MS 2023-05-W-Daughdrill-April-12-2023-Supervisor-Salaries-2 April 12, 2023

If a Mississippi county's assessed property value drops below the next salary tier, do the supervisors lose their old salary or get the new statutory raise?

Short answer: When a county's assessed valuation drops into a lower tier of Section 25-3-13, supervisors keep their previously locked-in salary (no reduction allowed) but only become eligible for the lower tier's statutory raises going forward. They cannot draw the higher-tier 2022 raise without their valuation rising back into that tier first.

Disclaimer: This is an official Mississippi Attorney General opinion. AG opinions are persuasive authority but not binding precedent. This summary is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed Mississippi attorney for advice on your specific situation.

Subject

Supervisor Salaries Following Drop in Assessed Valuation

Recipient

Wes Daughdrill, Esq., Attorney, Jefferson Davis County Board of Supervisors

Plain-English summary

Mississippi sets county supervisor salaries on a sliding scale tied to each county's total assessed valuation. Section 25-3-13(1) provides higher caps for higher valuations. Jefferson Davis County had been at $44,700 because its valuation was once over $300,000,000 (which falls into subsection (1)(f), the $300M-to-$1B tier). The valuation later dropped below $300,000,000 into the $125,000,000-to-$300,000,000 tier (subsection (1)(e)). Section 25-3-13(3) prohibits cutting supervisor pay because of a drop in valuation, so the supervisors kept the $44,700 even though their county was now in a lower-tier bracket.

The legislature then raised salaries in 2019 and again in 2022. The 2022 amendment moved subsection (1)(e) up to a $45,000 cap and subsection (1)(f) up to a $50,000 cap. The county wanted to know: do supervisors of a now-lower-tier county get the 2022 raise from the higher tier ($50,000), or only from their current tier ($45,000)?

The AG read the statute strictly. Once the county's valuation dropped, the county sat in subsection (1)(e). The 2022 raise the supervisors are entitled to is the (e) raise, capped at $45,000, not the (f) raise. Section 25-3-13(2)'s additional staircase, $2,000 more from January 1, 2024, and $4,000 more from January 1, 2028, also runs off subsection (1)(e), so the supervisors can climb to $47,000 in 2024 and $49,000 in 2028 if they pass a resolution and stay in the (e) tier. Salary increases need a board resolution that names the increase amount and is spread on the board minutes.

What this means for you

County supervisors and county clerks

If your county was previously at a higher tier and dropped into a lower tier, your locked-in salary stays put, but the statutory raises you can vote yourselves are tied to your current tier. Run the numbers based on which subsection your latest assessed valuation puts you in, not on what you used to be eligible for. And every increase needs a written resolution on the minutes; an oral vote or an unrecorded handshake is not enough under Section 25-13-3(4).

County attorneys

A common audit-finding setup is: a county had a one-time spike in valuation, locked in a higher salary, lost the valuation, and then assumes it can ride the higher tier through future raises. The AG closed that door. Run a tier check before each raise and document which subsection's cap applies that year.

Officials whose pay is tied to supervisor pay

Several other county officials have salaries pegged to supervisor pay. If supervisors get the (e) tier's $45,000, the pegged officials' calculation is based on $45,000, not the $50,000 the (f) tier allows. The State Auditor will look for that consistency.

Citizens

Mississippi's supervisor salary statute is one of the most readable on the books, but the tier structure plus the no-reduction protection plus the statutory raises plus the resolution requirement add up to a system where mistakes are easy. A board that gives itself a raise without a tier check or a resolution invites an audit finding. If you suspect that has happened in your county, the State Auditor's office takes complaints.

Legislators

The 2022 amendment locked in the current cap structure with January 2024 and January 2028 staircase steps. As assessed valuations evolve over the next few years, more counties will sit in the position Jefferson Davis County is in here, locked at an old tier's pay floor while only eligible for the new tier's increases. Future amendments may need to address that interaction more cleanly.

Common questions

What is "assessed valuation" and how is the tier determined?
Assessed valuation is the total of all taxable property in the county, as set on the tax rolls. Section 25-3-13(1) sets tiers from less than $50 million up to $1 billion or more. The tier is determined by the preceding taxable year's total assessed valuation.

Why didn't the supervisors' pay drop when the valuation dropped?
Section 25-3-13(3) explicitly prohibits reducing supervisor pay because of a valuation reduction. The legislature wanted to avoid creating an incentive for boards to inflate assessments to avoid pay cuts.

