County website; allow counties without local newspapers to publish certain notices on.

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To: Accountability,
Efficiency, Transparency
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Rhodes

SENATE BILL NO. 2251

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTIONS 17-3-3, 17-5-1, 17-11-37, 17-11-45, 1
17-17-107, 17-17-109, 17-17-227, 17-17-237, 17-17-309, 17-17-311, 2
17-17-329, 17-17-337, 17-17-348, 17-18-17, 17-21-53, 19-3-1, 3
19-3-11, 19-3-19, 19-3-33, 19-3-35,19-3-67, 19-3-79, 19-5-9, 4
19-5-21, 19-5-23, 19-5-81, 19-5-92.1, 19-5-155, 19-5-157, 5
19-5-189, 19-5-199, 19-5-207, 19-5-219, 19-5-221, 19-7-3, 19-7-21, 6
19-9-11, 19-9-13, 19-9-27, 19-9-111, 19-9-114, 19-11-7, 19-13-53, 7
19-15-3, 19-23-5, 19-27-31, 19-29-7, 19-29-9, 19-29-18, 19-29-33, 8
19-31-7, 19-31-9, 19-31-23 AND 19-31-39, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 9
TO MODERNIZE AND SIMPLIFY THE NOTICE PUBLICATION PROCESS FOR 10
COUNTIES BY ALLOWING ONLINE PUBLICATION AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO 11
NEWSPAPER PUBLICATION IN COUNTIES WHERE THERE IS NO NEWSPAPER 12
PUBLISHED OR LOCATED WITHIN THE COUNTY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 13
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 14
SECTION 1. Section 17-3-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 15
amended as follows: 16
17-3-3. Advertising pursuant to Section 17-3-1 shall include 17
newspaper and magazine advertising and literature, publicity, 18
expositions, public entertainment or other form of advertising or 19
publicity, including advertising on an official county website, 20
which in the judgment of such board or boards will be helpful 21
toward advancing the moral, financial and other interests of such 22
municipality or county; however, such advertising shall not 23
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include advertisements in publications sponsored by political 24
parties, political committees or affiliated organizations, as such 25
terms are defined in Section 23-15-801. 26
SECTION 2. Section 17-5-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 27
amended as follows: 28
17-5-1. (1) The board of supervisors of any county of the 29
state and the governing authorities of any municipality within 30
such county may enter into a contract for the joint construction, 31
expansion, remodeling and/or maintenance and equipping of a jail 32
in such municipality, or within one (1) mile of the corporate 33
limits thereof, and may issue bonds of both the county and such 34
municipality in the manner provided by general statutes for the 35
issuance of county and municipal bonds for such purposes, provided 36
that in no event shall the municipality bear over fifty percent 37
(50%) of the cost of constructing, expanding, remodeling and/or 38
maintaining and equipping such jail. Such contract or future 39
contracts may provide for the continued joint use of equipping, 40
repairing, reconstructing and remodeling of such jail. Before 41
issuing any bonds for the purposes herein set forth, the board of 42
supervisors and the governing authorities of such municipality 43
shall adopt a joint resolution declaring their intention to issue 44
the same, which resolution shall state the amount and purposes of 45
the bonds to be issued, and shall fix the date upon which action 46
will be taken to provide for the issuance of such bonds. Said 47
resolution shall be published once a week for at least three (3) 48
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consecutive weeks in a newspaper published in the county, the 49
first publication of such notice to be made not less than 50
twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such resolution 51
and the last publication to be made not more than seven (7) days 52
prior to such date. In any county where there is no newspaper 53
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 54
shall be authorized to publish such resolution on the official 55
county website for the duration of twenty-one (21) days 56
immediately preceding the date fixed in such resolution. The 57
board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 58
that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 59
public. If twenty percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), 60
whichever is less, of the qualified electors of the county and 61
municipality, respectively, shall file a written protest against 62
the issuance of such bonds on or before the date specified in such 63
resolution, then an election upon the issuance of such bonds shall 64
be called and held, and in such case such bonds or other evidences 65
of indebtedness shall not be issued unless same are authorized by 66
the affirmative vote of a majority of the qualified electors of 67
said county and municipality, respectively, who vote on the 68
proposition at such election. Notice of such election shall be 69
given by publication in like manner as is provided for the 70
publication of the initial resolution, and said election shall be 71
called, held and conducted and the returns thereof made, canvassed 72
and declared in the same manner as provided by Section 19-9-1 et 73
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seq., and Section 21-33-301 et seq., respectively. If no such 74
petition be filed protesting against the issuance of said bonds, 75
then the said board of supervisors and the governing authorities 76
of the municipality shall have the authority to issue said bonds 77
without an election. 78
(2) If the board of supervisors of a county and the 79
governing authorities of a municipality enter into an agreement 80
under the Regional Economic Development Act or an 81
intergovernmental agreement approved by the Attorney General for 82
the operation of a county jail, such county jail may be located 83
outside the corporate limits of the municipality and is not 84
subject to location restrictions in subsection (1). 85
SECTION 3. Section 17-11-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 86
amended as follows: 87
17-11-37. The governing body of the district, county or city 88
shall adopt a resolution declaring its intention to issue bonds 89
for the purposes authorized by this chapter, stating the amount of 90
the bonds proposed to be issued, whether such bonds are revenue 91
bonds or general obligation bonds, and the date upon which further 92
action will be taken by the governing body looking forward to the 93
issuance of such bonds. Such resolution shall be published once a 94
week for at least three (3) successive weeks in a newspaper 95
published and of general circulation within such county or city. 96
The first of such publications shall be made at least twenty one 97
(21) days prior to the date set forth in said resolution as the 98
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date upon which further action will be taken by the governing 99
body, and the last publication shall be made not more than seven 100
(7) days prior to said date. In any county where there is no 101
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 102
supervisors shall be authorized to publish all such resolutions on 103
the official county website for the duration of at least 104
twenty-one (21) days immediately preceding the date set forth in 105
said resolution as the date upon which further action will be 106
taken by the governing body of the county. The board of 107
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that online 108
content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. If, 109
prior to the date set forth as aforesaid, there shall be filed 110
with the clerk of such governing body a petition in writing signed 111
by ten percent (10%) of the qualified electors of such regional 112
area, county or city thereof, or fifteen hundred (1500) qualified 113
electors, whichever shall be the lesser number, requesting an 114
election on the question of the issuance of such bonds, then such 115
bonds shall not be issued unless authorized by a majority of the 116
qualified electors in such regional area, county or city voting 117
thereon at an election to be ordered by the governing body for 118
that purpose. Notice of such election shall be given and such 119
election shall be held and conducted in like manner as provided by 120
law with respect to elections held on the submission of county or 121
city bond issues. If the proposition so submitted shall fail to 122
receive approval at such election, then no further proceedings for 123
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the issuance of such bonds shall be taken for a period of six (6) 124
months from and after the date of such election. If, however, no 125
such petition shall be filed, or if such election or subsequent 126
election on such proposition shall be assented to by a majority of 127
the qualified electors voting thereon, then such governing body 128
shall be authorized to proceed with the issuance of such bonds 129
without further election. 130
SECTION 4. Section 17-11-45, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 131
amended as follows: 132
17-11-45. The governing body or bodies issuing bonds under 133
this chapter shall sell such bonds in such manner and for such 134
price as it or they may determine to be for the best interest of 135
said governing body or bodies. No such sale shall be made at a 136
price less than par plus accrued interest to date of delivery of 137
the bonds of the purchaser. Notice of the sale of any such bonds 138
shall be published at least one (1) time not less than ten (10) 139
days prior to the date of sale, and shall be published in a 140
newspaper published in and having general circulation within such 141
regional area, county or city. In any county where there is no 142
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 143
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on the 144
official county website for the duration of at least ten (10) days 145
prior to the sale of such bonds. The board of supervisors shall 146
take appropriate measures to ensure that online content is secure, 147
verifiable and accessible to the public. 148
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SECTION 5. Section 17-17-107, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 149
amended as follows: 150
17-17-107. Before issuing any revenue bonds hereunder, the 151
governing body of any municipality shall adopt a resolution 152
declaring its intention to so issue, stating the amount of bonds 153
proposed to be issued, the purpose for which the bonds are to be 154
issued, and the date upon which the governing body proposes to 155
direct the issuance of such bonds. Such resolution shall be 156
published once a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in 157
at least one (1) newspaper published in the county in which such 158
municipality is located. The first publication of such resolution 159
shall be made not less than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date 160
fixed in such resolution for the issuance of the bonds and the 161
last publication shall be made not more than seven (7) days prior 162
to such date. * * * In any county where there is no newspaper 163
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 164
shall be authorized to post such resolution on the official county 165
website for not less than twenty-one (21) days immediately 166
preceding the date fixed in such resolution for the issuance of 167
the bonds. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 168
measures to ensure that online content is secure, verifiable and 169
accessible to the public. If twenty percent (20%) or fifteen 170
hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the qualified electors of 171
the municipality shall file a written protest against the issuance 172
of such bonds on or before the date specified in such resolution, 173
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then an election on the question of the issuance of such bonds 174
shall be called and held as herein provided. If no such protest 175
be filed, then such bonds may be issued without an election at any 176
time within a period of two (2) years after the date specified in 177
the above-mentioned resolution. However, the governing body of 178
such municipality, in its discretion, may nevertheless call an 179
election on the question of the issuance of the bonds, in which 180
event it shall not be necessary to publish the resolution 181
declaring its intention to issue bonds as herein provided. 182
SECTION 6. Section 17-17-109, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 183
amended as follows: 184
17-17-109. Where an election is to be called as provided in 185
Section 17-17-107, notice of such election shall be signed by the 186
clerk of the governing body of any municipality and shall be 187
published once a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks, in 188
at least one (1) newspaper published in such county. The first 189
publication of such notice shall be made not less than twenty-one 190
(21) days prior to the date fixed for such election and the last 191
publication shall be made not more than seven (7) days prior to 192
such date. * * * In any county where there is no newspaper 193
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 194
shall be authorized to publish notice of such election on the 195
official county website for the duration of not less than 196
twenty-one (21) days immediately preceding the date fixed for such 197
election. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 198
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measures to ensure that online content is secure, verifiable and 199
accessible to the public. 200
SECTION 7. Section 17-17-227, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 201
amended as follows: 202
17-17-227. (1) Each county, in cooperation with 203
municipalities within the county, shall prepare, adopt and submit 204
to the commission for review and approval a local nonhazardous 205
solid waste management plan for the county. Each local 206
nonhazardous solid waste management plan shall include, at a 207
minimum, the following: 208
(a) An inventory of the sources, composition and 209
quantities by weight or volume of municipal solid waste annually 210
generated within the county, and the source, composition and 211
quantity by weight or volume of municipal solid waste currently 212
transported into the county for management; 213
(b) An inventory of all existing facilities where 214
municipal solid waste is currently being managed, including the 215
environmental suitability and operational history of each 216
facility, and the remaining available permitted capacity for each 217
facility; 218
(c) An inventory of existing solid waste collection 219
systems and transfer stations within the county. The inventory 220
shall identify the entities engaging in municipal solid waste 221
collection within the county; 222
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(d) A strategy for achieving a twenty-five percent 223
(25%) waste reduction goal through source reduction, recycling or 224
other waste reduction technologies; 225
(e) A projection, using acceptable averaging methods, 226
of municipal solid waste generated within the boundaries of the 227
county over the next twenty (20) years; 228
(f) An identification of the additional municipal solid 229
waste management facilities, including an evaluation of 230
alternative management technologies, and the amount of additional 231
capacity needed to manage the quantities projected in paragraph 232
(e); 233
(g) An estimation of development, construction, 234
operational, closure and post-closure costs, including a proposed 235
method for financing those costs; 236
(h) A plan for meeting any projected capacity 237
shortfall, including a schedule and methodology for attaining the 238
required capacity; 239
(i) A determination of need by the county, 240
municipality, authority or district that is submitting the plan, 241
for any new or expanded facilities. A determination of need shall 242
include, at a minimum, the following: 243
(i) Verification that the proposed facility meets 244
needs identified in the approved local nonhazardous solid waste 245
management plan which shall take into account the quantities of 246
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municipal solid waste generated and the design capacities of 247
existing facilities; 248
(ii) Certification that the proposed facility 249
complies with local land use and zoning requirements, if any; 250
(iii) Demonstration, to the extent possible, that 251
operation of the proposed facility will not negatively impact the 252
waste reduction strategy of the county, municipality, authority or 253
district that is submitting the plan; 254
(iv) Certification that the proposed service area 255
of the proposed facility is consistent with the local nonhazardous 256
solid waste management plan; and 257
(v) A description of the extent to which the 258
proposed facility is needed to replace other facilities; and 259
(j) Any other information the commission may require. 260
(2) Each local nonhazardous solid waste management plan may 261
include: 262
(a) The preferred site or alternative sites for the 263
construction of any additional municipal solid waste management 264
facilities needed to properly manage the quantities of municipal 265
solid waste projected for the service areas covered by the plan, 266
including the factors which provided the basis for identifying the 267
preferred or alternative sites; and 268
(b) The method of implementation of the plan with 269
regard to the person who will apply for and acquire the permit for 270
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any planned additional facilities and the person who will own or 271
operate any of the facilities. 272
(3) Each municipality shall cooperate with the county in 273
planning for the management of municipal solid waste generated 274
within its boundaries or the area served by that municipality. 275
The governing authority of any municipality which does not desire 276
to be included in the local nonhazardous solid waste management 277
plan shall adopt a resolution stating its intent not to be 278
included in the county plan. The resolution shall be provided to 279
the board of supervisors and the commission. Any municipality 280
resolving not to be included in a county waste plan shall prepare 281
a local nonhazardous solid waste management plan in accordance 282
with this section. 283
(4) The board of supervisors of any county may enter into 284
interlocal agreements with one or more counties as provided by law 285
to form a regional solid waste management authority or other 286
district to provide for the management of municipal solid waste 287
for all participating counties. For purposes of Section 17-17-221 288
through Section 17-17-227, a local nonhazardous solid waste 289
management plan prepared, adopted, submitted and implemented by 290
the regional solid waste management authority or other district is 291
sufficient to satisfy the planning requirements for the counties 292
and municipalities within the boundaries of the authority or 293
district. 294
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(5) (a) Upon completion of its local nonhazardous solid 295
waste management plan, the board of supervisors of the county 296
shall publish in at least one (1) newspaper * * * having general 297
circulation within the county a public notice that describes the 298
plan, specifies the location where it is available for review, and 299
establishes a period of thirty (30) days for comments concerning 300
the plan and a mechanism for submitting those comments. In any 301
county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 302
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 303
such public notice on the official county website, taking care to 304
ensure that the content is secure, verifiable and accessible to 305
the public. The board of supervisors shall also notify the board 306
of supervisors of adjacent counties of the plan and shall make it 307
available for review by the board of supervisors of each adjacent 308
county. During the comment period, the board of supervisors of 309
the county shall conduct at least one (1) public hearing 310
concerning the plan. The board of supervisors of the county shall 311
publish twice in at least one (1) newspaper * * * having general 312
circulation within the county, a notice conspicuously displayed 313
containing the time and place of the hearing and the location 314
where the plan is available for review. In any county where there 315
is no newspaper published or located within the county, the board 316
of supervisors shall be authorized to publish notice of such 317
hearing for the duration of two (2) weeks prior to the hearing. 318
The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 319
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that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 320
public. 321
(b) After the public hearing, the board of supervisors 322
of the county may modify the plan based upon the public's 323
comments. Within ninety (90) days after the public hearing, each 324
board of supervisors shall approve a local nonhazardous solid 325
waste management plan by resolution. 326
(c) A regional solid waste management authority or 327
other district shall declare the plan to be approved as the 328
authority's or district's solid waste management plan upon written 329
notification, including a copy of the resolution, that the board 330
of supervisors of each county forming the authority or district 331
has approved the plan. 332
(6) Upon ratification of the plan, the governing body of the 333
county, authority or district shall submit it to the commission 334
for review and approval in accordance with Section 17-17-225. The 335
commission shall, by order, approve or disapprove the plan within 336
one hundred eighty (180) days after its submission. The 337
commission shall include with an order disapproving a plan a 338
statement outlining the deficiencies in the plan and directing the 339
governing body of the county, authority or district to submit, 340
within one hundred twenty (120) days after issuance of the order, 341
a revised plan that remedies those deficiencies. If the governing 342
body of the county, authority or district, by resolution, requests 343
an extension of the time for submission of a revised plan, the 344
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commission may, for good cause shown, grant one (1) extension for 345
a period of not more than sixty (60) additional days. 346
(7) After approval of the plan or revised plan by the 347
commission, the governing body of the county, authority or 348
district shall implement the plan in compliance with the 349
implementation schedule contained in the approved plan. 350
(8) The governing body of the county, authority or district 351
shall annually review implementation of the approved plan. The 352
commission may require the governing body of each local government 353
or authority to revise the local nonhazardous solid waste 354
management plan as necessary, but not more than once every five 355
(5) years. 356
(9) If the commission finds that the governing body of a 357
county, authority or district has failed to submit a local 358
nonhazardous solid waste management plan, obtain approval of its 359
local nonhazardous solid waste management plan or materially fails 360
to implement its local nonhazardous solid waste management plan, 361
the commission shall issue an order in accordance with Section 362
17-17-29, to the governing body of the county, authority or 363
district. 364
(10) The commission may, by regulation, adopt an alternative 365
procedure to the procedure described in this section for the 366
preparation, adoption, submission, review and approval of minor 367
modifications of an approved local nonhazardous solid waste 368
management plan. For purposes of this section, minor 369
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modifications may include administrative changes or the addition 370
of any noncommercial nonhazardous solid waste management facility. 371
(11) The executive director of the department shall maintain 372
a copy of all local nonhazardous solid waste management plans that 373
the commission has approved and any orders issued by the 374
commission. 375
(12) If a public notice required in subsection (5) was 376
published in a newspaper as defined in Section 13-3-31, having 377
general circulation within the county but was not published in a 378
daily newspaper of general circulation as required by subsection 379
(5) before April 20, 1993, the commission shall not disapprove the 380
plan for failure to publish the notice in a daily newspaper. Any 381
plan disapproved for that reason by the commission shall be deemed 382
approved after remedying any other deficiencies in the plan. 383
(13) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, no solid 384
waste management plan shall include a proposed new municipal solid 385
waste landfill in any county that has two (2) or more existing 386
permitted municipal solid waste landfills and such new landfill 387
will be located within a five (5) mile radius of an existing 388
municipal solid waste landfill, unless a referendum election has 389
been conducted and approved pursuant to Section 17-17-237. This 390
subsection (13) shall not apply to the proposed expansion or 391
replacement of any permitted landfill by the permit holder, and 392
shall not apply to any rubbish disposal facilities, transfer 393
stations, land application sites, composting facilities, solid 394
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waste processing facilities, chipping/mulching facilities, 395
industrial/institutional/special waste landfills, 396
industrial/institutional/special waste rubbish sites, waste tire 397
processing facilities, commercial waste tire collection sites, 398
local government waste tire collection sites or generator waste 399
tire collection sites, and none of those facilities, stations, 400
landfills or sites shall be counted as a landfill within a county 401
for the purpose of determining whether a referendum election is 402
required to be conducted in the county as provided in this 403
section. 404
SECTION 8. Section 17-17-237, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 405
amended as follows: 406
17-17-237. (1) No new municipal solid waste landfill shall 407
be incorporated into any solid waste management plan and no 408
reference in any existing plan to any unpermitted new municipal 409
solid waste landfill shall be effective, applicable or operative 410
and no permit, grant or loan shall be approved for any new 411
municipal solid waste landfill in any county that has two (2) or 412
more existing permitted municipal solid waste landfills and such 413
new landfill will be located within a five-mile radius of an 414
existing municipal solid waste landfill, unless a local referendum 415
election has been called and held in the county in which the new 416
municipal solid waste landfill is proposed and with the results 417
hereinafter provided. The board of supervisors may require the 418
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proponent of or applicant for the new municipal solid waste 419
landfill to pay the costs of the election. 420
(2) Upon presentation and filing of a proper petition 421
requesting same signed by at least twenty percent (20%) or fifteen 422
hundred (1500), whichever number is the lesser, of the qualified 423
electors of the county, it shall be the duty of the board of 424
supervisors to call an election at which there shall be submitted 425
to the qualified electors of the county the question of whether or 426
