MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2024 Regular Session
To: Local and Private
By: Senator(s) Harkins, Kirby, Rhodes
AN ACT TO AUTHORIZE THE GOVERNING AUTHORITIES OF RANKIN COUNTY, MISSISSIPPI, ON THEIR OWN OR TOGETHER WITH ONE OR MORE GOVERNING AUTHORITIES OF THE MUNICIPALITIES AND EXISTING DRAINAGE DISTRICTS WITHIN THE COUNTY, TO FORM THE RANKIN COUNTY STORMWATER MANAGEMENT AGENCY; TO PROVIDE THAT THE PURPOSE OF THE AGENCY IS TO MANAGE STORMWATER AND DRAINAGE WITHIN THE COUNTY; TO PROVIDE THAT THE AGENCY MAY BE FORMED BY THE PASSAGE OF AN ORDINANCE OR RESOLUTION THAT IS DULY ADOPTED BY THE GOVERNING AUTHORITIES OF EACH PARTICIPATING UNIT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, AFTER A DULY HELD ELECTION IN WHICH A MAJORITY OF THE QUALIFIED ELECTORS IN THE COUNTY VOTE IN FAVOR OF THE CREATION OF THE AGENCY; TO PROVIDE THAT THE POWERS OF THE AGENCY SHALL BE VESTED IN THE APPOINTED BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS; TO REQUIRE THE AGENCY, THROUGH ITS BOARD, TO CREATE A COMPLETE COMPREHENSIVE STORMWATER MANAGEMENT PLAN WITHIN 24 MONTHS AFTER THE CREATION OF THE AGENCY; TO PROVIDE THAT THE AGENCY SHALL ANNUALLY IMPOSE A UTILITY CHARGE UPON THE LANDOWNERS OF REAL PROPERTY WITHIN THE TERRITORY OF THE AGENCY; TO PROVIDE THAT LANDOWNERS MAY OBJECT TO THE AMOUNT OF THE UTILITY CHARGE IMPOSED AND THAT SUCH OBJECTION SHALL BE HEARD BY THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE COUNTY; TO REQUIRE THE BOARD TO TAKE CERTAIN ACTIONS CONCERNING THE OBJECTION OF THE AMOUNT OF SUCH UTILITY CHARGE; TO REQUIRE THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF THE COUNTY TO LEVY THE UTILITY CHARGE ANNUALLY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Legislative findings. The Legislature recognizes that stormwater accumulation and runoff can pose a significant threat to the health and safety of residents of this state and, further, that serious problems of water management resulting from erosion, floodwater, or sediment damages are arising in the watersheds of the rivers and streams of the State of Mississippi.
The Legislature further recognizes that Rankin County, Mississippi, and the municipalities within Rankin County, as the home of the Ross Barnett Reservoir, a significant segment of the Pearl River, and various other natural and man-made bodies of water, have endured significant stormwater accumulation, runoff, and flooding problems over the past decade.
Rankin County's stormwater accumulation and runoff have rapidly increased and have led to significant damage to roads, bridges, and commercial and residential structures and property and, further, have placed at risk the lives and safety of individuals trapped in the stormwater's path. The unincorporated portion of Rankin County is densely populated, with Supervisor District Two alone serving as the home to more than twenty-seven thousand seven hundred eighteen (27,718) residents. The Legislature recognizes that, if that area were a municipality, it would be the tenth most populous municipality in the state. With the high volume of platted subdivisions in unincorporated portions of Rankin County, there being no municipal government to address the resulting stormwater problems, a separate governmental organization is required to adequately manage stormwater.
The Legislature further recognizes that for the purpose of alleviating such damages and risks and for the purpose of furthering the conservation, development, utilization, and disposal of water, thereby preserving and protecting Rankin County's land and water resources, it is necessary and advisable to authorize the governing authorities of Rankin County, the municipalities within Rankin County, and the Richland Creek Watershed Drainage District to establish a county-wide stormwater management agency with the power to construct, operate, and maintain works of improvement needed to carry out such purposes.
The Legislature further recognizes that effective management of stormwater is best performed at the watershed level, which provides a proactive approach to stormwater management and accounts for the overall hydrologic connectivity of drainage across naturally occurring watersheds, and that watersheds commonly traverse the boundaries of multiple political subdivisions. Considering the several highly populated municipalities situated throughout Rankin County, across multiple watersheds, a county-wide approach is necessary to manage stormwater in Rankin County in a uniform manner.
Although Mississippi law currently authorizes the establishment of drainage districts and other similar entities, those organizations are insufficient for many areas of the state, including Rankin County, where stormwater, for its best and most effective management, must be addressed at the watershed level. Accordingly, the Legislature recognizes the need for the governing authorities of Rankin County, the municipalities within Rankin County, and the Richland Creek Watershed Drainage District to establish a county-wide stormwater management agency to provide a modern, watershed-based approach to stormwater management. The establishment of such agency will constitute a significant measure in protecting the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Rankin County and the municipalities within Rankin County.
SECTION 2. Definitions. Whenever used in this act, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(a) "Agency" means the Rankin County Stormwater Management Agency authorized under this act.
(b) "Board" means the board of commissioners of the agency.
(c) "County" means Rankin County, Mississippi.
(d) "County-wide stormwater management system" or "stormwater management system" means such stormwater system defined by the agency within the agency's stormwater management plan and may include a system that is designed and constructed, implemented or operated to control, at the watershed level, stormwater discharges to prevent or reduce flooding, over drainage or water pollution or to otherwise affect the quantity or quality of discharges from the stormwater management system. The stormwater management system may include all watersheds, pipes, channels, ditches, streams, wetlands, detention or retention basins, ponds, and other stormwater conveyance or treatment facilities.
(e) "Designated representative" or "incorporator" means the person named by resolution of the governing authorities of a participating unit of local government as the representative of that unit of local government for the purpose of acting on its behalf as an incorporator in concert with other similarly named persons in the creation and incorporation of the agency authorized under this act.
