MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2021 Regular Session
To: Finance
By: Senator(s) Sojourner, McDaniel
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 27-115-85, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO CHANGE THE ANNUAL DISTRIBUTION OF THE FIRST $80,000,000.00 FROM THE LOTTERY PROCEEDS FUND SO THAT IT IS PAID INTO THE EMERGENCY ROAD AND BRIDGE REPAIR FUND, INSTEAD OF BEING PAID INTO THE STATE HIGHWAY FUND; TO DESIGNATE THE PURPOSE OF THE MONIES IN THE EMERGENCY ROAD AND BRIDGE REPAIR FUND AS THE REPAIR, RECONSTRUCTION AND MAINTENANCE OF THE ROADS, STREETS AND HIGHWAYS, AND THE REHABILITATION AND REPLACEMENT OF THE BRIDGES OF THE COUNTIES AND MUNICIPALITIES OF THIS STATE; TO PROHIBIT THE MONIES IN THE EMERGENCY ROAD AND BRIDGE REPAIR FUND FROM BEING USED TO PAY PRECONSTRUCTION COSTS; TO PROVIDE THAT NO MORE THAN 25% OF THESE FUNDS MAY BE SPENT IN ANY ONE CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT IN ANY ONE FISCAL YEAR; TO PROVIDE A THREE-YEAR REVERTER FOR THE ABOVE PROVISIONS; TO AMEND SECTION 65-1-179, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY TO THE ABOVE PROVISIONS, AND TO SPECIFY THAT MONIES IN THE EMERGENCY ROAD AND BRIDGE REPAIR FUND SHALL BE USED TO PROVIDE FUNDING IN EQUAL PORTIONS FOR ROADS AND FOR BRIDGES; TO PROVIDE A THREE-YEAR REVERTER FOR THE ABOVE PROVISIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 27-115-85, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
[Through June 30, 2024, this section shall read as follows:]
27-115-85. Until June 30,
2028, net proceeds generated by the Alyce G. Clarke Mississippi Lottery Law,
created pursuant to this chapter and deposited into the Lottery Proceeds Fund
under Section 27-115-51(2), except as otherwise provided in this section, shall
be paid into the * * * Emergency Road and Bridge
Repair Fund created in Section 65-1-179 by warrant issued by the
State Fiscal Officer upon requisition of the State Transportation Commission as
needed to provide funds to repair, * * * reconstruct and maintain the
roads, streets and highways, and to rehabilitate and replace the
bridges, of the counties and municipalities of this state * * *. These funds shall not be used to pay
preconstruction costs. No more than twenty-five percent (25%) of these funds
may be spent in any one (1) congressional district in any one (1) fiscal year.
However, all such monies deposited into the Lottery Proceeds Fund over Eighty Million Dollars ($80,000,000.00) in a fiscal year shall be transferred into the Education Enhancement Fund for the purposes of funding the Early Childhood Learning Collaborative, the Classroom Supply Fund and/or other educational purposes. From and after July 1, 2028, the net proceeds shall be deposited into the Lottery Proceeds Fund and shall be transferred to the State General Fund, except for the amounts over Eighty Million Dollars ($80,000,000.00) which shall continue to be deposited in the Education Enhancement Fund as provided above.
[From and after July 1, 2024, this section shall read as follows:]
27-115-85. Until June 30, 2028, net proceeds generated by the Alyce G. Clarke Mississippi Lottery Law, created pursuant to this chapter and deposited into the Lottery Proceeds Fund under Section 27-115-51(2), except as otherwise provided in this section, shall be paid into the State Highway Fund by warrant issued by the State Fiscal Officer upon requisition of the State Transportation Commission as needed to provide funds to repair, renovate and maintain highways and bridges of the state; however, funds paid into the State Highway Fund under this section shall be first used for matching federal funds authorized to the state pursuant to any federal highway infrastructure program implemented after September 1, 2018. However, all such monies deposited into the Lottery Proceeds Fund over Eighty Million Dollars ($80,000,000.00) in a fiscal year shall be transferred into the Education Enhancement Fund for the purposes of funding the Early Childhood Learning Collaborative, the Classroom Supply Fund and/or other educational purposes. From and after July 1, 2028, the net proceeds shall be deposited into the Lottery Proceeds Fund and shall be transferred to the State General Fund, except for the amounts over Eighty Million Dollars ($80,000,000.00) which shall continue to be deposited in the Education Enhancement Fund as provided above.
SECTION 2. Section 65-1-179, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
[Through June 30, 2024, this section shall read as follows:]
65-1-179. (1) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be known as the "Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund," into which shall be deposited money appropriated by the Legislature or otherwise made available in any manner, and funds from any other source designated for deposit into such fund. Unexpended amounts remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund and any interest earned or investment earnings on amounts in the fund shall be deposited into the fund. The expenditure of money deposited into the fund shall be under the direction of the Mississippi Department of Transportation, and such funds shall be paid by the Mississippi Department of Transportation upon warrants issued by the Department of Finance and Administration.
