Bill Text: MS HB403 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Commission on Reviewing the Governance of Sixteenth Section Lands in Mississippi; create.
Sponsorship: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Failed) 2012-03-06 - Died In Committee [HB403 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2012-HB403-Introduced.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2012 Regular Session
To: Appropriations; Education
By: Representatives Brown (66th), Baker
House Bill 403
AN ACT TO CREATE THE COMMISSION ON REVIEWING THE GOVERNANCE OF SIXTEENTH SECTION LANDS IN MISSISSIPPI; TO PROVIDE FOR THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE COMMISSION; TO REQUIRE THE COMMISSION TO CONDUCT A STUDY OF ALL LAWS, REGULATIONS AND OTHER GOVERNING DOCUMENTS RELATING TO SIXTEENTH SECTION AND LIEU LANDS AND TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE LEGISLATURE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. (1) There is created the Commission on Reviewing the Governance of Sixteenth Section Lands in Mississippi. The commission shall be composed of the following twelve (12) members:
(a) The Chairmen of the House and Senate Education Committees;
(b) The Secretary of State, or his designee;
(c) The State Superintendent of Public Education, or his designee;
(d) The State Forester, or his designee;
(e) One (1) school district superintendent having at least five (5) years experience in a school district in which there are situated sixteenth section lands or lieu lands classified and leased as agricultural lands, appointed by the Governor;
(f) One (1) school district superintendent having at least five (5) years experience in a school district in which there are situated sixteenth section lands or lieu lands that are classified and leased other than as agricultural lands, appointed by the Lieutenant Governor;
(g) One (1) school district superintendent having at least three (3) years experience in a school district situated in a Chickasaw cession county, appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
(h) One (1) lessee of sixteenth section or lieu lands, appointed by the Executive Director of the Mississippi Association of School Superintendents;
(i) One (1) lessee of sixteenth section or lieu lands, appointed by the Executive Director of the Mississippi School Boards Association;
(j) One (1) real estate appraiser who has at least five (5) years experience appraising and determining the rental value of sixteenth section lands, appointed by the Chairman of the Mississippi Real Estate Commission; and
(k) One (1) attorney licensed in the State of Mississippi who has substantial experience in the practice of education law, appointed by the Executive Director of The Mississippi Bar.
(2) All appointments to the commission must be made within thirty (30) days after the sine die adjournment of the 2012 Regular Session, and, within fifteen (15) days thereafter on a day to be designated by the Secretary of State, the commission shall meet and organize by selecting from its membership a chair and a vice chair. The vice chair shall also serve as secretary and shall be responsible for keeping all records of the commission. A majority of the members of the commission constitutes a quorum. In the selection of its officers and conducting business, an affirmative vote of a majority of the commission is required. All members must be notified in writing of all meetings; notice of each meeting must be mailed at least fifteen (15) days before the date on which a meeting is to be held.
(3) The commission shall conduct a thorough study and review of the laws relating to sixteenth section and lieu lands, including, but not limited to:
(a) The provisions of the Mississippi Constitution of 1890 relating to sixteenth section lands;
(b) The provisions of Chapter 3, Title 29, Mississippi Code of 1972, and any other state statutes which govern sixteenth section and lieu lands;
(c) Any rules, regulations, policies or other governing documents of the Secretary of State which relate to sixteenth section and lieu lands; and
(d) Any rules, regulations, policies or other governing documents of the State Board of Education which relate to sixteenth section and lieu lands.
The commission, in its discretion, also may review such policies or practices that may be in effect in local school districts relating to the control, management and leasing of sixteenth section and lieu lands and to the funds derived from those lands.
At least one (1) meeting of the commission must be a public hearing at which public comments will be received from sixteenth section leaseholders, superintendents and school board members in districts in which sixteenth section and lieu lands are situated, and all other parties having an interest in the management and leasing of sixteenth section and lieu lands.
(4) Members of the commission who are not legislators, state officials or state employees must be compensated at the per diem rate authorized by Section 25-3-69 and reimbursed in accordance with Section 25-3-41 for mileage and actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties. Legislative members of the commission must be paid from the contingent expense funds of their respective houses in the same manner as provided for committee meetings when the Legislature is not in session. However, no per diem or expense for attending meetings of the commission may be paid to legislative members while the Legislature is in session. No commission member may incur per diem, travel or other expenses unless previously authorized by vote at a meeting of the commission, which action must be recorded in the official minutes of the meeting.
(5) The Secretary of State shall make available, from among employees of the Office of Secretary of State, clerical, legal and such other staff as may be necessary to assist the commission in carrying out its duties. To effectuate the purpose of this act, upon the request of the chairman of the commission, any department, division, board, bureau, commission or agency of the state or of any political subdivision of the state shall provide to the commission such facilities, assistance and data that will enable the commission to properly carry out its task.
(6) The commission shall prepare and submit a report on its findings and recommendations, including any recommended legislation, to the Legislature before December 31, 2012. Upon presentation of the report, the commission shall be dissolved.
(7) This section shall stand repealed from and after January 1, 2013.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.
