2022 Priority Bills
Each year, The Parents’ Campaign closely monitors and takes a position on several education bills. Below are the priority bills for the 2022 legislative session.
Law
House Bill 530 – Strategically Accelerating the Recruitment and Retention of Teachers (START) Act of 2022, adjusts salary schedule for teachers as follows: increases starting salary for certified teachers to $43,000, beginning in 2022-2023 school year; increases salary for all certified teachers an average of $4,500, beginning in 2022-2023 school year; provides annual step increases, which range from $135 to $794 based on years of experience and certification level; increases base salary for assistant teachers by $2,000 from current $15,000 to $17,000, beginning in 2022-2023 school year.
- Referred to House Appropriations Committee, 1/11/2022
- Passed by House Appropriations Committee, 1/11/2022
- Passed by House; 114 yeas, 6 nays, 2 absent, 1/12/2022 See vote
- Referred to Senate Education and Appropriations Committees, 1/20/2022
- Amended by Senate Education Committee to insert teacher pay raise language of SB 2444 with the addition of a pay increase of $2,000 (over two years) for assistant teachers, 3/1/2022
- Passed by Senate Education Committee as amended, 3/1/2022
- Passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 3/1/2022
- Passed by Senate; 52 yeas, 0 nays, 0 absent, 3/2/2022 See vote
- Returned to House for concurrence, 3/2/2022
- House declined to concur, invited conference, 3/3/2022
- House conferees named: Bennett, McCarty, Felsher, 3/4/2022
- Senate conferees named: DeBar, Bryan, Hopson, 3/7/2022
- Conference report filed; provides for an average pay increase of $5,140 in a new salary schedule for certified teachers and a $2,000 increase for assistant teachers, 3/16/2022
- Conference report adopted by Senate; 51 yeas, 0 nays, 1 absent, 3/17/2022 See vote
- Conference report adopted by House; 117 yeas, 5 nays, 0 absent, 3/22/2022 See vote
- Sent to Governor (due from Governor 3/30), 3/24/2022
- Approved by Governor, 3/30/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a yea vote on this bill.
House Bill 531 – Mississippi Tax Freedom Act of 2022, makes sweeping changes to the state’s revenue system, including the elimination of income tax; revenue loss estimated to be $1.5-billion (a quarter of current General Fund revenue) annually on full implementation; could trigger massive budget cuts to public education and other essential state services.
- Referred to House Ways and Means Committee, 1/11/2022
- Passed by House Ways and Means Committee, 1/11/2022
- Passed by House; 97 yeas, 12 nays, 11 present/not voting, 2 absent, 1/12/2022 See vote
- Referred to Senate Finance Committee, 1/28/22
- Amended by Senate Finance Committee with a strikeall to eliminate 4% bracket of state income tax and additional changes; revenue loss estimated to be $439-million annually on full implementation, 3/14/2022
- Passed by Senate Finance Committee as amended, 3/14/2022
- Passed by Senate; 34 yeas, 16 nays, 2 absent, 3/15/2022 See vote
- Held by Senate on motion to reconsider, 3/16/2022
- Motion to reconsider tabled, 3/17/2022
- Returned to House for concurrence, 3/17/2022
- House declined to concur, invited conference, 3/18/2022
- House conferees named: Lamar, Steverson, Massengill, 3/22/2022
- Senate conferees named: Harkins, Hopson, Johnson, 3/24/2022
- Conference report filed; eliminates 4% bracket of state income tax; phases in a reduction of 5% bracket to 4%; revenue loss estimated to be $524-million annually on full implementation, 3/26/2022
- Conference report adopted by House; 92 yeas, 24 nays, present/not voting 6, 3/27/2022 See vote
- Conference report adopted by Senate; 40 yeas, 10 nays, 2 present/not voting, 3/27/2022 See vote
- Sent to Governor (due from Governor 4/5), 3/30/2022
- Approved by Governor, 4/5/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
HB 1600 – appropriation for pre-k through grade 12 public schools
- Referred to House Appropriations Committee, 2/14/2022
- Passed by House Appropriations Committee, 2/15/2022
- Passed by House, 2/17/2022
- Referred to Senate Appropriations Committee, 2/23/2022
- Amended and passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 3/14/2022