(2) Money in the fund shall
be utilized by the Mississippi Department of Transportation, with the advice of
the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund Advisory Board, to provide funding,
in equal portions, for: (a) * * * the repair,
reconstruction and maintenance of the roads, streets and highways * * * of the counties and municipalities of
this state, and (b) * * * the rehabilitation
and replacement of bridges on the public roads, streets and highways * * * of the counties and municipalities of
this state, as determined by a unanimous vote of the Mississippi Transportation
Commission. The monies in this fund shall not be used to pay
preconstruction costs. No more than twenty-five percent (25%) of the monies in
this fund may be spent in any one (1) congressional district in any one (1)
fiscal year. However, before the expenditure of money in the fund, the
department shall promulgate rules and regulations as authorized in subsection
(3) of this section.
(3) (a) There is created the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund Advisory Board which shall consist of the following members:
(i) The President and Chief Executive Officer of the Mississippi Economic Council;
(ii) The President and Chief Executive Officer of the Mississippi Manufacturers Association;
(iii) The President of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation;
(iv) The President of the Mississippi Poultry Association;
(v) The President of the Mississippi Trucking Association;
(vi) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors;
(vii) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Municipal League;
(viii) The Executive Vice President of the Mississippi Cattlemen's Association;
(ix) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Loggers Association; and
(x) The Executive Director of the American Council of Engineering Companies-Mississippi.
(b) The Governor shall appoint the chairman of the board and the board shall elect such other officers as it considers necessary from among its members.
(c) A majority of the members of the board shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of meetings and all actions of the board shall be by a majority vote. No compensation, per diem or mileage expense shall be provided to board members.
(d) The Governor's office shall provide any necessary administrative support to the board.
(e) The board shall meet at least quarterly to conduct business.
(f) The board shall provide nonbinding advice to the Department of Transportation regarding the expenditure of money in the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund.
(4) The Mississippi Department of Transportation shall have all powers necessary to implement and administer the program established under this section to maximize all potential sources of funding including state and federal, for projects covered by the program. Any available sources of funding may be combined to fund any project covered by the program. This includes state aid road funds and/or Local System Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program funds, which may be used in conjunction with Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund monies within the discretion of the State Aid Engineer. Under no circumstances, however, shall Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund monies be used to reimburse any amount that has been expended on the project prior to the award of such monies to the recipient.
(5) When monies in the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund are distributed for projects, such monies shall not be redeposited in the State Treasury, absent extraordinary circumstances where the recipient must return monies received under the program. This requirement is not intended to inhibit state agencies from receiving Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund monies for appropriate projects or to curtail any proper transfer of monies to accomplish such a project.
(6) The department shall promulgate rules and regulations, in accordance with the Mississippi Administrative Procedures Law, necessary for the implementation of this section.
[From and after July 1, 2024, this section shall read as follows:]
65-1-179. (1) There is created in the State Treasury a special fund to be known as the "Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund," into which shall be deposited money appropriated by the Legislature or otherwise made available in any manner, and funds from any other source designated for deposit into such fund. Unexpended amounts remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General Fund and any interest earned or investment earnings on amounts in the fund shall be deposited into the fund. The expenditure of money deposited into the fund shall be under the direction of the Mississippi Department of Transportation, and such funds shall be paid by the Mississippi Department of Transportation upon warrants issued by the Department of Finance and Administration.
(2) Money in the fund shall be utilized by the Mississippi Department of Transportation, with the advice of the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund Advisory Board, to provide funding for emergency repairs to roads, streets and highways in this state and emergency bridge repairs on public roads, streets and highways in this state, as determined by a unanimous vote of the Mississippi Transportation Commission. However, before the expenditure of money in the fund, the department shall promulgate rules and regulations as authorized in subsection (3) of this section.
(3) (a) There is created the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund Advisory Board which shall consist of the following members:
(i) The President and Chief Executive Officer of the Mississippi Economic Council;
(ii) The President and Chief Executive Officer of the Mississippi Manufacturers Association;
(iii) The President of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation;
(iv) The President of the Mississippi Poultry Association;
(v) The President of the Mississippi Trucking Association;
(vi) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors;
(vii) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Municipal League;
(viii) The Executive Vice President of the Mississippi Cattlemen's Association;
(ix) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Loggers Association; and
(x) The Executive Director of the American Council of Engineering Companies-Mississippi.
(b) The Governor shall appoint the chairman of the board and the board shall elect such other officers as it considers necessary from among its members.
(c) A majority of the members of the board shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of meetings and all actions of the board shall be by a majority vote. No compensation, per diem or mileage expense shall be provided to board members.
(d) The Governor's office shall provide any necessary administrative support to the board.
(e) The board shall meet at least quarterly to conduct business.
(f) The board shall provide nonbinding advice to the Department of Transportation regarding the expenditure of money in the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund.
(4) The Mississippi Department of Transportation shall have all powers necessary to implement and administer the program established under this section to maximize all potential sources of funding including state and federal, for projects covered by the program. Any available sources of funding may be combined to fund any project covered by the program. This includes state aid road funds and/or Local System Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program funds, which may be used in conjunction with Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund monies within the discretion of the State Aid Engineer. Under no circumstances, however, shall Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund monies be used to reimburse any amount that has been expended on the project prior to the award of such monies to the recipient.
(5) When monies in the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund are distributed for projects, such monies shall not be redeposited in the State Treasury, absent extraordinary circumstances where the recipient must return monies received under the program. This requirement is not intended to inhibit state agencies from receiving Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund monies for appropriate projects or to curtail any proper transfer of monies to accomplish such a project.
(6) The department shall promulgate rules and regulations, in accordance with the Mississippi Administrative Procedures Law, necessary for the implementation of this section.
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2021.