MS HB1702

Appropriates $3,909,155.00 from the State General Fund and $8,241,301.00 from special funds to the Mississippi Authority for Educational Television for fiscal year 2021 (July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021).

Authorizes 93 permanent full-time positions and 11 time-limited full-time positions for the agency.

Allocates $2,118,966.00 from the Education Enhancement Fund to support educational television operations.

Sets performance targets for fiscal year 2021 including 150 locally produced TV programs, 1,800 teachers using the Digital Education Network, 99.95% on-air reliability, and 125 community engagement events.

Establishes funding priority for broadcast schedule continuation and educational programming, with preference given to Mississippi Industries for the Blind for equipment and commodity purchases.