April 2011

CHANCERY CLERKS

Funds paid by private parties to the clerks of the circuit or chancery courts, pursuant to orders of such courts for the purpose of paying other private parties at a later date, are private funds and are not required by Section 27-105-5 to be collateralized. (Carr, 4/29/2011)(#041)(OP-11-00158)

CIRCUIT CLERKS

The Mississippi Legislature has provided no exemption from the performance of election related duties by circuit clerks during election cycles in which the clerks are candidates for re-election. (Brister, 4/8/2011)(#042)(OP-11-00124)

CONSTABLE

Whether or not a constable can arrest a guard for refusing to allow the constable on the premises of the business to serve a garnishment must be determined on a case by case basis. (Coleman, 4/1/2011)(#045)(OP-11-00069)

COUNTY SOIL CONSERVATION DIST

The fees county surveyors are authorized to collect are those established in Section 27-3-37. As provided in Section 27-3-1, there is no authority for the county surveyor to be paid more than what is provided in Section 27-3-37. (White, 4/15/2011)(#054)(OP-11-00126)

CONVICTS-COUNTY-MUNICIPAL

Medical bills incurred after a municipal prisoner is bound over to the ground jury are the responsibility of the County. (Whitlock, 4/1/2011)(#046)(OP-11-00064)

CRIMINAL LAWS

Pursuant to Section 23-21-7(11) of the Mississippi Code a municipal court may impose a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or six months imprisonment, or both, for contempt. (Nowak, 4/4/2011)(#057)(OP-11-00104) If a county jail houses municipal prisoners the sheriff may work the municipal prisoners on the county work crew only if the municipality has a contract with the county which provides that the sheriff may work municipal prisoners on the county work crew. (Arnold, 4/1/2011)(#057)(OP-11-00098)

DISTRICT ATTORNEYS

A district attorney may dispose of obsolete or non-functioning equipment in any manner deemed appropriate provided he determines, consistent with the facts, that the value of such equipment is zero. (Berry, 4/29/2011)(#059)(OP-11-00164)

ELECTIONS

Boards of Supervisors are authorized to compensate members of the resolution board for performance of their duties and to attend poll manager training. (Daughdrill, 4/15/2011)(#068)(OP-11-00134) If a person registers to vote less than thirty (30) days before a general or primary election but more than thirty (30) days before the runoff associated with the general or primary election, he or she is not a qualified elector at the time of the runoff. Thus, the said person would not be eligible to cast a ballot in the runoff and have his or her ballot counted. (Hillman, 4/1/2011)(#072)(OP-11-00061)

INTERLOCAL AGREEMENTS

The amendment to the Interlocal Cooperation Agreement between the City of Brandon and Rankin First Economic Development Authority is approved. (Baker, 4/8/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00118) Interlocal Cooperative Agreements between Sunflower County and cities/towns of Ruleville for funding under the PSIC Grant to fund interoperable radio communications between local public safety agencies is approved. (McWilliams, 4/28/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00173) Interlocal Cooperative Agreements between Sunflower County and cities/towns of Moorhead for funding under the PSIC Grant to fund interoperable radio Communications between local public safety agencies is approved. (McWilliams, 4/28/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00174) Approval of Interlocal Agreement between Jackson County Board of Supervisors and City of Gautier concerning road improvement projects. (Parker, 4/4/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00138) Interlocal Cooperative Agreements between Sunflower County and cities/towns of Indianola for funding under the PSIC Grant to fund interoperable radio communications between local public safety agencies is approved. (McWilliams, 4/28/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00172) Interlocal Cooperative Agreements between Sunflower County and cities/towns of Inverness for funding under the PSIC Grant to fund interoperable radio communications between local public safety agencies is approved. (McWilliams, 4/28/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00175) Interlocal Cooperative Agreements between Sunflower County and cities/towns of Sunflower for funding under the PSIC Grant to fund interoperable radio communications between local public safety agencies is approved. (McWilliams, 4/28/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00177) Approval of Interlocal Agreement between Jackson County Board of Supervisors and City of Pascagoula concerning use of county owned real property by the city for recreational purposes. (Parker, 4/20/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00103) The Interlocal Cooperation Agreement between the City of Madison, Mississippi and Madison County for TIF Project (Madison Station) is approved. (Wall, 4/7/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00147) Interlocal Cooperative Agreements between Sunflower County and cities/towns of Drew for funding under the PSIC Grant to fund interoperable radio communications between local public safety agencies is approved. (McWilliams, 4/28/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00176) Approval of Interlocal Agreement between City of Southaven and Horn Lake Creek Watershed Drainage District concerning drainage construction project at DeSoto Woods Subdivision. (Neyman, 4/20/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00121) Interlocal Agreement between Lee County and the City of Tupelo to provide funding for a tree planting project on the property of the Tupelo Regional Airport is approved. (Muse, 4/29/2011)(#277)(OP-11-00180)