not the new municipal solid waste landfill proposed to be sited 427
within the county shall be eligible for consideration by the board 428
of supervisors for inclusion in the solid waste management plan of 429
the county. Such election shall be held and conducted by the 430
county election commissioners on a date fixed by the order of the 431
board of supervisors, which date shall not be more than sixty (60) 432
days from the date of the filing of said petition. Notice thereof 433
shall be given by publishing such notice once each week for at 434
least three (3) consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in 435
said county * * *. In any county where there is no newspaper 436
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 437
shall be authorized to publish such notice on the official county 438
website for the duration of at least three (3) consecutive weeks. 439
The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 440
that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 441
public. The election shall be held not earlier than fifteen (15) 442
days from the first publication of such notice. 443
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(3) The election shall be held and conducted as far as may 444
be possible in the same manner as is provided by law for the 445
holding of general elections. The ballots used thereat shall 446
contain a brief statement of the proposition submitted and, on 447
separate lines, the words "I vote FOR new municipal solid waste 448
landfill in ___________ County ( )", "I vote AGAINST new municipal 449
solid waste landfill in ________ County ( )" with appropriate 450
boxes in which the voters may express their choice. All qualified 451
electors may vote by marking the ballot with a cross (x) or check 452
mark (x) opposite the words of their choice. 453
(4) The election commissioners shall canvass and determine 454
the results of the election, and shall certify same to the board 455
of supervisors which shall adopt and spread upon its minutes an 456
order declaring such results. If, in such election, sixty percent 457
(60%) of the qualified electors participating therein shall vote 458
in favor of the proposition, inclusion of the proposed new 459
municipal solid waste landfill in a solid waste management plan 460
and permitting of such landfill may be approved provided that all 461
other requirements of law are satisfied as to the landfill. If, 462
on the other hand, sixty percent (60%) of the qualified electors 463
participating therein shall not vote in favor of the proposition, 464
the new landfill may not be included in any solid waste management 465
plan and shall not be permitted. In either case, no further 466
election shall be held in a county under the provisions of this 467
section for a period of two (2) years from the date of the prior 468
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election and then only upon the filing of a petition requesting 469
same signed by at least twenty percent (20%) or fifteen hundred 470
(1500), whichever number is the lesser, of the qualified electors 471
of the county as is otherwise provided herein. 472
SECTION 9. Section 17-17-309, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 473
amended as follows: 474
17-17-309. (1) Within forty (40) days following the 475
adoption of the final authorizing resolution, the designated 476
representatives shall proceed to incorporate an authority by 477
filing for record in the office of the chancery clerk of the 478
participating counties and the Secretary of State an incorporation 479
agreement approved by each member. The agreement shall comply in 480
form and substance with the requirements of this section and shall 481
be executed in the manner provided in Sections 17-17-301 through 482
17-17-349. 483
(2) The incorporation agreement of an authority shall state: 484
(a) The name of each participating unit of local 485
government and the date on which the governing bodies thereof 486
adopted an authorizing resolution; 487
(b) The name of the authority which must include the 488
words "_________ Solid Waste Management Authority," or "The Solid 489
Waste Management Authority of ____________," the blank spaces to 490
be filled in with the name of one or more of the members or other 491
geographically descriptive term. If the Secretary of State 492
determines that the name is identical to the name of any other 493
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corporation organized under the laws of the state or so nearly 494
similar as to lead to confusion and uncertainty, the incorporators 495
may insert additional identifying words so as to eliminate any 496
duplication or similarity; 497
(c) The period for the duration of the authority; 498
(d) The location of the principal office of the 499
authority which shall be within the boundaries of the members; 500
(e) That the authority is organized pursuant to 501
Sections 17-17-301 through 17-17-349; 502
(f) The board setting forth the number of 503
commissioners, terms of office and the vote of each commissioner; 504
(g) If the exercise by the authority of any of its 505
powers is to be in any way prohibited, limited or conditioned, a 506
statement of the terms of such prohibition, limitation or 507
condition; 508
(h) Any provisions relating to the vesting of title to 509
its properties upon its dissolution which shall be vested in any 510
member; and 511
(i) Any other related matters relating to the authority 512
that the incorporators may choose to insert and that are not 513
inconsistent with Sections 17-17-301 through 17-17-349 or with the 514
laws of the state. 515
(3) The incorporation agreement shall be signed and 516
acknowledged by the incorporators before an officer authorized by 517
the laws of the state to take acknowledgements. When the 518
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incorporation agreement is filed for record, there shall be 519
attached to it a certified copy of the authorizing resolution 520
adopted by the governing body of each member. 521
(4) The incorporators shall publish a notice of 522
incorporation once a week for two (2) successive weeks in a daily 523
newspaper or newspapers having general circulation throughout the 524
region to be served. In any county where there is no newspaper 525
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 526
shall be authorized to publish such notice of incorporation on the 527
official county website for the duration of two (2) weeks. The 528
board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 529
that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 530
public. 531
(5) Upon the filing for record of the agreement and the 532
required documents, the authority shall come into existence and 533
shall constitute a public corporation under the name set forth in 534
the incorporation agreement. The Secretary of State shall 535
thereupon issue a certificate of incorporation to the authority. 536
SECTION 10. Section 17-17-311, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 537
amended as follows: 538
17-17-311. (1) The incorporation agreement of any authority 539
may be amended in the manner provided in this section. The board 540
of the authority shall first adopt a resolution proposing an 541
amendment to the incorporation agreement. The amendment shall be 542
set forth in full in the resolution and may include any matters 543
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which might have been included in the original incorporation 544
agreement. 545
(2) After the adoption of the resolution by the board, the 546
chairman of the board and the secretary of the authority shall 547
file a certified copy of the resolution and a signed written 548
application in the name of and on behalf of the authority, under 549
its seal, with the governing body of each member, requesting the 550
governing body to adopt a resolution approving the proposed 551
amendment. As promptly as may be practicable after the filing of 552
the application with the governing body, that governing body shall 553
review the application and shall adopt a resolution either denying 554
the application or authorizing the proposed amendment. Any such 555
resolution shall be published in a newspaper or newspapers as 556
provided in subsection (4) of Section 17-17-309. In any county 557
where there is no newspaper published or located within the 558
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 559
such resolution on the official county website. The board of 560
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that online 561
content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. The 562
governing body shall cause a copy of the application and all 563
accompanying documents to be spread upon or otherwise made a part 564
of the minutes of the meeting of the governing body at which final 565
action upon the application is taken. The incorporation agreement 566
may be amended only after the adoption of a resolution by 567
two-thirds (2/3) of the governing bodies of the members. 568
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Publication of such amendment shall be made as provided in 569
subsection (4) of Section 17-17-309. 570
(3) Within forty (40) days following the adoption of the 571
last adopted resolution approving the proposed amendment, the 572
chairman of the board and the secretary of the authority shall 573
sign, and file for record in the office of the chancery clerk with 574
which the incorporation agreement of the authority was originally 575
filed and the Secretary of State, a certificate in the name of and 576
in behalf of the authority, under its seal, reciting the adoption 577
of the respective resolutions by the board and by the governing 578
body of each member and setting forth the amendment. The chancery 579
clerk for such county shall record the certificate in an 580
appropriate book in his office. When such certificate has been so 581
filed and recorded, the amendment shall become effective. No 582
incorporation agreement of an authority shall be amended except in 583
the manner provided in this section. 584
(4) Any member of a regional solid waste management 585
authority may withdraw from the authority by submitting a 586
resolution to the board requesting an amendment to the 587
incorporation agreement pursuant to subsection (1) of this 588
section. Upon compliance with the requirements of subsections (1) 589
through (3) of this section and the payment of its pro rata share 590
of any indebtedness, costs, expenses or obligations of the 591
authority outstanding at the time of withdrawal, the amendment may 592
become effective upon adoption of the resolution by the board. 593
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The withdrawal of a member shall not operate to impair, 594
invalidate, release or abrogate any contract, lien, bond, permit, 595
indebtedness or obligation of the authority, except to relieve the 596
withdrawing member from further financial obligation to the 597
authority. 598
(5) After the issuance of a permit by the permit board for 599
the construction and operation of a solid waste landfill, any 600
withdrawal of the situs county from the authority shall not affect 601
the ability of the authority to operate a solid waste landfill 602
upon the site for which the permit has been issued. 603
SECTION 11. Section 17-17-329, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 604
amended as follows: 605
17-17-329. (1) The board of supervisors of a county and the 606
governing authorities of a municipality, acting jointly or 607
severally, shall have the power and is hereby authorized, from 608
time to time, to issue general obligation bonds of the county or 609
municipality for the purpose of providing sufficient funds for 610
capital expenditures, including the financing of the acquisition, 611
construction, improvement or the closure, corrective action or 612
postclosure maintenance of solid waste management facilities 613
pursuant to the provisions of Sections 19-9-1 through 19-9-25, or 614
21-33-301 through 21-33-329. General obligation bonds issued 615
pursuant to this section shall be included in the limitation of 616
indebtedness as set forth in Sections 19-9-5 and 21-33-303. 617
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(2) (a) In addition to compliance with the provisions of 618
Sections 19-9-1 through 19-9-25, Sections 21-33-301 through 619
21-33-329, for the issuance of general obligations of the county 620
or municipality, the county or municipality shall advertise its 621
intention to issue general obligation bonds of the county or 622
municipality and specify the proposed increased tax rate of the 623
county or municipality in a newspaper of general circulation in 624
the county or municipality. The advertisement shall be no less 625
than one-fourth (1/4) page in size and the type used shall be no 626
smaller than eighteen (18) point and surrounded by a one-fourth 627
(1/4) inch solid black border. The advertisement may not be 628
placed in that portion of the newspaper where legal notices and 629
classified advertisements appear. It is legislative intent that, 630
whenever possible, the advertisement appear in a newspaper that is 631
published at least five (5) days a week, unless the only newspaper 632
in the county or municipality is published less than five (5) days 633
a week. It is further the intent of the Legislature that the 634
newspaper selected be one of general interest and readership in 635
the community, and not one of limited subject matter. The 636
advertisement shall be run once each week for the two (2) weeks 637
preceding the date specified in the resolution by the board of 638
supervisors or the governing authorities of the municipality. In 639
any county where there is no newspaper published or located within 640
the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 641
publish such advertisement on the official county website for the 642
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duration of the two (2) weeks immediately preceding the date 643
specified in the resolution by the board of supervisors. The 644
board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 645
that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 646
public. The advertisement shall state that the county or 647
municipality proposes to issue general obligation bonds of the 648
county or municipality for a solid waste management facility, the 649
proposed property tax revenue and the procedure that may be taken 650
by qualified electors of the county for calling an election on the 651
question of issuance of the general obligation bonds of the county 652
or municipality. 653
(b) The form and content of the notice shall be as 654
follows: 655
"NOTICE OF TAX INCREASE 656
(Name of the County or Municipality) has proposed to increase 657
its property tax revenue (designate one or more classes of 658
property provided for in Section 112, Mississippi Constitution of 659
1890) by (percentage of increase of each class) percent, and to 660
increase its total budget by (percentage of increase) percent for 661
the purpose of the issuance of general obligation bonds of the 662
county or municipality for a solid waste management facility." 663
If twenty percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), whichever 664
is less, of the qualified voters of the county or municipality 665
file a written protest against the issuance of such bonds on or 666
before the date specified in the resolution of the board of 667
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supervisors or governing authorities of the municipality, then an 668
election on the question of the issuance of the bonds shall be 669
called pursuant to Sections 19-9-13 and 19-9-15, or 21-33-307 670
through 21-33-311. If no protest is filed, then the bonds may be 671
issued without an election, at any time, within two (2) years 672
after the date specified in the resolution of the board of 673
supervisors or governing authorities of the municipality. 674
SECTION 12. Section 17-17-337, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 675
amended as follows: 676
17-17-337. All bonds issued pursuant to Sections 17-17-329, 677
17-17-333 and 17-17-335 may be validated as now provided by law in 678
Sections 31-13-1 through 31-13-11, Mississippi Code of 1972. Such 679
validation proceedings shall be instituted in the chancery court 680
of the county in which the principal office of the authority is 681
located, but notice of such validation proceedings shall be 682
published at least two (2) times in a newspaper of general 683
circulation in each of the counties, the first publication of 684
which in each case shall be made at least ten (10) days preceding 685
the date set for validation. In any county where there is no 686
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 687
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice of 688
validation on the official county website for the duration of at 689
least ten (10) days immediately preceding the date set for 690
validation. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 691
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measures to ensure that online content is secure, verifiable and 692
accessible to the public. 693
SECTION 13. Section 17-17-348, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 694
amended as follows: 695
17-17-348. (1) In addition to any notice requirements 696
otherwise provided by law, the board of supervisors of each county 697
and the governing authorities of each municipality, before the 698
first day of the fiscal year, shall publish in a newspaper having 699
a general circulation in the county, a detailed, itemized report 700
of all revenues, costs and expenses incurred by the county or 701
municipality during the immediately preceding county or municipal 702
fiscal year in operating the garbage or rubbish collection or 703
disposal system. In any county where there is no newspaper 704
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 705
shall be authorized to publish such report on the official county 706
website. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures 707
to ensure that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible 708
to the public. The report shall disclose: 709
(a) The total dollar amount of revenues received or 710
dedicated by the county or municipality during the immediately 711
preceding fiscal year for operation of the garbage or rubbish 712
collection or disposal system; 713
(b) The identity of each source of funding and the 714
dollar amount received from each source of funding during the 715
immediately preceding fiscal year for operation of the garbage or 716
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rubbish collection or disposal system, including ad valorem taxes, 717
fees and other sources; and 718
(c) The total dollar amount expended by the county or 719
municipality to operate the garbage or rubbish collection or 720
disposal system, along with the names and addresses of all 721
businesses and persons with whom the county or municipality has 722
contracted to perform or provide garbage or rubbish collection or 723
disposal, the dollar amount of expenditures made under each 724
contract and an itemized list of all other expenditures of county 725
or municipal funds to operate and administer the garbage or 726
rubbish collection or disposal system. 727
(2) The notice required under subsection (1) of this section 728
shall be no less than one-eighth (1/8) page in size and the type 729
used shall be no smaller than ten (10) point and surrounded by a 730
one-fourth-inch (1/4) solid black border. The notice may not be 731
placed in that portion of the newspaper where legal notices and 732
classified advertisements appear. The notice must appear in a 733
newspaper that is published at least five (5) days a week, unless 734
the only newspaper in the county is published less than five (5) 735
days a week. The newspaper selected must be one of general 736
interest and readership in the community, and not one of limited 737
subject matter. The notice must be published at least once. In 738
any county where there is no newspaper published or located within 739
the county, publication on the official county website must remain 740
available for the duration of at least one (1) week. 741
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SECTION 14. Section 17-18-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 742
amended as follows: 743
17-18-17. (1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this 744
section, a community desiring to volunteer to host the state 745
commercial hazardous waste management facility to be operated 746
pursuant to this chapter may propose to do so by the adoption of a 747
resolution by a majority vote of the governing body of the local 748
governmental unit. The committee shall determine the adequacy of 749
any proposal to voluntarily host the state commercial hazardous 750
waste management facility. Once a proposal to volunteer to host 751
the state commercial hazardous waste management facility has been 752
accepted in writing by the committee, the resolution making such 753
proposal may not be rescinded by the governing body of the local 754
governmental unit, unless the management category or categories 755
determined under Section 49-29-7 is changed after the date of the 756
submission of such category determination to the Hazardous Waste 757
Technical Siting Committee. The governing body of the local 758
governmental unit shall hold a minimum of two (2) public hearings 759
prior to submission of a resolution regarding any proposal to 760
volunteer to host the state commercial hazardous waste management 761
facility pursuant to this chapter. The governing body of the 762
local governmental unit shall advertise its intent to hold the 763
public hearings. The advertisement shall be in a newspaper of 764
general circulation in the county. In any county where there is 765
no newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 766
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supervisors shall be authorized to publish such advertisement on 767
the official county website. The board of supervisors shall take 768
appropriate measures to ensure that online content is secure, 769
verifiable and accessible to the public. The advertisement shall 770
be no less than one-fourth (1/4) page in size and the type used 771
shall be no smaller than eighteen (18) point and surrounded by a 772
one-fourth (1/4) inch solid black border. The advertisement may 773
not be placed in that portion of the newspaper where legal notices 774
and classified advertisements appear. It is legislative intent 775
that, whenever possible, the advertisement appear in a newspaper 776
that is published at least five (5) days a week, unless the only 777
newspaper in the county is published less than five (5) days a 778
week. It is further the intent of the Legislature that the 779
newspaper selected be one of general interest and readership in 780
the community, and not one of limited subject matter. The 781
advertisement shall be run once each week for the two (2) weeks 782
preceding the public hearings. The advertisement shall state that 783
the governing body will meet on a certain day, time and place 784
fixed in the advertisement, which shall be not less than seven (7) 785
days after the day the first advertisement is published, for the 786
purpose of hearing comments regarding the proposed resolution and 787
to explain the reasons for the proposed resolution. If the 788
advertisement is posted on the official county website, it must be 789
available to the public for a duration of not less than seven (7) 790
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days immediately preceding the day of the meeting established for 791
the purpose of hearing comments. 792
(2) Washington County and Issaquena County are hereby 793
designated as volunteer host communities without having to comply 794
with the requirements of subsection (1) of this section. 795
(3) This section shall not be construed to give priority for 796
the evaluation of potential sites to any one (1) volunteer host 797
community over any other volunteer host community, regardless of 798
whether the designation of a governmental unit as a volunteer host 799
community is accomplished under subsection (1) or subsection (2) 800
of this section. 801
SECTION 15. Section 17-21-53, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 802
amended as follows: 803
17-21-53. (1) Before any money is borrowed under the 804
provisions of this article, the governing authority shall adopt a 805
resolution declaring the necessity for such borrowing and 806
specifying the purpose for which the money borrowed is to be 807
expended, the amount to be borrowed, the date or dates of the 808
maturity thereof, and how such indebtedness is to be evidenced. 809
The resolution shall be certified over the signature of the head 810
of the governing authority. 811
(2) The borrowing shall be evidenced by negotiable notes or 812
certificates of indebtedness of the governing authority which 813
shall be signed by the head and clerk of such governing authority. 814
All such notes or certificates of indebtedness shall be offered at 815
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public sale by the governing authority after not less than ten 816
(10) days' advertising in a newspaper having general circulation 817
within the governing authority. In any county where there is no 818
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 819
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such advertisements on 820
the official county website for the duration of not less than ten 821
(10) days prior to the date set for sale. The board of 822
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that online 823
content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. Each 824
sale shall be made to the bidder offering the lowest rate of 825
interest or whose bid represents the lowest net cost to the 826
governing authority; however, the rate of interest shall not 827
exceed that now or hereafter authorized in Section 75-17-101, 828
Mississippi Code of 1972. No such notes or certificates of 829
indebtedness shall be issued and sold for less than par and 830
accrued interest. All notes or certificates of indebtedness shall 831
mature in approximately equal installments of principal and 832
interest over a period not to exceed five (5) years from the dates 833
of the issuance thereof. Principal shall be payable annually, and 834
interest shall be payable annually or semiannually; provided, 835
however, that the first payment of principal or interest may be 836
for any period not exceeding one (1) year. Provided, however, if 837
negotiable notes are outstanding from not more than one (1) 838
previous issue authorized under the provisions of this article, 839
then the schedule of payments for a new or supplementary issue may 840
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be so adjusted that the schedule of maturities of all notes or 841
series of notes hereunder shall, when combined, mature in 842
approximately equal installments of principal and interest over a 843
period of five (5) years from the date of the new or supplementary 844
issue, or if a lower interest rate will thereby be secured on 845
notes previously issued and outstanding, a portion of the proceeds 846
of any issue authorized hereunder may be used to refund the 847
balance of the indebtedness previously issued under the authority 848
of this article. Such notes or certificates of indebtedness shall 849
be issued in such form and in such denominations as may be 850
determined by the governing authority and may be made payable at 851
the office of any bank or trust company selected by the governing 852