(f) "Ditch" means any branch or lateral drain, tile drain, levee, sluiceway, water course, floodgate, and any other construction work found necessary for the reclamation of wet and overflowed lands.
(g) "Facility" or "facilities" means any structure, building, ditch, pipe, channel, improvement, land, or other real or personal property used or useful in a county-wide stormwater management system under this act.
(h) "Governing authorities" means the elected or duly appointed officials constituting the governing body of a unit of local government.
(i) "Incorporation agreement" means that agreement between the designated representatives of participating units of local government setting forth the formal creation of the agency under this act.
(j) "Landowner" means an individual or entity possessing title in real property, including any title described as follows:
(i) Title held pursuant to a legal lease of school land which is perpetually renewable, or school land legally leased under the provisions of Section 211 of the Mississippi Constitution, the owner of which renders the property for assessment and pays the taxes thereon, as required by law; and
(ii) Title held pursuant to a legal lease of lands owned in fee by the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District, to a person, individually or in joint tenancy, who renders the property for assessment and pays the taxes thereon, as required by law.
(k) "Member" or "participating unit of local government" means a unit of local government participating in the formation of the agency.
(l) "Municipality" means any incorporated city, town, or village lying wholly within the county.
(m) "Project" means the collection, conveyance, retention, detention, and any other portion or component of a county-wide stormwater management system and any property, real or personal, used as or in connection with those purposes.
(n) "Public agency" means any municipality, county, political subdivision, governmental district or unit, public institution of higher learning, community college district, planning and development district, or any body politic and corporate or governmental agency created under the laws of this state that is not a member of the agency.
(o) "State" means the State of Mississippi.
(p) "Stormwater" means any flow occurring during or following any form of natural precipitation and resulting from that precipitation.
(q) "Watershed" means land area that channels rainfall and other precipitation to creeks, streams, and rivers.
(r) "Unit of local government" means the county, any municipality within the county, and the Richland Creek Watershed Drainage District, organized under Title 51, Mississippi Code of 1972.
SECTION 3. Election and agency formation. (1) Before the agency may be incorporated, the governing authorities of the county shall call for a special election to be held on the question of whether the agency should be formed. The election shall be held and conducted by the election commissioners as nearly as may be in accordance with the general laws governing elections, with the cost of such election to be borne by the county. Notice of the election setting forth the time, place or places, and purpose of the election shall be published by the clerk of the board of supervisors once each week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper published or having a general circulation in the county, with the first publication of the notice to be made not less than twenty-one (21) days before the date fixed in the ordinance or resolution for the election and the last publication to be made not more than seven (7) days before the election. The ballot to be prepared for and used at the election shall be in substantially the following form:
"PLEASE VOTE 'YES' OR 'NO' ON WHETHER THE RANKIN COUNTY STORMWATER MANAGEMENT AGENCY SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED TO MANAGE STORMWATER AND DRAINAGE WITHIN RANKIN COUNTY AND ANY MUNICIPALITY OR OTHER ELIGIBLE POLITICAL SUBDIVISION ELECTING TO JOIN SAID AGENCY.
'YES': 'NO': "
The qualified electors may indicate their preference on the line following the answer that they prefer.
(2) If a majority of those voting on the question vote in favor of the creation of the agency, the governing authorities of the county, on their own or together with the governing authorities of one or more other units of local government, may form the agency by ordinance or resolution duly adopted by the governing authorities of each participating unit of local government. The ordinance or resolution shall state the following:
(a) The necessity for the proposed agency;
(b) The primary function of the proposed agency;
(c) The geographic boundaries of the proposed agency;
(d) The date upon which the governing authorities of the participating units of local government intend to incorporate the agency; and
(e) Any other information reasonably necessary to inform the constituency of the participating unit or units of local government of the purpose and proposed obligations of such unit or units of local government proposing to create the agency.
(3) The territory of the agency may include only the geographic area within the boundaries of any participating unit of local government and shall not encompass the territory of any municipality or the Richland Creek Watershed Drainage District where such units of local government do not join as members of the agency. However, in the case of the Richland Creek Watershed Drainage District and its overlapping municipalities, the territory of the agency may contain the entire geographic area within the boundaries of any participating unit of local government, including any areas overlapping with a nonparticipating unit of local government.
(4) The agency may be formed although adequate stormwater management activities are being undertaken by one or more of the participating units of local government or by another public agency existing and operating within the geographical area of the agency. The agency shall not impede upon the activities undertaken by any flood control district organized under Title 51, Mississippi Code of 1972, in existence at the time of the agency's formation, nor upon the activities of the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District.
(5) The governing authorities of each participating unit of local government shall cause a certified copy of the adopted resolution or ordinance required by this section to be published in a newspaper having a general circulation within the boundaries of the participating unit of local government once a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks before the date specified for the agency's incorporation.
SECTION 4. Incorporation procedures. (1) Within thirty (30) days following the last participating unit of local government adopting its authorizing resolution or ordinance, each unit of local government shall name a designated representative, who shall proceed to incorporate the agency by filing for record in the office of the chancery clerk of the county and the clerk of participating municipalities, as the case may be, and with the Secretary of State an incorporation agreement approved by each participating unit of local government. The agreement shall comply in form and substance with the requirements of this section and shall be executed in the manner provided in this act.
(2) The incorporation agreement shall state:
(a) The name of each participating unit of local government and the date on which the governing authorities thereof adopted an authorizing resolution or ordinance;
(b) The name of the agency;
(c) The period for the duration of the agency, which may be for an indefinite period of time;
(d) The location of the principal office of the agency, which shall be within the geographic boundaries of the agency;
(e) The agency that is organized under this act;
(f) The number of commissioners on the agency's board of commissioners, and their terms of office;
(g) If the exercise by the agency or its board of any of its powers is to be in any way prohibited, limited, or conditioned, a statement of the terms of such prohibition, limitation, or condition; and
(h) Any other matters relating to the agency that the incorporators may choose to insert and that are not inconsistent with this act or with the laws of the state.