LIBRARIES

Offering use of the library's public meeting room after library operating hours constitutes a special library service, thus authorizing the library to charge a fee for use of the room. (Powell, 4/8/2011)(#106)(OP-11-00117) There is no statutory impediment to a library system operating a branch library in a room leased by the municipality which is a member of the library system. (Powell, 4/8/2011)(#106)(OP-11-00116)

MUNICIPALITIES

Section 17-19-1 authorizes the city to make funds available to the planning and development district for a four-year tuition guarantee program for city residents, as long as such funds are available and are not required for any other purpose. (Mitchell, 4/1/2011)(#141)(OP-11-00078) If a municipality with a population less than 10,000 elects not to have a municipal court prosecutor it remains the duty of the municipality to prosecute appeals from municipal court. (Bowen, 4/1/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00115) A municipality may adopt an ordinance regulating the hours of the sale of light wine and beer, pursuant to Section 67-3-65, provided that such ordinance does not run afoul of Section 67-3-53(a). The matter of issuing permits for the sale of light wine and beer is strictly within the jurisdiction of the State Tax Commission, in accordance with Section 67-3-1-, et seq. (Barton, 4/29/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00162) While there is no specific statutory provision addressing the consequences of a failure to attend a meeting, a municipality may adopt an order which authorizes the municipality to deduct a certain amount from the monthly pay of an alderman who fails to attend a meeting. (Burnside, 4/15/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00129) A city clerk may serve as the secretary to the civil service commission, provided that he/she does so without receiving additional compensation for performing such duties. (St. Pe, 4/22/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00146) Municipal governing authorities may make expenditures, subject to certain limitations, to advertise and bring into favorable notice the opportunities, possibilities and resources of the municipality. The governing authorities may also contribute or expend funds in support of economic development organizations or a program of the Main Street Project, a non-profit organization. (Barton, 4/22/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00149) While a municipality may terminate a utility service for nonpayment of a just bill such authority is specific to the unpaid service, regardless of the manner in which the municipality bills for its services. (Murdock, 4/15/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00135) Whether the subject business warrants the procurement of a privilege license or a transient vendor license is a determination to be made by the granting authority. If the municipal tax collector determines that the subject business is conducting business for less than six months, the business owner should obtain a transient vendor license, provided that the business does not qualify for one of the exemptions enumerated in Mississippi Code Annotated Section 75-85-3. (Mullings, 4/22/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00141) In light of the board's statutory responsibility to hire and fire, the board of aldermen is entitled to and should insist on access to information, including personnel records, so that it may make an informed decision regarding the conduct of city business. Barring some municipal procedure dictating otherwise, the board of aldermen may request information pertinent to its statutory duties directly from the custodian of the records. Such access to information is not limited to a specific disciplinary action. Access to any information that the board considers to be pertinent to the fulfillment of its statutory responsibility should be granted. (St. Pe, 4/29/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00128) There is no statutory prohibition barring a municipality from making a refund to a customer for erroneously-paid charges made to the municipality. (Taylor, 4/29/2011)(#142)(OP-11-00153) Neither a municipality nor a county may enact an ordinance assessing fees for police or fire response to a motor vehicle accident absent specific statutory authority. (Tollison, 4/22/2011)(#142C)(OP-11-00076)

RETIREMENT-PUBLIC EMPLOYEES

A retiree, who is reemployed under the provisions of Section 25-11-127, must pay the full cost of the retiree's health insurance premium. (Smith, 4/15/2011)(#170)(OP-11-00113)

