Senate Bill 2341

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 37-9-33 AND 37-9-37, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE A STATUTORY LIMITATION ON THE SALARY OF LOCAL SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 37-61-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CLARIFY THE LIMITATION ON BUDGETED SCHOOL DISTRICT EXPENDITURES FOR ADMINISTRATION; TO DIRECT THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO WITHHOLD MISSISSIPPI ADEQUATE EDUCATION PROGRAM FUNDS FROM ANY SCHOOL DISTRICT BY AN AMOUNT EQUAL TO THE EXPENDITURE OF FUNDS FOR ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS IN EXCESS OF THE STATUTORY LIMITATION; TO AMEND SECTION 37-3-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE SALARY OF THE STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC EDUCATION SHALL BE SET BY THE STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION SUBJECT TO THE APPROVAL OF THE STATE PERSONNEL BOARD AND SUBJECT TO A MAXIMUM AMOUNT; TO AMEND SECTION 37-101-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO PROVIDE THAT THE SALARY OF THE COMMISSIONER OF HIGHER EDUCATION SHALL BE SET BY THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF STATE INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING SUBJECT TO A MAXIMUM AMOUNT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Section 37-9-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-9-33. (1) In employing and contracting with appointed superintendents, principals and certificated employees, the school board shall in all cases determine whether the amount of salary to be paid such superintendent, principals and certificated employees is in compliance with the provisions of the adequate education program. No contract shall be entered into where the salary of a superintendent, principal or certificated employee is to be paid, in whole or in part, from adequate education program funds except where the requirements of said chapter as to the amount of such salary are fully met. Nothing herein shall be construed, however, to prohibit any school district from increasing the salaries of appointed superintendents, principals and certificated employees above the amounts fixed by said chapter, provided that the amount of such increase is paid from funds available to such district other than adequate program funds. Provided that effective with the 2016-2017 school year, no local school superintendent or assistant school superintendent shall receive compensation in excess of the salary received by the Governor of the State of Mississippi. Provided further, that school districts are authorized, in their discretion, to negotiate the salary levels applicable to certificated employees employed after July 1, 2009, who are receiving retirement benefits from the retirement system of another state, and the annual experience increment provided in Section 37-19-7 shall not be applicable to any such retired certificated employee. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit any school district from complying with the school district employee furlough provisions of Section 37-7-308.

(2) Each school district shall provide an annual report to the State Department of Education on the number of certificated and noncertificated employees receiving a salary from the school district who are also receiving retirement benefits from the Public Employees' Retirement System. This report shall include the name of the employee(s), the hours per week for which the employee is under contract and the services for which the employee is under contract. Said required annual report shall be in a form and deadline promulgated by the State Board of Education.

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

37-9-37. The amount of the salary to be paid any superintendent, principal or licensed employee shall be fixed by the school board, provided that the requirements of Chapter 19 of this title are met as to superintendents, principals and licensed employees paid in whole or in part from minimum education program funds. In employing such superintendents, principals and licensed employees and in fixing their salaries, the school boards shall take into consideration the character, professional training, experience, executive ability and teaching capacity of the licensed employee, superintendent or principal. It is the intent of the Legislature that whenever the salary of the school district superintendent is set by a school board, the board shall take into consideration the amount of money that the district spends per pupil, and shall attempt to insure that the administrative cost of the district and the amount of the salary of the superintendent are not excessive in comparison to the per pupil expenditure of the district. Provided further, that the salary of any school superintendent or assistant school superintendent shall not exceed the limitation provided in Section 37-9-33, Mississippi Code of 1972.

SECTION 3. Section 37-61-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-61-9. (1) On or before the fifteenth day of August of each year, the local school board of each school district, with the assistance of the superintendent of schools, shall prepare and file with the levying authority for the school district, as defined in Section 37-57-1, at least two (2) copies of a budget of estimated expenditures for the support, maintenance and operation of the public schools of the school district for the fiscal year commencing on July 1 of such year. Such budget shall be prepared on forms prescribed and provided by the State Auditor and shall contain such information as the State Auditor may require.

(2) In addition, on or before the fifteenth day of August of each year, the local school board of each school district, with the assistance of the superintendent of schools, shall prepare and file with the State Department of Education such budgetary information as the State Board of Education may require. The State Board of Education shall prescribe and provide forms to each school district for this purpose.

(3) Prior to the adoption of a budget pursuant to this section, the school board of each school district shall hold at least one (1) public hearing to provide the general public with an opportunity to comment on the taxing and spending plan incorporated in the proposed budget. The public hearing shall be held at least one (1) week prior to the adoption of the budget with advance notice. After final adoption of the budget, a synopsis of such budget in a form prescribed by the State Department of Audit shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in the school district on a date different from the date on which the county or any municipality therein may publish its budget.

