippi Advanced Purchasing Certification Program as established by the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management.
(l) "Net-of-fee Contract" means a contract in which there is no expenditure of state funds from any funding source (state, federal or other) that falls outside of the purview of any contracts made pursuant to the mission of the Vocational Rehabilitation for the Blind as stated in Section 43-3-93, Mississippi Code of 1972.
SECTION 3. Section 31-7-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
31-7-9. (1) (a) The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management shall adopt purchasing regulations governing the purchase by any agency of any commodity or commodities and establishing standards and specifications for a commodity or commodities and the maximum fair prices of a commodity or commodities, subject to the approval of the Public Procurement Review Board. It shall have the power to amend, add to or eliminate purchasing regulations. The adoption of, amendment, addition to or elimination of purchasing regulations shall be based upon a determination by the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management with the approval of the Public Procurement Review Board, that such action is reasonable and practicable and advantageous to promote efficiency and economy in the purchase of commodities by the agencies of the state. Upon the adoption of any purchasing regulation, or an amendment, addition or elimination therein, copies of same shall be furnished to the State Auditor and to all agencies affected thereby. Thereafter, and except as otherwise may be provided in subsection (2) of this section, no agency of the state shall purchase any commodities covered by existing purchasing regulations unless such commodities be in conformity with the standards and specifications set forth in the purchasing regulations and unless the price thereof does not exceed the maximum fair price established by such purchasing regulations. The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management shall furnish to any county or municipality or other local public agency of the state requesting same, copies of purchasing regulations adopted by the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management and any amendments, changes or eliminations of same that may be made from time to time.
(b) The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management may adopt purchasing regulations governing the use of credit cards, procurement cards and purchasing club membership cards to be used by state agencies, governing authorities of counties and municipalities, school districts and the Chickasawhay Natural Gas District. Use of the cards shall be in strict compliance with the regulations promulgated by the office. Any amounts due on the cards shall incur interest charges as set forth in Section 31-7-305 and shall not be considered debt.
(c) Pursuant to the provision of Section 37-61-33(3), the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management of the Department of Finance and Administration is authorized to issue procurement cards to all public school district classroom teachers and other necessary direct support personnel at the beginning of the school year for the purchase of instructional supplies using Educational Enhancement Funds. The cards will be issued in equal amounts per teacher determined by the total number of qualifying personnel and the then current state appropriation for classroom instructional supplies under the Education Enhancement Fund. All purchases shall be in accordance with state law and teachers are responsible for verification of capital asset requirements when pooling monies to purchase equipment. The cards will expire on a pre-determined date at the end of each school year. All unexpended amounts will be carried forward, to be combined with the following year's instructional supply fund allocation, and reallocated for the following year. The Department of Finance and Administration is authorized to loan any start-up funds at the beginning of the school year to fund this procurement system for instructional supplies with loan repayment being made from sales tax receipts earmarked for the Education Enhancement Fund.
(d) In a sale of goods or services, the seller shall not impose a surcharge on a buyer who uses a state-issued credit card, procurement card, travel card, or fuel card. The Department of Finance and Administration shall have exclusive jurisdiction to enforce and adopt rules relating to this paragraph. Any rules adopted under this paragraph shall be consistent with federal laws and regulations governing credit card transactions described by this paragraph. This paragraph does not create a cause of action against an individual for a violation of this paragraph.
(2) The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management shall adopt, subject to the approval of the Public Procurement Review Board, purchasing regulations governing the purchase of unmarked vehicles to be used by the Bureau of Narcotics and Department of Public Safety in official investigations pursuant to Section 25-1-87. Such regulations shall ensure that purchases of such vehicles shall be at a fair price and shall take into consideration the peculiar needs of the Bureau of Narcotics and Department of Public Safety in undercover operations.
(3) The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management shall adopt, subject to the approval of the Public Procurement Review Board, regulations governing the certification process for certified purchasing offices, including the Mississippi Purchasing Certification Program, which shall be required of all purchasing officials at state agencies. Such regulations shall require entities desiring to be classified as certified purchasing offices to submit applications and applicable documents on an annual basis, and in the case of a state agency purchasing office, to have one hundred percent (100%) participation and completion by purchasing officials in the Mississippi Purchasing Certification Program, at which time the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management may provide the governing entity with a certification valid for one (1) year from the date of issuance. The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management shall set a fee in an amount that recovers its costs to administer the Mississippi Purchasing Certification Program, which shall be assessed to the participating state agencies.