SCHOOLS

Section 37-9-14 does not provide a statutory duty for school district superintendents relating to the recovery of the local maintenance funds for 30-mile rule transfers. Although Section 37-151-93 mandates the payment of the local maintenance funds to the transferee school district for student transfers granted under the thirty-mile rule, it does not address the obligation of the superintendent of the transferee district to recover the funds or how this obligation is enforced. The school district could bring suit to recover these funds pursuant to 37-151-93. (Covington, 4/15/2011)(#180)(OP-11-00108) The Town of Tremont does not have the power to prohibit an out-of-state school bus from running routes in Mississippi. (McCrory, 4/8/2011)(#180)(OP-11-00018) The Town of Tremont has no authority to prohibit an out-of-state-school bus from running routes in Mississippi. (Floyd, 4/8/2011)(#180)(OP-11-00025) Section 7-7-43 of the Mississippi Code prohibits a school district from issuing a warrant to a district employee, who is indebted to the district, and allows the employee/debtor a credit on the debt. This prohibition, of course, presupposes the existence of a lawful debt to the school district. (Lamar, 4/8/2011)(#182)(OP-11-00110) The Superintendent of the school district has the ultimate responsibility to take down, record and transcribe the minutes of the school board, and to keep and preserve them in the form adopted by the board. Of course he may, in his discretion, delegate to other school district employees the ministerial tasks involved in doing so. (O'Reilly, 4/1/2011)(#198)(OP-11-00102)

SUPERVISORS

There is no authority to close the courthouse for a festival if the county has already substituted one of the statutory holidays in Section 3-3-7. (White, 4/14/2011)(#220)(OP-11-00140) Marion County is responsible for paying invoices from a local ambulance service for transporting deceased persons from the place of death to the local morgue at the direction of the county coroner, but the county would be entitled to seek reimbursement for those expenses from the estate and/or the appropriate insurer. (Shepard, 4/1/2011)(#220)(OP-11-00101) The county must follow the procedures outlined in 65-7-121 in order to declare abandoned a portion of the county road leading to and from an old bridge. Upon abandonment of the roadway easement, the successors in interest of the original grantor of the easement, or from whom the easement was acquired by prescription, will own the property in fee simple, unencumbered by the easement. (White, 4/14/2011)(#231)(OP-11-00127)

TAXES

Where a for-profit corporation leases real property owned by the University of Southern Mississippi, the corporation's leasehold interest is subject to ad valorem taxation. The land assessment roll should reflect both the name of the University as owner of the underlying real property and the corporation as holder of the leasehold interest. The taxes assessed on the leasehold interest operate as a lien against the leasehold interest, not the underlying real property owned by the University, such that the leasehold interest may be sold for delinquent taxes. (Miller, 4/8/2011)(#242)(OP-11-00111) Section 27-31-104 of the MS Code provides that project must have a minimum capital investment of one hundred million dollars ($100,000,000) to qualify for a fee-in-lieu of taxes. The fee-in-lieu is negotiated and given final approval by the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA). Whether a company has met the required one hundred million dollar investment is a factual determination for MDA. (Andrews, 4/29/2011)(#242)(OP-11-00131) Where a refund is due to approximately 6000 taxpayers from the Landfill Fund, rather than issue a direct refund, the county can reduce the General Fund levy charged to those taxpayers for the next fiscal year, and then reimburse the General Fund from the Landfill Fund. (Younger, 4/8/2011)(#254)(OP-11-00123) Where property was erroneously assessed for two years as if a house were on the property, when in fact the house had burned, Neshoba County is authorized pursuant to Mississippi Code Section 27-73-7 to refund the difference in the amounts collected and the correct amount, subject to the three-year statute of limitations. (White, 4/22/2011)(#254)(OP-11-00151) Neshoba County is not authorized under 27-73-7 to refund a mortgage company for taxes it paid on the wrong parcel. (White, 4/21/2011)(#254)(OP-11-00152)

UTILITY DISTRICTS

The Pearl River County Utility Authority (1) is subject to the provisions of Section 25-15-101 et sq. with regard to group health insurance and (2) is authorized, but not required, to seek coverage for its employees under PERS. (Diamond, 4/22/2011)(#266A)(OP-11-00136)