authority. In such case, funds for the payment of principal and 853
interest due thereon shall be provided in the same manner provided 854
by law for the payment of the principal and interest due on bonds 855
issued by the governing authority. 856
(3) For the prompt payment of notes or certificates of 857
indebtedness at maturity, both principal and interest, the full 858
faith, credit and resources of the issuing entity are pledged. If 859
the issuing entity does not have available funds in an amount 860
sufficient to provide for the payment of principal and interest 861
according to the terms of such notes or certificates of 862
indebtedness, then the governing authority shall annually levy a 863
special tax upon all of its taxable property at a rate the avails 864
of which will be sufficient to provide such payment. Funds 865
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derived from any such tax shall be paid into a sinking fund and 866
used exclusively for the payment of principal of and interest on 867
the notes or certificates of indebtedness. Until needed for 868
expenditure, monies in the sinking fund may be invested in the 869
same manner as the governing authority is elsewhere authorized by 870
law to invest surplus funds. 871
SECTION 16. Section 19-3-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 872
amended as follows: 873
19-3-1. Each county shall be divided into five (5) 874
districts, with due regard to equality of population and 875
convenience of situation for the election of members of the boards 876
of supervisors, but the districts as now existing shall continue 877
until changed. The qualified electors of each district shall 878
elect, at the next general election, and every four (4) years 879
thereafter, in their districts one (1) member of the board of 880
supervisors. Subject to the provisions of Sections 23-15-283 and 881
23-15-285, the board, by a three-fifths (3/5) vote of all members 882
elected, may change the districts, the boundaries to be entered at 883
large in the minutes of the proceedings of the board. The 884
location of a polling place shall not be altered within sixty (60) 885
days of any primary, general, runoff or special election unless 886
exigent circumstances exist. If the board of supervisors finds 887
that exigent circumstances exist where a polling place needs to be 888
altered within sixty (60) days of an election, then their reasons 889
for making that decision shall be spread upon the minutes at their 890
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next scheduled meeting. When the location of a polling place is 891
altered within sixty (60) days of an election, public notice of 892
the change shall be posted at city hall, the courthouse, the 893
registrar's office, the previous polling place location if it is a 894
public building, and for three (3) consecutive weeks, or each week 895
before the election if the alteration happens within three (3) 896
weeks of the election, in a newspaper that is circulated in the 897
area. 898
If the boundaries of the districts are changed by order of 899
the board of supervisors as provided in this section, the order 900
shall be published in a newspaper having general circulation in 901
the county once each week for three (3) consecutive weeks. In any 902
county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 903
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 904
such order on the official county website for the duration of 905
three (3) consecutive weeks. The board of supervisors shall take 906
appropriate measures to ensure that online content is secure, 907
verifiable and accessible to the public. 908
SECTION 17. Section 19-3-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 909
amended as follows: 910
19-3-11. In counties having only one (1) court district, the 911
board of supervisors shall hold regular meetings at the courthouse 912
or in the chancery clerk's office in those counties where the 913
chancery clerk's office is in a building separate from the 914
courthouse. However, the board of supervisors may meet in any 915
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other county-owned building if such building is located within one 916
(1) mile of the courthouse and if, more than thirty (30) days 917
prior to changing the meeting place, the board posts a 918
conspicuous, permanent notice to that effect in the chancery 919
clerk's office and in one (1) other place in the courthouse, 920
publishes notice thereof in a newspaper published in the 921
county, * * * once each week, for at least three (3) consecutive 922
weeks, and enters an order upon its minutes designating and 923
describing in full the building and room to be used as the meeting 924
room of the board of supervisors. In any county where there is no 925
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 926
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on the 927
official county website for the duration of at least three (3) 928
consecutive weeks. The board of supervisors shall take 929
appropriate measures to ensure that online content is secure, 930
verifiable and accessible to the public. The board of supervisors 931
shall meet on the first Monday of each month. However, when such 932
meeting date falls on a legal holiday, then the said meeting shall 933
be held on the succeeding day. 934
SECTION 18. Section 19-3-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 935
amended as follows: 936
19-3-19. (1) The board of supervisors may, at a regular 937
meeting, by an order on its minutes, adjourn to meet at any time 938
it may determine upon. 939
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(2) The president, or the vice president in the absence or 940
disability of the president, or any three (3) members of the 941
board, may call special meetings when deemed necessary. Notice 942
shall be given of all special meetings, for at least five (5) 943
days, by advertisement posted at the courthouse door * * * or 944
published in a newspaper of the county * * *. In any county where 945
there is no newspaper published or located within the county, the 946
board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on 947
the official county website for the duration of at least five (5) 948
days. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to 949
ensure that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to 950
the public. The notice thereof, whether posted or published in a 951
newspaper, shall be entered in full on the minutes of said 952
meeting. The notice of a special meeting shall specify each 953
matter of business to be transacted thereat, and at such special 954
meetings business shall not be transacted which is not specified 955
in the order or notice for such meeting. 956
(3) The president, or the vice president in the absence or 957
disability of the president, or any two (2) members of the board, 958
may by written notice, call an emergency meeting of the board of 959
supervisors in cases of an emergency arising as a result of 960
serious damage to county property, or to roads or bridges, or 961
emergencies arising as a result of epidemic conditions or weather 962
conditions. The notice shall state the time of the meeting and 963
distinctly specify the subject matters of business to be acted 964
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upon and be signed before a notary by the officer or officers 965
calling the meeting. At least three (3) hours before the time 966
fixed for the meeting, notice shall be personally delivered to the 967
members of the board who have not signed it and who can be found. 968
The notice shall also be posted at the courthouse door at least 969
three (3) hours before the time fixed for the meeting. If a 970
member of the board cannot be found to complete the personal 971
delivery of the notice, the president, vice president or any one 972
(1) of the two (2) members of the board calling an emergency 973
meeting shall make every attempt, within the applicable notice 974
period, to contact the board member that was not personally found 975
by other available means, including, but not limited to, telephone 976
or e-mail. The method of notice used to call the meeting shall be 977
entered on the minutes of the emergency meeting, and business not 978
specified in the notice shall not be transacted at the meeting. 979
SECTION 19. Section 19-3-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 980
amended as follows: 981
19-3-33. The board of supervisors may have its proceedings 982
published in some newspaper published in the county, and cause the 983
same to be paid for out of the county treasury, but the costs of 984
such publication shall not exceed the sum fixed by law for 985
publishing legal notices. If there be more than one (1) newspaper 986
published in the county, the contract for publishing the 987
proceedings, if made, shall be let to the lowest bidder among 988
them. In any county where there is no newspaper published or 989
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located within the county, the board of supervisors may publish 990
its proceedings on the official county website. The board of 991
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that online 992
content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. 993
SECTION 20. Section 19-3-35, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 994
amended as follows: 995
19-3-35. The board of supervisors after each meeting shall 996
have an itemized statement made of allowances, to whom, for what, 997
and the amounts; a list of all contracts providing for the 998
expenditure of money and the terms of payment thereof; a statement 999
of all loans from sixteenth section funds, lieu land funds, and 1000
sinking, and other trust funds, setting forth to whom made, the 1001
amount, and the kind of security approved; a statement or list of 1002
all sales of timber, of all leases upon, including all leases for 1003
oil, gas and minerals upon, sixteenth section or lieu lands 1004
situated in the county or belonging to the county, showing to whom 1005
sold or made, description of land involved, the length of the term 1006
of any such lease, and the consideration therefor; and it shall 1007
also publish a recapitulation of all expenditures according to 1008
districts and also the county as a whole, and in such 1009
recapitulation the total expenses for each item shall be listed 1010
for each district, and in the total county recapitulation the 1011
total expended from each item shall be listed and same shall be 1012
published within fifteen (15) days after adjournment in some 1013
newspaper of general circulation published in the county * * *. 1014
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In any county where there is no newspaper published or located 1015
within the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 1016
publish such total on the official county website within fifteen 1017
(15) days after adjournment. The board of supervisors shall take 1018
appropriate measures to ensure that online content is secure, 1019
verifiable and accessible to the public. The cost of publishing 1020
the same shall be paid for out of the general fund of the county. 1021
The cost of such publication shall not exceed one-half ( 1/2) of 1022
the rate now fixed by law for publishing legal notices, and in no 1023
event shall the cost of such publication exceed One Hundred 1024
Dollars ($100.00) in any one (1) month, save, however, in counties 1025
of classes 1 and 2 the board of supervisors may expend an amount 1026
not to exceed One Hundred Seventy-five Dollars ($175.00) per month 1027
for the publication of said cumulative digest of its proceedings 1028
as provided for above. If there be more than one (1) newspaper 1029
published in the county, the board of supervisors shall advertise, 1030
as provided by law, for contracts for publishing such proceedings, 1031
and shall award the contract to the lowest bidder for a period of 1032
two (2) years. If no bid be made for the price above mentioned, 1033
then the proceedings shall be posted at the courthouse door as 1034
hereinafter provided. If there be no newspaper published in such 1035
county, then such proceedings shall be posted at the front 1036
courthouse door or on the official county website as described 1037
above. 1038
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If any member of a board of supervisors or the chancery clerk 1039
shall fail, refuse or neglect to comply with the provisions of 1040
this section, he shall, upon conviction, be guilty of a 1041
misdemeanor and shall be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars 1042
($500.00) for such failure, refusal or neglect for each offense 1043
and, in addition thereto, shall be liable to a penalty of Five 1044
Hundred Dollars ($500.00), recoverable on his official bond by 1045
suit filed by any county or district attorney or any interested 1046
citizen, upon his official bond. 1047
This shall not be construed to repeal Section 19-3-33, and 1048
where the verbatim proceedings are published as therein provided, 1049
this section shall not apply, it being intended hereby to provide 1050
a method of publishing the proceedings of the board of supervisors 1051
in addition to that now provided for by Section 19-3-33. Where 1052
publication is made under Section 19-3-33, this section shall not 1053
be construed so as to require any other and additional 1054
publication, or notice. 1055
SECTION 21. Section 19-3-67, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1056
amended as follows: 1057
19-3-67. (1) When any member of any board of supervisors 1058
shall be required to travel outside of his county but within the 1059
State of Mississippi in the performance of his official duties, 1060
such member shall receive as expenses of such travel the same 1061
mileage and actual and necessary expenses for food, lodging and 1062
travel by public carrier or private motor vehicles as is allowed 1063
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state officers and employees pursuant to the provisions of Section 1064
25-3-41, Mississippi Code of 1972. Provided, however, mileage 1065
shall not be authorized when such travel is done by a motor 1066
vehicle owned by the county. 1067
(2) When any member of any board of supervisors shall be 1068
required to travel outside the State of Mississippi in the 1069
performance of his official duties, such member shall receive as 1070
expenses of such travel the same mileage and actual and necessary 1071
expenses for food, lodging and travel by public carrier or private 1072
motor vehicles as is allowed state officers and employees pursuant 1073
to the provisions of Section 25-3-41, Mississippi Code of 1972. 1074
Provided, however, such travel must receive the prior approval of 1075
the board before it is undertaken, and such approval shall be 1076
spread upon the minutes of the board. 1077
(3) Except as hereinafter provided with respect to mileage, 1078
no expenses shall be authorized or approved by any board of 1079
supervisors for travel by the member of such board within the 1080
county of such board. With respect to mileage, when travel within 1081
the county by a member of such board is done by a motor vehicle 1082
owned by the county, mileage shall not be authorized; 1083
however, when any member of such board does not have a 1084
county-owned motor vehicle regularly assigned to him for his use 1085
or when a county-owned motor vehicle is not otherwise available 1086
for his use at the time when travel is necessary, and he is 1087
required to travel within the county in the performance of his 1088
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official duties using his private motor vehicle, then he may be 1089
reimbursed for mileage in the same manner as provided in Section 1090
25-3-41, Mississippi Code of 1972. 1091
(4) Itemized expense accounts shall be submitted by the 1092
member on forms prescribed by the Auditor of Public Accounts for 1093
reimbursement of expenses for state officers and employees in such 1094
numbers as the county may require. No expenses authorized in this 1095
section shall be reimbursed unless the expenses have been 1096
authorized or approved by a vote of a majority of the members of 1097
the board duly made and spread upon the minutes of such board. 1098
(5) Expenses authorized in this section shall be published 1099
by the board of supervisors in a newspaper of general circulation 1100
published in the county * * *. In any county where there is no 1101
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 1102
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such expenses on the 1103
official county website. The board of supervisors shall take 1104
appropriate measures to ensure that online content is secure, 1105
verifiable and accessible to the public. The publication shall be 1106
a detailed accounting of the expenses authorized to each member of 1107
the board. The cost of publishing such expense accounts shall be 1108
paid by the county pursuant to the provisions of Section 19-3-35. 1109
SECTION 22. Section 19-3-79, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1110
amended as follows: 1111
19-3-79. (1) Any person, corporation or other legal entity 1112
required to obtain a state gaming license to conduct legal gaming 1113
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aboard a cruise vessel or vessel, as defined in Section 27-109-1, 1114
as prescribed by the Mississippi Gaming Control Act shall, before 1115
applying for such license, provide the Mississippi Gaming 1116
Commission with a written notice of intent to apply for a license. 1117
The "notice of intent to apply for a gaming license" shall be on a 1118
form prescribed by the executive director of the commission and 1119
shall state the county in which the intending licensee desires to 1120
conduct legal gaming aboard a cruise vessel or vessel, as the case 1121
may be. Within ten (10) days after receipt of a notice of intent 1122
to apply for a gaming license, the commission shall require such 1123
person, corporation or legal entity to publish the notice once 1124
each week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper having 1125
general circulation in the county in which the intending licensee 1126
desires to conduct legal gaming aboard a cruise vessel or vessel, 1127
as the case may be. In any county where there is no newspaper 1128
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 1129
shall be authorized to publish such notice on the official county 1130
website for the duration of three (3) consecutive weeks. The 1131
board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 1132
that online content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 1133
public. 1134
(2) If no petition as prescribed in subsection (3) of this 1135
section is filed with the board of supervisors of the applicable 1136
county within thirty (30) days after the date of the last 1137
publication, the board of supervisors of such county shall adopt a 1138
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resolution stating that no petition was timely filed and that 1139
legal gaming may henceforth be conducted aboard cruise vessels or 1140
vessels, as the case may be, in such county. 1141
(3) If a petition signed by twenty percent (20%) or fifteen 1142
hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the registered voters of a 1143
county in which a notice of intent to apply for a gaming license 1144
is published is filed within thirty (30) days of the date of the 1145
last publication with the circuit clerk of the applicable county, 1146
the board of supervisors of such county shall authorize the 1147
circuit clerk to hold an election on the proposition of allowing 1148
legal gaming to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or vessels, as 1149
the case may be, in the county on the date upon which such an 1150
election may be conducted under subsection (7). The referendum 1151
shall be advertised, held, conducted and the result thereof 1152
canvassed in the manner provided by law for advertising, holding 1153
and canvassing county elections. 1154
(4) At such election, all qualified electors of such county 1155
may vote. The ballots used at such election shall have printed 1156
thereon a brief statement of the purpose of the election and the 1157
words "FOR LEGAL GAMING ABOARD CRUISE VESSELS (OR VESSELS) IN THE 1158
COUNTY AS PRESCRIBED BY LAW" and "AGAINST LEGAL GAMING ABOARD 1159
CRUISE VESSELS (OR VESSELS) IN THE COUNTY AS PRESCRIBED BY LAW." 1160
The voter shall vote by placing a cross (x) or check (√) mark 1161
opposite his choice on the proposition. If a majority of the 1162
qualified electors who vote in such election shall vote in favor 1163
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of allowing legal gaming to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or 1164
vessels, as the case may be, then legal gaming may henceforth be 1165
conducted aboard cruise vessels or vessels, as the case may be, in 1166
the county. If less than a majority of the qualified electors who 1167
vote in such election shall vote in favor of allowing legal gaming 1168
to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or vessels, as the case may 1169
be, in the county, then gaming aboard cruise vessels or vessels, 1170
as the case may be, shall be prohibited in the county until such 1171
time as a subsequent election, held according to the restrictions 1172
specified in subsection (7), may authorize such legal gaming. 1173
(5) In any county in which no petition is timely filed after 1174
a notice of intent to apply for a gaming license is published, or 1175
in which an election is held on the proposition of allowing legal 1176
gaming to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or vessels, as the 1177
case may be, in the county and a majority of the qualified 1178
electors who vote in such election vote in favor of allowing legal 1179
gaming to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or vessels, as the 1180
case may be, in the county, no election shall thereafter be held 1181
in that county pursuant to this section on the proposition of 1182
allowing legal gaming to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or 1183
vessels, as the case may be, in that county. 1184
(6) Notwithstanding any provision of this section or 1185
Sections 97-33-1, 97-33-7, 97-33-17, 97-33-25 and 97-33-27 to the 1186
contrary, if an election is held pursuant to this section which 1187
causes the conducting of gaming aboard cruise vessels to be 1188
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prohibited in any county in which one or more cruise vessels were 1189
operating out of a port in the county on August 28, 1990, the 1190
prohibition on the conducting of gaming aboard cruise vessels in 1191
that county shall not apply to the conducting of legal gaming 1192
aboard any of those cruise vessels which were still operating out 1193
of a port in that county at the time of the election. 1194
(7) If an election has been held on the issue of allowing 1195
legal gaming to be conducted aboard cruise vessels or vessels, as 1196
the case may be, in a county, and the authority to conduct such 1197
legal gaming has been denied by the electors of such county, then 1198
a subsequent election on such issue may not be held until: 1199
(a) The date of the next succeeding general election in 1200
which the election for President of the United States occurs; or 1201
(b) In the case in which the authority to conduct such 1202
legal gaming has been denied by the electors of such county at 1203
elections on three (3) different occasions, whether those 1204
occasions be successive or not, the date of the next succeeding 1205
general election occurring at least eight (8) years after the last 1206
of the three (3) occasions on which the electors denied the 1207
authority to conduct such legal gaming. 1208
SECTION 23. Section 19-5-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1209
amended as follows: 1210
19-5-9. (1) The construction codes published by a 1211
nationally recognized code group which sets minimum standards and 1212
has the proper provisions to maintain up-to-date amendments are 1213
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adopted as minimum standard guides for building, plumbing, 1214
electrical, gas, sanitary, and other related codes in Mississippi. 1215
Any county within the State of Mississippi, in the discretion of 1216
the board of supervisors, may adopt building codes, plumbing 1217
codes, electrical codes, sanitary codes, or other related codes 1218
dealing with general public health, safety or welfare, or a 1219
combination of the same, within but not exceeding the provisions 1220
of the construction codes published by nationally recognized code 1221
groups, by order or resolution in the manner prescribed in this 1222
section, but those codes so adopted shall apply only to the 1223
unincorporated areas of the county. However, those codes shall 1224
not apply to the erection, maintenance, repair or extension of 1225
farm buildings or farm structures, except as may be required under 1226
the terms of the "Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1973," and 1227
shall apply to a master planned community as defined in Section 1228
19-5-10 only to the extent allowed in Section 19-5-10. The 1229
provisions of this section shall not be construed to authorize the 1230
adoption of any code which applies to the installation, repair or 1231
maintenance of electric wires, pipelines, apparatus, equipment or 1232
devices by or for a utility rendering public utility services, 1233
required by it to be utilized in the rendition of its duly 1234
authorized service to the public. Before any such code shall be 1235
adopted, it shall be either printed or typewritten and shall be 1236
presented in pamphlet form to the board of supervisors at a 1237
regular meeting. The order or resolution adopting the code shall 1238
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not set out the code in full, but shall merely identify the same. 1239
The vote or passage of the order or resolution shall be the same 1240
as on any other order or resolution. After its adoption, the code 1241
or codes shall be certified to by the president and clerk of the 1242
board of supervisors and shall be filed as a permanent record in 1243
the office of the clerk who shall not be required to transcribe 1244
and record the same in the minute book as other orders and 1245
resolutions. 1246
(2) If the board of supervisors of any county adopts or has 1247
adopted construction codes which do not have proper provisions to 1248
maintain up-to-date amendments, specifications in such codes for 1249
cements used in portland cement concrete shall be superseded by 1250
nationally recognized specifications referenced in any code 1251
adopted by the Mississippi Building Code Council. 1252
(3) All provisions of this section shall apply to amendments 1253
and revisions of the codes mentioned in this section. The 1254
provisions of this section shall be in addition and supplemental 1255
to any existing laws authorizing the adoption, amendment or 1256
revision of county orders, resolutions or codes. 1257
(4) Any code adopted under the provisions of this section 1258
shall not be in operation or force until sixty (60) days have 1259
elapsed from the adoption of same; however, any code adopted for 1260
the immediate preservation of the public health, safety and 1261
general welfare may be effective from and after its adoption by a 1262
unanimous vote of the members of the board. Within five (5) days 1263
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after the adoption or passage of an order or resolution adopting 1264
that code or codes the clerk of the board of supervisors shall 1265