(3) The incorporation agreement shall be signed and acknowledged by the incorporators before an officer authorized by the laws of the state to take acknowledgements. When the incorporation agreement is filed for record, there shall be attached to it a certified copy of the authorizing resolution or ordinance adopted by the governing authorities of each participating unit of local government.
(4) The incorporators shall publish a notice of incorporation once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a daily newspaper or newspapers having general circulation throughout the territory of the agency.
(5) Upon the filing for record of the agreement and the required documents, the Secretary of State shall issue a certificate of incorporation to the agency. Upon issuance of the certificate of incorporation, the agency shall be a public body corporate and politic constituting a political subdivision of the state with the power of perpetual succession and shall be deemed to be acting in all respects for the benefit of the people of the state in the performance of essential public functions. The agency shall be empowered in accordance with this act to promote the health, welfare, safety, and prosperity of the general public.
SECTION 5. Amending incorporation agreement. (1) The incorporation agreement may be amended in the manner provided in this section. The board of the agency shall first adopt a resolution proposing an amendment to the incorporation agreement. The amendment shall be set forth in full in the resolution and may include any matters that might have been included in the original incorporation agreement.
(2) After the adoption of the resolution by the board, the chairman of the board and the secretary of the agency shall submit a certified copy of the resolution and a signed written application in the name of and on behalf of the agency, under its seal, with the governing authorities of each member, requesting the governing authorities to adopt a resolution approving the proposed amendment. As promptly as may be practicable after the filing of the application with the governing authorities, those governing authorities shall review the application and shall adopt a resolution or ordinance either denying the application or authorizing the proposed amendment. The governing authorities shall cause a copy of the application and all accompanying documents to be spread upon or otherwise made a part of the minutes of the meeting of the governing authorities at which final action upon the application is taken. The incorporation agreement may be amended only after the adoption of a resolution or ordinance by the governing authorities of at least two-thirds (2/3) of the members.
(3) Within thirty (30) days following the adoption by two-thirds (2/3) of the members of the resolution approving the proposed amendment, the chairman of the agency's board and the secretary of the agency shall sign and file for record in the office of the county's chancery clerk and any municipal clerk with which the incorporation agreement of the agency was originally filed, and with the Secretary of State, a certificate in the name of and on behalf of the agency, under its seal, reciting the adoption of the respective resolutions or ordinances by the board and by the governing authorities of each member and setting forth the amendment. The chancery clerk and municipal clerk for any member municipality shall record the certificate in an appropriate book in the clerk's office. When the certificate has been so filed and recorded, the amendment shall become effective.
(4) Any member of the agency may withdraw from the agency by submitting a resolution to the board requesting an amendment to the incorporation agreement under subsection (1) of this section. Upon compliance with the requirements of subsections (1) through (3) of this section and payment of its pro rata share of any indebtedness, costs, expenses, and obligations of the agency outstanding at the time of withdrawal, the amendment may become effective upon adoption of a resolution by the board and the governing authorities of two-thirds (2/3) of the agency's members. The withdrawal of a member shall not operate to impair, invalidate, release, or abrogate any contract, lien, bond, permit, indebtedness, or obligation of the agency, except to relieve the withdrawing member from further financial obligation to the agency.
SECTION 6. Addition of agency members. (1) Any unit of local government may join the agency as a member after the agency has been formed, provided that the governing authorities of such unit of local government, along with the governing authorities of each agency member and the agency's board approve the addition of such unit of local government by a majority vote.
(2) Prior to a unit of local government joining the existing agency as a member, the agency's incorporation agreement must be amended, in the manner prescribed by Section 5 of this act, to reflect the addition.
(3) Any municipality having a minimum assessed valuation of real and personal property, mobile homes, public utilities and automobiles of Seventy-five Million Dollars ($75,000,000.00) added as a member of the agency shall appoint one (1) commissioner to the board, for an initial term running until the end of the term of the commissioner with the shortest remaining term. After the expiration of the initial term, the governing authorities of such added municipality shall appoint a commissioner to serve a term of four (4) years.
SECTION 7. Appointment of commissioners and board authority. (1) All powers of the agency shall be vested in a board of commissioners.
(2) If the governing authorities of the county, without the governing authorities of any other unit of local government, form the agency to manage stormwater within unincorporated territory of the county, the agency's commissioners shall be chosen in the following manner:
(a) Each county supervisor may nominate one (1) commissioner from his or her supervisor district or from the county at large, and any such nominee, before taking office, must first be approved by a majority vote of the board of supervisors.
(b) Of the initial appointees made by the board of supervisors, the commissioners' terms shall be staggered as follows: one (1) commissioner shall be appointed to a term of one (1) year; one (1) commissioner shall be appointed to a term of two (2) years; one (1) commissioner shall be appointed to a term of three (3) years; and two (2) commissioners shall be appointed to terms of four (4) years. After the expiration of the initial terms, commissioners shall serve terms of four (4) years.
(3) If the governing authorities of the county along with the governing authorities of one or more units of local government form an agency, the agency's commissioners shall be chosen by the governing authorities of the county in the manner prescribed in subsection (2) of this section. In addition, any municipality having a minimum assessed valuation of real and personal property, mobile homes, public utilities and automobiles of Seventy-five Million Dollars ($75,000,000.00), may appoint one (1) commissioner for an initial term of two (2) years. After the expiration of the initial term, any commissioner appointed by municipal governing authorities shall serve a term of four (4) years.
(4) If the appointment of commissioners results in an even number of commissioners, the Governor of the State of Mississippi shall appoint one (1) commissioner so that there shall be an odd number of commissioners. Such commissioner shall serve a term of four (4) years. If the addition or withdrawal of a member results in an odd number of commissioners, the term of the individual appointed by the Governor under this subsection shall automatically terminate.