Does the AG mean the supervisors are stuck at $44,700 forever?
No. They can climb to the current (e)-tier cap of $45,000 by passing a resolution. From January 2024 they can go to $47,000, and from January 2028 they can go to $49,000, all under Section 25-3-13(2), provided the county valuation stays in the (e) tier.

What happens if the valuation rebounds above $300,000,000?
The county would re-enter the (f) tier and be eligible for that tier's caps. The AG did not address how mid-year transitions are handled, so consult county counsel before increasing pay mid-fiscal-year on a tier flip.

Does Section 25-3-13(2) apply mid-term?
Yes, but with limits. The board cannot give itself an increase under subsection (2) "in the last year of the supervisors' term." Plan the timing accordingly.

Are county officials pegged to supervisor pay automatically raised when supervisors raise themselves?
Not automatically. Each official's compensation statute usually requires the underlying supervisor pay to be set, and the pegged officials' increases follow according to their own provisions. Coordinate the resolutions; do not assume one vote moves everything.

Background and statutory framework

Section 25-3-13 sets supervisor compensation. Subsection (1) lists the assessed-valuation tiers and dollar caps. The tiers relevant here are (1)(e) ($125,000,000 to $300,000,000) and (1)(f) ($300,000,000 to $1,000,000,000). The 2019 amendment (Laws 2019, Ch. 485) and the 2022 amendment (Laws 2022, S.B. 2719) bumped each tier's caps. Subsection (2) provides additional bumps from January 1, 2024 ($2,000 more) and January 1, 2028 ($4,000 more), with a "no increase in last year of term" guardrail. Subsection (3) prohibits salary reductions caused by a valuation drop. Subsection (4) requires a resolution on the minutes for any increase, language the AG cited as Section 25-13-3(4) (note: this is a typographical variant of Section 25-3-13(4); the substance is the same).

The AG's reading enforces tier-based eligibility for prospective raises while honoring the no-reduction protection for already-set salary. This is consistent with the legislature's apparent goal of letting valuations move salaries up but never down.

Citations

Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-13 (supervisor salary tiers and increases)
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-13(1)(e) (tier cap for $125M to $300M valuations)
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-13(1)(f) (tier cap for $300M to $1B valuations)
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-13(2) (additional 2024 and 2028 increases, with last-year-of-term limit)
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-13-3(3) (no salary reduction from valuation drop)
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-13-3(4) (resolution-on-minutes requirement)
Laws 2019, Ch. 485 (S.B. 2827) § 4 (2019 supervisor salary amendment)
Laws 2022, S.B. 2719, § 1 (2022 supervisor salary amendment)

Source

Original opinion text

April 12, 2023
Wes Daughdrill, Esq.
Attorney, Jefferson Davis County Board of Supervisors
Post Office Box 6005
Ridgeland, Mississippi 39158-6005
Re:

Supervisor Salaries

Dear Mr. Daughdrill:
The Office of the Attorney General has received your request for an official opinion.
Background
We understand that prior to 2019, the total assessed valuation of Jefferson Davis County
("County") was over $300,000,000.00, and the salaries of the members of the Board of Supervisors
("Board") were based on Section 25-3-13(1)(f) of the Mississippi Code and set at $44,700.00.
Thereafter, however, the assessed valuation of the County dropped below $300,000,000.00. This
essentially changed the County's category of total assessed valuation from subsection (1)(f) to
subsection (1)(e). Because Section 25-3-13(3) provides that "[t]he annual salary established for
the members of the board of supervisors shall not be reduced as a result of a reduction in total
assessed valuation," the Board continued to receive a salary of $44,700.00, as provided for in
subsection (f). Section 25-3-13 was amended in 2019 and again in 2022, effectively granting raises
for the state's boards of supervisors based on each county's total assessed valuation. Laws 2019,
Ch. 485 (S.B. 2827) § 4 eff. Jan. 1, 2020 (hereinafter "2019 Amendment"); Laws 2022, (S.B.
2719), § 1, eff. July 1, 2022 (hereinafter "2022 Amendment").
Questions Presented
1. Are members of the Board of Supervisors of Jefferson Davis County, as well as other
county officers whose salaries are based on the Board's salaries, entitled to the increase in
salaries included in the 2022 Amendment even though the assessed valuation of the county
has not increased back to over $300,000,000.00?
2. How will Section 25-3-13(2) apply to future raises?

