Appropriation; Employment Security, Department of.

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To: Appropriations
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Hopson, DeBar, Frazier, Boyd,
DuPree, Sparks, Williams

SENATE BILL NO. 3064
(As Sent to Governor)

AN ACT MAKING AN APPROPRIATION OF SPECIAL FUNDS TO DEFRAY THE 1
EXPENSES OF THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT SECURITY FOR 2
FISCAL YEAR 2027. 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 4
SECTION 1. The following sum, or so much thereof as may be 5
necessary, is appropriated out of any money in the State General 6
Fund not otherwise appropriated, for the purpose of defraying the 7
expenses of the Mississippi Department of Employment Security for 8
the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, and ending 9
June 30, 2027.................................. $ 1,800,000.00. 10
SECTION 2. The following sum, or so much thereof as may be 11
necessary, is hereby appropriated out of any money in the State 12
Treasury to the credit of the Mississippi Department of Employment 13
Security, or its successor, for the purpose of defraying the 14
expenses incurred by said department for the fiscal year beginning 15
July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027......... $ 138,324,669.00. 16
SECTION 3. Of the funds appropriated under the provisions of 17
this act, not more than the following amount of funds, with the 18
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exception of the provisions in this section, shall be expended 19
only for "Personal Services," which includes "Vacancy Funding," 20
for the following authorized number of employment headcount: 21
FUNDING: 22
General Funds: $ 0.00 23
Special Funds: $ 30,416,489.00 24
Total Funds: $ 30,416,489.00 25
PERSONAL SERVICES: 26
Employee Salaries, Wages and 27
Fringe Benefits: $ 29,247,313.00 28
Progressions: $ 0.00 29
Vacancy Funding: $ 1,169,176.00 30
Total Personal Services: $ 30,416,489.00 31
AUTHORIZED HEADCOUNT: 32
Permanent: 384 33
Time-Limited: 46 34
As used in this section, the term "Personal Services" shall 35
mean funds provided under the major object of expenditure category 36
Personal Services for Salaries, Wages, and Fringe Benefits. Funds 37
in this category shall not be transferred to any other category. 38
It is the intention of the Legislature to ensure compliance 39
with the Variable Compensation Plan, as outlined in Section 40
25-9-147, Mississippi Code of 1972. Payment from these funds 41
shall be in accordance with the Variable Compensation Plan 42
promulgated by the Mississippi State Personnel Board. It is the 43
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Legislature's intention that no employee's salary falls below the 44
minimum salary established by the Mississippi State Personnel 45
Board. 46
The State Personnel Board shall determine and publish the 47
projected annual cost of "Personal Services" based on monthly and 48
year-to-date payroll expenditures in compliance with the 49
provisions of this act. 50
With the funds herein appropriated, it shall be the agency's 51
responsibility to ensure that no single personnel action or 52
combination of personnel actions, when annualized, exceeds the 53
Fiscal Year 2027 appropriation for "Personal Services" with the 54
exception of escalated funds. Further, it shall be the agency's 55
responsibility to ensure that funds required to be appropriated 56
for "Personal Services" for Fiscal Year 2028 do not exceed Fiscal 57
Year 2027 funds appropriated for that purpose unless programs or 58
positions are added to the agency's Fiscal Year 2027 budget by the 59
Mississippi Legislature. 60
If, at the time the agency takes any action to change 61
"Personal Services," the State Personnel Board determines that the 62
agency has taken or will take an action that would cause the 63
agency to exceed the funds appropriated in this act when 64
annualized for Fiscal Year 2027 or increase the need for "Personal 65
Services" for Fiscal Year 2028, when annualized, the State 66
Personnel Board shall process no salary actions until such time as 67
the requirements of the provisions of this section are met with 68
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the exception of new hires determined to be essential for the 69
agency. 70
When used in this section, "Vacancy Funding" shall mean funds 71
included in the Total Personal Services amount listed above and 72
designated for approved vacancies in Fiscal Year 2027. These 73
funds are to be utilized to increase the number of filled 74