(4) There shall be imposed limitations on budgeted expenditures in each individual school district for certain administration costs, as defined hereinafter, in an amount not greater than One Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($150,000.00) plus four percent (4%) * * * ~~of the~~ in each individual school district's expenditures * * * ~~of all school districts~~ each year. For purposes of this subsection, "administration costs" shall be defined as expenditures for salaries and fringe benefits paid for central administration costs from all sources of revenue, excluding federal funds, in the following expenditure functions as defined in the MISSISSIPPI PUBLIC SCHOOL DISTRICT FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING MANUAL:

2300 = Support Services - General Administration

2310 = Board of Education Services

2320 = Executive Administration Services

2330 = Special Area Administration Services

2500 = Business Services

2510 = Fiscal Services

2520 = Purchasing Services

2530 = Warehousing and Distributing Services

2540 = Printing, Publishing and Duplicating Services

2590 = Other Support Services - Business

Any costs classified as "administration costs" for purposes of this subsection which can be demonstrated by the local school district to be an expenditure that results in a net cost savings to the district that may otherwise require budget expenditures for functions not covered under the definition of administration costs herein may be excluded from the limitations imposed herein. The local school board shall make a specific finding of such costs and spread such finding upon its minutes, which shall be subject to the approval of the Office of Educational Accountability of the State Department of Education. Any school district required to make expenditure cuts, as a result of application of this subsection, shall not be required to reduce such expenditures more than twenty-five percent (25%) in any year in order to comply with this mandate.

The State Auditor shall ensure that functions in all expenditure categories to which this administrative limitation applies shall be properly classified. Effective with the 2016-2017 school year, in the event that the local school district does not comply with the four percent (4%) limitation on budgeted expenditures for administrative costs by January 15 of the current year as required under this subsection (4) and as certified by the State Auditor, the State Department of Education shall reduce the local school district's January transfer of Mississippi Adequate Education Program funds by an amount equal to the excess annual expenditure of funds for administrative costs in that district. Provided further, that effective with the 2016-2017 school year, in the event that any local school district's budget expenditures for administrative costs are increased by a percentage amount greater than the budget expenditures for instructional costs, the State Department of Education shall reduce the local school district's January transfer of Mississippi Adequate Education Program funds by an amount equal to ten percent (10%).

This section shall not apply to central administration with five (5) or less full-time employees, or to those school districts which can substantiate that comparable reductions have occurred in administrative costs for the five-year period immediately prior to school year 1993-1994. In the event the application of this section may jeopardize the fiscal integrity or operations of the school district, have an adverse impact on the ability of the district to deliver educational services, or otherwise restrict the district from achieving or maintaining a quality education program, the State Board of Education shall be authorized to exempt the application of this section to such school district pursuant to rules and regulations of the State Board of Education consistent with the intent of this section.

SECTION 4. Section 37-3-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-3-9. (1) There shall be a State Superintendent of Public Education who shall be appointed by the State Board of Education, with the advice and consent of the Senate, and serve at the board's will and pleasure. He shall be the Chief Administrative Officer for the State Department of Education and shall administer the department in accordance with the policies established by the State Board of Education. * * * Effective July 1, 2016, the salary of the State Superintendent of Education shall be established by the State Board of Education, subject to the approval of the State Personnel Board, in an amount not to exceed One Hundred Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($175,000.00). The State Superintendent of Public Education shall have at least a master's degree in any field and a minimum of five (5) years' experience in administration in the educational field.

(2) The State Superintendent shall give bond in the penalty of Seventy-five Thousand Dollars ($75,000.00), with sureties to be approved by the Governor, conditioned according to law. The bond, when approved, shall be filed and recorded in the Office of the Secretary of State.

SECTION 5. Section 37-101-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:

37-101-7. Within ten (10) days after the beginning of the terms of office of its members, upon call of the Governor, the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning shall meet in the City of Jackson and organize by electing one (1) of its number as president, whose term of office shall be for one (1) year or until a successor shall be elected, and shall transact such other business as may come before the meeting. When the presiding officer has voted and the result is a tie, he cannot vote again to break the tie.

The trustees shall have authority to appoint a nonmember as Commissioner of Higher Education, who shall possess the highest qualifications as an administrator and research worker. The Commissioner of Higher Education shall maintain an office and be responsible to the board for the efficient functioning of the staff which the board may from time to time establish. It shall be the duty of the Commissioner of Higher Education to make constant inquiry into the problems of higher education, to survey and study carefully the organization, management and all other affairs of each institution under the control of said trustees, to make report of all findings and recommend such changes as will increase efficiency and economy in the operation of each institution, and to perform such other duties as the board may prescribe. The Commissioner of Higher Education shall be responsible for compiling all laws and all rules and regulations of a general nature adopted by the board for the governance of the various institutions of higher learning in pamphlet or loose-leaf form. Current copies of such compilations shall be furnished to all officials directly responsible for the carrying out of such laws, rules and regulations. The expenses for such compilation and publication shall be paid by the board out of any funds available for the operation of said board.

The trustees shall authorize the employment of such other personnel as may be required from time to time to carry out the functions of the board and may assign to the personnel so employed such functions and duties and may delegate to the commissioner or other personnel such powers of the board as may be necessary to accomplish the purposes for which the board was established. All such personnel shall be employed by the commissioner with the approval of the board and shall hold office at the pleasure of the commissioner. The board shall also have the authority to employ on a fee basis such technical and professional assistance as may be necessary to carry out the powers, duties and purposes of the board.

Effective July 1, 2016, the Commissioner of Higher Education * * *~~and~~ shall receive a salary in an amount set by the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning not to exceed Two Hundred Thousand Dollars ($200,000.00). Other personnel employed by the board shall receive reasonable salaries commensurate with their duties and functions, the amount of which shall be fixed by the board. The reasonable traveling expenses and other authorized expenses incurred by the commissioner and other personnel in the performance of their duties, together with other expenses of the operation of the executive office, shall be prorated and deducted from the appropriations for the current expenses of the several institutions.

SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2016.