(a) Bonds, notes, certificates and other valid general obligations of the State of Mississippi, or of any county, or of any city, or of any supervisors district of any county of the State of Mississippi, or of any school district bonds of the State of Mississippi; notes or certificates of indebtedness issued by the Veterans’ Home Purchase Board of Mississippi, provided such notes or certificates of indebtedness are secured by the pledge of collateral equal to two hundred percent (200%) of the amount of the loan, which collateral is also guaranteed at least for fifty percent (50%) of the face value by the United States Government, and provided that not more than five percent (5%) of the total investment holdings of the system shall be in Veterans’ Home Purchase Board notes or certificates at any time; real estate mortgage loans one hundred percent (100%) insured by the Federal Housing Administration on single family homes located in the State of Mississippi, where monthly collections and all servicing matters are handled by the Federal Housing Administration approved mortgagees authorized to make such loans in the State of Mississippi;

(b) State of Mississippi highway bonds;

(c) Funds may be deposited in federally insured institutions domiciled in the State of Mississippi;

(d) Corporate bonds of Grade A or better as rated by Standard and Poor or by Moody’s Investment Service; or corporate short-term obligations of corporations, or of wholly-owned subsidiaries of corporations, whose short term obligations are rated S-3 or better by Standard and Poor or rated P-3 or better by Moody’s Investment Service;

(e) Bonds of the Tennessee Valley Authority;

(f) Bonds, notes, certificates and other valid obligations of the United States, and other valid obligations of any federal instrumentality that issues securities under authority of an act of Congress and are exempt from registration with the Securities and Exchange Commission;

(g) Bonds, notes, debentures and other securities issued by any federal instrumentality and fully guaranteed by the United States;

(h) Interest-bearing bonds or notes which are general obligations of any other state in the United States or of any city or county therein, provided such city or county had a population as shown by the federal census next preceding such investment of not less than twenty-five thousand (25,000) inhabitants, and provided that such state, city or county has not defaulted for a period longer than thirty (30) days in the payment of principal or interest on any of its general obligation indebtedness during a period of ten (10) calendar years immediately preceding such investment;

(i) Certificates of deposit and repurchase agreements. All investments shall be acquired by the investment entity at the highest market rate available for such securities; and

(j) Securities of, or other interests in, any open-end or closed-end management type investment company or investment trust registered under the provisions of 15 USCS Section 80a-1 et seq. provided that the portfolio of such investment company or investment trust is limited to direct obligations issued by the United States of America, United States Government agencies, United States Government instrumentalities or United States Government sponsored enterprises, and to repurchase agreements fully collateralized by direct obligations of the United States of America, United States Government agencies, United States Government instrumentalities or United States Government sponsored enterprises, and the investment company or investment trust takes delivery of such collateral for the repurchase agreement, either directly or through an authorized custodian. The State Treasurer and the Executive Director of the Department of Finance and Administration shall review and approve the investment companies and investment trusts in which funds invested under this paragraph (j) may be invested. However, at no time shall the funds invested in investment companies and investment trusts under this paragraph (j) exceed twenty percent (20%) of all investments of the Education Improvement Trust Fund under this section.