(5) Commissioners may serve beyond the end of their respective terms until their successors have been appointed and qualified.
(6) A commissioner may be removed from office for neglect of duty, misfeasance, or nonfeasance in office either (a) by a unanimous vote of the governing authorities of the unit of local government that appointed such commissioner; or (b) by a majority vote of the governing authorities of the unit of local government that appointed such commissioner after a recommendation from the board that the commissioner be removed. Any commissioner who does not attend three (3) consecutive meetings of the board shall be subject to removal by a majority vote of the board and shall be replaced with an appointment from the governing authorities of the agency member making the initial appointment.
(7) The board shall annually elect a chairman and vice chairman from among its members to serve the next fiscal year. The chairman shall preside at all meetings of the board. The vice chairman shall act in the absence or disability of the chairman.
(8) Regular meetings of the board shall be held at least monthly, as set forth in the board's rules or regulations for management of the agency's business and affairs. Additional meetings of the board shall be held at the call of the chairman or whenever a majority of commissioners so requests.
(9) A quorum for any meeting of the board shall be a majority of the total membership of the board. All business of the board shall be transacted by majority vote of the members of the board in attendance at a meeting at which a quorum is present. Meetings of the board shall be subject to the Open Meetings Act, Section 25-41-1 et seq., Mississippi Code of 1972.
(10) Each commissioner shall give bond, to be paid for by the agency, for the faithful discharge of his or her duties in the amount of at least Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) with a surety company authorized to do business in the State of Mississippi.
(11) The board, through its secretary, shall keep accurate and complete records of all its meetings.
(12) Commissioners shall serve without a salary but shall be entitled to per diem compensation as provided by Section 25-3-69 for each day's actual service, together with mileage as provided in Section 25-3-41 for the distance traveled from their homes to and from the place of meeting.
(13) The agency shall be subject to the Mississippi Public Records Act of 1983, Section 25-61-1 et seq., Mississippi Code of 1972.
(14) The board shall annually prepare a budget for the agency at least ninety (90) days before the beginning of each fiscal year. The fiscal year shall be from October 1 to September 30 of each year. The board shall submit the budget to the governing authorities of each member.
(15) The board may employ any personnel and appoint and prescribe the duties of any officers as the board deems necessary or advisable, including a general manager and a secretary, with each having the duties as determined by the board. The board shall establish the compensation of any employee or officer of the agency. The board may require any of its employees to be bonded. The cost of any bond required by this section or by the board shall be paid from funds of the agency. In addition:
(a) The general manager may also serve as secretary and shall be a person of good moral character and of proven ability as an administrator with a minimum of five (5) years' experience in the management and administration of a public works operation or comparable experience which may include, but is not limited to, supervision, public financing, regulatory codes, and related functions as minimum qualifications to administer the programs and duties of the agency. The general manager shall administer, manage, and direct the affairs and business of the agency, subject to the policies, control, and direction of the board. The general manager shall give bond executed by a surety company or companies authorized to do business in this state in the amount of at least Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00) payable to the agency conditioned upon the faithful performance of that person's duties and the proper accounting for all funds.
(b) The secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of the board and the agency and shall be custodian of all books, documents, and papers filed with the agency, the minute book or journal, and the official seal. The secretary may make copies of all minutes and other records and documents of the agency and certify under the seal of the agency that the copies are true and accurate copies, and all persons dealing with the agency may rely upon those certificates.
SECTION 8. Agency authority. The agency shall have all the rights and powers necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of this act, including, but not limited to, the following:
(a) To sue and be sued in its own name;
(b) To adopt an official seal and alter the official seal at its pleasure;
(c) To maintain an office or offices at any place or places within the geographic boundaries of its members as it may determine;
(d) To acquire, construct, improve, or modify, to operate or cause to be operated and maintained, either as owner of all or of any part in common with others, a stormwater management system within the jurisdiction of the members of the agency;
(e) To pay all or part of the cost of the agency's stormwater management system from any contribution by persons, firms, public agencies, or corporations;
(f) To receive, accept, and use all funds, public or private, and pay all cost of development, implementation, and maintenance as may be determined to be necessary for any project;
(g) To acquire by purchase, on any terms and conditions and in any manner as it may deem proper, property for public use, or by gift, grant, lease, or otherwise, real property or easements therein, franchises and personal property necessary or convenient for its corporate purposes. These purposes shall include, but are not limited to: the constructing or acquiring of a stormwater management system; the improving, extending, reconstructing, renovating, or remodeling of any existing stormwater management system or part thereof; or the demolition to make room for any project or any part thereof;
(h) To insure the stormwater management system and any agency property against all risks as any insurance may be available;
(i) To use any property and rent or lease any property to or from others, including public agencies, or make contracts for the use of the property. The agency may sell, lease, exchange, transfer, assign, pledge, mortgage, or grant a security interest for any property. The powers to acquire, use, and dispose of property as set forth in this paragraph shall include the power to acquire, use, and dispose of any interest in that property, whether divided or undivided. Title to any property of the agency shall be held by the agency exclusively for the benefit of the public;
(j) To adopt, modify, repeal, promulgate, and enforce rules and regulations implementing or effectuating the powers and duties of the agency under any statute within the agency's jurisdiction, and where otherwise not prohibited by federal or state law, to make exceptions to and grant variances and exemptions from, and to enforce those rules and regulations. Those rules and regulations may include, but shall not be limited to, rules and regulations for (i) the management of the agency's business and affairs; (ii) the use, operation, maintenance, or implementation of the agency's stormwater management system or any portion of that system, facility, or any other property belonging to or operated by the agency; (iii) specifications and standards relating to the planning, design, or construction of the stormwater management system or any facility belonging to or operated by the agency; and (iv) the methods by which the agency shall calculate the utility charge to be imposed upon properties located within the agency's jurisdiction, as authorized by this act. An agency may also adopt best management practices related to stormwater management. Rules, regulations, and best management practices shall be no more stringent or extensive in scope, coverage, or effect than regulations and best management practices promulgated or recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency;
