Mississippi Code 1972 (2023) › Title 37 - EDUCATION (§§ 37-NEW-001 — 37-NEW01-004) › Chapter 57 - TAXATION (§§ 37-57-1 — 37-57-133) › ADDITIONAL TAX LEVY TO SUPPORT SCHOOL DISTRICTS' EXPENDITURES (§§ 37-57-101 — 37-57-108) › Section 37-57-105 - Authorization and procedure for levy

(1)
In addition to the taxes levied under Section
37-57-1
, the levying authority for the school district, as defined in Section
37-57-1
, upon receipt of a certified copy of an order adopted by the school board of the school district requesting an ad valorem tax effort in dollars for the support of the school district and any charter schools located in the district, shall, at the same time and in the same manner as other ad valorem taxes are levied, levy an annual ad valorem tax in the amount fixed in such order upon all of the taxable property of such school district, which shall not be less than the millage rate certified by the State Board of Education as the uniform minimum school district ad valorem tax levy required for the support of the total funding formula as required by this act in such school district under Sections 37-57-1 and 37-151-211. However, any school district levying less than the uniform minimum school district ad valorem tax levy on July 1, 1997, shall only be required to increase its local district maintenance levy in four (4) mill annual increments in order to attain such millage requirements. In making such levy, the levying authority shall levy an additional amount sufficient to cover anticipated delinquencies and costs of collection so that the net amount of money to be produced by such levy shall be equal to the amount which is requested by the school board. The proceeds of such tax levy, excluding levies for the payment of the principal of and interest on school bonds or notes and excluding levies for costs of collection, shall be placed in the school depository to the credit of the school district and shall be expended in the manner provided by law for the purpose of supplementing teachers' salaries, extending school terms, purchasing furniture, supplies and materials, and for all other lawful operating and incidental expenses of such school district .
The monies authorized to be received by school districts from the School Ad Valorem Tax Reduction Fund pursuant to Section
37-61-35
shall be included as ad valorem tax receipts. The levying authority for the school district, as defined in Section
37-57-1
, shall reduce the ad valorem tax levy for such school district in an amount equal to the amount distributed to such school district from the School Ad Valorem Tax Reduction Fund each calendar year pursuant to Section
37-61-35
. Such reduction shall not be less than the millage rate necessary to generate a reduction in ad valorem tax receipts equal to the funds distributed to such school district from the School Ad Valorem Tax Reduction Fund pursuant to Section
37-61-35
. The millage levy certified by the State Board of Education as the minimum tax levy shall be subject to the provisions of this paragraph.
In any county where there is located a nuclear generating power plant on which a tax is assessed under Section
27-35-309(3)
, such required levy and revenue produced thereby may be reduced by the levying authority in an amount in proportion to a reduction in the base revenue of any such county from the previous year. Such reduction shall be allowed only if the reduction in base revenue equals or exceeds five percent (5%). "Base revenue" shall mean the revenue received by the county from the ad valorem tax levy plus the revenue received by the county from the tax assessed under Section
27-35-309(3)
and authorized to be used for any purposes for which a county is authorized by law to levy an ad valorem tax. For purposes of determining if the reduction equals or exceeds five percent (5%), a levy of millage equal to the prior year's millage shall be hypothetically applied to the current year's ad valorem tax base to determine the amount of revenue to be generated from the ad valorem tax levy. For the purposes of this section and Section
37-57-107
, the portion of the base revenue used for the support of any school district shall be deemed to be the aggregate receipts from ad valorem taxes for the support of any school district. This paragraph shall apply to taxes levied for the 1987 fiscal year and for each fiscal year thereafter. If the Mississippi Supreme Court or another court finally adjudicates that the tax levied under Section
27-35-309(3)
is unconstitutional, then this paragraph shall stand repealed.
The State Department of Education shall calculate a local pro rata amount for the aggregate receipts of the tax levied in this section by dividing the aggregate receipts by the sum of the school district's net enrollment, as determined under Section
37-151-211
, and the net enrollment of any charter school students who reside in the district.
(2)
When the tax is levied upon the territory of any school district located in two (2) or more counties, the order of the school board requesting the levying of such tax shall be certified to the levying authority of each of the counties involved, and each of the levying authorities shall levy the tax in the manner specified herein. The taxes so levied shall be collected by the tax collector of the levying authority involved and remitted by the tax collector to the school depository of the home county to the credit of the school district involved as provided above, except that taxes for collection fees may be retained by the levying authority for deposit into its general fund.
(3)
The aggregate receipts from ad valorem taxes levied for school district purposes, excluding collection fees, pursuant to this section and Section
37-57-1
shall be subject to the increased limitation under Section
37-57-107
; however, if the ad valorem tax effort in dollars requested by the school district for the fiscal year exceeds the next preceding fiscal year's ad valorem tax effort in dollars by more than four percent (4%) but not more than seven percent (7%), then the school board shall publish notice thereof once each week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper having general circulation in the school district involved, with the first publication thereof to be made not less than fifteen (15) days prior to the final adoption of the budget by the school board. If at any time prior to the adoption a petition signed by not less than twenty percent (20%) or fifteen hundred (1500), whichever is less, of the qualified electors of the school district involved shall be filed with the school board requesting that an election be called on the question of exceeding the next preceding fiscal year's ad valorem tax effort in dollars by more than four percent (4%) but not more than seven percent (7%), then the school board shall, not later than the next regular meeting, adopt a resolution calling an election to be held within such school district upon such question. The election shall be called and held, and notice thereof shall be given, in the same manner for elections upon the questions of the issuance of the bonds of school districts, and the results thereof shall be certified to the school board. The ballot shall contain the language "For the School Tax Increase Over Four Percent (4%)" and "Against the School Tax Increase Over Four Percent (4%)." If a majority of the qualified electors of the school district who voted in such election shall vote in favor of the question, then the stated increase requested by the school board shall be approved. For the purposes of this paragraph, the revenue sources excluded from the increased limitation under Section
37-57-107
shall also be excluded from the limitation described herein in the same manner as they are excluded under Section
37-57-107
.
Laws, 1983, ch. 471, § 23; Laws, 1986, ch. 492, § 163; Laws, 1987, ch. 307, § 23; Laws, 1987, ch. 507, § 12; Laws, 1987, ch. 520, § 2; Laws, 1989, ch. 510, § 5; Laws, 1990, ch. 495, § 2; Laws, 1992, ch. 419, § 27; Laws, 1994, ch. 581, § 54; Laws, 1997, ch. 612, § 23; Laws, 2002, ch. 551, § 4, eff. 7/1/2002 (date bill became law without the Governor's signature).
Amended by Laws, 2024, ch. 484, HB 4130,§ 12, eff. 7/1/2024.