Brief Response
1. If the total assessed valuation of Jefferson Davis County for the preceding taxable year is
at least $125,000,000.00 but less than $300,000,000.00, the Board members are only
entitled to the 2022 salary increase afforded under Section 25-3-13(1)(e), which would set
their salaries in an amount not to exceed $45,000.00
2. Assuming the total assessed valuation of Jefferson Davis County for the preceding taxable
year remains within the range in Subsection (1)(e), it is the opinion of this office that
Section 25-3-13(2) allows the Board of Supervisors to increase their salaries up to
$47,000.00 from and after January 1, 2024, and up to $49,000.00 from and after January
1, 2028.
Applicable Law and Discussion
Section 25-3-13 currently states the following regarding the salaries of the state's county boards
of supervisors:
(1) The salaries of the members of the boards of supervisors of the various counties
are fixed as full compensation for their services.
The annual salary of each member of the board of supervisors shall be based upon
the total assessed valuation of his respective county for the preceding taxable year
in the following categories and shall be approved by the board of supervisors up to
the following amounts, except as otherwise provided under subsection (2) of this
section:
....
(e) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least One Hundred Twenty-five Million Dollars ($125,000,000.00), but less than Three Hundred Million
Dollars ($300,000,000.00), a salary not to exceed Forty-five Thousand Dollars
($45,000.00);
(f) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Three Hundred Million
Dollars ($300,000,000.00), but less than One Billion Dollars ($1,000,000,000.00),
a salary not to exceed Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00);
....
(3) The annual salary established for the members of the board of supervisors shall
not be reduced as a result of a reduction in total assessed valuation.
(4) The salary of the members of the board of supervisors shall not be increased
under this section until the board of supervisors shall have passed a resolution
stating the amount of the increase and spread it on its minutes.

When the County's total assessed valuation dropped below $300,000,000.00, assuming the total
assessed valuation was at least $125,000,000.00, the County moved from the total assessed
valuation within the range specified in Section 25-3-13(1)(f) to the range specified in Section 25-3-13(1)(e). (Emphasis added). Despite this change in categories, pursuant to the prohibition against
reducing board members' salaries as a result of a reduction in total assessed valuation, the Board
members' salaries did not decrease. Miss. Code Ann. § 25-13-3(3).
Based on the facts in your request, the current assessed valuation for the County is at least
$125,000,000.00 but less than $300,000,000.00; therefore, it is the opinion of this office that the
Board members are entitled to the 2022 salary amount of up to $45,000.00 afforded under Section
25-3-13(1)(e). Assuming that the Board grants itself such raise, any county officers whose salaries
are based on the Board's salary should be based on that $45,000.00 salary. Until the County's
overall assessed valuation totals over $300,000,000.00 again, the Board is not entitled to the recent
statutory increases in salary in Section 25-3-13(1)(f).
With respect to your second question, Section 25-3-13(2) provides:
From and after January 1, 2024, the salary of the members of the boards of
supervisors may be increased by an amount not to exceed Two Thousand Dollars
($2,000.00) over the amounts set under subsection (1) of this section, and from and
after January 1, 2028, the salary of the members of the boards of supervisors may
be increased by an amount not to exceed Four Thousand Dollars ($4,000.00) over
the amounts set under subsection (1) of this section. If the board of supervisors
approves a salary increase under this subsection effective during any fiscal year,
then the members of that board of supervisors are not eligible for any additional
salary increases for that fiscal year. The salary of the members of the board of
supervisors shall not be increased under this subsection in the last year of the
supervisors' term.
Assuming the total assessed valuation of the County for the preceding taxable year remains within
the range in Subsection (1)(e), it is the opinion of this office that Section 25-3-13(2) allows the
Board to increase their salaries up to $47,000.00 from and after January 1, 2024, and up to
$49,000.00 from and after January 1, 2028. If the Board approves a salary increase under Section
25-3-13(2), the Board is not eligible for any additional salary increases for that fiscal year. Further,
the Board cannot increase the salary of its members under Section 25-3-13 "until the board of
supervisors shall have passed a resolution stating the amount of the increase and spread it on its
minutes." Miss. Code Ann. § 25-13-3(4).

If this office may be of any further assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
LYNN FITCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL
By:

/s/ Beebe Garrard
Beebe Garrard
Special Assistant Attorney General