Mississippi Code 1972 (2023) › Title 37 - EDUCATION (§§ 37-NEW-001 — 37-NEW01-004) › Chapter 151 - MISSISSIPPI ACCOUNTABILITY AND ADEQUATE EDUCATION PROGRAM ACT OF 1997 (§§ 37-151-1 — 37-151-215) › [MISSISSIPPI STUDENT FUNDING FORMULA] (§§ 37-151-200 — 37-151-215) › Section 37-151-211 - [Tax assessors to report property values to help determine local school funding contributions]

(1)
(a)
Before February 1 of each year, the tax assessor of each county shall file reports with the State Department of Education which provide information essential to the department in determining the local contribution that each school district or charter school is required to provide toward the cost of local school funding. A separate report must be filed for each school district or part of a school district situated in the county and must include the following information:
(i)
The total assessed valuation of nonexempt property for school purposes in each school district;
(ii)
Assessed value of exempt property owned by homeowners aged sixty-five (65) or older or disabled, as defined in Section
27-33-67(2)
;
(iii)
The school district's tax loss from exemptions provided to applicants under the age of sixty-five (65) and not disabled, as defined in Section
27-33-67(1)
; and
(iv)
The school district's homestead reimbursement revenues.
(b)
The State Department of Education shall prepare and make available to the tax assessor of each county a form for the reports required under paragraph (a) of this subsection (1)(a).
(2)
(a)
The department shall use the information submitted pursuant to subsection (1) to calculate and certify to each school district the millage required to raise its minimum local tax effort, which must be the value of not less than twenty-eight (28) mills for the then current fiscal year or a millage rate equivalent to twenty-seven percent (27%) of the total funding formula funds for the school district, any charter schools, and any Mississippi Achievement School District Schools located in its boundaries, whichever is a lesser amount as certified to the school district by the department, upon all of the taxable property of the school district, including the following sources:
(i)
One hundred percent (100%) of Grand Gulf income, as prescribed in Section
27-35-309
; and
(ii)
One hundred percent (100%) of any fees in lieu of taxes, as prescribed in Section
27-31-104
, in accordance with Section
37-57-1
.
(b)
The department shall determine the local contribution of each school district or charter school based on the minimum local tax effort, as determined under paragraph (a), and shall certify this required local contribution to each school district or charter school, as follows:
(i)
For school districts in which there are no charter schools, the minimum local tax effort is the required local contribution for the school district.
(ii)
For school districts in which there is located one or more charter schools, the local contribution of the school district is the product of multiplying the local pro rata amount by the net enrollment of the school district. The department will calculate the local pro rata amount by dividing the school district's minimum local tax effort by the sum of the net enrollment of the school district, as determined by Section
37-151-207
, and the projected enrollment of charter school students, as specified in Section
37-151-207
, who reside or are estimated to reside in the district, but excluding from this projected enrollment any resident students who are projected to transfer from the district to a charter school after the calculation of the district's net enrollment, so as not to double-count those students.
(iii)
For each charter school, the local contribution is the sum of the local pro rata amount for each charter school student, as determined by Section
37-151-207
, based on each student's district of residence. The department will calculate a local pro rata amount for each school district in which a student projected to attend the charter school resides or is estimated to reside using the methodology in subparagraph (ii) of this paragraph (b).
(iv)
In the case of an agricultural high school, the local contribution is based on an equitable amount per pupil, as determined by the State Board of Education. The State Board of Education shall set the millage requirement to generate such an amount and will certify this amount and millage requirement to agricultural high schools in the same manner as for all other school districts under this subsection.
(3)
Except as otherwise provided in Section
37-151-213(1)
, the required state share in support of each school district and charter school is determined by subtracting the required local contribution, which total amount may not exceed twenty-seven percent (27%) of the total projected funding formula cost, from the total projected funding formula cost, as determined under this act, for the school district or charter school.
(4)
If the school board of any school district or charter school governing board determines that it is not economically feasible or practicable to operate any school within the district or charter school for the full one hundred eighty (180) days required for the school term of a scholastic year under Section
37-13-63
, due to an enemy attack, man-made, technological, or natural disaster in which the Governor has declared a disaster emergency under the laws of this state or the President of the United States has declared an emergency or major disaster to exist in this state, the school board or charter school governing board may notify the State Department of Education of the disaster and submit a plan for altering the school term. If the State Board of Education finds the disaster to be the cause of the school not operating for the contemplated school term and that the school is located in a school district covered by the Governor's or President's disaster declaration, the board may permit the schools located in that district to be operated for less than one hundred eighty (180) days and, in such case, the State Department of Education may not reduce the state share in support of the funding formula for that district or charter school because of the failure to operate those schools for one hundred eighty (180) days.
Added by Laws, 2024, ch. 484, HB 4130,§ 7, eff. 7/1/2024.