publish in a legal newspaper published in the county the full text 1266
of the order or resolution adopting and approving the code, and 1267
the publication shall be inserted at least three (3) times, and 1268
shall be completed within thirty (30) days after the passage of 1269
the order or resolution. In any county where there is no legal 1270
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 1271
supervisors shall be authorized to publish the full text of the 1272
order or resolution adopting and approving the code on the 1273
official county website for the duration of three (3) weeks, to be 1274
completed within thirty (30) days after the passage of the order 1275
or resolution. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 1276
measures to ensure that online content is secure, verifiable and 1277
accessible to the public. 1278
(5) Any person or persons objecting to the code or codes may 1279
object in writing to the provisions of the code or codes within 1280
sixty (60) days after the passage of the order or resolution 1281
approving same, and if the board of supervisors adjudicates that 1282
ten percent (10%) or more of the qualified electors residing in 1283
the affected unincorporated areas of the county have objected in 1284
writing to the code or codes, then in such event the code shall be 1285
inoperative and not in effect unless adopted for the immediate 1286
preservation of the public health, safety and general welfare 1287
until approved by a special election called by the board of 1288
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supervisors as other special elections are called and conducted by 1289
the election commissioners of the county as other special 1290
elections are conducted, the special election to be participated 1291
in by all the qualified electors of the county residing in the 1292
unincorporated areas of the county. If the voters approve the 1293
code or codes in the special election it shall be in force and in 1294
operation thereafter until amended or modified as provided in this 1295
section. If the majority of the qualified electors voting in the 1296
special election vote against the code or codes, then, in such 1297
event, the code or codes shall be void and of no force and effect, 1298
and no other code or codes dealing with that subject shall be 1299
adopted under the provisions of this section until at least two 1300
(2) years thereafter. 1301
(6) After any such code shall take effect the board of 1302
supervisors is authorized to employ such directors and other 1303
personnel as the board, in its discretion, deems necessary and to 1304
expend general county funds or any other funds available to the 1305
board to fulfill the purposes of this section. 1306
(7) For the purpose of promoting health, safety, morals or 1307
the general welfare of the community, the governing authority of 1308
any municipality, and, with respect to the unincorporated part of 1309
any county, the governing authority of any county, in its 1310
discretion, is empowered to regulate the height, number of stories 1311
and size of building and other structures, the percentage of lot 1312
that may be occupied, the size of the yards, courts and other open 1313
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spaces, the density or population, and the location and use of 1314
buildings, structures and land for trade, industry, residence or 1315
other purposes, but no permits shall be required except as may be 1316
required under the terms of the "Flood Disaster Protection Act of 1317
1973" for the erection, maintenance, repair or extension of farm 1318
buildings or farm structures outside the corporate limits of 1319
municipalities. 1320
(8) The authority granted in this section is cumulative and 1321
supplemental to any other authority granted by law. 1322
(9) Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the 1323
contrary, any code adopted by a county before or after April 12, 1324
2001, is subject to the provisions of Section 41-26-14(10). 1325
(10) Notwithstanding any provision of this section to the 1326
contrary, the Boards of Supervisors of Jackson, Harrison, Hancock, 1327
Stone and Pearl River Counties shall enforce the requirements 1328
imposed under Section 17-2-1 as provided in such section. 1329
(11) Regardless of whether a county adopts or has adopted 1330
codes, as set forth in this section, each and every county in this 1331
state shall require permitting as a condition to construction 1332
within the unincorporated areas of the county, and such permits 1333
shall contain, on their face, in conspicuous print, (a) the 1334
contractor's material purchase certificate number to the extent 1335
furnished by the Department of Revenue pursuant to Section 1336
27-65-21(3) or the contractor's Taxpayer Identification Number as 1337
furnished by the Internal Revenue Service, and either a copy of 1338
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such material purchase certificate furnished by the Department of 1339
Revenue pursuant to Section 27-65-21(3), or a copy of the 1340
contractor's W-9, as the case may be, shall be required to be 1341
provided to the county as part of the prime contractor's 1342
application for such permit, prior to the issuance of such permit, 1343
and (b) the contractor's license or certificate of responsibility 1344
number as required by either Section 31-3-14 et seq., 51-5-1 et 1345
seq. or 73-59-1 et seq. 1346
SECTION 24. Section 19-5-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1347
amended as follows: 1348
19-5-21. (1) (a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b), 1349
(c), (d) and (g) of this subsection, the board of supervisors, to 1350
defray the cost of establishing and operating the system provided 1351
for in Section 19-5-17, may levy an ad valorem tax not to exceed 1352
four (4) mills on all taxable property within the area served by 1353
the county garbage or rubbish collection or disposal system. The 1354
service area may be comprised of unincorporated or incorporated 1355
areas of the county or both; however, no property shall be subject 1356
to this levy unless that property is within an area served by a 1357
county's garbage or rubbish collection or disposal system. 1358
(b) The board of supervisors of any county wherein 1359
Mississippi Highways 35 and 16 intersect and having a land area of 1360
five hundred eighty-six (586) square miles may levy, in its 1361
discretion, for the purposes of establishing, operating and 1362
maintaining a garbage or rubbish collection or disposal system, an 1363
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ad valorem tax not to exceed six (6) mills on all taxable property 1364
within the area served by the system as set out in paragraph (a) 1365
of this subsection. 1366
(c) The board of supervisors of any county bordering on 1367
the Mississippi River and traversed by U.S. Highway 61, and which 1368
is intersected by Mississippi Highway 4, having a population of 1369
eleven thousand eight hundred fifty-four (11,854) according to the 1370
1970 federal census, and having an assessed valuation of Fourteen 1371
Million Eight Hundred Seventy-two Thousand One Hundred Forty-four 1372
Dollars ($14,872,144.00) in 1970, may levy, in its discretion, for 1373
the purposes of establishing, operating and maintaining a garbage 1374
or rubbish collection or disposal system, an ad valorem tax not to 1375
exceed six (6) mills on all taxable property within the area 1376
served by the system as set out in paragraph (a) of this 1377
subsection. 1378
(d) The board of supervisors of any county having a 1379
population in excess of two hundred fifty thousand (250,000), 1380
according to the latest federal decennial census, and in which 1381
Interstate Highway 55 and Interstate Highway 20 intersect, may 1382
levy, in its discretion, for the purposes of establishing, 1383
operating and maintaining a garbage or rubbish collection or 1384
disposal system, an ad valorem tax not to exceed seven (7) mills 1385
on all taxable property within the area served by the system as 1386
set out in paragraph (a) of this subsection. 1387
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(e) The proceeds derived from any additional millage 1388
levied pursuant to paragraphs (a) through (d) of this subsection 1389
in excess of two (2) mills shall be excluded from the ten percent 1390
(10%) increase limitation under Section 27-39-321 for the first 1391
year of such additional levy and shall be included within such 1392
limitation in any year thereafter. The proceeds from any millage 1393
levied pursuant to paragraph (g) shall be excluded from the ten 1394
percent (10%) increase limitation under Section 27-39-321 for the 1395
first year of the levy and shall be included within the limitation 1396
in any year thereafter. 1397
(f) The rate of the ad valorem tax levied under this 1398
section shall be shown as a line item on the notice of ad valorem 1399
taxes on taxable property owed by the taxpayer. 1400
(g) In lieu of the ad valorem tax authorized in 1401
paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of this subsection, the fees 1402
authorized in subsection (2) of this subsection and in Section 1403
19-5-17 or any combination thereof, the board of supervisors may 1404
levy an ad valorem tax not to exceed six (6) mills to defray the 1405
cost of establishing and operating the system provided for in 1406
Section 19-5-17 on all taxable property within the area served by 1407
the system as provided in paragraph (a) of this subsection. 1408
Any board of supervisors levying the ad valorem tax 1409
authorized in this paragraph (g) is prohibited from assessing or 1410
collecting fees for the services provided under the system. 1411
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(2) In addition to the ad valorem taxes authorized in 1412
paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of subsection (1) or in lieu of any 1413
other method authorized to defray the cost of establishing and 1414
operating the system provided for in Section 19-5-17, the board of 1415
supervisors of any county with a garbage or rubbish collection or 1416
disposal system may assess and collect fees to defray the costs of 1417
the services. The board of supervisors may assess and collect the 1418
fees from each single family residential generator of garbage or 1419
rubbish. The board of supervisors also may assess and collect the 1420
fees from each industrial, commercial and multifamily residential 1421
generator of garbage or rubbish for any time period that the 1422
generator has not contracted for the collection of garbage and 1423
rubbish that is ultimately disposed of at a permitted or 1424
authorized nonhazardous solid waste management facility. The fees 1425
assessed and collected under this subsection may not exceed, when 1426
added to the proceeds derived from any ad valorem tax imposed 1427
under this section and any special funds authorized under 1428
subsection (7), the actual costs estimated to be incurred by the 1429
county in operating the county garbage and rubbish collection and 1430
disposal system. In addition to such fees, an additional amount 1431
not to exceed up to One Dollar ($1.00) or ten percent (10%) per 1432
month, whichever is greater, on the current monthly bill may be 1433
assessed and collected on the balance of any delinquent monthly 1434
fees. 1435
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(3) (a) Before the adoption of any order to increase the ad 1436
valorem tax assessment or fees authorized by this section, the 1437
board of supervisors shall publish a notice advertising their 1438
intent to adopt an order to increase the ad valorem tax assessment 1439
or fees authorized by this section. The notice shall specify the 1440
purpose of the proposed increase, the proposed percentage increase 1441
and the proposed percentage increase in total revenues for garbage 1442
or rubbish collection or disposal services or shall contain a copy 1443
of the resolution by the board stating their intent to increase 1444
the ad valorem tax assessment or fees. The notice shall be 1445
published in a newspaper published or having general circulation 1446
in the county for no less than three (3) consecutive weeks before 1447
the adoption of the order. * * * A print notice shall be in print 1448
no less than the size of eighteen (18) point and shall be 1449
surrounded by a one-fourth (1/4) inch black border. The notice 1450
shall not be placed in the legal section notice of the newspaper. 1451
In any county where there is no newspaper published or located 1452
within the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 1453
publish such notice on the official county website for the 1454
duration of no less than three (3) consecutive weeks prior to the 1455
adoption of the order. The board of supervisors shall take 1456
appropriate measures to ensure that content published online is 1457
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. There shall be 1458
no language in the notice stating or implying a mandate from the 1459
Legislature. 1460
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(b) In addition to the requirement for publication of 1461
notice, the board of supervisors shall notify each person 1462
furnished garbage or rubbish collection or disposal service of any 1463
increase in the ad valorem tax assessment or fees. In the case of 1464
an increase of the ad valorem tax assessment, a notice shall be 1465
conspicuously placed on or attached to the first ad valorem tax 1466
bill on which the increased assessment is effective. In the case 1467
of an increase in fees, a notice shall be conspicuously placed on 1468
or attached to the first bill for fees on which the increased fees 1469
or charges are assessed. There shall be no language in any notice 1470
stating or implying a mandate from the Legislature. 1471
(4) The board of supervisors of each county shall adopt an 1472
order determining whether or not to grant exemptions, either full 1473
or partial, from the fees for certain classes of generators of 1474
garbage or rubbish. If a board of supervisors grants any 1475
exemption, it shall do so in accordance with policies and 1476
procedures, duly adopted and entered on its minutes, that clearly 1477
define those classes of generators to whom the exemptions are 1478
applicable. The order granting exemptions shall be interpreted 1479
consistently by the board when determining whether to grant or 1480
withhold requested exemptions. 1481
(5) (a) The board of supervisors in any county with a 1482
garbage or rubbish collection or disposal system only for 1483
residents in unincorporated areas may adopt an order authorizing 1484
any single family generator to elect not to use the county garbage 1485
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or rubbish collection or disposal system. If the board of 1486
supervisors adopts an order, the head of any single family 1487
residential generator may elect not to use the county garbage or 1488
rubbish collection or disposal service by filing with the chancery 1489
clerk the form provided for in this subsection before December 1 1490
of each year. The board of supervisors shall develop a form that 1491
shall be available in the office of the chancery clerk for the 1492
head of household to elect not to use the service and to accept 1493
full responsibility for the disposal of his garbage or rubbish in 1494
accordance with state and federal laws and regulations. The board 1495
of supervisors, following consultation with the Department of 1496
Environmental Quality, shall develop and the chancery clerk shall 1497
provide a form to each person electing not to use the service 1498
describing penalties under state and federal law and regulations 1499
for improper or unauthorized management of garbage. Notice that 1500
the election may be made not to use the county service by filing 1501
the form with the chancery clerk's office shall be published in a 1502
newspaper published or having general circulation in the county 1503
for no less than three (3) consecutive weeks, with the first 1504
publication being made no sooner than five (5) weeks before the 1505
first day of December. In any county where there is no newspaper 1506
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 1507
shall be authorized to publish such notice on the official county 1508
website for the duration of no less than three (3) consecutive 1509
weeks, with the first day of publication no sooner than five (5) 1510
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weeks before the first day of December. The board of supervisors 1511
shall take appropriate measures to ensure that online content is 1512
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. The notice shall 1513
state that any single family residential generator may elect not 1514
to use the county garbage or rubbish collection or disposal 1515
service by the completion and filing of the form for that purpose 1516
with the chancery clerk's office before December 1 of that year. 1517
The notice shall also include a statement that any single family 1518
residential generator who does not timely file the form shall be 1519
assessed any fees levied to cover the cost of the county garbage 1520
or rubbish collection or disposal service. The chancery clerk 1521
shall maintain a list showing the name and address of each person 1522
who has filed a notice of intent not to use the county garbage or 1523
rubbish collection or disposal service. 1524
(b) If the homestead property of a person lies 1525
partially within the unincorporated service area of a county and 1526
partially within the incorporated service area of a municipality 1527
and both the municipality and the county provide garbage 1528
collection and disposal service to that person, then the person 1529
may elect to use either garbage collection and disposal service. 1530
The person shall notify the clerk of the governing authority of 1531
the local government whose garbage collection and disposal service 1532
he elects not to use of his decision not to use such services by 1533
certified mail, return receipt requested. The person shall not be 1534
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liable for any fees or charges from the service he elects not to 1535
use. 1536
(6) The board may borrow money for the purposes of defraying 1537
the expenses of the system in anticipation of: 1538
(a) The tax levy authorized under this section; 1539
(b) Revenues resulting from the assessment of any fees 1540
for garbage or rubbish collection or disposal; or 1541
(c) Any combination thereof. 1542
(7) In addition to the fees or ad valorem millage authorized 1543
under this section, a board of supervisors may use monies from any 1544
special funds of the county that are not otherwise required by law 1545
to be dedicated for use for a particular purpose in order to 1546
defray the costs of the county garbage or rubbish collection or 1547
disposal system. 1548
SECTION 25. Section 19-5-23, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1549
amended as follows: 1550
19-5-23. The tax levy authorized by Section 19-5-21 shall 1551
not be imposed until the board of supervisors shall have published 1552
notice of its intention to levy same. Said notice shall be 1553
published once each week for three (3) consecutive weeks in some 1554
newspaper having a general circulation in such county, but not 1555
less than twenty-one (21) days, nor more than sixty (60) days, 1556
intervening between the time of the first notice and the meeting 1557
at which said board proposes to levy such tax. In any county 1558
where there is no newspaper published or located within the 1559
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county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 1560
such notice on the official county website for the duration of 1561
three (3) consecutive weeks, not less than twenty-one (21) days, 1562
nor more than sixty (60) days, intervening between the time of 1563
initial publication and the meeting at which said board proposes 1564
to levy such tax. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 1565
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 1566
verifiable and accessible to the public. If, within the time of 1567
giving notice, twenty percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), 1568
whichever is less, of the qualified electors of the district 1569
affected shall protest or file a petition against the levy of such 1570
tax, then such tax shall not be levied unless authorized by a 1571
majority of the qualified electors of such district voting at an 1572
election to be called and held for that purpose. The notice 1573
provided for herein shall only be required prior to the initial 1574
levy except when the board of supervisors intends to increase the 1575
levy over the amount shown in the initial notice. 1576
SECTION 26. Section 19-5-81, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1577
amended as follows: 1578
19-5-81. Before issuing the bonds, notes or loan warrants, 1579
authorized by Section 19-5-79 the board of supervisors shall 1580
publish notice of its intention to borrow such funds and to issue 1581
loan warrants, notes or bonds, and the clerk of said board shall 1582
publish in three (3) weekly issues of some newspaper having a 1583
general circulation in the county, a copy of such order. In any 1584
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county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 1585
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 1586
such notice on the official county website for the duration of 1587
three (3) weeks. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 1588
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 1589
verifiable and accessible to the public. If, within twenty-one 1590
(21) days after the first publication of a copy of such order, 1591
twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors of the county 1592
petition the board of supervisors for an election to determine 1593
whether or not the adoption of such order should be annulled, such 1594
election shall be ordered by said board of supervisors in which 1595
the qualified electors of the county shall be eligible to 1596
participate. If at such election a majority of those voting vote 1597
in favor of the adoption of such order the same shall be valid and 1598
effective, but if a majority shall vote against such order it 1599
shall be annulled and shall be ineffective. Such election shall 1600
be held and conducted and the returns thereof made as provided by 1601
law for other county elections. If no such petition be presented 1602
within twenty-one (21) days after the first publication of a copy 1603
of such order, the order shall be valid and effective and said 1604
board may thereupon proceed to issue said loan warrants hereunder 1605
without an election on the question of the issuance thereof. 1606
SECTION 27. Section 19-5-92.1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1607
amended as follows: 1608
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19-5-92.1. (1) The board of supervisors of any county, 1609
whenever the board determines that the health, comfort and 1610
convenience of the inhabitants of the county will be promoted, 1611
may: 1612
(a) Alter and change the channels of streams or other 1613
water courses; 1614
(b) Construct, reconstruct and repair bridges over 1615
streams and water courses; and 1616
(c) Incur costs and pay necessary expenses for: 1617
(i) Providing labor, materials and supplies to 1618
clean or clear drainage ditches, creeks or channels or conduits, 1619
both natural and man-made and to prevent erosion of such ditches, 1620
creeks or channels; 1621
(ii) Acquiring property and obtaining easements 1622
necessary to perform work under this section; and 1623
(iii) Reimbursing landowners for damages and 1624
injury resulting from work performed by the county under this 1625
section. 1626
(2) The work performed and the expenses incurred under 1627
subsection (1) of this section may take place on public or private 1628
property. However, if the work is to be performed or the expenses 1629
to be incurred will take place on private property, the board of 1630
supervisors must: 1631
(a) Make a finding, as evidenced by entry upon its 1632
minutes, that such work and/or expenses are necessary in order to 1633
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promote the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of 1634
the county; 1635
(b) Give notice, in writing, to all owners of property 1636
that will be affected by the work for such period of time as is 1637
reasonable to allow such owners to express any objections; 1638
(c) Not receive written objection to the work by any 1639
owners of property that will be affected by the work within the 1640
period of time allowed to express objections; and 1641
(d) Unless otherwise agreed, in writing, by the county 1642
and the landowner, construct or install a culvert or bridge, at 1643
the county's expense, at an appropriate location or locations to 1644
provide the landowner ingress and egress to all of the property to 1645
which the landowner had access immediately before performance of 1646
the work by the county. 1647
(3) The county shall reimburse landowners for all damages or 1648
injury resulting from work performed by the county under this 1649
section. 1650
(4) The provisions of this section do not impose any 1651
obligation or duty upon a county to perform any work or to incur 1652
any expenditures not otherwise required by law to be performed or 1653
incurred by a county, nor do the provisions of this section create 1654
any rights or benefits for the owner of any public or private 1655
property in addition to any rights or benefits as may be otherwise 1656
provided by law. 1657
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(5) No additional taxes may be imposed for the work 1658
authorized under subsection (1) of this section until the board of 1659
supervisors adopts a resolution declaring its intention to levy 1660
the taxes and establishing the amount of the tax levies and the 1661
date on which the taxes initially will be levied and collected. 1662
This date shall be the first day of the month, but not earlier 1663
than the first day of the second month, from the date of adoption 1664
of the resolution. Notice of the proposed tax levy must be 1665
published once each week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks 1666
in a newspaper having a general circulation in the county. The 1667
first publication of the notice shall be made not less than 1668
twenty-one (21) days before the date fixed in the resolution on 1669
which the board of supervisors proposes to levy the taxes, and the 1670
last publication of the notice shall be made not more than seven 1671
(7) days before that date. In any county where there is no 1672
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 1673
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such proposed tax levy 1674
on the official county website for the duration of at least three 1675
(3) consecutive weeks immediately preceding the date fixed in the 1676
resolution. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 1677
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 1678
verifiable and accessible to the public. If, within the time of 1679
giving notice, fifteen percent (15%) or two thousand five hundred 1680
(2500), whichever is less, of the qualified electors of the county 1681
file a written petition against the levy of the taxes, then the 1682
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taxes shall not be levied unless authorized by three-fifths (3/5) 1683
of the qualified electors of the county voting at an election to 1684
be called and held for that purpose. 1685