- Passed by Senate, 3/15/2022
- Returned to House for concurrence, 3/16/2022
- House declined to concur, invited conference, 3/17/2022
- House conferees named: Read, Bennett, Eure, 3/22/2022
- Senate conferees named: Hopson, DeBar, McCaughn 3/22/2022
- Placeholder conference report filed, 3/26/2022
- Conference report recommitted by House for further work, 3/27/2022
- Conference report recommitted by Senate for further work, 3/27/2022
- Conference report #2 filed, 4/4/2022
- Conference report adopted by House, 4/4/2022
- Conference report adopted by Senate, 4/4/2022
- Sent to Governor (due from Governor 4/25), 4/7/2022
- Approved by Governor, 4/19/2022
HB 1685 – Pregnancy Resource Act; includes separate statute providing millions in tax credits for donations to private schools
- Referred to House Ways and Means Committee, 2/21/2022
- Passed by House Ways and Means Committee, 2/22/2022
- Passed by House, 2/22/2022
- Referred to Senate Finance Committee, 2/24/2022
- Passed by Senate Finance Committee, 3/14/2022
- Passed by Senate, 3/15/2022
- Returned to House for concurrence, 3/16/2022
- House declined to concur, invited conference, 3/17/2022
- House conferees named: Lamar, Massengill, Yancey, 3/22/2022
- Senate conferees named: Harkins, Fillingane, Boyd, 3/24/2022
- Conference report filed, 3/26/2022
- Conference report recommitted by House, 3/27/2022
- Conference report recommitted by Senate, 3/27/2022
- Conference report #2 filed, 3/27/2022
- Conference report #2 recommitted by House, 3/28/2022
- Conference report #2 recommitted by Senate, 3/28/2022
- Conference report #3 filed; increases funding for private school vouchers by $1-million for a total of $9-million, allows private schools to receive up to $405,000 in taxpayer funds per school annually beginning in 2023, with no restrictions on expenditure of funds and no reporting requirements, 3/29/2022
- Conference report #3 adopted by Senate, 3/30/2022 See vote
- Conference report #3 adopted by House, 3/30/2022 See vote
- Held by Senate on motion to reconsider, 3/30/2022
- Motion to reconsider tabled, 4/1/2022
- Sent to Governor (due from Governor 4/23), 4/6/2022
- Signed by Governor, 4/21/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
SB 2430 – brings forward Public School Building Fund statute for possible amendments.
- Referred to Senate Education and Appropriations Committees, 1/17/2022
- Committee substitute with reverse repealer passed by Senate Education Committee, 1/26/2022
- Passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 2/1/2022
- Passed by Senate, 2/10/2022
- Referred to House Education and Appropriations Committees, 2/15/2022
- Amended by House Education Committee to create Educational Facilities Revolving Loan Fund to assist public schools and community and junior colleges with capital improvements; says Legislature shall appropriate $200-million to the revolving loan fund for FY2023, 2/24/2022
- Passed by House Education Committee as amended, 2/24/2022
- Passed by House Appropriations Committee, 3/1/2022
- Passed by House, 3/9/2022
- Returned to Senate for concurrence, 3/10/2022
- Senate declined to concur, invited conference, 3/16/2022
- Senate conferees named: DeBar, Blount, Johnson, 3/17/2022
- House conferees named: Bennett, Read, McCarty, 3/22/2022
- Conference report filed; creates Educational Facilities Revolving Loan Fund to assist public school districts with capital improvements through interest-free loans up to $1-million per project/fiscal year, 3/28/2022
- Conference report recommitted by House, 3/30/2022
- Conference report recommitted by Senate, 3/30/2022
- Conference report #2 filed; creates Educational Facilities Revolving Loan Fund to assist public school districts with maintenance and improvements through interest-free loans up to $1-mllion per project/fiscal year, funded at approximately $40-million through Education Enhancement Funds and remaining amount in Public School Building Fund, 3/31/2022
- Conference report adopted by House; 121 yeas, 0 nays, 1 absent, 4/1/2022 See vote
- Conference report adopted by Senate; 52 yeas, 0 nays, 0 absent, 4/1/2022 See vote
- Sent to Governor (due from Governor 4/25), 4/7/2022
- Approved by Governor, 4/18/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a yea vote on this bill.
