Merit Institute Merit

The Mississippi Merit-Based Credentialing Act (MS-ACSA)

Mississippi state companion to ACSA. Extends Miss. Code Ann. Sec. 73-50-1 et seq. universal licensure recognition, Mississippi Community College Board, and Miss. Code Ann. Title 27 Ch. 7 income-tax credits.

THE MISSISSIPPI MERIT-BASED CREDENTIALING ACT (MS-ACSA)

Vehicle: State passage. Mississippi Legislature, regular session. Primary referral to House / Senate Workforce Development / Ways and Means / Finance.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

This Act may be cited as the “Mississippi Merit-Based Credentialing Act (MS-ACSA).”

SECTION 2. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT

The Legislature finds that Mississippi enacted universal occupational-licensure recognition under Miss. Code Ann. Sec. 73-50-1 et seq. (2021); that the Mississippi Community College Board operates under Miss. Code Ann. Title 37 Ch. 4; that the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning operates under Miss. Code Ann. Title 37 Ch. 101; that the Mississippi Department of Employment Security operates under Miss. Code Ann. Title 71 Ch. 5; that AccelerateMS (Mississippi Office of Workforce Development) operates under Miss. Code Ann. Sec. 37-153-1 et seq.; and that Miss. Code Ann. Title 27 Ch. 7 provides income-tax credits. This Act extends these frameworks.

TITLE I — DEFINITIONS & COORDINATION WITH MISSISSIPPI LAW

Sec. 101. Definitions

  1. (a) “Mississippi Recognized Merit Credential” or “MSRMC” means a competency-based credential designated by the Executive Director of the Mississippi Community College Board in coordination with the Commissioner of Higher Education under Sec. 201.
  2. (b) “Federal FRAC” means a Federally Recognized Alternative Credential under Section 202 of the federal ACSA.
  3. (c) “Covered State licensing authority” means an agency issuing an occupational license under Miss. Code Ann. Title 73.

Sec. 102. Coordination with Existing Mississippi Law

  1. (a) Consistent with:
  • Miss. Code Ann. Sec. 73-50-1 et seq. (universal recognition).
  • Miss. Code Ann. Title 37 Ch. 4 (Community College Board).
  • Miss. Code Ann. Title 37 Ch. 101 (Higher Learning).
  • Miss. Code Ann. Sec. 37-153-1 et seq. (AccelerateMS).
  • Miss. Code Ann. Title 27 Ch. 7 (income tax).

TITLE II — MISSISSIPPI RECOGNIZED MERIT CREDENTIALS

Sec. 201. Designation Authority

  1. (a) The Executive Director of the Mississippi Community College Board, in coordination with the Commissioner of Higher Education, shall maintain a Mississippi Recognized Merit Credentials registry (“MSRMC Registry”) in machine-readable form, updated at least annually, crosswalked to Federal FRAC.

Sec. 202. Degree-Optional State Employment

  1. (a) Miss. Code Ann. Title 25 Ch. 9 (State Personnel Board) shall be applied so that an MSRMC-holder satisfies any position qualification stated in terms of a college degree, unless expressly required by Mississippi statute.

TITLE III — TAX INCENTIVE FOR SKILLS-BASED HIRING

Sec. 301. Mississippi Skills-Based Hiring Income-Tax Credit

  1. (a) A new credit is added to Miss. Code Ann. Title 27 Ch. 7 equal to a percentage of qualified first-year wages paid to a Mississippi-resident employee whose qualifying pathway is an MSRMC or Federal FRAC.
  2. (b) Coordinated with federal IRC Sec. 45AA; aggregate cap.
  3. (c) Mississippi Department of Revenue administers.

TITLE IV — OCCUPATIONAL LICENSURE PORTABILITY

Sec. 401. Licensure by Demonstrated Competency

  1. (a) Demonstrated-competency pathway accepting MSRMC, Federal FRAC, or examination-plus-supervised-experience.

Sec. 402. Interstate Recognition for Federal-Fund Recipients

  1. (a) Recognition by federally-funded authorities, consistent with Section 401 of the federal ACSA and Miss. Code Ann. Sec. 73-50-1 et seq.

TITLE V — IMPLEMENTATION & GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 501. Severability

If any provision is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect the remainder.

Sec. 502. Effective Date

This Act shall take effect July 1 of the year following enactment, except that Sec. 301 shall apply to tax years beginning on or after January 1 of that year.

Canonical federal version: ACSA. Other Mississippi bills: MS-MEWRA, MS-GT&P, MS-AI-Workforce.