SECTION 28. Section 19-5-155, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1686
amended as follows: 1687
19-5-155. Upon the filing of such petition, or upon the 1688
adoption of a resolution declaring the intent of the board of 1689
supervisors to incorporate such district, it shall then be the 1690
duty of the board of supervisors of such county to fix a time and 1691
place for a public hearing upon the question of the public 1692
convenience and necessity of the incorporation of the proposed 1693
district. The date fixed for such hearing shall be not more than 1694
thirty (30) days after the filing of the petition, and the date of 1695
the hearing, the place at which it shall be held, the proposed 1696
boundaries of said district, and the purpose of the hearing, shall 1697
be set forth in a notice to be signed by the clerk of the board of 1698
supervisors of such county. Such notice shall be published in a 1699
newspaper having general circulation within such proposed district 1700
once a week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks prior to the 1701
date of such hearing. The first such publication shall be made 1702
not less than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date of such 1703
hearing and the last such publication shall be made not more than 1704
fourteen (14) days prior to the date of such hearing. In any 1705
county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 1706
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 1707
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such notice on the official county website for the duration of at 1708
least three (3) consecutive weeks. Initial online publication 1709
shall be made not less than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date 1710
of such hearing and shall remain available to the public until not 1711
more than fourteen (14) days prior to the date of such hearing. 1712
The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 1713
that content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible 1714
to the public. 1715
If, at such public hearing, the board of supervisors finds 1716
(1) that the public convenience and necessity require the creation 1717
of the district, and (2) that the creation of the district is 1718
economically sound and desirable, the board of supervisors shall 1719
adopt a resolution making the aforesaid findings and declaring its 1720
intention to create the district on a date to be specified in such 1721
resolution. Such resolution shall also designate the name of the 1722
proposed district, define its territorial limits which shall be 1723
fixed by said board pursuant to such hearing, and state whether or 1724
not the board of supervisors shall levy the tax authorized in 1725
Section 19-5-189, Mississippi Code of 1972, and whether or not the 1726
board of supervisors proposes to assess benefited properties as 1727
outlined in Section 19-5-191, Mississippi Code of 1972. 1728
SECTION 29. Section 19-5-157, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1729
amended as follows: 1730
19-5-157. A certified copy of the resolution so adopted 1731
shall be published in a newspaper having a general circulation 1732
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within such proposed district once a week for at least three (3) 1733
consecutive weeks prior to the date specified in such resolution 1734
as the date upon which such board intends to create such district. 1735
The first such publication shall be made not less than twenty-one 1736
(21) days prior to the date specified, and the last such 1737
publication shall be made not more than fourteen (14) days prior 1738
to such date. In any county where there is no newspaper published 1739
or located within the county, the board of supervisors shall be 1740
authorized to publish such certified copy on the official county 1741
website for the duration of at least three (3) consecutive weeks 1742
prior to the date specified in such resolution as the date upon 1743
which such board intends to create such district. Initial 1744
publication shall be made not less than twenty-one (21) days prior 1745
to the date specified and shall remain available to the public 1746
until not more than fourteen (14) days prior to such date. The 1747
board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 1748
that content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible 1749
to the public. 1750
If twenty percent (20%) or one hundred fifty (150), whichever 1751
is the lesser, of the qualified electors of such proposed district 1752
file written petition with such board of supervisors on or before 1753
the date specified aforesaid, protesting against the creation of 1754
such district, the board of supervisors shall call an election on 1755
the question of the creation of such district. Such election 1756
shall be held and conducted by the election commissioners of the 1757
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county as nearly as may be in accordance with the general laws 1758
governing elections, and such election commissioners shall 1759
determine which of the qualified electors of such county reside 1760
within the proposed district, and only such qualified electors as 1761
reside within such proposed district shall be entitled to vote in 1762
such election. Notice of such election setting forth the time, 1763
place or places, and purpose of such election shall be published 1764
by the clerk of the board of supervisors, and such notice shall be 1765
published for the time and the manner provided in Section 19-5-155 1766
for the publication of the resolution of intention. The ballots 1767
to be prepared for and used at said election shall be in 1768
substantially the following form: 1769
"FOR CREATION OF ________ DISTRICT ( ) 1770
AGAINST CREATION OF ________ DISTRICT ( )" 1771
and voters shall vote by placing a cross mark (x) or check mark 1772
(√) opposite their choice. 1773
SECTION 30. Section 19-5-189, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1774
amended as follows: 1775
19-5-189. (1) (a) Except as otherwise provided in 1776
subsection (2) of this section for levies for fire protection 1777
purposes and subsection (3) of this section for certain districts 1778
providing water service, the board of supervisors of the county in 1779
which any such district exists may, according to the terms of the 1780
resolution, levy a special tax, not to exceed four (4) mills 1781
annually, on all of the taxable real property in such district, 1782
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the avails of which shall be paid over to the board of 1783
commissioners of the district to be used either for the operation, 1784
support and maintenance of the district or for the retirement of 1785
any bonds issued by the district, or for both. 1786
(b) The proceeds derived from two (2) mills of the levy 1787
authorized herein shall be included in the ten percent (10%) 1788
increase limitation under Section 27-39-321, and the proceeds 1789
derived from any additional millage levied under this subsection 1790
in excess of two (2) mills shall be excluded from such limitation 1791
for the first year of such additional levy and shall be included 1792
within such limitation in any year thereafter. 1793
(2) (a) In respect to fire protection purposes, the board 1794
of supervisors of the county in which any such district exists on 1795
July 1, 1987, may levy a special tax annually, not to exceed the 1796
tax levied for such purposes for the 1987 fiscal year on all of 1797
the taxable real property in such district, the avails of which 1798
shall be paid over to the board of commissioners of the district 1799
to be used either for the operation, support and maintenance of 1800
the fire protection district or for the retirement of any bonds 1801
issued by the district for fire protection purposes, or for both. 1802
Any such district for which no taxes have been levied for the 1987 1803
fiscal year may be treated as having been created after July 1, 1804
1987, for the purposes of this subsection. 1805
(b) In respect to fire protection purposes, the board 1806
of supervisors of the county in which any such district is created 1807
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after July 1, 1987, may, according to the terms of the resolution 1808
of intent to incorporate the district, levy a special tax not to 1809
exceed two (2) mills annually on all of the taxable real property 1810
in such district, the avails of which shall be paid over to the 1811
board of commissioners of the district to be used either for the 1812
operation, support and maintenance of the fire protection district 1813
or for the retirement of any bonds issued by the district for fire 1814
protection purposes, or for both; however, the board of 1815
supervisors may increase the tax levy under this subsection as 1816
provided for in paragraph (c) of this subsection. 1817
(c) The tax levy under this subsection may be increased 1818
only when the board of supervisors has determined the need for 1819
additional revenues. Prior to levying a tax increase under this 1820
paragraph, the board of supervisors shall adopt a resolution 1821
declaring its intention to levy the tax. The resolution shall 1822
describe the amount of the increase in the tax levy and the 1823
purposes for which the proceeds of the additional tax will be 1824
used. The board of supervisors shall have a copy of the 1825
resolution published once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks 1826
in at least one (1) newspaper published in the county and having a 1827
general circulation therein. * * * In any county where there is 1828
no newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 1829
supervisors shall be authorized to publish a copy of the 1830
resolution on the official county website for the duration of 1831
three (3) consecutive weeks. The board of supervisors shall take 1832
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appropriate measures to ensure that content published online is 1833
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. A copy of the 1834
resolution shall also be posted at three (3) public places in the 1835
county for a period of at least twenty-one (21) days during the 1836
time of its publication either in a newspaper or online. If more 1837
than twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors of the 1838
district shall file with the clerk of the board of supervisors, 1839
within twenty-one (21) days after adoption of the resolution of 1840
intent to increase the tax levy, a petition requesting an election 1841
on the question of the increase in tax levy, then and in that 1842
event such increase shall not be made unless authorized by a 1843
majority of the votes cast at an election to be called and held 1844
for that purpose within the district. Notice of such election 1845
shall be given, the election shall be held and the result thereof 1846
determined, as far as is practicable, in the same manner as other 1847
elections are held in the county. If an election results in favor 1848
of the increase in the tax levy or if no election is required, the 1849
board of supervisors may increase the tax levy. The board of 1850
supervisors, in its discretion, may call an election on such 1851
question, in which event it shall not be necessary to publish the 1852
resolution declaring its intention to have the tax imposed. 1853
(d) Notwithstanding any provisions of this subsection 1854
to the contrary, in any county bordering on the Gulf of Mexico and 1855
the State of Louisiana, the board of supervisors may levy not to 1856
exceed four (4) mills annually on all the taxable real property 1857
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within any fire protection district, the avails of which shall be 1858
paid over to the board of commissioners of the district to be used 1859
either for the operation, support and maintenance of the fire 1860
protection district or for the retirement of any bonds issued by 1861
the district for fire protection purposes, or for both. Prior to 1862
levying the tax under this paragraph, the board of supervisors 1863
shall adopt a resolution declaring its intention to levy the tax. 1864
The resolution shall describe the amount of the tax levy and the 1865
purposes for which the proceeds of the tax will be used. The 1866
board of supervisors shall have a copy of the resolution published 1867
once a week for three (3) consecutive weeks in at least one (1) 1868
newspaper published in the county and having a general circulation 1869
therein. * * * In any county where there is no newspaper 1870
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 1871
shall be authorized to publish a copy of such resolution on the 1872
official county website for the duration of three (3) consecutive 1873
weeks. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures 1874
to ensure that content published online is secure, verifiable and 1875
accessible to the public. A copy of the resolution shall also be 1876
posted at three (3) public places in the county for a period of at 1877
least twenty-one (21) days during the time of its publication in 1878
either a newspaper or online. If more than twenty percent (20%) 1879
of the qualified electors of the district shall file with the 1880
clerk of the board of supervisors, within twenty-one (21) days 1881
after adoption of the resolution of intent to levy the tax, a 1882
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petition requesting an election on the question of the levy of 1883
such tax, then and in that event such tax levy shall not be made 1884
unless authorized by a majority of the votes cast at an election 1885
to be called and held for that purpose within the district. 1886
Notice of such election shall be given, the election shall be held 1887
and the result thereof determined, as far as is practicable, in 1888
the same manner as other elections are held in the county. If an 1889
election results in favor of the tax levy or if no election is 1890
required, the board of supervisors may levy such tax. The board of 1891
supervisors, in its discretion, may call an election on such 1892
question, in which event it shall not be necessary to publish the 1893
resolution declaring its intention to have the tax imposed. 1894
(e) Notwithstanding any provisions of this subsection 1895
to the contrary, in any county bordering on the Mississippi River 1896
in which legal gaming is conducted and in which U.S. Highway 61 1897
intersects with Highway 4, the board of supervisors may levy a 1898
special tax not to exceed five (5) mills annually on all the 1899
taxable real and personal property within any fire protection 1900
district, except for utilities as defined in Section 77-3-3(d)(i) 1901
and (iii), the avails of which shall be paid over to the board of 1902
commissioners of the district to be used either for the operation, 1903
support and maintenance of the fire protection district or for the 1904
retirement of any bonds issued by the district for fire protection 1905
purposes, or for both. Before levying the tax under this 1906
paragraph, the board of supervisors shall adopt a resolution 1907
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declaring its intention to levy the tax. The resolution shall 1908
describe the amount of the tax levy and the purposes for which the 1909
proceeds of the tax will be used. The board of supervisors shall 1910
have a copy of the resolution published once a week for three (3) 1911
consecutive weeks in at least one (1) newspaper published in the 1912
county and having a general circulation therein. * * * In any 1913
county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 1914
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish a 1915
copy of the resolution on the official county website for the 1916
duration of three (3) consecutive weeks. The board of supervisors 1917
shall take appropriate measures to ensure that content published 1918
online is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. A copy 1919
of the resolution shall also be posted at three (3) public places 1920
in the county for a period of at least twenty-one (21) days during 1921
the time of its publication in either a newspaper or online. If 1922
more than twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors of the 1923
district shall file with the clerk of the board of supervisors, 1924
within twenty-one (21) days after adoption of the resolution of 1925
intent to levy the tax, a petition requesting an election of the 1926
questions of the levy of such tax, then and in that event such tax 1927
levy shall not be made unless authorized by a majority of the 1928
votes cast at an election to be called and held for that purpose 1929
within the district. Notice of such election shall be given, the 1930
election shall be held and the result thereof determined, as far 1931
as is practicable, in the same manner as other elections are held 1932
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in the county. If an election results in favor of the tax levy or 1933
if no election is required, the board of supervisors may levy such 1934
tax. The board of supervisors, in its discretion, may call an 1935
election on such question, in which event it shall not be 1936
necessary to publish the resolution declaring its intention to 1937
have the tax imposed. 1938
(f) Any taxes levied under this subsection shall be 1939
excluded from the ten percent (10%) increase limitation under 1940
Section 27-39-321. 1941
(3) For any district authorized under Section 19-5-151(2), 1942
the board of supervisors shall not levy the special tax authorized 1943
in this section. 1944
SECTION 31. Section 19-5-199, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1945
amended as follows: 1946
19-5-199. All construction contracts by the district where 1947
the amount of the contract shall exceed Ten Thousand Dollars 1948
($10,000.00) shall, and construction contracts of less than Ten 1949
Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) may, be made upon at least three (3) 1950
weeks' public notice. Such notice shall be published once a week 1951
for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in at least one (1) 1952
newspaper published in such county or having general circulation 1953
therein. The first publication of such notice shall be made not 1954
less than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such 1955
notice for the receipt of bids, and the last publication shall be 1956
made not more than seven (7) days prior to such date. In any 1957
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county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 1958
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 1959
such notice on the official county website for the duration of at 1960
least three (3) consecutive weeks. The online publication shall 1961
be made available to the public not less than twenty-one (21) days 1962
prior to the date fixed in such notice and shall remain until 1963
there are not more than seven (7) days remaining prior to such 1964
date. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to 1965
ensure that content published online is secure, verifiable and 1966
accessible to the public. The notice shall state the thing to be 1967
done and invite sealed proposals, to be filed with the secretary 1968
of the district, to do the work. In all such cases, before the 1969
notice shall be published, plans and specifications for the work 1970
shall be prepared by a registered professional engineer and shall 1971
be filed with the secretary of the district and there remain. The 1972
board of commissioners of the district shall award the contract to 1973
the lowest responsible bidder who will comply with the terms 1974
imposed by such commissioners and enter into bond with sufficient 1975
sureties to be approved by the commissioners in such penalty as 1976
shall be fixed by the commissioners; however, in no case shall 1977
such bond be less than the contract price, conditioned for the 1978
prompt, proper efficient performance of the contract. Contracts 1979
of less than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00) may be negotiated; 1980
however, the board of commissioners shall invite and receive 1981
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written proposals for the work from at least three (3) contractors 1982
regularly engaged in the type of work involved. 1983
SECTION 32. Section 19-5-207, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1984
amended as follows: 1985
19-5-207. Within ninety (90) days after the close of each 1986
fiscal year, the board of commissioners shall publish in a 1987
newspaper of general circulation in the county a sworn statement 1988
showing the financial condition of the district, the earnings for 1989
the fiscal year just ended, a statement of the water and sewer 1990
rates being charged, and a brief statement of the method used in 1991
arriving at such rates. In any county where there is no newspaper 1992
published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 1993
shall be authorized to publish such statement on the official 1994
county website. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 1995
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 1996
verifiable and accessible to the public. Such statement shall 1997
also be filed with the board of supervisors creating the district. 1998
SECTION 33. Section 19-5-219, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 1999
amended as follows: 2000
19-5-219. Upon the filing of such petition, or upon the 2001
adoption of a resolution declaring the intent of the board of 2002
supervisors to incorporate such district, it shall then be the 2003
duty of the board of supervisors of such county to fix a time and 2004
place for a public hearing upon the question of the public 2005
convenience and necessity of the incorporation of the proposed 2006
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district solely for fire protection grading purposes. The date 2007
fixed for such hearing shall be not more than thirty (30) days 2008
after the filing of the petition, and the date of the hearing, the 2009
place at which it shall be held, the proposed boundaries of the 2010
district and the purpose of the hearing shall be set forth in a 2011
notice to be signed by the clerk of the board of supervisors of 2012
such county. Such notice shall be published in a newspaper having 2013
general circulation within such proposed district once a week for 2014
at least three (3) consecutive weeks before the date of such 2015
hearing. The first such publication shall be made not less than 2016
twenty-one (21) days before the date of such hearing and the last 2017
such publication shall be made not more than fourteen (14) days 2018
before the date of such hearing. In any county where there is no 2019
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 2020
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on the 2021
official county website for the duration of at least three (3) 2022
consecutive weeks before the date of such hearing. The online 2023
publication shall be made available to the public not less than 2024
twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such notice and 2025
shall remain until there are not more than seven (7) days 2026
remaining prior to such date. The board of supervisors shall take 2027
appropriate measures to ensure that content published online is 2028
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. 2029
If, at such public hearing, the board of supervisors finds 2030
that the public convenience and necessity require the creation of 2031
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the fire protection grading district to enable the Mississippi 2032
State Rating Bureau to grade the district according to its fire 2033
insurance grading schedule, the board of supervisors shall adopt a 2034
resolution making such findings and declaring its intention to 2035
create the district on a date to be specified in such resolution. 2036
Such resolution shall also designate the name of the proposed 2037
district and define its territorial limits, which shall be fixed 2038
by the board in accordance with such hearing. 2039
SECTION 34. Section 19-5-221, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2040
amended as follows: 2041
19-5-221. A certified copy of the resolution so adopted 2042
shall be published in a newspaper having a general circulation 2043
within such proposed district once a week for at least three (3) 2044
consecutive weeks before the date specified in the resolution as 2045
the date upon which the board intends to create such district. 2046
The first such publication shall be made not less than twenty-one 2047
(21) days before the date specified, and the last such publication 2048
shall be made not more than fourteen (14) days before such date. 2049
In any county where there is no newspaper published or located 2050
within the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 2051
publish such resolution on the official county website for the 2052
duration of at least three (3) consecutive weeks before the date 2053
specified in the resolution as the date upon which the board 2054
intends to create such district. The online publication shall be 2055
made available to the public not less than twenty-one (21) days 2056
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prior to the date fixed in such notice and shall remain until 2057
there are not more than fourteen (14) days remaining prior to such 2058
date. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to 2059
ensure that content published online is secure, verifiable and 2060
accessible to the public. If twenty percent (20%) or one hundred 2061
fifty (150), whichever is the lesser, of the qualified electors of 2062
such proposed district file a written petition with such board of 2063
supervisors on or before the date specified as the date of 2064
creation of the district protesting against creation of such 2065
district, the board of supervisors shall call an election on the 2066
question of creation of such district. Procedure for the election 2067
should conform to the guidelines set forth in Section 19-5-157. 2068
SECTION 35. Section 19-7-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2069
amended as follows: 2070
19-7-3. (1) In case any of the real estate belonging to the 2071
county shall cease to be used for county purposes, the board of 2072
supervisors may sell, convey or lease the same on such terms as 2073
the board may elect and may, in addition, exchange the same for 2074
real estate belonging to any other political subdivision located 2075
within the county. In case of a sale on a credit, the county 2076
shall have a lien on the same for the purchase money, as against 2077
all persons, until paid and may enforce the lien as in such cases 2078
provided by law. The deed of conveyance in such cases shall be 2079
executed in the name of the county by the president of the board 2080
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of supervisors, pursuant to an order of the board entered on its 2081
minutes. 2082
(2) (a) Before any lease, deed or conveyance is executed, 2083
the board shall publish at least once each week for three (3) 2084
consecutive weeks, in a public newspaper of the county in which 2085
the land is located * * *. In any county where there is no 2086
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 2087
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such intention to sell 2088
on the official county website for the duration of three (3) 2089
consecutive weeks. The board of supervisors shall take 2090
appropriate measures to ensure that content published online is 2091
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. The board shall 2092