headcounts that were authorized but unfilled as of the last day of 75
Fiscal Year 2026. If the agency fills additional headcounts after 76
March 1, 2026, until the end of Fiscal Year 2026, the amount of 77
available Vacancy Funding may be proportionally adjusted to 78
reflect the updated number of filled headcounts. The agency shall 79
be responsible for ensuring that "Vacancy Funding" is used to 80
increase headcounts and not for promotions, title changes, 81
in-range salary adjustments, or any other mechanism for increasing 82
salaries for current employees. 83
Any transfers or escalations shall be made in accordance with 84
the terms, conditions, and procedures established by law or 85
allowable under the terms set forth within this act. The State 86
Personnel Board shall not escalate positions or increase the 87
Personal Services total without written approval from the 88
Department of Finance and Administration. The Department of 89
Finance and Administration shall not provide written approval to 90
escalate any funds for salaries and/or headcounts without proof of 91
availability of new or additional funds above the appropriated 92
level. Unless specifically noted, all Fiscal Year 2026 escalated 93
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headcounts have been accounted for and shall be converted to 94
authorized time-limited headcounts. 95
No general funds authorized to be expended herein shall be 96
used to replace federal funds and/or other special funds used for 97
salaries authorized under the provisions of this act and which are 98
withdrawn and no longer available. 99
None of the funds herein appropriated shall be used in 100
violation of the Internal Revenue Service's Publication 15-A 101
relating to the reporting of income paid to contract employees, as 102
interpreted by the Office of the State Auditor. 103
If the agency's total authorized headcount decreases from 104
Fiscal Year 2026 to Fiscal Year 2027, it will be the agency's 105
discretion as to what headcounts are removed. 106
SECTION 4. Of the funds appropriated under the provisions of 107
Section 2 of this act, the following sum shall be derived from 108
money in the Unemployment Trust Fund, made available to this state 109
under Section 903 of the Social Security Act, as amended (42 USCA 110
Section 1103), to the Mississippi Department of Employment 111
Security to be deposited in the Employment Security Administration 112
Fund and used by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security 113
for the following purposes: 114
(a) Payment of various One-Stop Administration expenses 115
that support the service delivery of employment and workforce 116
information services. This includes, but is not limited to, the 117
following activities: 118
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(i) Staff for delivery of reemployment services to 119
UI claimants, including group job search assistance and 120
staff-assisted referrals to jobs. 121
(ii) Equipment and resources for resource rooms. 122
(iii) Payment for rent, utilities and maintenance 123
of facilities, including common spaces such as resource rooms, 124
reception areas, conference areas, etc. 125
(iv) Payment of shared costs for operation of 126
local One-Stop Career Centers, including payment for One-Stop 127
operators. 128
(v) Purchase of computer equipment, network 129
equipment, telecommunications equipment, application development 130
and other technology resources. 131
(vi) Training, technical assistance, and 132
professional development of staff who deliver employment and 133
workforce information services. 134
(vii) Access Improvement costs for individuals 135
with disabilities, including remodeling or retrofitting One-Stop 136
Career Centers and purchasing appropriate software, hardware, 137
furniture and supplies. 138
(b) Administration of the Unemployment Compensation 139
(UC) law and its public employment service (ES) offices. This 140
includes, but is not limited to, the following uses: 141
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(i) ES and UI automation. This includes 142
purchases, modifications, or automation of computer-related 143
systems and related costs. 144
(ii) UI and ES Performance Improvement costs. 145
(iii) Fraud and Abuse Reduction costs. 146
(iv) UI Claims Filing and Payment Methods 147
Improvement costs. 148
(v) Under the direction of the Bureau of Building, 149
Grounds and Real Property Management to acquire lands and 150
construct buildings thereon or improve existing buildings to be 151
used as offices. The funds in this section are authorized for the 152
fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027...... 153
............................................... $ 33,047,000.00. 154
The funds authorized in this section shall be requisitioned 155
by the Mississippi Department of Employment Security from the 156
Unemployment Trust Fund maintained by the Secretary of the 157
Treasury of the United States as needed for the payment of 158
obligations incurred under this appropriation, and such monies 159
shall be deposited in the Employment Security Administration Fund 160
in accordance with the provisions of Section 71-5-457, Mississippi 161
Code of 1972. 162
SECTION 5. It is the intention of the Legislature that 163
whenever two (2) or more bids are received by this agency for the 164
purchase of commodities or equipment, and whenever all things 165
stated in such received bids are equal with respect to price, 166
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quality and service, the Mississippi Industries for the Blind 167
shall be given preference. A similar preference shall be given to 168
the Mississippi Industries for the Blind whenever purchases are 169
made without competitive bids. 170
SECTION 6. Of the funds appropriated in Section 1 of this 171
act, an amount not to exceed One Million Four Hundred Thousand 172
Dollars ($1,400,000.00) is authorized for the Mississippi 173
Integrated Education and Workforce State Longitudinal Data System 174
(SLDS). 175
SECTION 7. Of the funds appropriated in Section 1 of this 176
act, Four Hundred Thousand Dollars ($400,000.00) is provided to 177
the Mississippi Department of Employment Security for the purpose 178
of providing administrative support to the Office of Workforce 179
Development. 180
SECTION 8. It is the intention of the Legislature that the 181
Mississippi Department of Employment Security and the Office of 182
Workforce Development shall maintain complete accounting and 183
personnel records related to the expenditure of all funds 184
appropriated under this act and that such records shall be in the 185
same format and level of detail as maintained for Fiscal Year 186
2026. It is further the intention of the Legislature that each 187
agency's budget request for Fiscal Year 2028 shall be submitted to 188
the Joint Legislative Budget Committee in a format and level of 189
detail comparable to the format and level of detail provided 190
during the Fiscal Year 2027 budget request process. 191
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SECTION 9. In addition to all other funds appropriated 192
herein, the following sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary, 193
is appropriated out of any money in the State General Fund, not 194
otherwise appropriated, for the purpose of defraying the expenses 195
of the Office of Workforce Development for the fiscal year 196
beginning July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027.................. 197
............................................... $ 20,538,015.00. 198
SECTION 10. In addition to all other funds appropriated 199
herein, the following sum, or so much thereof as may be necessary, 200
is hereby authorized for expenditure out of any special source 201
funds which are collected by or otherwise become available to the 202
Office of Workforce Development for support of workforce programs, 203
grants, and other similar activities for the fiscal year beginning 204
July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2027......... $ 70,270,000.00. 205
SECTION 11. Of the funds appropriated in Section 9 of this 206
act, Four Million One Hundred Thirty-eight Thousand Fifteen 207
Dollars ($4,138,015.00) is authorized for defraying the operating 208
expenses of the Office of Workforce Development. 209
SECTION 12. In compliance with the "Mississippi Performance 210
Budget and Strategic Planning Act of 1994," it is the intent of 211
the Legislature that the funds provided herein shall be utilized 212
in the most efficient and effective manner possible to achieve the 213
intended mission of the Office of Workforce Development. Based on 214
the funding authorized, this agency shall make every effort to 215
attain the targeted performance measures provided below: 216
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FY2027 217
Performance Measures Target 218
Talent Solutions 219
Number of jobs retained or upskilled through 220
workforce initiatives 2,000 221
Percentage of trainees employed in 222
a related field 60.00 223
Growth in priority occupation workforce 224
training capacity (seats) 250 225
Career Coaching & K12 Pipeline Development 226