(a) The Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management shall conduct an annual survey of all state agencies, as defined by Section 31-7-1(a), Mississippi Code of 1972, to determine all employees responsible for procurement actions within each state agency. Employees responsible for procurement actions shall include all employees, regardless of job title, who conduct any type of procurement for a state agency. Any such current employee who has not been certified by the Mississippi Purchasing Certification Program, as established by Section 31-7-9(3), Mississippi Code of 1972, shall be issued a notice of noncompliance and shall be required to complete the program within twenty-four (24) months of said notice. All new employees responsible for said procurement actions hired after the beginning of the 2016 fiscal year shall be required to complete said program within twenty-four (24) months of their initial employment date.
The Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management shall maintain a registry of all employees who conduct procurement actions, as defined by this section, and shall indicate each employee's certification status regarding the Mississippi Purchasing Certification Program.
(b) The Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management may seek the assistance of the State Personnel Board to conduct an assessment of employee procurement actions, as defined by this section, as deemed necessary. When so requested, the State Personnel Board shall provide a report to the Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management and the head of each agency in which an employee is found to be in noncompliance with this section. The Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management shall issue said noncompliance statements as prescribed by this section to the noncompliant employee, the agency head of said employee, and the State Personnel Board to ensure compliance in subsequent audits.
(c) Employees conducting procurement actions as prescribed by this section that do not complete the Mississippi Certified Purchasing Program within the required twenty-four-month period shall lose any purchasing authority until said employee completes the Certification Program. The Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management shall notify said employee of their inability to conduct procurement actions.
(4) The Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management shall adopt, subject to the approval of the Public Procurement Review Board, rules and regulations for the procurement and oversight of net-of-fee contracts as defined by Section 31-7-1(l). All contracts that meet the definition of a net-of-fee contract shall be subject to prior approval as prescribed by said office to ensure compliance with proper bid procedure. Bid procedure, not excluding any other required considerations of individual state agencies, shall require that an agency take into account the following:
(a) The qualifications of any interested third party to provide the requested service;
(b) The agency's expectations with regard to commissions, pricing, and quality assurance; and
(c) Any other required considerations by the agency seeking the service.
These rules and regulations shall not apply to governing authorities as defined by Section 31-7-1(b).
Agencies, as defined by Section 31-7-1(a), shall cooperate with the Personal Service Contract Review Board, Department of Information Technology Services, and the Department of Finance and Administration in the implementation of said rules and regulations as prescribed by the Office of Purchasing, Travel and Fleet Management.
SECTION 4. The following shall be codified as Section 71-7-74, Mississippi Code of 1972:
31-7-74. (1) To assist the Legislative PEER Committee in conducting the evaluation required by Section 5-3-72, Mississippi Code of 1972, the Department of Finance and Administration, the Department of Information Technology Services and the Personal Service Contract Review Board, in their capacity as procurement authorities, shall compile details of all changes or conflicts resulting from the passage of new legislation which, directly or indirectly, impacts the duties of said authorities. New legislation, for the purpose of this section, shall include all legislation passed in the 2015 Regular Session of the State Legislature and any legislation passed in subsequent sessions. The report shall include all related costs and other pertinent matters herein listed for fiscal years 2016 and 2017 and shall be submitted to the Executive Director of the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review by September 15, 2017. The report shall be submitted in the form of a single uniform impact report that shall include the findings and supporting data of each authority. The report shall be developed by a joint committee composed of the directors of each authority, or appointed representatives acting on the directors' behalf. Additionally, such reports may be requested for subsequent years as prescribed by said committee. The report shall include the impact of new legislation on the following considerations:
(a) Additional costs incurred to monitor compliance with new rules or regulations;
(b) Changes in agency authority or workload that may impede service, oversight, or transparency;
(c) Frequency, value, and types of contracts formed under an alternative means of procurement such as, and specifically including, sole-source, net-of-fee, or emergency contracts;
(d) Data reported on emergency contracts, not excluding other required information, shall specifically state whether each contract required prior approval from the Department of Finance and Administration or qualified for exemption from prior approval as a result of an emergency affecting life, health, and property;
(e) The frequency of protests regarding the improper designation of sole-source contracts from vendors who claim to be able to competitively provide the required service;
(f) Conflicts between existing rules and regulations and rules and regulations adopted in compliance with new legislation; and
(g) All other considerations resulting from new legislation as prescribed by this section that impact the duties of said procurement authorities.
