Appropriations E

SB 3053 reassigns unused Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Funds (from the American Rescue Plan Act) to specific state agencies for fiscal year 2026. It directs funds to the Office of Workforce Development, Department of Environmental Quality (for water infrastructure grants), Department of Finance and Administration (for tourism and Main Street programs), and multiple health-related programs under the State Department of Health. The bill strictly limits spending to unexpended balances as of June 30, 2025, and cannot alter the original purposes for which the funds were authorized. This is a procedural reappropriation of existing pandemic recovery funds, not new spending.

HB 1797 proposed appropriating $64,055,883 from Mississippi's general fund to increase salaries for faculty at public universities, aiming to bring their pay closer to the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) average. The bill directly affected Mississippi's public university faculty by providing funding for salary adjustments during fiscal year 2026 (July 2025-June 2026). Key provisions included the specific appropriation amount and a requirement that the funds be used solely to adjust faculty compensation toward the SREB benchmark. The bill died in committee on February 26, 2025, and never became law.

HB 1792 would have allocated $1 million from the state general fund to Alcorn State University’s Mississippi Small Farm and Agribusiness Center for expanding research and production of shiitake mushrooms during fiscal year 2026 (July 2025-June 2026). The bill specifically funded infrastructure and operations for the center’s mushroom research program, directly affecting Alcorn State University and Mississippi small farms seeking to develop new agricultural opportunities. This appropriation bill, referred to the Appropriations Committee, died there on February 26, 2025, and did not become law. It represented a targeted funding mechanism for agricultural innovation rather than a broad policy change.

HB 1793 proposed allocating $1.5 million from Mississippi's state general fund to Alcorn State University for the 2025-2026 fiscal year to improve its STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) campus facilities and academic programs. The bill would have provided direct funding specifically for Alcorn State University's science, technology, math, and medical-related initiatives. It was referred to the Appropriations Committee but died there on February 26, 2025, meaning it did not become law. This was a funding measure, not a policy change, and would have directly benefited Alcorn State University's STEM offerings.

HB 1783 would have provided $1,000,000 from the State General Fund to Alcorn State University for its horticulture research and extension programs during fiscal year 2026 (July 2025-June 2026). The bill was a straightforward funding appropriation with no substantive policy changes, directly affecting Alcorn State's agricultural research initiatives. It died in committee on February 26, 2025, and did not become law.