SB 3064 – funds a new Mississippi Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (MAICU) Grant Program with $10.2-million in ARPA funding
- Referred to Senate Appropriations Committees, 2/15/2022
- Passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 2/16/2022
- Passed by Senate, 2/17/2022
- Referred to House Appropriations Committee, 2/24/2022
- Passed by House Appropriations Committee, 3/10/2022
- Amended by House to add reverse repealer, 3/15/2022
- Passed by House as amended, 3/15/2022
- Returned to Senate for concurrence, 3/16/2022
- Senate declined to concur, invited conference, 3/17/2022
- Conferees named by Senate: Hopson, Polk, Parks, 3/21/2022
- Conferees named by House: Read, Oliver, White, 3/22/2022
- Placeholder conference report filed, 3/26/2022
- Conference report recommitted by Senate, 3/27/2022
- Conference report recommitted by House, 3/27/2022
- Conference report #2 filed – adds language to fund a new Independent Schools Infrastructure Grant Program (created in Section 12 of SB 2780) for private preK-12 schools with $10-million in ARPA funding, allows grants of up to $100,000 per private school, 4/4/2022
- Conference report #2 adopted by House, 4/4/2022 See vote
- Conference report #2 recommitted by Senate, 4/5/2022
- Conference report #2 recommitted by House, 4/5/2022
- Conference report #3 filed – same as conference report #2 with addition of eligibility for auditing of funds, 4/5/2022
- Conference report #3 failed in Senate, 4/5/2022 See vote
- Conference report #3 held on motion to reconsider in Senate, 4/5/2022
- Conference report #3 reconsidered and adopted by Senate – two hours after the Senate defeated conference report #3, it was brought back before the chamber on a motion to reconsider made by leadership and another vote was taken, this time passing the measure, 4/5/2022 See vote
- Conference report #3 adopted by House, 4/5/2022 See vote
- Sent to Governor (due from Governor 4/26), 4/8/2022
- Approved by Governor, 4/19/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on Conference Reports #2 and #3 of this bill.
Dead
House Bill 31 – allows the Charter School Authorizer Board to develop its own formula for determining the amount of local funds sent to charter schools from the public school district
- Referred to House Education Committee, 1/4/2022
- Passed by House Education Committee, 1/31/2022
- Died on calendar, 2/10/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
House Bill 795 – voucher program using state funds for non-public school students to attend a virtual school with no accountability
- Referred to House Education Committee, 1/17/2022
- Passed by House Education Committee, 1/31/2022
- Died on calendar, 2/10/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
House Bill 1246 – increases per student funding for Early Learning Collaboratives to no less than $2,500 for full-day and $1,250 for half-day programs; sets goal to serve 25 percent of four-year-olds by beginning of 2024-2025 school year.
- Referred to House Education and Appropriations Committees, 1/17/2022
- Passed by House Education Committee, 1/26/2022
- Passed by House Appropriations Committee, 2/1/2022
- Amended by House to add language codifying coordination with HeadStart, 2/9/2022
- Passed by House as amended, 2/9/2022 See vote
- Referred to Senate Education and Appropriations Committees, 2/11/22
- Amended and passed by Senate Education Committee, 2/23/2022
- Passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 3/1/2022
- Died on calendar, 3/9/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a yea vote on this bill.