thereafter accept bids for the lease or sale. The board, at its 2093
option, may reject all bids or accept the highest and best bid 2094
received in response to the advertisement, or the board may hold 2095
an auction among those who submitted bids in response to the 2096
advertisement. If the board elects to hold an auction, no bidder 2097
shall be granted any preference. The opening bid at the auction 2098
shall be the highest bid received in response to the 2099
advertisement. 2100
(b) The board of supervisors of any county may contract 2101
for the professional services of a Mississippi-licensed real 2102
estate broker to assist in the marketing and sale or lease of the 2103
property for a reasonable commission, consistent with or lower 2104
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than the market rate, for services rendered to be paid from the 2105
sale or lease proceeds. 2106
(3) (a) During the final year of an existing lease of any 2107
real estate belonging to the county, the board shall notify the 2108
holder of the existing lease if the board intends to re-lease the 2109
property after advertising for bids or holding an auction in the 2110
same manner as provided in subsection (2) of this section. If the 2111
board receives an acceptable bid in response to the advertisement 2112
and elects not to hold an auction among those submitting bids, 2113
then the holder of the existing lease may submit a second bid in 2114
an amount not less than five percent (5%) of the highest 2115
acceptable bid received if the holder of the existing lease: (i) 2116
submitted a bid in response to the advertisement; and (ii) 2117
constructed or made improvements on the leasehold premises after 2118
receiving approval of the board during the term of the existing 2119
lease. 2120
(b) If the holder of the existing lease elects to 2121
submit a second bid, the board shall hold an auction among those 2122
who submitted bids in response to the advertisement. The opening 2123
bid at the auction shall be the second bid of the holder of the 2124
existing lease. However, no leaseholder may submit a second bid 2125
if: (i) any rent, taxes or other payment required under the lease 2126
are past due; or (ii) the holder of the lease is otherwise in 2127
default of any term or provision of the lease and such default has 2128
not been corrected or cured to the satisfaction of the board after 2129
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more than thirty (30) days' notice to the leaseholder of the 2130
default. 2131
(c) If an auction is held, the auction may be conducted 2132
at the meeting at which bids are opened or at a subsequent regular 2133
or special meeting. The board shall announce the time and place 2134
of the auction at the meeting at which bids are opened, and no 2135
further notice of the auction is required. 2136
(4) Whenever the board of supervisors shall find and 2137
determine, by resolution duly and lawfully adopted and spread upon 2138
its minutes (a) that any county-owned property is no longer needed 2139
for county or related purposes and is not to be used in the 2140
operation of the county, (b) that the sale of the property in the 2141
manner otherwise provided by law is not necessary or desirable for 2142
the financial welfare of the county, and (c) that the use of the 2143
county property for the purpose for which it is to be sold, 2144
conveyed or leased will promote and foster the development and 2145
improvement of the community in which it is located and the civic, 2146
social, educational, cultural, moral, economic or industrial 2147
welfare thereof, the board of supervisors of such county shall be 2148
authorized and empowered, in its discretion, to sell, convey, 2149
lease, or otherwise dispose of same for any of the purposes set 2150
forth herein. 2151
(5) (a) In addition to such authority as is otherwise 2152
granted under this section, the board of supervisors, in its 2153
discretion, may sell, lease, or otherwise convey property to any 2154
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person or legal entity without public notice, without having to 2155
advertise for and accept competitive bids and without appraisal, 2156
with or without consideration, and on such terms and conditions as 2157
the parties may agree if the board of supervisors finds and 2158
determines, by resolution duly and lawfully adopted and spread 2159
upon its official minutes: 2160
(i) That the subject property is real property 2161
acquired by the county: 2162
1. By reason of a tax sale; 2163
2. Because the property was abandoned or 2164
blighted; or 2165
3. In a proceeding to satisfy a county lien 2166
against the property; 2167
(ii) That the subject property is blighted and is 2168
located in a blighted area; 2169
(iii) That the subject property is not needed for 2170
governmental or related purposes and is not to be used in the 2171
operation of the county; 2172
(iv) That the sale of the property in the manner 2173
otherwise provided by law is not necessary or desirable for the 2174
financial welfare of the county; and 2175
(v) That the use of the property for the purpose 2176
for which it is to be conveyed will promote and foster the 2177
development and improvement of the community in which it is 2178
located or the civic, social, educational, cultural, moral, 2179
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economic or industrial welfare thereof; the purpose for which the 2180
property is conveyed shall be stated. 2181
(b) All costs associated with a conveyance under this 2182
subsection shall be paid by the person or entity to whom the 2183
conveyance is made. 2184
(c) Any deed or instrument of conveyance executed 2185
pursuant to the authority granted under this subsection shall 2186
contain a clause of reverter providing that title to the property 2187
will revert to the county if the person or entity to whom the 2188
property is conveyed does not fulfill the purpose for which the 2189
property was conveyed and satisfy all conditions imposed on the 2190
conveyance within two (2) years of the date of the conveyance. 2191
(d) In any such deed or instrument of conveyance, the 2192
county shall retain all mineral rights that it owns, together with 2193
the right of ingress and egress to remove same. 2194
(6) Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to 2195
prohibit, restrict or to prescribe conditions with regard to the 2196
authority granted under Section 17-25-3 or Section 57-75-37. 2197
SECTION 36. Section 19-7-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2198
amended as follows: 2199
19-7-21. Any county which has acquired and conveyed or may 2200
hereafter acquire and convey any land for state park purposes and 2201
has retained or does retain the mineral rights thereunder may 2202
lease the same for oil, gas and other minerals either jointly or 2203
severally. 2204
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Such lease or leases may be made only after legal 2205
advertisement for bids therefor have been published once a week 2206
for three (3) consecutive weeks in some newspaper having a general 2207
circulation in the county. In any county where there is no 2208
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 2209
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such advertisement on 2210
the official county website for the duration of three (3) 2211
consecutive weeks. The board of supervisors shall take 2212
appropriate measures to ensure that content published online is 2213
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. It shall be 2214
necessary to describe the property in the advertisement by its 2215
popular name and by giving a definite legal description by metes 2216
and bounds. Said lease, with the legal description of the 2217
property set out therein, shall be executed to the highest and 2218
best bidder therefore on all the tract involved and shall contain 2219
a provision therein that no part of the property involved in said 2220
lease shall be dropped during the lifetime of said lease, which 2221
shall not be for a longer period than ten (10) years, unless 2222
production in commercial quantities results, and that if the delay 2223
rentals are not paid on all the property then said lease in its 2224
entirety shall become null and void. No lease shall become 2225
effective after its acceptance by the board of supervisors until 2226
the same shall have the written approval of the State Mineral 2227
Lease Commission and the Mississippi Board of Park Examiners 2228
affixed thereto. 2229
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From the proceeds arising from the execution of the original 2230
lease there shall be paid all cost of advertising herein required 2231
and other expenses necessary and incident to the execution 2232
thereof, and any balance then remaining on hand and accruing 2233
thereafter as a result of the rents, profits and income accruing 2234
from the lease shall be used, first, to build necessary bridges in 2235
the particular park property affected and, second, any balance 2236
then remaining on hand shall be used to call or pay any 2237
county-wide bonds now or hereafter outstanding and, third, if 2238
there be no outstanding county-wide bonds, then such balance shall 2239
be paid into the general funds of the county. 2240
Whenever production in commercial quantities is made on any 2241
property involved in such lease, the lessee shall not be required 2242
to pay delay rentals thereafter so long as such production 2243
continues. 2244
The proceeds to be paid to the county from the production of 2245
the oil, gas or other minerals shall be subject to all severance 2246
taxes imposed by law, just the same as if the county was an 2247
individual or corporation. 2248
The lessee shall be liable for all damages to property 2249
incurred by any operation in carrying out the terms of said lease. 2250
Nothing in this section shall in any way be construed to 2251
limit, abrogate, or otherwise restrict any right, title, or 2252
interest in the State of Mississippi. 2253
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SECTION 37. Section 19-9-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2254
amended as follows: 2255
19-9-11. Before issuing any bonds for any of the purposes 2256
enumerated in Sections 19-9-1 and 19-9-3, the board of supervisors 2257
shall adopt a resolution declaring its intention so to do, stating 2258
the amount of bonds proposed to be issued and the purpose for 2259
which the bonds are to be issued, and the date upon which the 2260
board proposes to direct the issuance of such bonds. Such 2261
resolution shall be published once a week for at least three (3) 2262
consecutive weeks in at least one (1) newspaper published in such 2263
county. The first publication of such resolution shall be made 2264
not less than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such 2265
resolution for the issuance of the bonds, and the last publication 2266
shall be made not more than seven (7) days prior to such 2267
date. * * * In any county where there is no newspaper published 2268
or located within the county, the board of supervisors shall be 2269
authorized to publish such resolution on the official county 2270
website for the duration of at least three (3) consecutive weeks. 2271
The online publication shall be made available to the public not 2272
less than twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such 2273
resolution and shall remain until there are not more than seven 2274
(7) days remaining prior to such date. The board of supervisors 2275
shall take appropriate measures to ensure that content published 2276
online is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. If 2277
twenty percent (20%), or fifteen hundred (1500), whichever is 2278
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less, of the qualified electors of the county, supervisors 2279
district, or road district, as the case may be, shall file a 2280
written protest against the issuance of such bonds on or before 2281
the date specified in such resolution, then an election on the 2282
question of the issuance of such bonds shall be called and held as 2283
is provided in Sections 19-9-13 and 19-9-15. If no such protest 2284
be filed, then such bonds may be issued without an election on the 2285
question of the issuance thereof, at any time within a period of 2286
two (2) years after the date specified in the above-mentioned 2287
resolution. However, the board of supervisors, in its discretion, 2288
may nevertheless call an election on such question, in which event 2289
it shall not be necessary to publish the resolution declaring its 2290
intention to issue such bonds as herein provided. 2291
SECTION 38. Section 19-9-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2292
amended as follows: 2293
19-9-13. Where an election is to be called, as provided in 2294
Section 19-9-11, notice of such election shall be signed by the 2295
clerk of the board of supervisors and shall be published once a 2296
week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks, in at least one 2297
newspaper published in such county. The first publication of such 2298
notice shall be made not less than twenty-one (21) days prior to 2299
the date fixed for such election, and the last publication shall 2300
be made not more than seven (7) days prior to such date. * * * In 2301
any county where there is no newspaper published or located within 2302
the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 2303
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publish such notice on the official county website for the 2304
duration of at least three (3) consecutive weeks. The online 2305
publication shall be made available to the public not less than 2306
twenty-one (21) days prior to the date fixed in such notice and 2307
shall remain until there are not more than seven (7) days 2308
remaining prior to such date. The board of supervisors shall take 2309
appropriate measures to ensure that content published online is 2310
secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. 2311
SECTION 39. Section 19-9-27, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2312
amended as follows: 2313
19-9-27. The board of supervisors of any county may borrow 2314
money in anticipation of taxes for the purpose of defraying the 2315
expenses of such county, and may issue negotiable notes of the 2316
county therefor, to mature not later than April 1 of the year 2317
succeeding the year in which they are issued. The amount of money 2318
herein authorized to be borrowed shall not be in excess of 2319
twenty-five percent (25%) of the estimated amount of taxes 2320
collected and to be collected under the last preceding annual tax 2321
levies for the particular fund for which said money is borrowed. 2322
The board of supervisors may borrow said money, as hereinbefore 2323
provided, from any available fund in the county treasury, or from 2324
any other source, and such loan shall be repaid in the manner 2325
herein provided. The notes herein authorized shall bear interest 2326
at a rate to be fixed by the board, not to exceed that allowed in 2327
Section 75-17-105, Mississippi Code of 1972, and such notes shall 2328
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be payable at any place to be named by the board of supervisors. 2329
Any notes or obligations issued in excess of the amount authorized 2330
to be issued under the provisions of this section shall be void. 2331
Money may be borrowed in anticipation of ad valorem taxes under 2332
the provisions of this section, regardless of whether or not such 2333
borrowing shall create an indebtedness in excess of statutory 2334
limitations. 2335
For the payment of such loan, the board of supervisors shall 2336
either pledge the levy of a special tax each year sufficient to 2337
pay the amount borrowed for use that year, with interest, or shall 2338
pledge that such notes shall be paid out of the first money 2339
collected from taxes for the year in which they are issued. The 2340
aforesaid special tax, if necessary, may be in excess of the rate 2341
of taxation otherwise limited by law. The notes herein authorized 2342
shall not be issued until the board of supervisors shall have 2343
published notice of its intention to issue same; said notice to be 2344
published once each week for three (3) weeks in some newspaper 2345
having a general circulation in such county, but not less than 2346
twenty-one (21) days, nor more than sixty (60) days, intervening 2347
between the time of the first notice and the meeting at which said 2348
board proposes to issue such notes. In any county where there is 2349
no newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 2350
supervisors shall be authorized to publish such resolution on the 2351
official county website for the duration of three (3) consecutive 2352
weeks. The online publication shall be made available to the 2353
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public not less than twenty-one (21) days, nor more than sixty 2354
(60) days, prior to the date fixed in such notice. The board of 2355
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that content 2356
published online is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 2357
public. If, within the time of giving notice, twenty percent 2358
(20%), or fifteen hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the 2359
qualified electors of the county shall protest or file a petition 2360
against the issuance of such notes, then such notes shall not be 2361
issued unless authorized by a three-fifths (3/5) majority of the 2362
qualified electors of such county, voting at an election to be 2363
called and held for that purpose. 2364
SECTION 40. Section 19-9-111, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2365
amended as follows: 2366
19-9-111. The board of supervisors of any county authorized 2367
to establish or cooperate in the establishment of economic 2368
development districts pursuant to Section 19-5-99 may, in its 2369
discretion, levy a tax of not more than two (2) mills against the 2370
taxable property in the county or the portion thereof comprising 2371
an economic development district, to be used to support and 2372
maintain such district. The levy so made shall be in addition to 2373
all other levies provided by law. 2374
Before any such levy is made, the board of supervisors shall 2375
signify its intention to make such a levy and publish same in a 2376
newspaper published in said county for thirty (30) days prior to 2377
making said levy. In any county where there is no newspaper 2378
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published or located within the county, the board of supervisors 2379
shall be authorized to publish its intention to make such a levy 2380
on the official county website for the duration of thirty (30) 2381
days prior to making said levy. The board of supervisors shall 2382
take appropriate measures to ensure that content published online 2383
is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. In the event 2384
more than twenty percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), 2385
whichever is less, of the qualified electors of said economic 2386
development district protest in writing to the board of 2387
supervisors against the imposition of such tax levy within thirty 2388
(30) days from the date such notice is published, then such 2389
proposed tax levy shall not be made unless same is approved by a 2390
special election called for said purpose. Said special election 2391
shall be conducted and had as provided by law. 2392
The governing authorities of any municipality in a county, 2393
which has established an economic development district or which is 2394
included in an economic development district, may contribute to 2395
the support of such economic development district from its general 2396
fund. 2397
SECTION 41. Section 19-9-114, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2398
amended as follows: 2399
19-9-114. The board of supervisors of any county bordering 2400
on the Gulf of Mexico having a population according to the 1970 2401
census of one hundred thirty-four thousand five hundred eighty-two 2402
(134,582) persons, and having two (2) cities located therein each 2403
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having a population of over thirty thousand (30,000) persons 2404
according to the 1970 census, and in which is located a deep water 2405
port of entry and two (2) military establishments located therein, 2406
is hereby authorized and empowered, in its discretion, to levy an 2407
additional ad valorem tax not to exceed one (1) mill to provide 2408
funds for the construction of a facility to house a county-wide 2409
vocational and technical educational center. Such additional levy 2410
may be in excess of and in addition to the rate of taxation 2411
otherwise limited by law. 2412
The tax herein authorized shall not be levied until the board 2413
of supervisors shall have published notice of its intention to 2414
levy same. Said notice shall be published once each week for 2415
three (3) weeks in some newspaper having a general circulation in 2416
such county, but not less than twenty-one (21) days, nor more than 2417
sixty (60) days, intervening between the time of the first notice 2418
and the meeting at which said board proposes to levy such tax. In 2419
any county where there is no newspaper published or located within 2420
the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 2421
publish such notice on the official county website for the 2422
duration of three (3) weeks. The online publication shall be made 2423
available to the public not less than twenty-one (21) days, nor 2424
more than sixty (60) days, prior to the date fixed in such notice. 2425
The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 2426
that content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible 2427
to the public. If, within the time of giving notice, twenty 2428
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percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the 2429
qualified electors of the county shall protest or file a petition 2430
against the levy of such tax, then such tax shall not be levied 2431
unless authorized by a three-fifths (⅗) majority of the qualified 2432
electors of such county voting at an election to be called and 2433
held for that purpose. 2434
SECTION 42. Section 19-11-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2435
amended as follows: 2436
[With regard to any county which is exempt from the 2437
provisions of Section 19-2-3, this section shall read as follows:] 2438
19-11-7. (1) The board of supervisors of each county of the 2439
State of Mississippi shall, at its August meeting of each year, 2440
prepare a complete budget of revenues, expenses and a working cash 2441
balance estimated for the next fiscal year, which shall be based 2442
on the aggregate funds estimated to be available for the ensuing 2443
fiscal year for each fund, from which such estimated expenses will 2444
be paid, exclusive of school maintenance funds, which shall be 2445
shown separately. Such statement of revenues shall show every 2446
source of revenue along with the amount derived from each source. 2447
The budget containing such statement of revenues and expenses 2448
shall be published at least one (1) time during August or 2449
September but not later than September 30 of the year in a 2450
newspaper published in the county * * *. In any county where 2451
there is no newspaper published or located within the county, the 2452
board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish such budget on 2453
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the official county website for the duration of August and 2454
September. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 2455
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 2456
verifiable and accessible to the public. 2457
(2) The board of supervisors shall not prepare a budget that 2458
reduces the county budget by more than twenty percent (20%) in the 2459
last year of the members' term of office if a majority of the 2460
members of the board are not reelected. 2461
[With regard to any county which is required to operate on a 2462
countywide system of road administration as described in Section 2463
19-2-3, this section shall read as follows:] 2464
19-11-7. (1) The county administrator of each county of the 2465
State of Mississippi shall prepare and submit to the board of 2466
supervisors at its August meeting of each year a complete budget 2467
of revenues, expenses and a working cash balance estimated for the 2468
.next fiscal year, which shall be based on the aggregate funds 2469
estimated to be available for the ensuing fiscal year for each 2470
fund, from which such estimated expenses will be paid, exclusive 2471
of school maintenance funds, which shall be shown separately and 2472
exclusive of the budget of the sheriff's department which shall be 2473
prepared by the sheriff. Such statement of revenues shall show 2474
every source of revenue along with the amount derived from each 2475
source. The budget, including the sheriff's budget, containing 2476
such statement of revenues and expenses shall be published at 2477
least one (1) time during August or September but not later than 2478
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September 30 of the year in a newspaper published in the 2479
county * * *. In any county where there is no newspaper published 2480
or located within the county, the board of supervisors shall be 2481
authorized to publish such budget on the official county website 2482
for the duration of August and September. The board of 2483
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that content 2484
published online is secure, verifiable and accessible to the 2485
public. 2486
(2) The county administrator shall not prepare a budget that 2487
reduces the county budget by more than twenty percent (20%) in the 2488
last year of the members' term of office if a majority of the 2489
members of the board are not reelected. 2490
SECTION 43. Section 19-13-53, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2491
amended as follows: 2492
19-13-53. A claim under Section 19-13-51 for accidents 2493
occurring shall be made in writing, itemized and sworn to, and 2494
shall be filed within three (3) months after such accident occurs, 2495
and shall remain on file with the clerk of the board of 2496
supervisors for sixty (60) days before the first day of the term 2497
at which it comes up for hearing. Notice of its pendency shall be 2498
published in a newspaper published in the county at least one (1) 2499
time before such claim comes up for hearing * * *. In any county 2500
where there is no newspaper published or located within the 2501
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 2502
notice on the official county website for the duration of one (1) 2503
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week before such claim comes up for hearing. The board of 2504
supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that online 2505
content is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. 2506
SECTION 44. Section 19-15-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2507
amended as follows: 2508
19-15-3. Whenever any county records, documents, files or 2509
papers whatsoever are required by law to be preserved and 2510
retained, or which are necessary or desirable to be preserved or 2511
retained, the board of supervisors of the county shall have the 2512
power and authority, in its discretion, to destroy or dispose of 2513
any records, documents, files or papers after having reproductions 2514
made thereof as hereinafter provided and in accordance with a 2515
records control schedule approved by the Local Government Records 2516
