House Bill 178

AN ACT TO REQUIRE BUSINESSES THAT HAVE TWENTY OR MORE EMPLOYEES TO OBTAIN AN EQUAL PAY CERTIFICATE FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION BEFORE EXECUTING ANY CONTRACTS OVER $100,000.00 WITH A DEPARTMENT OR AGENCY OF THE STATE; TO PROVIDE THE STANDARDS A BUSINESS MUST MEET BEFORE RECEIVING AN EQUAL PAY CERTIFICATE; TO PROVIDE THAT AN EQUAL PAY CERTIFICATE MAY BE SUSPENDED OR REVOKED; TO PROVIDE THAT A CONTRACT WITH A BUSINESS MAY BE VOIDED IF THE BUSINESS DOES NOT HAVE AN EQUAL PAY CERTIFICATE; TO PROVIDE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS IF AN EQUAL PAY CERTIFICATE IS SUSPENDED OR REVOKED OR IF A CONTRACT IS VOIDED BECAUSE A BUSINESS DOES NOT HAVE AN EQUAL PAY CERTIFICATE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. Equal pay certificate. (1) No department or agency of the state shall execute a contract or agreement in excess of One Hundred Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00) with a business that has twenty (20) or more full-time employees in this state or a state where the business has its primary place of business on a single day during the prior twelve (12) months, unless the business has an equal pay certificate issued under subsection (3) of this section or it has certified in writing that it is exempt. A certificate is valid for four (4) years.

(2) This section does not apply to a business with respect to a specific contract if the Executive Director of the Department of Finance and Administration determines that application of this section would cause undue hardship to the contracting entity.

(3) A business shall apply for an equal pay certificate by paying a filing fee of One Hundred Fifty Dollars ($150.00) and submitting an equal pay compliance statement to the Department of Finance and Administration. The proceeds from the fees collected under this section shall be deposited in an equal pay certificate special revenue account in the State Treasury. The Department of Finance and Administration shall issue an equal pay certificate of compliance to a business that submits to the department a statement signed by the chairperson of the board or chief executive officer of the business:

(a) That the business is in compliance with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964;

(b) That the average compensation for its female employees is not consistently below the average compensation for its male employees within each of the major job categories in the EEO-1 employee information report for which an employee is expected to perform work under the contract, taking into account factors such as length of service, requirements of specific jobs, experience, skill, effort, responsibility, working conditions of the job, or other mitigating factors;

(c) That the business does not restrict employees of one (1) sex to certain job classifications and makes retention and promotion decisions without regard to sex;

(d) That wage and benefit disparities are corrected when identified to ensure compliance with the laws identified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection; and

(e) How often wages and benefits are evaluated to ensure compliance with the laws identified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subsection.

(4) The equal pay compliance statement shall also indicate whether the business, in setting compensation and benefits, uses:

(a) A market pricing approach;

(b) State prevailing wage or union contract requirements;

(d) An internal analysis; or

(e) An alternative approach to determine what level of wages and benefits to pay its employees. If the business uses an alternative approach, the business must provide a description of its approach.

(5) Receipt of the equal pay compliance statement by the Department of Finance and Administration does not establish compliance with the laws identified in subsection (3)(a) of this section.

(6) The Department of Finance and Administration must issue an equal pay certificate, or a statement of why the application was rejected, within fifteen (15) days of receipt of the application. An application may be rejected only if it does not comply with the requirements of subsection (3) of this section.

(7) An equal pay certificate for a business may be suspended or revoked by the Department of Finance and Administration when the business fails to make a good-faith effort to comply with the laws identified in subsection (3) of this section, fails to make a good-faith effort to comply with this section, or has multiple violations of this section or the laws identified in subsection (3) of this section. Before suspending or revoking a certificate, the Department of Finance and Administration must first have sought to conciliate with the business regarding wages and benefits due to employees.

(8) If a contract is awarded to a business that does not have an equal pay certificate as required under this section, or that is not in compliance with subsection (3) of this section, the Department of Finance and Administration may void the contract on behalf of the state. The contract award entity that is a party to the agreement must be notified by the Department of Finance and Administration before the Department of Finance and Administration takes action to void the contract.

A contract may be abridged or terminated by the contract award entity identified upon notice that the Department of Finance and Administration has suspended or revoked the certificate of the business.

(9) A business may obtain an administrative hearing before the suspension or revocation of its certificate is effective by filing a written request for hearing twenty (20) days after service of notice by the Department of Finance and Administration. A business may obtain an administrative hearing before the contract award entity's abridgement or termination of a contract is effective by filing a written request for a hearing twenty (20) days after service of notice by the contract award entity.

(10) The Department of Finance and Administration must provide technical assistance to any business that requests assistance regarding this section.

(11) The State Auditor may audit the business's compliance with this section. As part of an audit, upon request, a business must provide the State Auditor the following information with respect to employees expected to perform work under the contract in each of the major job categories in the EEO-1 employee information report:

(a) Number of male employees;

(b) Number of female employees;

(c) Average annualized salaries paid to male employees and to female employees, in the manner most consistent with the employer's compensation system, within each major job category;

(d) Information on performance payments, benefits or other elements of compensation, in the manner most consistent with the employer's compensation system, if requested by the State Auditor as part of a determination as to whether these elements of compensation are different for male and female employees;

(e) Average length of service for male and female employees in each major job category; and

(f) Other information identified by the business or by the Department of Finance and Administration, as needed, to determine compliance.

(12) Data submitted to the Department of Finance and Administration related to equal pay certificates is private data on individuals or nonpublic data with respect to persons other than department employees. The Department of Finance and Administration's decision to issue, not issue, revoke or suspend an equal pay certificate is public data.

(13) The Department of Finance and Administration shall report to the Governor and the Legislature by January 31 of every year, beginning January 31, 2020. The report shall indicate the number of equal pay certificates issued, the number of audits conducted, the processes used by contractors to ensure compliance with subsection (3) of this section, and a summary of its auditing efforts. The Department of Finance and Administration shall consult with the Committee on the Status of Women in preparing the report.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2019.