Number of students participating in 227
priority occupation work-based learning 1,000 228
Number of students completing priority 229
workforce credentials prior to 230
graduation 3,000 231
Number of students exposed to priority 232
occupations (grades 8–12) 30,000 233
System Operations & Accountability 234
Average time from service/training 235
request to launch (days) 90 236
A reporting of the degree to which the performance targets 237
set above have been or are being achieved shall be provided in the 238
agency's budget request submitted to the Joint Legislative Budget 239
Committee for Fiscal Year 2028. 240
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SECTION 13. Of the funds appropriated in Sections 11 of this 241
act, funds are provided to the Office of Workforce Development to 242
coordinate workforce development programs at the Mississippi 243
Department of Corrections pursuant to Section 47-5-541, 244
Mississippi Code of 1972. 245
SECTION 14. Of the funds appropriated in Section 9 of this 246
act, Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) is provided to 247
the Office of Workforce Development for recurring costs of the 248
Information Management and Financial Tracking System to enhance 249
the tracking of funding provided for workforce development and 250
provide data outcomes reports on active workforce training 251
programs and participants. 252
SECTION 15. Of the funds appropriated in Section 9 of this 253
act, Fifteen Million Six Hundred Thousand Dollars ($15,600,000.00) 254
is authorized for operating the Career Coaching Program at the 255
Office of Workforce Development. 256
SECTION 16. Of the funds appropriated in Section 9 of this 257
act, Three Hundred Thousand Dollars ($300,000.00) is provided for 258
the purpose of providing funding to a nationally recognized 259
nonprofit organization with a proven track record of serving as a 260
partner with Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) by providing 261
students in grades 6-12 with financial literacy and workforce 262
readiness curriculum and programming in support of Mississippi 263
schools. This curriculum may be taught by volunteer teachers 264
pursuant to Section 37-7-301, Mississippi Code of 1972. 265
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SECTION 17. Unless otherwise specifically appropriated for 266
that purpose by the Legislature, none of the funds authorized in 267
Section 10 of this act shall be used for operational expenditures 268
of the Office of Workforce Development except for reasonable 269
administrative fees for grant oversight as provided by law. 270
SECTION 18. Of the funds appropriated in Section 10 of this 271
act, the Office of Workforce Development is authorized to expend 272
up to Three Million One Hundred Sixty-nine Thousand Eight Hundred 273
Fifty Dollars ($3,169,850.00) from the State Workforce Investment 274
Funds from the State Workforce Investment Board, collected 275
pursuant to Section 71-5-353, Mississippi Code of 1972. 276
SECTION 19. Of the funds appropriated under the provisions 277
of Section 10 of this act, the Office of Workforce Development is 278
authorized to expend up to Twenty-five Million Dollars 279
($25,000,000.00) from the Mississippi Works Fund collected 280
pursuant to Section 71-5-353, Mississippi Code of 1972. 281
SECTION 20. Of the funds appropriated in Section 10 of this 282
act, The Office of Workforce Development is authorized to expend 283
up to Forty Million Dollars ($40,000,000.00) from the Mississippi 284
Workforce Enhancement Training Fund, collected pursuant to Section 285
71-5-353, Mississippi Code of 1972, and used exclusively for 286
workforce training. It is the intention of the Legislature that 287
the Workforce Enhancement Training Fund shall have not less than 288
Two Million Dollars ($2,000,000.00) set aside as a carry-forward 289
to begin the Fiscal Year 2028 Workforce Education Program. 290
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SECTION 21. Of the funds appropriated in Section 10 of this 291
act, Seven Hundred Thousand One Hundred Fifty Dollars 292
($700,150.00), or so much thereof as may be necessary, shall be 293
derived out of any money in the State Treasury to the credit of 294
the Project Poppy Fund, as created in Section 57-1-631, 295
Mississippi Code of 1972, and allocated in a manner as determined 296
by the Treasurer's Office. These funds are provided to expedite 297
the services needed for Project Poppy. 298
SECTION 22. Of the funds appropriated in Section 10 of this 299
act, a sum not to exceed Two Hundred Thousand Dollars 300