House Bill 1340 – diminishes the Early Learning Collaborative program by adding a home-based virtual component for preschoolers, to be administered by an unnamed vendor
- Referred to House Education Committee, 1/17/2022
- Passed by House Education Committee, 1/31/2022
- Passed by House, 2/9/2022 See vote
- Referred to Senate Education and Appropriations Committees, 2/11/22
- Died in committee, 3/1/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
HB 1687 – provides millions in tax credits for donations to private schools
- Referred to House Ways and Means Committee, 2/21/2022
- Passed by House Ways and Means Committee, 2/22/2022
- Passed by House, 2/22/2022
- Referred to Senate Finance Committee, 2/24/2022
- Passed by Senate Finance Committee, 3/14/2022
- Passed by Senate; 33 yeas, 11 nays, 1 absent, 7 present/not voting, 3/15/2022 See vote
- Returned to House for concurrence, 3/16/2022
- House declined to concur, invited conference, 3/17/2022
- House conferees named: Lamar, Steverson, Massengill, 3/22/2022
- Senate conferees named: Harkins, Boyd, England, 3/24/2022
- Conference report filed, 3/26/2022
- Conference report recommitted by House, 3/28/2022
- Conference report recommitted by Senate, 3/28/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
Senate Bill 2443 – amended to include language of SB 2444; adjusts salary schedule for teachers as follows: increases starting salary for certified teachers to $39,000 in 2022-2023 and $40,000 in 2023-2024 and thereafter; increases salary for all certified teachers an average of $4,785; provides annual step increases of $500 with larger increases at years 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25; five-year increase varies based on years of experience and certification level
- Referred to Senate Education and Appropriations Committees, 1/17/2022
- Passed by Senate Education Committee, 1/26/2022
- Passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 2/1/2022
- Amended by Senate to include language of SB 2444, 2/10/2022
- Passed by Senate as amended, 2/10/2022 See vote
- Referred to House Education and Appropriations Committees, 2/16/22
- Amended by House Education Committee, replacing teacher pay raise language with language of HB 43 which lifts caps on national board salary supplements for speech pathologists and nurses, and adds athletic trainers for salary supplements, 2/24/2022
- Passed by House Education Committee as amended, 2/24/2022
- Died in committee, 3/1/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a yea vote on this bill.
Senate Bill 2444 – adjusts salary schedule for teachers as follows: increases starting salary for certified teachers to $39,000 in 2022-2023 and $40,000 in 2023-2024 and thereafter; increases salary for all certified teachers an average of $4,785; provides annual step increases of $500 with larger increases at years 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25; five-year increase varies based on years of experience and certification level.
- Referred to Senate Education and Appropriations Committees, 1/17/2022
- Passed by Senate Education Committee, 1/20/2022
- Passed by Senate Appropriations Committee, 1/20/2022
- Passed by Senate; unanimous vote, 1/21/2022
- Transmitted to House, 1/21/2022
- Referred to House Education and Appropriations Committees, 1/21/2022
- Held by Senate on a motion to reconsider, 1/24/2022
- Recalled from House, 1/24/2022
- Vote reconsidered by Senate, 2/2/2022
- Passed by Senate; 51 yeas, 0 nays, 1 absent, 2/2/2022 See vote
- Referred to House Education and Appropriations Committees, 2/3/2022
- Died in committee, 3/1/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a yea vote on this bill.
Senate Bill 2706 – COVID Impact Literacy-based Promotion Modification Act, applies only to 2021-2022 school year; 3rd grade students scoring between levels 2 and 3 on the state literacy assessment can be promoted to 4th grade with remediation provided as outlined in statute for students normally retained; committee substitute includes reverse repealer
- Referred to Senate Education Committee, 1/17/2022
- Committee substitute passed by Senate Education Committee, 1/31/2022
- Passed by Senate, 2/10/2022 See vote
- Referred to House Education Committee, 2/24/2022
- Died in committee, 3/1/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a yea vote on this bill.
SB 3164 – eliminates 4% bracket of state income tax; revenue loss estimated to be $317-million annually on full implementation; could trigger budget cuts to public education and other essential state services
- Referred to Senate Finance Committee, 2/21/2022
- Passed Senate Finance Committee, 2/22/2022
- Passed by Senate; 40 yeas, 11 nays, 1 absent, 2/23/2022 See vote
- Held on a motion to reconsider, 2/23/2022
- Motion to reconsider tabled, 2/24/2022
- Referred to House Ways and Means Committee, 2/24/2022
- Amended by House Ways and Means Committee with a strikeall to completely eliminate state income taxes over a period of years and additional changes; revenue loss estimated to be $700-million in first year alone, 3/14/2022
- Passed by House Ways and Means Committee as amended, 3/14/2022
- Passed by House; 83 yeas, 34 nays, 3 absent, 2 present/not voting, 3/14/2022 See vote
- Returned to Senate for concurrence, 3/15/2022
- Senate declined to concur, invited conference, 3/16/2022
- Senate conferees named: Harkins, Johnson, Parker, 3/18/2022
- House conferees named: Lamar, Steverson, Massengill, 3/22/2022
- Died in conference, 3/26/2022
The Parents’ Campaign favors a nay vote on this bill.