(2) Additional reporting requirements of the Personal Service Contract Review Board and the Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management required in the joint report prescribed by this section are as follows:
(a) The Personal Service Review Board shall report the number and value of contracts presumed to be approved due to inaction of the board in accordance with Section 25-9-120(4), Mississippi Code of 1972; and
(b) The Office of Purchasing, Travel, and Fleet Management shall report the number of requests for proposals that are invalidated due to errors or omissions and shall report the type of error or omission.
SECTION 5. Section 37-101-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
37-101-15. (a) The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning shall succeed to and continue to exercise control of all records, books, papers, equipment, and supplies, and all lands, buildings, and other real and personal property belonging to or assigned to the use and benefit of the board of trustees formerly supervising and controlling the institutions of higher learning named in Section 37-101-1. The board shall have and exercise control of the use, distribution and disbursement of all funds, appropriations and taxes, now and hereafter in possession, levied and collected, received, or appropriated for the use, benefit, support, and maintenance or capital outlay expenditures of the institutions of higher learning, including the authorization of employees to sign vouchers for the disbursement of funds for the various institutions, except where otherwise specifically provided by law.
(b) The board shall have general supervision of the affairs of all the institutions of higher learning, including the departments and the schools thereof. The board shall have the power in its discretion to determine who shall be privileged to enter, to remain in, or to graduate therefrom. The board shall have general supervision of the conduct of libraries and laboratories, the care of dormitories, buildings, and grounds; the business methods and arrangement of accounts and records; the organization of the administrative plan of each institution; and all other matters incident to the proper functioning of the institutions. The board shall have the authority to establish minimum standards of achievement as a prerequisite for entrance into any of the institutions under its jurisdiction, which standards need not be uniform between the various institutions and which may be based upon such criteria as the board may establish.
(c) The board shall exercise all the powers and prerogatives conferred upon it under the laws establishing and providing for the operation of the several institutions herein specified. The board shall adopt such bylaws and regulations from time to time as it deems expedient for the proper supervision and control of the several institutions of higher learning, insofar as such bylaws and regulations are not repugnant to the Constitution and laws, and not inconsistent with the object for which these institutions were established. The board shall have power and authority to prescribe rules and regulations for policing the campuses and all buildings of the respective institutions, to authorize the arrest of all persons violating on any campus any criminal law of the state, and to have such law violators turned over to the civil authorities.
(d) For all institutions specified herein, the board shall provide a uniform system of recording and of accounting approved by the State Department of Audit. The board shall annually prepare, or cause to be prepared, a budget for each institution of higher learning for the succeeding year which must be prepared and in readiness for at least thirty (30) days before the convening of the regular session of the Legislature. All relationships and negotiations between the State Legislature and its various committees and the institutions named herein shall be carried on through the board of trustees. No official, employee or agent representing any of the separate institutions shall appear before the Legislature or any committee thereof except upon the written order of the board or upon the request of the Legislature or a committee thereof.
(e) For all institutions specified herein, the board shall prepare an annual report to the Legislature setting forth the disbursements of all monies appropriated to the respective institutions. Each report to the Legislature shall show how the money appropriated to the several institutions has been expended, beginning and ending with the fiscal years of the institutions, showing the name of each teacher, officer, and employee, and the salary paid each, and an itemized statement of each and every item of receipts and expenditures. Each report must be balanced, and must begin with the former balance. If any property belonging to the state or the institution is used for profit, the reports shall show the expense incurred in managing the property and the amount received therefrom. The reports shall also show a summary of the gross receipts and gross disbursements for each year and shall show the money on hand at the beginning of the fiscal period of the institution next preceding each session of the Legislature and the necessary amount of expense to be incurred from said date to January 1 following. The board shall keep the annual expenditures of each institution herein mentioned within the income derived from legislative appropriations and other sources, but in case of emergency arising from acts of providence, epidemics, fire or storm with the written approval of the Governor and by written consent of a majority of the senators and of the representatives it may exceed the income. The board shall require a surety bond in a surety company authorized to do business in this state, of every employee who is the custodian of funds belonging to one or more of the institutions mentioned herein, which bond shall be in a sum to be fixed by the board in an amount that will properly safeguard the said funds, the premium for which shall be paid out of the funds appropriated for said institutions.
(f) The board shall have the power and authority to elect the heads of the various institutions of higher learning and to contract with all deans, professors, and other members of the teaching staff, and all administrative employees of said institutions for a term of not exceeding four (4) years. The board shall have the power and authority to terminate any such contract at any time for malfeasance, inefficiency, or contumacious conduct, but never for political reasons. It shall be the policy of the board to permit the executive head of each institution to nominate for election by the board all subordinate employees of the institution over which he presides. It shall be the policy of the board to elect all officials for a definite tenure of service and to reelect during the period of satisfactory service. The board shall have the power to make any adjustments it thinks necessary between the various departments and schools of any institution or between the different institutions.