Committee as provided in Section 25-60-1. 2517
Whenever the board of supervisors of any county shall desire 2518
to destroy or dispose of any records, documents, files or papers, 2519
the board shall first cause the same to be reproduced under 2520
standards established by the Department of Archives and History 2521
using microfilm, microfiche, data processing, computers, magnetic 2522
tape, optical discs or other medium. If the county where records 2523
and the like are to be destroyed or disposed of does not have or 2524
own the necessary equipment to reproduce same, the board of 2525
supervisors shall be authorized and empowered to enter into a 2526
contract for the reproduction thereof, which contract may be for a 2527
period of not more than twelve (12) months from the date thereof. 2528
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The contract shall be awarded to the lowest and best bidder after 2529
the board of supervisors shall have advertised its intentions of 2530
awarding such contract by publication of a notice thereof once 2531
each week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in some 2532
newspaper published or having a general circulation in such 2533
county. In any county where there is no newspaper published or 2534
located within the county, the board of supervisors shall be 2535
authorized to publish such notice on the official county website 2536
for the duration of at least three (3) consecutive weeks. The 2537
board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 2538
that content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible 2539
to the public. 2540
After reproduction of the records and the like shall have 2541
been made, the board of supervisors shall have the power and 2542
authority to destroy and dispose of the originals thereof after 2543
spreading upon its minutes certification that the reproductions 2544
are true and correct copies and disposal is in accordance with a 2545
records control schedule approved by the Local Government Records 2546
Committee as provided in Section 25-60-1; the reproductions shall 2547
thereafter be preserved, retained and stored by the board of 2548
supervisors as a record of the county, and provision shall be made 2549
for preserving, examining and using them. Any reproductions or 2550
copy of any original record or other documents shall be deemed to 2551
be the original record for all purposes and shall be admissible as 2552
evidence in all courts or administrative agencies. A facsimile, 2553
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exemplification or certified copy thereof shall, for all purposes 2554
set forth herein, be deemed to be a transcript, exemplification or 2555
certified copy of the original record. 2556
The board of supervisors of any county is hereby authorized 2557
to pay all expenses incurred in reproducing records and the like 2558
and in making provision for the preservation, retention and 2559
storage of the reproductions from the general fund of the county. 2560
When any of the records and the like of which reproductions 2561
are made under the provisions of this section are declared by law 2562
or are by their nature confidential and privileged records, then 2563
the reproduction thereof shall likewise be deemed to be 2564
confidential and privileged to the same extent as the original 2565
records and the like. 2566
Nothing herein shall be construed to require the keeping and 2567
preservation of any records and documents which are not required 2568
by law or a records control schedule to be kept and preserved, or 2569
which it is not desirable or necessary to keep and preserve, and 2570
in all cases where records and the like are authorized by law to 2571
be destroyed or disposed of, they may be disposed of as authorized 2572
by a records control schedule approved by the Local Government 2573
Records Committee as provided in Section 25-60-1. 2574
SECTION 45. Section 19-23-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2575
amended as follows: 2576
19-23-5. The board of supervisors of any county where the 2577
county prosecuting attorney's office has been abolished may by its 2578
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own motion entered upon the minutes, make an order to reestablish 2579
the said office of county prosecuting attorney in said county. 2580
Said order shall be published in a newspaper published in said 2581
county and having a general circulation therein * * * for three 2582
(3) consecutive weeks next preceding * * *. In any county where 2583
there is no newspaper published or located within the county, the 2584
board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish such order on 2585
the official county website for the duration of three (3) 2586
consecutive weeks next preceding. The board of supervisors shall 2587
take appropriate measures to ensure that content published online 2588
is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. If within 2589
that time twenty percent (20%) of the qualified electors of the 2590
county shall petition against re-creation of said office, then the 2591
said office shall not be re-created, unless an election shall have 2592
been ordered in the manner provided for in Section 19-23-3, and a 2593
majority of the qualified voters in said election vote to 2594
re-create said office. The said board shall not re-create said 2595
office unless two (2) years after the same has been abolished 2596
shall have passed. Should there be no petition against the 2597
re-creation of said office, the board of supervisors shall 2598
re-create said office of county prosecuting attorney. 2599
SECTION 46. Section 19-27-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2600
amended as follows: 2601
19-27-31. If the owner of any land which shall have been 2602
laid off, mapped, or platted as a city, town or village, or 2603
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addition thereto, or subdivision thereof, or other platted area, 2604
whether inside or outside a municipality, shall be desirous of 2605
altering or vacating such map or plat, or any part thereof, he 2606
may, under oath, petition the chancery court for relief in the 2607
premises, setting forth the particular circumstances of the case 2608
and giving an accurate description of the property, the map or 2609
plat of which is to be vacated, or altered, and the names of the 2610
persons to be adversely affected thereby, or directly interested 2611
therein. The parties so named shall be made defendants thereto, 2612
and publication of summons shall be made one (1) time in a 2613
newspaper published, or having a general circulation, in the 2614
county where the land is situated, and which publication shall 2615
clearly state the objects and purposes of the petition. In any 2616
county where there is no newspaper published or located within the 2617
county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish 2618
such summons on the official county website for the duration of 2619
one (1) week. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 2620
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 2621
verifiable and accessible to the public. 2622
At any time after the expiration of five (5) days from said 2623
publication and the service of process upon the named defendants, 2624
the cause or proceeding shall be triable, and the court in term 2625
time or the chancellor in vacation may hear the petition and all 2626
objections from any person thereto, and may decree according to 2627
the merits of the case. However, where all adversely affected or 2628
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directly interested persons join in said petition, the same may be 2629
finally heard and determined by the court or chancellor at any 2630
time. If the decree vacate, in whole or in part, or alter the map 2631
or plat, it shall be recorded as a deed, and a memorandum thereof 2632
noted on the record of the map or plat. 2633
SECTION 47. Section 19-29-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2634
amended as follows: 2635
19-29-7. (1) Any county in which there is located existing 2636
railroad properties and facilities or in which railroad properties 2637
and facilities previously existed, but were abandoned after 2638
February 5, 1976, may, by resolution, create a public body 2639
corporate and politic, to be known as a county railroad authority, 2640
which shall be authorized to exercise its functions upon the 2641
appointment and qualifications of the first commissioners thereof. 2642
Upon the adoption of a resolution creating a county railroad 2643
authority, the board of supervisors of the county shall, pursuant 2644
to the resolution, appoint five (5) persons as commissioners of 2645
the authority. The commissioners who are first appointed shall be 2646
designated to serve the terms of one (1), two (2), three (3), four 2647
(4) and five (5) years respectively. Thereafter, each 2648
commissioner shall be appointed for a term of five (5) years, 2649
except that vacancies occurring otherwise than by the expiration 2650
of term shall be filled for the unexpired term in the same manner 2651
as the original appointments. A county shall not adopt a 2652
resolution authorized by this section without a public hearing 2653
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thereon. Notice thereof shall be given at least ten (10) days 2654
prior thereto in a newspaper published in the county * * *. In 2655
any county where there is no newspaper published or located within 2656
the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 2657
publish such notice on the official county website for the 2658
duration of at least ten (10) days prior to the aforementioned 2659
public hearing. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate 2660
measures to ensure that content published online is secure, 2661
verifiable and accessible to the public. 2662
(2) Any county and a municipality within a county may create 2663
a railroad authority under this section by resolution adopted by 2664
the respective governing authorities. The authority shall be 2665
governed by five (5) commissioners. The board of supervisors 2666
shall appoint two (2) persons as commissioners of the authority. 2667
The governing authorities of the municipality shall appoint two 2668
(2) persons as commissioners of the authority. One (1) 2669
commissioner shall be appointed by the municipality and the county 2670
on a rotating basis with the municipality making the first 2671
appointment. The terms of the commissioners shall be the same as 2672
those provided in subsection (1) with the term designation to be 2673
determined by the majority vote of the governing authorities of 2674
the municipality and of the county. The municipality and the 2675
county may dissolve the authority by a majority vote of both 2676
governing authorities. 2677
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SECTION 48. Section 19-29-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2678
amended as follows: 2679
19-29-9. (1) Two (2) or more counties in which there are 2680
located railroad properties and facilities of a railroad, or in 2681
which such properties and facilities previously existed, but were 2682
abandoned after February 5, 1976, may, by resolution of each, 2683
create a public body, corporate and politic, to be known as a 2684
regional railroad authority which shall be authorized to exercise 2685
its functions upon the issuance by the Secretary of State of a 2686
certificate of incorporation. The board of supervisors of each 2687
county joining in such regional authority shall, pursuant to the 2688
resolution organizing such authority, appoint five (5) residents 2689
of the county as commissioners of the authority and, as soon 2690
thereafter as practicable, the governing authorities of any 2691
municipality in such county, through which such railroads run, 2692
shall appoint a commissioner of the authority. 2693
If the regional authority consists of an even number of 2694
commissioners, an additional commissioner shall be appointed by 2695
the Governor from within the geographic boundaries of the regional 2696
authority. 2697
(2) A regional railroad authority may be increased from time 2698
to time to serve one or more additional counties if each 2699
additional county and each of the counties then included in the 2700
regional authority and the commissioners of the regional 2701
authority, respectively, adopt a resolution consenting thereto. 2702
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If a county railroad authority for any county seeking to be 2703
included in the regional authority is then in existence, the 2704
commissioners of the county authority shall consent to the 2705
inclusion of the county in the regional authority, and if the 2706
county authority has any bonds outstanding, unless fifty-one 2707
percent (51%) or more of the holders of the bonds consent, in 2708
writing, to the inclusion of the county in the regional authority, 2709
no such inclusion shall be effected. Upon the inclusion of any 2710
county in the regional authority, all rights, contracts, 2711
obligations and property, real and personal, of the county 2712
authority shall be in the name of and vest in the regional 2713
authority. 2714
(3) A regional railroad authority may be decreased if each 2715
of the counties then included in the regional authority and the 2716
commissioners of the regional authority consent to the decrease 2717
and make provision for the retention or disposition of its assets 2718
and liabilities; however, if the regional authority has any bonds 2719
outstanding, no decrease shall be effected unless seventy-five 2720
percent (75%) or more of the holders of the bonds consent thereto 2721
in writing. 2722
(4) A county shall not adopt any resolution authorized by 2723
this section without a public hearing thereon. Notice thereof 2724
shall be given at least ten (10) days prior thereto in a newspaper 2725
published in the county * * *. In any county where there is no 2726
newspaper published or located within the county, the board of 2727
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supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on the 2728
official county website for the duration of at least ten (10) days 2729
prior to the date of the aforementioned public hearing. The board 2730
of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that 2731
content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible to 2732
the public. 2733
(5) All commissioners of a regional railroad authority 2734
appointed by municipalities shall be appointed for terms of five 2735
(5) years each. Commissioners who are initially appointed by a 2736
board of supervisors shall be designated to serve terms of one 2737
(1), two (2), three (3), four (4) and five (5) years, 2738
respectively; thereafter, each such term shall be five (5) years. 2739
A vacancy occurring otherwise than by expiration of term shall be 2740
filled for the unexpired term in the same manner as the original 2741
appointments. 2742
(6) A regional railroad authority, in its discretion, by 2743
resolution duly adopted and entered upon its minutes, may appoint 2744
an executive committee from among its membership. The executive 2745
committee shall consist of such number and shall be appointed in 2746
such manner so as to fairly represent the counties and 2747
municipalities served by the regional authority. The members of 2748
the executive committee shall serve for such terms as designated 2749
by the regional authority and may be removed from the committee 2750
before expiration of their terms in accordance with such procedure 2751
as the regional authority may adopt. The executive committee, 2752
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when so appointed, may be authorized by the regional authority to 2753
exercise such powers and perform such duties, with or without the 2754
prior approval of the regional authority, as the regional 2755
authority deems appropriate; however, the executive committee may 2756
not exercise any power or perform any duty that is inconsistent 2757
with or in excess of the powers and duties authorized to be 2758
performed under the provisions of this chapter by the 2759
commissioners of the regional authority. 2760
(7) A regional railroad authority may accept counties, 2761
municipalities and other political subdivisions of the state 2762
outside the jurisdiction of the regional authority to become 2763
associate members. 2764
SECTION 49. Section 19-29-18, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2765
amended as follows: 2766
19-29-18. (1) The governing body of a county railroad 2767
authority or regional railroad authority, as the case may be, may 2768
file a petition with the board of supervisors of any county 2769
included in the railroad authority, specifying for each such 2770
county, the rate of the ad valorem tax, not to exceed two (2) 2771
mills, to be levied by such county on the taxable property 2772
therein, for acquisition and maintenance of railroad properties 2773
and facilities, and to defray operating expenses of the railroad 2774
authority and any other expenses authorized to be incurred by the 2775
railroad authority. Prior to levying the tax specified by the 2776
railroad authority, the board of supervisors of each such county 2777
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shall publish notice of its intention to levy same. The notice 2778
shall be published once each week for three (3) weeks in some 2779
newspaper having a general circulation in the county, but not less 2780
than twenty-one (21) days, nor more than sixty (60) days, 2781
intervening between the time of the first notice and the meeting 2782
at which said board proposes to levy the tax. In any county where 2783
there is no newspaper published or located within the county, the 2784
board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice of 2785
intention to levy on the official county website for the duration 2786
of three (3) weeks. The online publication shall be made 2787
available to the public not less than twenty-one (21) days, nor 2788
more than sixty (60) days, prior to the date fixed in such notice. 2789
The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 2790
that content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible 2791
to the public. If, within the time of giving notice, twenty 2792
percent (20%) or one thousand five hundred (1500) of the qualified 2793
electors of the county, whichever is less, shall file a written 2794
protest against the levy of the tax, then the tax shall not be 2795
levied unless authorized by three-fifths (3/5) of the qualified 2796
electors of such county, voting at an election to be called and 2797
held for that purpose. If the tax levy fails to be authorized at 2798
an election held in a county included in the regional authority, 2799
then such tax levy shall not be made in any of the counties 2800
included in such regional authority. 2801
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(2) The avails of the ad valorem tax levied under authority 2802
of this section shall be paid by the county board of supervisors 2803
to the governing body of the railroad authority to be used as 2804
herein authorized. 2805
(3) For any fiscal year after the initial levy of the tax, 2806
the board of supervisors levying same shall levy such tax at a 2807
millage rate which will produce an amount of revenue which 2808
approximates, but does not exceed, the amount of revenue produced 2809
from the levy for the preceding fiscal year. The county board of 2810
supervisors shall not increase the millage rate for the purposes 2811
authorized herein unless notice thereof is published and an 2812
election held, if required, in the manner set forth in subsection 2813
(1) of this section. 2814
(4) Each railroad authority shall be subject to examination 2815
by the State Auditor. 2816
(5) The tax levy authorized in this section shall not be 2817
included in the ten percent (10%) limitation on increases under 2818
Sections 27-39-320 or 27-39-321. 2819
(6) The tax levy authorized in this section shall not be 2820
reimbursable under the provisions of the Homestead Exemption Law. 2821
(7) A railroad authority created under Section 19-29-7(2) 2822
must receive the approval of the governing authorities of the 2823
municipality and the county creating such authority before levying 2824
any tax under this section. 2825
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SECTION 50. Section 19-29-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2826
amended as follows: 2827
19-29-33. Bonds authorized by resolution of the authority 2828
may be issued in one or more series and shall bear such date or 2829
dates, mature at such time or times, bear interest at such rate or 2830
rates, provided that the bonds of any issue shall not bear a 2831
greater overall maximum interest rate to maturity than that 2832
allowed in Section 75-17-103, be in such denomination or 2833
denominations, be in such form, either coupon or registered, carry 2834
such conversion or registration privileges, have such rank or 2835
priority, be executed in such manner, be payable in such medium of 2836
payment, at such place or places, and be subject to such terms of 2837
redemption (with or without premium) as such resolution, its trust 2838
indenture or mortgage may provide. No bond shall bear more than 2839
one (1) rate of interest; each bond shall bear interest from its 2840
date to its stated maturity date at the interest rate specified in 2841
the bid; all bonds of the same maturity shall bear the same rate 2842
of interest from date to maturity; all interest accruing on such 2843
bonds so issued shall be payable semiannually or annually, except 2844
that the first interest coupon attached to any such bond may be 2845
for any period not exceeding one (1) year. 2846
No interest payment shall be evidenced by more than one (1) 2847
coupon and neither cancelled nor supplemental coupons shall be 2848
permitted; the lowest interest rate specified for any bonds issued 2849
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shall not be less than seventy percent (70%) of the highest 2850
interest rate specified for the same bond issue. 2851
Each interest rate specified in any bid must be in multiples 2852
of one-eighth of one percent (1/8 of 1%) or in multiples of 2853
one-tenth of one percent (1/10 of 1%). The denomination, form and 2854
place or places of payment of such bonds shall be fixed in the 2855
resolution or ordinance of the governing authorities issuing such 2856
bonds. Such bonds shall be executed by the manual or facsimile 2857
signature of the chairman and secretary of such authority, with 2858
the seal of the authority affixed thereto. At least one (1) 2859
signature on each bond shall be a manual signature, as specified 2860
in the resolution. The coupons may bear only the facsimile 2861
signatures of such chairman and secretary. No bonds shall be 2862
issued and sold under the provisions of this chapter for less than 2863
par and accrued interest. 2864
The bonds may be sold at not less than par at public sale 2865
held after notice published once at least five (5) days prior to 2866
such sale in a newspaper having a general circulation in the area 2867
of operation and in a financial newspaper published in the City of 2868
Jackson, Mississippi, or in the City of New York, New York. In 2869
any county where there is no newspaper published or located within 2870
the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 2871
publish notice of such sale on the official county website for the 2872
duration of at least five (5) days prior to such sale. The board 2873
of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure that 2874
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content published online is secure, verifiable and accessible to 2875
the public. Such bonds may be sold at not less than par to the 2876
federal government at private sale without any public 2877
advertisement. 2878
In case any of the commissioners or officers of the authority 2879
whose signatures appear on any bonds or coupons shall cease to be 2880
such commissioners or officers before the delivery of such bonds, 2881
such signatures shall, nevertheless, be valid and sufficient for 2882
all purposes, the same as if such commissioners or officers had 2883
remained in office until such delivery. Any provision of any law 2884
to the contrary notwithstanding, any bonds issued pursuant to this 2885
chapter shall be fully negotiable. 2886
The determination of the authority, in the resolution 2887
authorizing the bonds, as to the classification of the railroad 2888
properties and facilities for which such bonds are authorized and 2889
as to the maximum period of usefulness shall be conclusive in any 2890
action or proceeding involving the validity of such bonds. 2891
SECTION 51. Section 19-31-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2892
amended as follows: 2893
19-31-7. (1) The method for the establishment of a public 2894
improvement district shall be pursuant to an ordinance adopted by 2895
the governing body of each county in which the land is located 2896
granting a petition for the establishment of a public improvement 2897
district. The petition for the establishment of a public 2898
improvement district shall be filed by the petitioner with the 2899
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governing body of the county or counties. The petition shall 2900
contain: 2901
(a) A description of the boundaries of the district; 2902
(b) The written consent to the establishment of the 2903
district by all landowners in the district; 2904
(c) A designation of five (5) persons to be the initial 2905
members of the board of directors, who shall serve in that office 2906
until replaced by elected members as provided in Section 19-31-9; 2907
(d) The proposed name of the district; 2908
(e) A map of the proposed district showing existing 2909
infrastructure, if any; and 2910
(f) Based upon available data, the proposed timetable 2911
for construction of the district services and the estimated cost 2912
of constructing the proposed services. 2913
(2) A public hearing on the petition shall be conducted by 2914
the governing body of each county of the proposed district within 2915
sixty (60) days after the petition is filed unless an extension of 2916
time is requested by the petitioners and granted by the governing 2917
body of each county. The hearing shall be held at an accessible 2918
location in each county in which the public improvement district 2919
is to be located. The petitioner shall cause a notice of the 2920
hearing to be published in a newspaper having general circulation 2921
in each county at least once a week for the four (4) successive 2922
weeks immediately prior to the hearing. In any county where there 2923
is no newspaper published or located within the county, the board 2924
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of supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on the 2925
official county website for the duration of four (4) successive 2926
weeks immediately prior to the hearing. The board of supervisors 2927
shall take appropriate measures to ensure that content published 2928
online is secure, verifiable and accessible to the public. Such 2929
notice shall give the time and place for the hearing, a 2930
description of the area to be included in the district, and any 2931
other relevant information which the establishing governing bodies 2932
may require. The advertisement shall be published in the official 2933
minutes of the local governing body. 2934
(3) The governing body of each county shall consider the 2935
record of the public hearing and any other relevant factors in 2936
