(1) The corridor management plan adopted under this chapter shall establish criteria, policies and procedures that will permit county boards of supervisors, municipal governing authorities and the Mississippi Department of Transportation to submit to the advisory committee applications for highways, roads and streets under the governmental entity’s respective jurisdiction for nomination as a scenic byway. Nothing in the corridor management plan shall be interpreted as amending or limiting any county or municipal zoning or land use ordinances unless the county or municipality has authorized the amendment according to the procedure provided for in its ordinance. The corridor management plan shall authorize county boards of supervisors and municipal governing authorities to submit one or more plans for one or more highways, roads or streets to be designated a scenic byway that may have management requirements that are more strict than the department’s corridor management plan. Such plans for a scenic byway submitted by a county or municipality shall describe the additional management requirements proposed for application to the scenic byway and, if approved by the department, shall apply only to the approved scenic byway. In carrying out the purposes of this chapter and the specific plans for scenic byways, counties and municipalities may include in such specific plans for the corridor (including, but not limited to, medians) provisions for planting and replanting of trees, shrubs and flowers; vegetative buffers, design guidelines and limitations for landscaping, signage and lighting; and noise guidelines and limitations. The authority granted to counties and municipalities under this subsection is supplementary and in addition to any other authority that a county or municipality may have under law.

(2) After receipt of an application, the advisory committee shall hold a public meeting in the geographic area where the proposed scenic byway is located to receive comments and recommendations from the public. Notice of the meeting, along with a description of the highway, road or street proposed as a scenic byway shall be given once each week for at least three (3) consecutive weeks by publication in some newspaper having a general circulation in the county where the proposed scenic byway is located. Following the public meeting, the committee may nominate the highway, road or street as a scenic byway if it is eligible and meets the guidelines established under the program. A highway, road or street that has been nominated by the committee as a scenic byway shall be submitted by the advisory committee to the Legislature at the next regular session of the Legislature following its nomination. A highway, road or street that has been nominated as a scenic byway may be designated as an official Mississippi Scenic Byway only by its introduction and passage as a legislative bill.

(3) The advisory committee shall review each designated scenic byway not less often than once each two (2) years to make sure that the program participants are meeting their obligations under the plan and that the byway continues to possess the intrinsic qualities and meet the criteria which supported its initial designation. If the committee finds that a designated byway is not being maintained according to established standards or that it has lost its necessary intrinsic qualities, the committee shall report its findings to the Legislature and the Legislature, by legislation, may de-designate the byway.