(g) The board shall keep complete minutes and records of all proceedings which shall be open for inspection by any citizen of the state.
(h) The board shall have the power to enter into an energy performance contract, energy services contract, on a shared-savings, lease or lease-purchase basis, for energy efficiency services and/or equipment as prescribed in Section 31-7-14.
(i) The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, for and on behalf of Jackson State University, is hereby authorized to convey by donation or otherwise easements across portions of certain real estate located in the City of Jackson, Hinds County, Mississippi, for right-of-way required for the Metro Parkway Project.
(j) In connection with any international contract between the board or one (1) of the state's institutions of higher learning and any party outside of the United States, the board or institution that is the party to the international contract is hereby authorized and empowered to include in the contract a provision for the resolution by arbitration of any controversy between the parties to the contract relating to such contract or the failure or refusal to perform any part of the contract. Such provision shall be valid, enforceable and irrevocable without regard to the justiciable character of the controversy. Provided, however, that in the event either party to such contract initiates litigation against the other with respect to the contract, the arbitration provision shall be deemed waived unless asserted as a defense on or before the responding party is required to answer such litigation.
(k) The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning ("board"), on behalf of any institution under its jurisdiction, shall purchase and maintain business property insurance and business personal property insurance on all university-owned buildings and/or contents as required by federal law and regulations of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as is necessary for receiving public assistance or reimbursement for repair, reconstruction, replacement or other damage to those buildings and/or contents caused by the Hurricane Katrina Disaster of 2005 or subsequent disasters. The board is authorized to expend funds from any available source for the purpose of obtaining and maintaining that property insurance. The board is authorized to enter into agreements with the Department of Finance and Administration, local school districts, community/junior college districts, community hospitals and/or other state agencies to pool their liabilities to participate in a group business property and/or business personal property insurance program, subject to uniform rules and regulations as may be adopted by the Department of Finance and Administration.
(l) The Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, or its designee, may approve the payment or reimbursement of reasonable travel expenses incurred by candidates for open positions at the board's executive office or at any of the state institutions of higher learning, when the job candidate has incurred expenses in traveling to a job interview at the request of the board, the Commissioner of Higher Education or a state institution of higher learning administrator.
(m) (i) The board shall require all net-of-fee contracts, as defined herein, to be submitted to said board for prior approval. A net-of-fee contract is defined as a contract in which there is no expenditure of state funds from any funding source (state, federal, or other) and which falls outside of the purview of any contract made pursuant to the mission of the Vocational Rehabilitation for the Blind as stated in Section 43-3-93, Mississippi Code of 1972.
(ii) The board shall promulgate rules and regulations for the procurement and oversight of net-of-fee contracts and ensure compliance with proper bid procedure. Bid procedure for net-of-fee contracts shall require the following considerations:
1. The qualifications of any interested third party to provide the requested service;
2. The expectations with regard to commissions, pricing, and quality assurance; and
3. Any other required considerations by the institution seeking the service.
SECTION 6. Section 47-5-109, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
47-5-109. (1) The State Department of Corrections is hereby authorized to operate a facility or facilities to be known as an inmate canteen facility or facilities, the purpose of which is to make available certain goods and other items of value for purchase by offenders confined at the State Penitentiary at Parchman, offenders confined at any other facility of the department, certain employees of the department and certain persons visiting offenders or employees. The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations for the operation of such a facility.
(2) Any funds which may be derived from the operation of an inmate canteen facility or facilities shall be deposited into an account to be known as the Canteen Fund. For accounting purposes, certain allocated costs attributable to the operation of such a facility, and as prescribed by the rules and regulations of the board, shall be chargeable as operating costs against profits earned. These costs of operation which are chargeable shall include, but shall not be limited to, rent allocation, utility allocation and employee wages. Any net profits which may accrue from the operation of such a facility and any interest earned thereon shall be deposited into the Inmate Welfare Fund.
(3) The contract for the administration of an inmate canteen facility or facilities shall be considered a net-of-fee contract, as defined by Section 31-7-1(l), and shall comply with all rules and regulations in accordance with Section 31-7-9.
SECTION 7. Section 47-5-109.1, Mississippi Code of 1972, which provides for a contract for administration of inmate canteen services, is hereby repealed.
SECTION 8. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2016.