(k) To enter into contracts or leases with any person, entity, or public agency and to execute all instruments necessary or convenient for construction, operation, and maintenance of the stormwater management system and leases of projects. Without limiting the generality of the above, authority is specifically granted to units of local government and to the agency to enter into contracts, lease agreements, or other undertakings relative to the furnishing of stormwater management system services or facilities or both by the agency to a unit of local government and by a unit of local government to the agency. Any contract between the agency and a public agency: may extend over any period of time, including a term that extends beyond the term of the then majority of the existing board members, regardless of any provision or rule of law to the contrary; may be upon such terms and for such consideration, nominal or otherwise, as the parties thereto shall agree; and may provide that it shall continue in effect until all obligations, financial or otherwise, specified therein are paid or terminated;
(l) To exercise any powers, rights, or privileges conferred by this act either alone or jointly or in common with any other public or private parties. In any exercise of any powers, rights, and privileges jointly or in common with others for the construction, operation, and maintenance of facilities, the agency may own an undivided interest in any facilities with any other party with which it may jointly or in common exercise the rights and privileges conferred by this act and may enter into any agreement with respect to any facility with any other party participating in those facilities. An agreement may contain any terms, conditions, and provisions, consistent with this section, as the parties to the agreement shall deem to be in their best interest, including, but not limited to, provisions for the planning, design, construction, operation, implementation, and maintenance of any facility by any party to an agreement. Any party or parties shall be designated in or under any agreement as agent or agents on behalf of itself and one or more of the other parties to the agreement, or by any other means as may be determined by the parties. The agreement shall include a method or methods of determining and allocating, among the parties, costs of planning, design, construction, operation, maintenance, renewals, replacements, improvements, and disposal related to any facility. In carrying out its functions and activities as an agent with respect to planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of any facility, the agent shall be governed by the laws and regulations applicable to that agent as a separate legal entity and not by any laws or regulations which may be applicable to any of the other participating parties. The agent shall act for the benefit of the public. In any agreement, the agency may delegate its powers and duties related to the planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of any facility to the party acting as agent, and all actions taken by that agent in accordance with the agreement may be binding upon the agency without further action or approval of the agency;
(m) To apply, contract for, accept, receive and administer gifts, grants, appropriations, and donations of money, materials, and property of any kind, including loans and grants from the United States, this state, a unit of local government, or any agency, department, authority, or instrumentality of any of the foregoing, upon any terms and conditions as the United States, the state, a unit of local government, or any agency, department, authority, or instrumentality shall impose. The agency may administer trusts. The agency may sell, lease, transfer, convey, appropriate, and pledge any and all of its property and assets;
(n) To employ professional and administrative staff and personnel and to retain legal, engineering, fiscal, accounting, and other professional services, and to enter into contracts for operation and maintenance needs of the agency;
(o) To assume or continue any contractual or other business relationships entered into by the members of the agency, including the rights to receive and acquire transferred rights under option to purchase agreements;
(p) To enter on public or private lands, waters, or premises for the purpose of making surveys, borings or soundings, or conducting tests, examinations, inspections, improvements, repairs, or other undertakings for the purposes of the agency, subject to responsibility for any damage done to property entered, providing such damage was caused by the agency's actions and not the agency's inaction, which shall not constitute damage; provided:
(i) Before any commissioner or agency employee, agent, engineer, or contractor enters upon private lands, waters, or premises to perform the duties authorized within this act, the agency must first obtain permission from the landowner; and
(ii) The commissioners and the agency's employees, agents, engineers, and contractors may enter in or upon public or, with the permission of the landowner as set forth in this section, private lands or waters, while in the lawful performance of their duties without criminal liability for trespass. Any such individuals shall make a good-faith attempt to announce and identify themselves and their intentions before entering upon private property and must present documentation sufficient to identify themselves to any landowner requesting such identification. The provisions of this section do not relieve commissioners or their employees, agents, engineers, or contractors from any civil liability that otherwise is actionable at law or in equity or from criminal liability for trespass if the entry in or upon the property extends beyond the property or area that is necessary to actually perform their duties;
(q) To contract with any agency member to provide support services. Any member may contract with the agency to provide any staff support, equipment, materials, labor, or administrative or operational services as it deems advisable, and on any terms as may be mutually agreed;
(r) To organize the agency by districts;
(s) To procure right of way for ditches, laterals, drains, levees, or other necessary infrastructure that may be decided upon, by agreements with the landowners over or through whose lands the same is to be constructed. The agency shall take releases of rights of way for the construction of such ditches, laterals, drains, levees, or other necessary infrastructure from the landowners and file same with the chancery clerk, who shall record them;
(t) To invest money of the agency, including proceeds from the sale of any bonds subject to any agreements with bond holders on such terms and in such manner as the board deems proper;
(u) To enter into contracts to conduct studies of regional issues regarding stormwater services;
(v) To provide funding to members of the agency for maintenance and capital improvements affecting stormwater management within the geographic boundaries of such members;
(w) To disincentivize, through the utility charge authorized by this act to be imposed upon landowners within the territory of the agency or otherwise, activities or property conditions that in the board's determination negatively impact the stormwater management system, its stormwater management plan, or real property within the territory of the agency;
(x) To incentivize, through the utility charge authorized by this act to be imposed upon landowners within the territory of the agency or otherwise, utilization of best management practices related to stormwater management, including the development of detention and retention ponds and other methods of mitigating stormwater accumulation and runoff;
(y) To do and perform any acts and things authorized by this act under, through or by means of its officers, agents, and employees, or by contracts with any person or entity; and
(z) To do and perform any and all acts or things necessary, convenient, or desirable for the purposes of the agency, or to carry out any power expressly granted in this act.
