Statewide Economic Development and Planning Act

Miss. Code Ann. tit. 57, ch. 63
in effect

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-1 Short title.

This chapter may be cited as the “Statewide Economic Development and Planning Act of 1987.”

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-3 Legislative findings and declarations.

The Legislature finds that the prospective well-being of the people of the State of Mississippi requires that the economic development of the state should be strategically, comprehensively and exhaustively planned and that the plan be reviewed and continuously updated and systematically implemented. The Legislature further finds that the state should foster open communication between government and the private sectors of our economy and that the state should provide a policy, a vision and a framework to encourage an environment conducive to entrepreneurship and rapid development in the State of Mississippi. The Legislature hereby declares that the public policy of this state requires an overall, comprehensive and coordinated plan for maximum and accelerated economic development of the state. It is the express intent of the Legislature that such plan be developed and maintained with annual revisions as required. There is hereby established within the University Research Center a Bureau for Comprehensive Long Range Economic Development Planning. The bureau shall be responsible for preparing and maintaining with appropriate annual updates a long range plan for the economic development of the state. The plan shall be sufficiently broad in scope so as to address all state, national and international economic, finance and demographic, natural resource and infrastructure factors relating to the overall status and economic development of the state.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-5 and 57-63-7. Repealed.

Repealed by Laws, 1988, ch. 518, § 95, eff from and after July 1, 1988. § 57-63-5 . [Laws, 1987, ch. 484, § 3] § 57-63-7 . [Laws, 1987, ch. 484, § 4] Editor’s Notes — Former § 57-63-5 specified powers of the board of economic development. Former § 57-63-7 required the matching of funds to be expended, and that the board of economic development act to secure funding for the special development task force.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-9 Status reports from Bureau of Economic Development Planning.

In an effort to facilitate continuing and future legislative support for long range economic development planning, the Bureau for Economic Development Planning shall present status reports on its work, as it relates to the purpose and requirements of this chapter, to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, thereby having an opportunity to interact with legislative leaders and maintain and foster communication and cooperation between all parties. The Director of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee shall coordinate the scheduling of said reports and may specify selected topics for presentation to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee. Such reports shall begin with the month of July 1987; and there shall be a minimum of three (3) reports to the committee in each fiscal year. The Director of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee may require such reports to be made orally and/or in writing to regular meetings of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-11 Special task force for economic development planning created; composition; appointment of members; organization.

The Special Task Force for Economic Development Planning, to consist of not more than twenty-three (23) members, is hereby created. The task force shall be composed of: One (1) member from the state’s public universities and one (1) member from the state’s junior colleges. These members shall be selected by the Governor. One (1) member from the membership or staffs of each of the following organizations: Mississippi Association of Supervisors, Mississippi Municipal Association, Mississippi Association of Planning and Development Districts, and the Mississippi Industrial Development Council. These members will be appointed to the task force by the Governor from recommendations made to the board by the respective organizations. The President of the Mississippi Economic Council. The State Superintendent of Education. The State Treasurer. The Executive Officer of the State Board of Health. The Director of the State Highway Department. The Governor’s Special Assistant for Economic Development. The Executive Director of the Department of Economic Development or his designee. Two (2) members from federal agencies to be appointed by the Governor. Eight (8) members to be selected by the Governor as follows: Six (6) members shall be representatives of business and/or professional enterprises in Mississippi; two (2) of the eight (8) members may be representative of business or professional enterprises residing outside Mississippi and may include foreign nationals. It is the intent of the Legislature that the task force will be organized, selected and constituted in such a way that it represents the most talented individuals that could possibly be assembled to address the economic development concerns and issues of this state. Task Force members shall be appointed by July 1, 1987, and the Task Force shall have its organizational meeting no later than August 1, 1987. The Governor shall designate from the task force membership a task force chairman. Terms of service of task force members shall coincide with the remaining term of the Governor who makes the appointment.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-13 Qualifications of members of task force; vacancies; support staff; coordination and organization of work.

