MISSISSIPPI

Charitable Gift Annuities are regulated by the State of Mississippi Laws by passage of Senate Bill (SB 2948) in February, 2001by the Mississippi State Legislature, and was signed by the Governor on March 5, 2001, becoming law effective July 1, 2001.

Charities must qualify for exemption from regulation as an insurance company by having been in continuous operation for at least 3 years and by having at least $300,000 in unrestricted cash, cash equivalents or publicly traded securities exclusive of the assets funding the gift annuity agreement, on the date it enters into a gift annuity agreement.

Notice to Donor: With gift annuities written after July 1, 2001, the annuity agreement shall include a notice in a separate paragraph in a type size no smaller than that used in the gift annuity agreement, stating that ...

"A qualified charitable gift annuity is not insurance under the laws of the state of Mississippi and is not subject to regulation by the Insurance Commissioner or protected by an insurance guaranty fund or an insurance guaranty association."

Notice to State: A charity that issues gift annuities starting July 1, 2001, shall file a written notice with the Secretary of State by the later of ninety (90) days after the effective date of this act (by 10-01-2001) or the date on which it enters into the organization's first qualified gift annuity agreement. The notice shall be signed by an officer or director of the charity, shall identify the name and address of the charity, shall certify that charity is a charitable organization and that its annuity agreements are qualified charitable gift annuities.

Failure to qualify and comply with the above provisions shall permit the Mississippi Secretary of State to fine the charity up to $1,000 per agreement until it does comply.

The TEXT of the Mississippi Law can be seen at...

http://index.ls.state.ms.us/S:/Documents/2001/pdf/sb/2900%2D2999/sb2948ps.pdf#xml=
http://index.ls.state.ms.us/ISYSquery/IRLB045.TMP/3/hilite

This page last updated November 11, 2002.

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