.. ~ .-. -. I ~mn~~is~ippi ~tat.e ~etude COMMITTEF. ASSJGNMEI'ITS: SENATOR EUGENE S. CLARKE Lcgislacive Budgcc Commilt« Mislissippi Home Corporucion Ovcr.ight Commit~ APiuopriolions, Olainman :!2nd District Ac.-;ountabilily, Efficiency 1111d 1'ruJupar01K)' St•cc .nd School Employ«> Heal~• lnaunllCI> BOMt BolivKr- Humphreys- Sharkcy­ Agriculcurc Wireless Communicotion Commt..ion Washinj!ton- Yazoo Countic$ Congn:ssiunal Redisrriccing Economic Dcvelopmenc P.O. Box 373 Housing Hollandale, Mi~sissippi 38741\ ln.sur.utcc Phone: 662-827-5685 Judiciary A Lcgis~civc Rcapponionmcm Porn and MArine RcsoureeJ April28, 2016 Secr~tary Delbert Hosemarm 125 S. Congress St. P.O. Box 136 Ja~.:k.son, MS 39205 Secretary Hosemann, In a recent letter to Governor Phil Bryant, your Chief of Staff Doug Davis made several assertions regarding Senate Bill 2362 and House Bill 878 passed during the 2016 legislative session. In the letter, Mr. Davis identifies eleven sources of funds the Secretary of State intends to draw down in order to meet the $18,000,000 transfer requirement ofT-louse Bill 878. In e-ach section, he lists services and local tumbacks that may be effected due to these pieces of legislation. Unfortunately, Mr. Davis is mistaken as tu the impact of these bills. We hope this letter will clarify any misunderstanding you have regarding these new laws: I. $2,689,459 Elections Support Fund- The Secretary's request for authority to divert $1,21 5,000 from for FY20 17 was fully funded in SB2916. This transfer will have no effect on coumies or municipalities. 2. $1,936,543 Public Trust Tidelands Assessment Fund - Because the Secretary of State's Office views this fund as an off budget fund, there was no request of the Legislature for authority to spend from this account. The account is listed in I-IB 878 only to give the Secretary of State the option to draw ti·om this fund to make his $18,000,000 transfer. 3. $3,021,111 Land Records Maintenance Fund- The Secreta1y's req\test for $500,000 for the reimbursement of tax forfeited land was appropriated in SB 2916. 4. $1,172,312 Securities Enforcement Fund -In SB 2916, the Legislature gives the Secretary of State ample authority to spend money in defense of those that have fallen victim to securities fraud . Furthermore, as a result of SB 2362, the Secretary of State now has the option to use the legal services of the Attorney General at no cost 10 the agency. ~--••••••' EXHIBIT 17 Slate Copllol: Post Omcc Bo>: 1018 • Jnrlt~on, MS 39215-10'18 • P: 601·359-3250 • F: 601·359-5110 • E-m~tll : [email protected] 5. $1,593,971 Point Cadet Leasing Fund- Similar to the Public Trust Tidelands Assessment Fund, the Secretary of State views this fund as an off budget fund that does not require additional authority from which to spend. 6. $4,845 Mississippi Autism Fund- This is a new account under the Secretary of State's purview. There has been very little activity within this account. 7. $220,431 Regulation and Enforcement Fund- This account collects fees and fines from various sources. In FY 2016, the Secretary of State spent $0 from this account. 8. $1,248,215 Help Mississippi Vote Fund-The Secretary of State bas been using this fund to pay down debt Wld interest on a bond note that is expected to be paid off in FY 20,27. Becaus~ the Secretary of State did not ask for authority to spend money to pay this note, it was not appropriated. ... 9. $169,954 Pre-Need Contract Loss Recovery Fund- The Secretary of State views this as another off budget fund. Generally speaking, ~he Legislature pays settlements on an "as incurred" basis. For ex.amgle, the Legislature a{lprnpriates_settlements-for-wrongful.-------1---~ incarceration victims every year in the form of a de~cit. j 10. $335~976 Voter ID Litigation Fund- The State is np·longer being sued as a result of our l ~ID~ . i 1,' 11. $5,607,183 Secretary of State's Operating Fund-'fhe Secretary of State shall no longer have to turn funds back to the General Fund. That has always been the purpose of the Secretary of State •s Operating Fund. Upon further analysis by our staff~ we believe that you will collect an additional $7 million dollars in the final quarter of the year. This conservative estimate is based on prior year collections. If this estimate holds true, your office will have generated over $42 million in revenue this year. The cost of running your agency has never cost more than $20 million. In fact, on average it costs $15.2 million (average of actual spending 2009-2016). We hope this letter provides you with some insight on how your agency can be run in a more transparent manner. It has always been our belief that as elected officials, we·owe.the taxpayers of this state a government fuat. operates in an effi~ient manner that does not over charge for services and provides an environment conducive to owning and operating a business. Senator Buck Clarke Representative!UJ~ Herb Frierson '' cc: Governor Phil Bryant Lieutenant Governor Reeves Speaker Phillip Gunn Kevin Upchurch, Executive Director~ Department of Finance and Ad,ministration Lanelle G. Martin~ President, Mississippi Circuit Clerks Association Derrick Surrette, Executive Director, Mississippi Association of Supervisors Jamie Miller, Executive Director, Department of Marine Resources Mayor Andrew Glitc~ City of Biloxi President Rodney Bennett, University of Southern Mississippi Shari Veazey, Executive Director, Mississippi Municipal League Shay Chedotal, Executive Director~ Mississippi Cemetery Association Glenn Boyce, Commissioner, Institutions· of Higher Learnfug Van Lowery, President, Election Commissioners Association of Mississippi Senator Brice Wiggins Senator Michael Watson --------------~S~e.ruUuL~mLTindell ___________________________________________________ Senator Tommy Gollott Representative Manly Barton Representative Richard Bennett Representative Charles Busby Representative Carolyn Crawford Representative Scott DeLano Representative Casey Eure Representative Jeffrey Guice Representative Greg Haney Representative Timmy Ladner · Representative Randall H. Patterson Representative John 0'. Read • Representative Patricia H. Willis Representative H.B. 1'Hank" Zuber .