All persons selected for service on the task force shall be creative, knowledgeable and accomplished people with the capacity to contribute to the mission of the task force. Task force members shall be selected by the Governor without regard for race, age or sex. Vacancies on the task force shall be filled by the Governor in a manner consistent with original appointments. The University Research Center through the Bureau for Comprehensive Long Range Economic Development Planning shall provide staff support, including the task force coordinator, to the task force and shall organize and coordinate the work of the task force and may designate subgroups of task force members to assigned or selected areas of interest.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-15 Task force office.

The Governor’s Office of General Services shall make available office space for the special task force to include conference room facilities.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-17 Mission and role of task force; budget.

The mission and role of the special task force shall be to function as an independent research and analytical group charged with assisting the University Research Center in setting measurable, achievable and significant state economic development goals. The task force shall make recommendations regarding such goals and present findings and detailed recommendations which will enable the state to achieve the stated goals. Recommendations of the task force shall be specific to the extent that actions needed are explicitly set out and supported with in-depth analyses as to the contributions such actions would have on the total development of the state. All such recommendations shall be accompanied by specific recommendations with respect to allocation of resources, including any additional funding necessary to fund all economic development activities. The task force may adopt a budget for its operations and, subject to approval of such budget by the University Research Center, the center may contract with the task force to defray expenses of the task force.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-19 State economic development action plan (SDAP); preparation.

With research and recommendations prepared by the task force, the Bureau of Comprehensive Long Range Economic Development Planning of the University Research Center shall prepare a long range state economic development action plan which shall consist of six (6) parts as provided in Sections 57-63-21 through 57-63-31 and which shall be revised and updated annually by the bureau.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-21 Contents of SDAP; Part I.

Part I of the economic development plan will identify specific, quantifiable state economic development goals to be accomplished in the next succeeding five (5), ten (10) and twenty (20) year periods. Prior to adopting the goals required for Part I of the plan, one (1) public hearing shall be held in each Planning and Development District (PDD) in coordination with the Director of each PDD and the Department of Economic Development to receive public input on the goal setting process and deliberations pertaining thereto. The goals adopted by the Bureau of Long Range Planning shall be reasonable, challenging, achievable and shall be expressed in measures of economic and educational achievement that would represent measurable, comparative and significant economic progress for the state.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-23 Contents of SDAP; Part II.

Part II of the economic development plan shall include: An inventory and analysis of the state’s competitive advantages and an inventory and analysis of factors which tend to retard economic development in Mississippi; Identification and analysis of state, national and international economic trends affecting Mississippi’s economic development; An analysis and evaluation of the state’s taxing effort as it affects the state’s economic development efforts and an analysis of how economic development goals and objectives relate to projected short and long-term state and local revenues and to the possible and potential impact on the revenue structure; An identification and analysis of key factors affecting economic development in the state; An identification and analysis of factors affecting industrial location and decisions affecting expansion of existing business and industry within the state; An analysis of the state’s incentive programs and economic development strategies and a comparison with other states; An analysis of the state’s work force and of the economic conditions that work force will face in future years; An analysis of and assessment of the minority business and commercial activity, capability, potential and needs in the state; An analysis of and assessment of the state income by various income groups to provide the analytical base for developing programs and recommendations to address low income high unemployment problems in the state as required by Section 57-63-27; An analysis and assessment of programs in other states and in the federal government which seek to foster, encourage and assist minority involvement in and contributions toward state economic development. The programs to be assessed shall include but not be limited to set aside procurement programs.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-25 Contents of SDAP; Part III.