SECTION 9. Creation of stormwater management plan. (1) Within twenty-four (24) months following the agency's creation, the board must complete a comprehensive stormwater management plan to be used in operating the agency and managing all stormwater within the agency's boundaries, other than stormwater managed by other public agencies. Prior to adopting the plan, the board shall hold a hearing on the contents of such plan, after providing notice to the public of such hearing. The plan must be revised, as appropriate, at least once every twenty-four (24) months. A copy of the plan must be provided to the governing authorities of each agency member promptly upon completion.
(2) The agency may, at the direction of its board, submit its stormwater management plan as required by state or federal environmental rules and regulations. The agency may also provide services and facilities for implementation of the stormwater management plan.
SECTION 10. Eminent domain. The board shall not possess eminent domain authority.
SECTION 11. Public agency powers. For the purpose of attaining the objectives of this act, any public agency may, upon any terms as it may determine, do any of the following:
(a) Lend, contribute, or donate money to the agency or perform services for the benefit of the agency;
(b) Donate, sell, convey, transfer, lease, or grant to the agency property of any kind, where otherwise not prohibited by law;
(c) Contract with the agency for the agency to acquire, construct, or provide facilities and projects for furnishing stormwater management and related services to the public agency or to users within the boundaries of the public agency. In such case, the public agency shall be obligated to make payments which shall be sufficient to enable the agency to meet its expenses, and payments into funds for operation, maintenance, and renewals and replacements. The contracts may also contain other terms and conditions as the agency and the public agency may determine. Any contract may be for a term covering the life of the facilities or for any other term or for an indefinite period. Contracts may provide for payments in the form of contributions to defray the cost of any purpose set forth in the contracts and as advances for any facilities subject to repayment by the agency. A public agency may make those contributions or advances from its general fund, general obligation bond proceeds, or surplus fund or from any monies legally available therefor. Entering into any contract under this section shall not constitute the incurring of a debt by a public agency within the meaning of any constitutional or statutory limitations on debts of the state or units of local government; and
(d) Do anything, whether or not specifically authorized in this section, not otherwise prohibited by law, that is necessary or convenient to aid and cooperate with the agency in attaining the objectives of this act.
SECTION 12. No preemption. This act shall not restrict the authority of any unit of local government to manage stormwater or drainage within the jurisdictional limits of such unit of local government.
SECTION 13. Construction contract requirements. The board shall make purchases and contracts in accordance with Title 31, Chapter 7, Mississippi Code of 1972, for all construction and improvements carried out by the board.
SECTION 14. Authority to issue bonds and borrow funds. To finance the operations of the agency, the agency and the board shall possess the same authority to issue bonds and borrow monies as provided in Sections 49-17-755 through 49-17-773, Mississippi Code of 1972, as existing on January 1, 2024.
SECTION 15. Annual audit. (1) Within sixty (60) days after the end of the fiscal year following the organization of the agency, and annually thereafter, the commissioners shall prepare and retain a copy of a sworn statement of the financial condition of the agency to cover the preceding fiscal year. The report shall contain, among other things: a statement of the cash on hand, together with all other assets of the agency; the total receipts of the preceding year; and the disbursement for administration, for construction, for maintenance, for bonds redeemed, and for interest due on outstanding bonds, together with all other indebtedness of the agency. The commissioners are further authorized and empowered to do any and all things incident to the management and affairs and business of the agency.
(2) The State Auditor of Public Accounts or his assistant may annually audit the books, financial reports, and expenditures of the agency in the same manner that such officer audits other boards and commissions, and the same powers and duties that such officer exercises or enjoys with respect to other boards and commissions shall be exercised and performed in the same manner in his audit of the agency.
(3) Within ninety (90) days after the close of each fiscal year, the board shall publish in a newspaper of general circulation in the territory of the agency a sworn statement showing the financial condition of the agency. The statement shall also be filed with the governing authorities of each member of the agency.
SECTION 16. Penalty for drain obstruction. Any person who shall obstruct or damage a drain, drainage work, ditch, facility, or other drainage infrastructure or improvements provided for by this act shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, on conviction thereof, be fined not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), and he or she shall also be liable to the agency for double the cost of removing such obstruction or repairing such damage.
SECTION 17. Right to pass over lands. The commissioners and their employees, agents, engineers, and contractors may go upon any and all lands lying within the territory of the agency for the purpose of examining the same and making plans, surveys, profiles, and estimates of the kind, character, and cost of the stormwater management system, and for making repairs and improvements to the stormwater management system, and may go upon such lands at any time for the purpose of removing obstructions, cleaning out, and keeping in repair the ditches and drains. Such entry onto private property must comply with the provision of this act.
SECTION 18. Acquiring existing district rights-of-way. The agency may acquire rights-of-way through existing drainage districts after obtaining consent of an existing drainage district and upon such terms as the existing district may impose, but when the works or improvements of an existing drainage district are so acquired, the agency shall furnish and provide equivalent relief or protection to that destroyed or impaired by such taking.
SECTION 19. Use of existing ditches. The agency may, with permission, use any ditches heretofore constructed in any part of the territory of the agency by any landowner. If any such ditches shall be of any value to the agency, the commissioners may allow the landowner reasonable compensation for the value thereof.
SECTION 20. Construction. This act shall be liberally construed to effectuate the purposes thereof.
SECTION 21. Full and complete authority. This act, without reference to any other statute, shall be deemed to be full and complete authority for the creation of the agency. No proceedings shall be required for the creation of the agency other than those provided for and required in this act. All the necessary powers to be exercised by the governing authorities of a unit of local government and by the board of the agency, in order to carry out this act, are hereby conferred.
