MS HB31

Reconstitutes the Mississippi Charter School Authorizer Board with staggered terms of office, requiring all members to be reappointed by July 1, 2022, with initial terms of one to three years depending on appointing authority and Supreme Court District, followed by three-year terms thereafter.

Requires the Legislature to annually appropriate funds and allocate positions to the Charter School Authorizer Board to ensure operational capability.

Mandates the Charter School Authorizer Board and State Department of Education to develop a formula using an external expert specializing in equity and adequacy to ensure pro rata distribution of local ad valorem tax funds is equitable between school districts and charter schools, with annual reconciliation and adjustments.

Changes the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review (PEER) reporting requirement from annual to biennial (even-numbered years only) for assessing the sufficiency of charter school funding and the state's authorizer funding formula.

Modifies the authorizer's funding cap from a fixed three percent to "up to" three percent of annual per-pupil allocations from state and local funds for each authorized charter school.