Part III of the economic development plan shall provide a procedure for monitoring the implementation of the state’s economic development efforts. In formulating this procedure, the University Research Center will survey, identify and analyze every government program and private resource and activity that is available to, that is being applied toward, or that contributes to the accomplishment of the goals set in the long range plan. The resources and economic development activities (programs) of state government, local government, federal government and private business shall be identified and analyzed to determine the specific areas in which they contribute to achievement of the overall goals. The planning and development districts shall be utilized fully in determining the goals established herein and shall be the primary source of information and evaluation as to local and regional economic priorities as well as the identification and reporting of local governments and local and regional private business resources available for the accomplishment of such goals. Each agency and institution of state government involved in economic development, including the Institute for Technology Development and the state universities and junior colleges, is hereby directed to prepare and submit to the Department of Economic Development, the University Research Center and the Legislative Budget Committee work programs covering their economic development activities. The University Research Center shall specify a uniform format for agencies to follow in preparing their work programs. These work programs shall cover in general the next five (5) years of the plan and, in significant detail, the upcoming fiscal year. With each annual work program for the upcoming fiscal year, each agency shall make a full report on accomplishments of its previous year’s work program. Work programs shall be submitted by August 15, 1987, for fiscal year 1988 by those agencies identified by the Department of Economic Development as being required to submit work programs in accordance with this chapter. Work programs submitted August 15, 1987, shall report on accomplishments of the prior fiscal year’s work in economic development activities. The work program for fiscal year 1989, and for succeeding years, shall be submitted on June 1 prior to the beginning of the ensuing fiscal year. The state long range plan shall require copies of the overall economic development plans from each of the ten (10) planning and development districts to be submitted annually to the University Research Center along with annual work programs and details of accomplishments of the prior fiscal year’s work program. These materials shall be incorporated by reference in Part III of the plan.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-27 Contents of SDAP; Part IV.

Part IV of the economic development plan shall be an analysis and evaluation of materials in Parts II and III of the plan. This phase of the plan shall also make an overall evaluation of the relative contributions that the resources and efforts identified in Part III are making toward achievement of the overall state economic development goals. This phase of the plan shall contain specific recommendations for inclusion in the state’s overall economic development efforts (among other things) (a) specific programs for accelerating overall economic development through greater results from the state’s agricultural resources; (b) specific programs for rural areas of the state and those areas and identifiable groups of people with the highest unemployment and lowest per capita incomes; (c) specific programs for international trade and the attraction of foreign investment through development of specialized, university-based or other programs; (d) the specific niches that Mississippi has and on which it should focus development efforts and/or those niches the state should seek to develop; (e) the scope and role of each university and junior college with respect to economic development efforts of each institution; and (f) specific minority enterprise assistance and development programs that would be needed and recommended as a result of the analyses required by Section 57-63-23. This phase of the plan shall also evaluate the organization and structure of state economic development agencies and the assignment of functions and responsibilities for economic development among state agencies and institutions.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-29 Contents of SDAP; Part V.

Part V of the economic development plan shall consist of recommendations. Such recommendations shall be based on Part IV of the plan and shall seek to improve in every possible and feasible manner the coordination and implementation of all activities and programs to be outlined and identified as required in Part III of the plan. The plan shall make recommendations regarding new initiatives and new programs and the alteration or expansion of existing programs as deemed necessary to achieve the goals established. Such recommendations shall state specifically what is to be done, who is to do it and how it is to be done and shall also set out the cost-benefits of each recommendation. The University Research Center, in consultation with the task force and the Department of Economic Development shall develop a legislative package containing statutory actions required to implement the programs and recommendations necessary to achieve the goals established in the state long range plan for economic development. The legislative package shall be prepared and presented in bill format.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-31 Repealed.

Repealed by Laws, 1988, ch. 518, § 95, eff from and after July 1, 1988. [Laws, 1987, ch. 484, § 16]

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-33 Annual revisions of SDAP; presentation to Legislature.

The University Research Center shall present the annual revisions of the plan to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee prior to the annual budget hearings and discuss with the joint committee Parts III, IV and V. The presentation shall review the established goals and report and assess progress for the current reporting period of achieving official goals and make recommendations for any program changes that might be needed. Additional reports shall be made to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee as requested and as required by Section 57-63-9. Copies of the plan shall also be presented to the Department of Economic Development, the planning and development districts, and other appropriate agencies and organizations.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-35 Annual request for summary of development efforts of local governments.

The University Research Center shall annually request of the Mississippi Municipal Association and the Mississippi Association of Supervisors a summary of development efforts of local governments that relate to the overall state plan and which contribute to the accomplishment of the goals set by the plan.

Miss. Code Ann. § 57-63-37 Completion date for first annual SDAP; date for presentation of SDAP to Legislature; dates for presentation of preliminary reports to Legislature.

The first annual economic development plan shall be completed no later than December 1, 1988. The Department of Economic Development with assistance of the University Research Center shall present the first annual plan to the Governor, the joint Legislative Budget Committee and to the Legislature by January 1989. A preliminary report on the status of the plan shall be made to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee in November 1987 and in July 1988.

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