SECTION 22. Authority to impose utility charge. (1) To fund the agency's operation and duties, the board shall annually impose a utility charge upon landowners of real property within the territory of the agency. Such utility charge shall be proportional to the amount at which such property contributes to stormwater accumulation and runoff within the territory of the agency as ascertainable on the first day of January of each year. The board, by rule or regulation, shall establish a reliable and equitable method to calculate the charge to be imposed on each parcel of real property within the territory of the agency.
(2) In ascertaining the boundaries of the lands that are subject to the utility charge, the board may use any of the following:
(a) The descriptions of lands and subdivisions thereof as shown on the official United States government surveys and plats of lands within the agency;
(b) The descriptions of lands and subdivisions thereof as shown upon any plat of lands within the agency and recorded upon the land records of the county;
(c) Any metes and bounds descriptions found in the latest filed conveyance of such lands and of record in the records of deeds of the county; or
(d) Any other reliable method of determining property boundaries, including parcel numbers assigned or used by the tax assessor or collector for ad valorem taxation.
(3) Real property owned by any of the following entities shall be exempt from the utility charge authorized by this section:
(a) The State of Mississippi, so long as such property is not under lease to a third party; and
(b) Any member of the agency as long as such property is not under lease by the member to a third party.
(4) The board shall also calculate all damages that will accrue to any landowner by reason of the agency's improvements, including all injury to lands damaged, and when the board returns no calculation of damages as to any tract of land, it shall be deemed a finding by the board that no damages will be sustained.
(5) The utility charge provided for in this section may be made even though evidences of indebtedness have been issued or validated or both prior thereto, but the lien of the holders of any such indebtedness shall not be impaired thereby.
(6) In the event that the Richland Creek Watershed Drainage District is joined in the agency as a member, the owners of real property within the territory of such drainage district shall not be liable to the drainage district for the tax imposed to fund such drainage district under Title 51, Chapter 29, Mississippi Code of 1972, for any year in which such property owners are charged the fee imposed by this act. In such event, such property owners shall be liable only to the agency for the fee imposed for stormwater management purposes.
(7) The board shall annually complete a list of all utility charges imposed on real property within the territory of the agency. Such list shall be in a format that is compatible with the software or other methods used by the county's tax collector to collect ad valorem taxes. Upon completing its list of utility charges, the board shall promptly, but not later than the first Monday of July of each year, file the list with the clerk of the board of supervisors.
(8) The board of supervisors shall give notice by publication for two (2) weeks by two (2) insertions in some newspaper published and having a general circulation in the territory of each member of the agency, stating that the landowners of lands upon which utility charges have been imposed for stormwater management purposes within the territory of the agency may appear before the board of supervisors on the date and time and place fixed by the board of supervisors, which date shall be on the first Monday of August, or the next business day thereafter, and present complaints against the utility charge imposed upon land in the territory of the agency. The notice provided under this subsection shall give description of the lands in as large tracts as the description will permit and shall state that utility charges have been imposed upon such lands for stormwater management purposes, and that any landowner of real property within the territory of the agency who is aggrieved by the charge imposed upon his or her real property shall file his or her written complaint or objection, in specific terms, with the board of supervisors prior to the time designated for the hearing.
(9) All persons who fail to file objections, except minors and persons non compos mentis, shall be assessed the charge and shall be precluded from questioning its validity after its final approval by the board of supervisors or by operation of law.
(10) The board of supervisors shall examine the list of charges imposed by the agency and, at the hearing required by this section, hear and determine all objections thereto, and shall sit from day to day until the same shall have been disposed of, and all proper corrections made, or may take objections under advisement as provided in this subsection. The board of supervisors may increase or diminish the charge imposed upon any property within the agency, so that the charge imposed upon property shall be proportional to the amount at which such property contributes to stormwater accumulation and runoff within the territory of the agency and consistent with the rules and regulations governing the operation of the agency, as promulgated by the board. Where an individual charge has been increased, immediate notice in writing shall be sent by the secretary of the board of supervisors by mail to the affected landowner. At such meeting, the board of supervisors shall have the power to change erroneous utility charges or to add omitted property, but any person affected by such action shall have notice as provided above. If the board of supervisors adjourns before considering any objections filed, such objections shall be heard at the next regular meeting of the board of supervisors. The board of supervisors may take an objection under advisement to allow the landowner or his designee or the board of supervisors to compile information relating to the objection.
(11) If from any cause the meeting of the board of supervisors at which objections to the imposition of the charge authorized by the act should be heard, be not held, then all such objections shall be continued and may be heard at the next meeting of the board of supervisors, either regular, adjourned, or special. If the board of supervisors fails to give the proper notice to the landowner of the meeting at which objections are to be heard, the board of supervisors shall immediately proceed to give such notice and shall fix the time when it will hear and determine all objections therein contained. If the board of supervisors fails to hold any meeting, or give any notice, or to perform any other duty in reference to the utility charges authorized by this act, at the time required by law, such duty shall be performed at a later date upon the giving of proper notice to persons affected.
(12) In hearing objections or complaints, the board of supervisors may require any landowner to bring books or records that will fully inform the board of supervisors as to the proper charge to be imposed against such landowner's property. Any landowner failing or refusing to comply with such demand shall be precluded from objecting to the charge imposed upon his or her property.
(13) All charges imposed for stormwater management purposes must be approved by an order of the board of supervisors entered on the minutes, but the failure to make and enter such order shall not vitiate the imposition of the charge if it shall appear that the charges were imposed according to law.
(14) The list of charges so prepared and filed with the clerk of the board of supervisors shall stand as the final charges imposed upon the lands within the territory of the agency, and no new charges shall be required unless, in the opinion of the commissioners, it becomes necessary to raise the charges upon such lands because of additional contribution to stormwater accumulation caused by the lands other than those captured by the initial annual charge or because it becomes absolutely necessary in order to raise funds to preserve and maintain the improvements of the agency.
(15) When establishing the utility charge to be imposed on real property within the territory of the agency, the commissioners shall establish a rate for lands used for agricultural purposes, which shall be commensurate with such land's general tendency to aid in managing stormwater accumulation and runoff, and such rate shall be less than the rate applicable to lands used for nonagricultural purposes.