($200,000.00) is made available for Pathways2Possibilities from 301
the Mississippi Works Fund collected pursuant to Section 71-5-353, 302
Mississippi Code of 1972. 303
SECTION 23. Of the funds appropriated in Section 10 of this 304
act, a sum not to exceed One Hundred Thousand Dollars 305
($100,000.00) is made available for the Area Development 306
Partnerships from the Mississippi Works Fund collected pursuant to 307
Section 71-5-353, Mississippi Code of 1972. 308
SECTION 24. It is the intention of the Legislature that the 309
funds herein appropriated shall be expended in compliance with 310
Section 27-104-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, that no state agency 311
shall incur obligations or indebtedness in excess of their 312
appropriation and that the responsible officers, either personally 313
or upon their official bonds, shall be held responsible for 314
actions contrary to this provision. 315
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SECTION 25. Of the funds appropriated under the provisions 316
of Section 10, Four Hundred Thousand Dollars ($400,000.00), or so 317
much thereof, shall be derived out of any money in the State 318
Treasury to the credit of the Education Enhancement Fund, as 319
created in Section 27-103-303, Mississippi Code of 1972, and 320
allocated in a manner as determined by the State Treasurer. This 321
appropriation is made for the Skills Foundation. 322
SECTION 26. Of the funds appropriated in Section 19 of this 323
act, a sum not to exceed Three Hundred Thousand Dollars 324
($300,000.00) is made available for the Mississippi Office of 325
Apprenticeship, as created in House Bill 1696, 2026 Regular 326
Legislative Session, from the Mississippi Works Fund collected 327
through Section 71-5-353, Mississippi Code of 1972. 328
SECTION 27. The following sum, or so much thereof as may be 329
necessary, is reappropriated out of any money in the Capital 330
Expense Fund not otherwise appropriated, for the Office of 331
Workforce Development for the purpose of reauthorizing the 332
expenditure of Capital Expense Funds as authorized in Senate Bill 333
No. 2012, 2025 First Extraordinary Session provided to Save the 334
Children for workforce development and other educational programs 335
for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 336
2027.............................................. $ 75,000.00. 337
Notwithstanding the amount reappropriated under the 338
provisions of this section, in no event shall the amount expended 339
exceed the unexpended balances as of June 30, 2026. In addition, 340
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this reappropriation shall not change the purpose for which the 341
funds were originally authorized. 342
SECTION 28. Of the funds appropriated under the provisions 343
of Section 10 of this act, One Million Dollars ($1,000,00.00) 344
shall be derived from the Opioid Settlement Fund as created in 345
Section 27-103-305, Mississippi Code of 1972, these abatement 346
funds are to fund a pilot program to support a recovery-to-work 347
initiative administered by the Office in coordination with drug 348
courts, treatment providers, and organizations providing recovery 349
housing and supportive services. 350
SECTION 29. As a condition of receiving and expending the 351
funds appropriated to the Office of Workforce Development under 352
Section 28 of this act, a recipient designated under this section 353
shall certify in writing and under oath to the Office that no 354
contract of compensation dependent on the success or failure of 355
legislation or executive action prohibited under Section 5-8-13, 356
Mississippi Code of 1972, has been entered into by the recipient, 357
with any individual or entity, in pursuance of such funding. None 358
of the funds appropriated by this act shall be disbursed to a 359
recipient or used by a recipient who fails to make such 360
certification or is found to be in violation of such 361
certification. 362
SECTION 30. The money herein appropriated shall be paid by 363
the State Treasurer out of any money in the State Treasury to the 364
credit of the proper fund or funds as set forth in this act, upon 365
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ST: Appropriation; Employment Security,
Department of.
warrants issued by the State Fiscal Officer; and the State Fiscal 366
Officer shall issue his warrants upon requisitions signed by the 367
proper person, officer or officers, in the manner provided by law. 368
SECTION 31. This act shall take effect and be in force from 369
and after July 1, 2026. 370