making its determination to grant or deny a petition for the 2937
establishment of a public improvement district. 2938
(4) An ordinance establishing a public improvement district 2939
shall include the boundaries of the district, the names of the 2940
five (5) persons designated to be the initial members of the board 2941
of directors of the district and the name of the district. 2942
(5) If all of the land in the area for the proposed district 2943
is within the territorial jurisdiction of a municipality, then the 2944
petition requesting establishment of a public improvement district 2945
under this chapter shall be filed by the petitioner with that 2946
particular municipality. In such event, the duties of the county 2947
with regard to the petition shall be the duties of the 2948
municipality. If any of the land area of a proposed district is 2949
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within the land area of a municipality, the governing body of the 2950
county may not create the district without the approval of the 2951
municipality. 2952
(6) The governing body of any governmental agency, county 2953
and/or municipality may enter into contribution agreements with 2954
the district. 2955
SECTION 52. Section 19-31-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 2956
amended as follows: 2957
19-31-9. (1) The board of the district, or if necessary, 2958
the governing authorities of the municipality in which the 2959
district is contained, shall exercise the powers granted to the 2960
district pursuant to this chapter. The board shall consist of 2961
five (5) members as otherwise provided in this section. Each 2962
member shall hold office for an initial term of six (6) years and 2963
until a successor is chosen and qualifies. The initial members of 2964
the board shall be residents of the state, and at least one (1) of 2965
the initial members shall be either a qualified voter within the 2966
district or an individual resident of the area immediately 2967
adjacent to the district. Upon appointment or election, the board 2968
members shall elect a chair who shall conduct board meetings. 2969
(2) (a) Beginning six (6) years after the initial 2970
appointment of members, the position of each member whose term has 2971
expired shall be filled by a qualified voter of the district, 2972
elected by the qualified voters of the district. There shall be 2973
an election of members every six (6) years from the date of the 2974
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ordinance establishing the district. The district manager shall 2975
determine the date and time of the election, which election must 2976
be held at least twenty (20) days before the anniversary date of 2977
the ordinance establishing the district. If a contribution 2978
agreement exists, then the governing body of the public entity 2979
that is a party to the contribution agreement may appoint one (1) 2980
of the five (5) members to the board of the district at the time 2981
of the election in lieu of electing that member. 2982
(b) Candidates must qualify in writing by submitting a 2983
"Statement of Intent," as prescribed in this paragraph, to the 2984
district manager thirty (30) days before the election. The 2985
district manager shall prepare a ballot of all candidates 2986
qualified to run for office twenty-eight (28) days before the 2987
election. 2988
Statement of Intent 2989
Candidate for (insert name of district) Public Improvement 2990
District 2991
I, (name of candidate as it will appear on the ballot), 2992
(mailing address, street address, city, state, zip code, telephone 2993
number of the candidate), certify that I am a qualified voter, as 2994
defined in Section 19-31-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, of the 2995
(insert name of public improvement district) Public Improvement 2996
District in the State of Mississippi; and I do hereby declare my 2997
candidacy for Board of the (insert name of public improvement 2998
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district) Public Improvement District at the election to be held 2999
on (insert date of election). 3000
____________________________________ 3001
(Signature of candidate) (Date) 3002
Received by _____________________________________________ 3003
(Signature) (Title) (Date) 3004
(c) Notice of the election shall be announced at a 3005
public meeting of the board at least ninety (90) days before the 3006
date of the election and shall be published once a week for two 3007
(2) consecutive weeks in a newspaper which is in general 3008
circulation in the area of the district, the last day of such 3009
publication to be not fewer than fourteen (14) days nor more than 3010
twenty-eight (28) days before the election. In any county where 3011
there is no newspaper published or located within the county, the 3012
board of supervisors shall be authorized to publish such notice on 3013
the official county website for the duration of two (2) 3014
consecutive weeks. The online publication shall be made available 3015
to the public until not fewer than fourteen (14) days nor more 3016
than twenty-eight (28) days prior to the date of the election. 3017
The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures to ensure 3018
that the content published online is secure, verifiable and 3019
accessible to the public. In addition, notice of the election 3020
shall be sent by United States first-class mail, not fewer than 3021
fourteen (14) days before the election, to all qualified voters at 3022
their last-known address as shown on the tax rolls. Instructions 3023
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on how all qualified voters may participate in the election, along 3024
with sample proxies, shall be provided as part of the notice 3025
required by this paragraph, and the location, date and time of the 3026
election shall be included on all instructions and notices. 3027
(d) Each qualified voter shall be entitled to cast only 3028
one (1) ballot to elect each of the board members, regardless of 3029
the number of parcels owned by that voter within the district. 3030
Parcels may not be aggregated for determining the number of 3031
ballots allowed to be cast by a qualified voter. A list of 3032
qualified voters in the form of a voter roll must be kept current 3033
by the district manager and deemed final thirty (30) days before 3034
the election. 3035
(e) A qualified voter may vote in person or by proxy in 3036
writing. A vote cast by proxy must be submitted at or within 3037
fourteen (14) days before the election and must be submitted in 3038
the form prescribed in this section. Each proxy must be signed 3039
by the qualified voter for which the vote is cast and must contain 3040
the typed or printed name of the individual who signed the proxy 3041
and the street address, legal description of the property or the 3042
property's tax parcel identification number. The signature on a 3043
proxy need not be notarized. All votes cast by proxy must be 3044
reflected in the voter roll. 3045
Proxy for Election 3046
(Insert name of district) Public Improvement District 3047
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I,____________________________________, (name of qualified voter); 3048
_________________________________________________(street address); 3049
_____________________________________________ (legal description); 3050
______________________________ (tax parcel identification number). 3051
[NOTE: To be considered, this proxy must contain at least one (1) 3052
of either: the street address; legal description; or tax parcel 3053
identification number.] 3054
1. Do constitute and appoint ______________________ 3055
_____________________ (name), attorney and agent for me, and in my 3056
name, place and stead, to vote as my proxy for the election of 3057
members of the Board of Directors of the (name of district) Public 3058
Improvement District on (insert date), at the (insert voting 3059
location/facility name with street address); OR (only choose one) 3060
2. Do hereby cast my vote for: 3061
______________________________________ [print or type name of 3062
person being voted for – PLEASE NOTE THAT YOUR VOTE MUST BE FOR A 3063
QUALIFIED VOTER (AS DEFINED IN MISSISSIPPI CODE SECTION 19-31-5) 3064
OF THE DISTRICT. A QUALIFIED VOTER MEANS ANY LANDOWNER OF THE 3065
DISTRICT WHO IS AT LEAST EIGHTEEN (18) YEARS OF AGE OR AN 3066
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE LANDOWNER WHO IS ALSO AT LEAST 3067
EIGHTEEN (18) YEARS OF AGE.] to be elected as a member of the 3068
Board of Directors of the (name of district) Public Improvement 3069
District for a term beginning (date of term) and ending six (6) 3070
years from that date or until a successor is chosen. 3071
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I understand that I have the right to revoke this proxy at 3072
any time before the election. I understand that I have the right 3073
to be present in person at the election. 3074
I have executed this proxy on (insert date). 3075
__________________________________ 3076
(Printed Name of Qualified Voter) 3077
__________________________________ 3078
(Signature of Qualified Voter) 3079
(f) A qualified voter may cast only one (1) vote for 3080
each of the five (5) board member positions. When a qualified 3081
voter casts a vote for the same person more than once, only one 3082
(1) of the votes cast for that person will be counted. When a 3083
qualified voter casts more votes to elect board members than he or 3084
she is entitled to cast, all votes are invalid, and the qualified 3085
voter is deemed to have voted for none of them. When a qualified 3086
voter casts fewer votes to elect board members than he or she is 3087
entitled to cast, all votes cast by the qualified voter must be 3088
counted, but no votes shall be counted more than once. 3089
(g) If a board member dies, resigns or otherwise is 3090
prevented from serving as a board member, the board of the 3091
district shall appoint a member to fill the remainder of the board 3092
member's term. If no qualified voter is willing to serve on the 3093
board of the district, the governing body that established the 3094
district shall appoint members as necessary to fill any vacancy 3095
for the remainder of the term. 3096
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(3) Members of the board shall be known as directors and, 3097
upon entering into office, shall take an oath of office. They 3098
shall hold office for the terms for which they were elected or 3099
appointed and until their successors are chosen and qualified. If 3100
during the term of office, a vacancy occurs, the remaining members 3101
of the board shall fill the vacancy by an appointment for the 3102
remainder of the unexpired term. 3103
(4) A majority of the members of the board constitutes a 3104
quorum for the purposes of conducting its business and exercising 3105
its powers and for all other purposes. Action taken by the 3106
district shall be upon a vote of a majority of the members present 3107
unless general law or a rule of the district requires a greater 3108
number. If a quorum cannot be obtained in a board meeting, the 3109
governing body that established the district shall appoint members 3110
as necessary to replace any board member missing three (3) 3111
consecutive meetings. 3112
(5) As soon as practicable after each election or 3113
appointment, the board shall organize by electing one (1) of its 3114
members as chair and by electing a secretary, who need not be a 3115
member of the board, and such other officers as the board may deem 3116
necessary. 3117
(6) The board shall keep a permanent minute book in which 3118
shall be recorded minutes of all meetings, resolutions, 3119
ordinances, proceedings and all corporate acts. 3120
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(7) Members of the board may receive per diem compensation 3121
for services in an amount as provided under Section 25-3-69, and 3122
shall be entitled to expenses necessarily incurred in the 3123
discharge of their duties in accordance with Section 25-3-41. Any 3124
payments for compensation and expenses shall be paid from funds of 3125
the district. 3126
SECTION 53. Section 19-31-23, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 3127
amended as follows: 3128
19-31-23. (1) The district may issue and sell from time to 3129
time bonds, notes, negotiable notes, tax anticipation notes, bond 3130
anticipation notes, other fund anticipation notes, renewal notes, 3131
refunding bonds, interim certificates, certificates of 3132
indebtedness, certificates of participation, debentures, warrants, 3133
commercial paper or other obligations or evidences of indebtedness 3134
to provide funds for and to fulfill and achieve its public purpose 3135
or corporate purposes, as set forth in this chapter, including, 3136
but not limited to, the payment of all or a portion of the costs 3137
of a project, to provide amounts necessary for any corporate 3138
purposes, including incidental expenses in connection with the 3139
issuance of the obligations, the payment of principal and interest 3140
on the obligations of the district, the establishment of reserves 3141
to secure such obligations, and all other purposes and 3142
expenditures of the district incident to and necessary or 3143
convenient to carry out its public functions or corporate 3144
purposes, and any credit enhancement for such obligations. 3145
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(2) Before the issuance of any bonds as authorized under 3146
this chapter, the district shall hold a public hearing on the 3147
advisability of the indebtedness. Notice of the hearing must be 3148
published twice in a newspaper having general circulation in each 3149
county where the district is located. The final publication of 3150
notice must be at least ten (10) days before the public hearing. 3151
In any county where there is no newspaper published or located 3152
within the county, the board of supervisors shall be authorized to 3153
publish such notice on the official county website for the 3154
duration of at least two (2) weeks prior to the date of the public 3155
hearing. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures 3156
to ensure that content published online is secure, verifiable and 3157
accessible to the public. The district shall give, by United 3158
States first-class mail, written notice of the public hearing to 3159
all qualified voters in the district. The notice must be 3160
addressed to "Property Owner" and mailed by United States 3161
first-class mail to the current address of the owner, as reflected 3162
on tax rolls of property located in the district. 3163
(3) (a) If a district proposes to enter into a contribution 3164
agreement with a public entity for any bond issue, the public 3165
entity shall hold a public hearing on the advisability of the 3166
contribution agreement for any bonds the district proposes to 3167
enter. 3168
(b) Notice of the hearing must be published twice in a 3169
newspaper having general circulation in each county where the 3170
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public entity is located. The final publication of notice must be 3171
at least ten (10) days before the public hearing. 3172
(c) The notice must state the following: 3173
(i) Time and place of the hearing; 3174
(ii) General nature of the proposed improvement; 3175
(iii) Estimated cost of the improvement; 3176
(iv) Boundaries of the public improvement 3177
district; 3178
(v) Proposed method of assessment; 3179
(vi) Proposed amount and term of indebtedness; 3180
(vii) Name of the public entity entering into the 3181
contribution agreement; and 3182
(viii) Proposed amount of contribution by the 3183
public entity. 3184
(d) The hearing may be adjourned from time to time 3185
until the governing body of the public entity makes findings by 3186
resolution as to the following: 3187
(i) Advisability of the improvement; 3188
(ii) Nature of the improvement; 3189
(iii) Estimated cost of the improvement; 3190
(iv) Boundaries of the public improvement 3191
district; 3192
(v) Method of assessment; 3193
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(vi) Market value of real property within the 3194
district determined in accordance with paragraph (c) of this 3195
subsection; and 3196
(vii) Terms of the contribution agreement. 3197
(e) As provided in subsection (3)(d)(vi) of this 3198
section, the governing body of the public entity shall obtain an 3199
appraisal in accordance with the Uniform Standards of Professional 3200
Appraisal Practice, with special consideration given to the Income 3201
Approach to Value using a discounted cash flow analysis of the 3202
entire commercial, residential or industrial subdivision. The 3203
appraisal must satisfy all parties to the contribution agreement 3204
that the value of the property in the district will be sufficient 3205
to ensure payment of any obligation to which a public entity is 3206
subject. 3207
(4) Except as may otherwise be provided by the district, all 3208
obligations issued by the district shall be negotiable instruments 3209
and payable solely from the levy of any special assessment by the 3210
district or from any other sources whatsoever that may be 3211
available to the district but shall not be secured by the full 3212
faith and credit of the state or the county or municipality that 3213
created the district. 3214
(5) Obligations shall be authorized, issued and sold by a 3215
resolution or resolutions of the district adopted as provided in 3216
this chapter. Such bonds or obligations may be of such series, 3217
bear such date or dates, mature at such time or times, bear 3218
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interest at such rate or rates, including variable, adjustable, or 3219
zero interest rates, be payable at such time or times, be in such 3220
denominations, be sold at such price or prices, at public or 3221
private negotiated sale, after advertisement as is provided for in 3222
Section 17-21-53(2) for and in connection with any public sale, be 3223
in such form, carry such registration and exchangeability 3224
privileges, be payable at such place or places, be subject to such 3225
terms of redemption and be entitled to such priorities on the 3226
income, revenue and receipts of, or available to, the district as 3227
may be provided by the district in the resolution or resolutions 3228
providing for the issuance and sale of the bonds or obligations of 3229
the district. 3230
(6) The obligations of the district shall be signed by such 3231
directors or officers of the district by either manual or 3232
facsimile signatures as shall be determined by resolution or 3233
resolutions of the district, and shall have impressed or imprinted 3234
thereon the seal of the district or a facsimile thereof. 3235
(7) Any obligations of the district may be validly issued, 3236
sold and delivered notwithstanding that one or more of the 3237
directors or officers of the district signing such obligations or 3238
whose facsimile signature or signatures may be on the obligations 3239
shall have ceased to be such director or officer of the district 3240
at the time such obligations shall actually have been delivered. 3241
(8) Obligations of the district may be sold in such manner 3242
and from time to time as may be determined by the district to be 3243
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most beneficial, and the district may pay all expenses, premiums, 3244
fees or commissions that it deems necessary or advantageous in 3245
connection with the issuance and sale thereof, subject to the 3246
provisions of this chapter. 3247
(9) The district may authorize the establishment of a fund 3248
or funds for the creation of a debt service reserve, a renewal and 3249
replacement reserve or such other funds or reserves as the 3250
district may approve with respect to the financing and operation 3251
of any project and as may be authorized by any bond resolution, 3252
trust agreement, indenture of trust or similar instrument or 3253
agreement pursuant to the provisions of which the issuance of 3254
bonds or other obligations of the district may be authorized. 3255
(10) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, but 3256
subject to any agreement with bondholders or noteholders, monies 3257
of the district not required for immediate use, including proceeds 3258
from the sale of any bonds, notes or other obligations, may be 3259
invested in the following: 3260
(a) Obligations of any municipality, the State of 3261
Mississippi or the United States of America; 3262
(b) Obligations of which the principal and interest are 3263
guaranteed by the State of Mississippi or the United States of 3264
America; 3265
(c) Obligations of any corporation wholly owned by the 3266
United States of America; 3267
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(d) Obligations of any corporation sponsored by the 3268
United States of America which are, or may become, eligible as 3269
collateral for advances to member banks as determined by the Board 3270
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; 3271
(e) Obligations of insurance firms or other 3272
corporations whose investments are rated "A" or better by 3273
recognized rating companies; 3274
(f) Certificates of deposit or time deposits of 3275
qualified depositories of the State of Mississippi as approved by 3276
the State Depository Commission, secured in such manner, if any, 3277
as the commission determines appropriate; 3278
(g) Contracts for the purchase and sale of obligations 3279
of the type described in paragraphs (a) through (e) of this 3280
subsection; 3281
(h) Repurchase agreements secured by obligations 3282
described in paragraphs (a) through (e) of this subsection; and 3283
(i) Money market funds, the assets of which are 3284
required to be invested in obligations described in paragraphs (a) 3285
through (f) of this subsection. 3286
(11) Any cost, obligation or expense incurred for any of the 3287
purposes specified in this chapter shall be a part of the project 3288
costs and may be paid or reimbursed as such out of the proceeds of 3289
bonds or other obligations issued by the district. 3290
(12) Neither the directors of the board nor any person 3291
executing the bonds shall be personally liable for the bonds or be 3292
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subject to any personal liability by reason of the issuance 3293
thereof. No earnings or assets of the district shall accrue to 3294
the benefit of any private persons. However, the limitation of 3295
liability provided for in this subsection shall not apply to any 3296
gross negligence or criminal negligence on the part of any 3297
director or person executing the bonds. 3298
(13) The district may avail itself of the provisions of 3299
Sections 31-13-1 through 31-13-11. 3300
(14) This chapter constitutes full and complete authority 3301
for the issuance of bonds and the exercise of the powers of the 3302
district provided herein. No procedures or proceedings, 3303
publications, notices, consents, approvals, orders, acts or things 3304
by the board or any board, officers, commission, department, 3305
agency or instrumentality of the district, other than those 3306
required by this chapter, shall be required to perform anything 3307
under this chapter, except that the issuance or sale of bonds 3308
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall comply with the 3309
general law requirements applicable to the issuance or sale of 3310
bonds by the district. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed 3311
to authorize the district to utilize bond proceeds to fund the 3312
ongoing operations of the district. 3313
(15) Before incurring any debt as provided in subsection (1) 3314
of this section, the district may, but shall not be required to, 3315
secure an agreement from one or more developers obligating such 3316
developer or developers: 3317
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(a) To effect the completion of all or any portion of a 3318
project at no cost to the district; 3319
(b) To pay all or any portion of the real property 3320
taxes due on the project in a timely manner; and 3321
(c) To maintain and operate all or any portion of the 3322
buildings or other facilities or improvements of the project in 3323
such a manner as to preserve property values. 3324
No breach of any such agreement shall impose any pecuniary 3325
liability upon a district or any charge upon its general credit or 3326
against its taxing powers. 3327
Additionally, the district may enter into an agreement with 3328
the developer under which the developer may construct all or any 3329
part of the project with private funds in advance of issuance of 3330
bonds and may be reimbursed by the district for actual costs 3331
incurred by the developer upon issuance and delivery of bonds and 3332
receipt of the proceeds, conditioned upon dedication of the 3333
project by the developer to the district, a governmental agency, a 3334
county or a municipality to assure public use and access. This 3335
condition shall not apply to the privately owned portion of a 3336
project for which the Mississippi Development Authority has issued 3337
a certificate of convenience and necessity pursuant to the 3338
Regional Economic Development Act. 3339
As used in this section, the term "developer" means any 3340
entity or natural person which enters into an agreement with a 3341
district whereby the developer agrees to construct, operate and 3342
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maintain or procure the construction, operation and maintenance of 3343
a project or projects, or portions thereof, upon land within the 3344
district. 3345
SECTION 54. Section 19-31-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 3346
amended as follows: 3347
19-31-39. (1) The district, or if necessary, the governing 3348
authorities of the municipality in which the district is 3349
contained, may prescribe, fix, establish and collect rates, fees, 3350
rentals or other charges for the facilities and services furnished 3351
by the district, within the limits of the district, including, but 3352
not limited to, recreational facilities, water management and 3353
control facilities and water and sewer systems. The district may 3354
also recover the costs of making connection with any district 3355
facility or system and provide for reasonable penalties against 3356
any user or property for any such rates, fees, rentals or other 3357
charges that are delinquent. 3358
(2) No such rates, fees, rentals or other charges for any of 3359
the facilities or services of the district may be fixed until 3360
after a public hearing at which all the users of the proposed 3361
facility or services shall have an opportunity to be heard 3362
concerning the proposed rates, fees, rentals or other charges. 3363
Notice of such public hearing setting forth the proposed schedule 3364
of rates, fees, rentals and other charges shall be published in a 3365
newspaper having general circulation in each county where the 3366
district is located once at least ten (10) days before such public 3367
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ST: County website; allow counties without
local newspapers to publish certain notices on.
hearing. In any county where there is no newspaper published or 3368
located within the county, the board of supervisors shall be 3369
authorized to publish such notice on the official county website 3370
for the duration at least ten (10) days before such public 3371
hearing. The board of supervisors shall take appropriate measures 3372
to ensure that content published online is secure, verifiable and 3373
accessible to the public. 3374
SECTION 55. This act shall take effect and be in force from 3375
and after July 1, 2026, and shall stand repealed on June 30, 2026. 3376