SECTION 23. Levy of utility charge by supervisors. (1) It shall be the duty of the board of supervisors to annually levy the utility charges authorized under this act, at the same time when the county tax levy is made or at any succeeding regular meeting.
(2) After the levy of charges to be paid shall have been made and become final, and for the purpose of facilitating the collection of the charges so levied, it shall be the duty of the board of supervisors to provide a copy or copies of the list of charges submitted by the agency to the tax collector. In such list, the agency shall inscribe: the names of the landowners; the description of the tracts of land upon which such charges have been imposed, including the parcel number assigned by the tax assessor or collector for ad valorem taxation; the total charge against each tract; and the amount of the levy for the current year, plus any increases or deductions made by the board of supervisors, which shall be the amount of charges to be collected for that year by the tax collector. Such list or lists shall constitute the authority and be the guide for the collection of the charges by the collector.
SECTION 24. Appeal from levy of utility charge. Any person aggrieved by the utility charge levied by the board of supervisors under this act shall appeal in the manner provided for appeals of assessments of ad valorem taxes under Sections 11-51-77 and 27-35-119, Mississippi Code of 1972.
SECTION 25. Enforcement of payment of utility charge. (1) Any person or entity that neglects or refuses to pay the utility charge levied by the board of supervisors under this act on the due date thereof shall be liable for interest at the rate of one-half percent (0.5%) per month, or fractional part thereof, from the delinquent date to the date payment is made. When the due date for any payment shall fall on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the payment shall be received by the tax collector on the first working day after such day or days without any interest being owed.
(2) The agency may impose a lien on all real property where the payment of the utility charge on such property is more than ninety (90) days delinquent. The agency shall cause notice of such lien to be filed in the land records maintained by the chancery clerk.
(3) The agency may initiate a civil cause of action against a delinquent landowner in a court of competent jurisdiction in order to enforce payment of the charge authorized under this act. The agency shall be entitled to all reasonable costs incurred to collect the delinquent charge, including attorneys' fees and costs of court.
SECTION 26. Payment to county for levying utility charges. The agency shall compensate the offices of the county tax assessor, tax collector, and chancery clerk for duties performed under this act by such offices, with such compensation to be paid to the county. The manner of such compensation shall be negotiated between the board and the offices of the tax assessor, tax collector, and chancery clerk by contract or other mutually agreeable method.
SECTION 27. Establishment of districts authorized. (1) The agency may divide the territory within the agency into one or more districts, as determined by the agency's board.
(2) The board, in its discretion and for a period not to exceed the first three (3) years of the agency's existence, may choose not to exercise the agency's authority within all of the territory of the agency and may, instead, identify one or more districts in which the board wishes to exercise its authority. Such determination shall be spread on the board's minutes, which shall include a description of the territory situated within each such district.
(3) The agency may impose the utility charge authorized by the act only on real property in districts in which the agency chooses to operate, and in no event may an agency impose the charge on properties within a district in which the agency's board has opted temporarily not to exercise its authority.
(4) The agency may, at any time, begin exercising its authority in additional districts or within the entire territory of the agency. Such determination shall be spread on the board's minutes, which shall include a description of the territory in which the board will exercise its authority.
SECTION 28. Dissolution. The agency may be dissolved by its members whenever the agency does not have any outstanding indebtedness, bonded or otherwise. To enable dissolution, the agency may sell all easements, rights of way, drains, canals, ditches, or other property for an amount equal to its fair cash market value which will be sufficient to enable it to pay off and discharge all of its outstanding indebtedness, bonded or otherwise. The agency's members may dissolve the agency as set forth in this section:
(a) To initiate dissolution of the agency, the governing authorities of each member of the agency shall approve a resolution finding that it is in the best interests of the landowners of the agency that the agency be dissolved. The agency board shall file a copy of its resolution, along with the resolution or ordinance of each agency member, with the clerk of the board of supervisors and, as the case may be, the municipal clerk of each agency member, along with the Secretary of State.
(b) The governing authorities of each member of the agency shall hold a public meeting or public hearing on the necessity for dissolution of the agency. A certified copy of the adopted resolution or ordinance shall be published in a newspaper having a general circulation within the participating unit of local government once a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks before the date specified in the resolution or ordinance as the date upon which the participating units of local government intend to dissolve the agency. The publication shall command all persons interested in the affairs of the agency to appear at the time, date, and place set for the hearing of said petition to show cause, if any they can, why the agency should not be dissolved. If, after the hearing, the governing authorities of the participating unit of local government determine that it is in the best interest of the landowners of real property within the territory of the agency to dissolve the agency, such governing authorities may, by resolution, find that the agency should be dissolved. After the governing authorities of each member of the agency approve such a resolution, the agency shall have one hundred twenty (120) days to conclude its affairs.
(c) If the agency shall have funds on hand after all of its debts and expenses have been paid, the surplus shall, prior to dissolution, be refunded among the landowners of real property within the territory of the agency on such equitable and just basis and terms as the board shall find to be proper.
(d) After the one hundred twenty (120) days authorized by this section for the agency to conclude its affairs, the governing authorities of the members shall file a notice of dissolution with the Secretary of State, the chancery clerk, and the clerk of participating municipalities, as the case may be, and thereafter, the agency shall have no further existence, and no further utility charges shall be levied against any of the lands embraced within the limits of the agency. All of the unpaid benefits and utility charges levied against the lands in the agency for stormwater management purposes shall stand canceled, and the lien therefor shall be unenforceable.
SECTION 29. Severability. If any part of this act is declared invalid, unenforceable, or unconstitutional by a court of competent jurisdiction, that part shall be severable from the remaining portions of this act, and the remaining portions shall continue in full force and effect as if the invalid, unenforceable, or unconstitutional portion were omitted.
SECTION 30. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2024.