Mississippi election officials will no longer be able to change or close polling places within 60 days of an election except under certain circumstances under a new law.
Mississippi House Rep. Noah Sanford, a Republican from Collins, introduced House Bill 1419 on the House floor on Feb. 5.
“If there are extraordinary circumstances, whether it be a tornado hit the building or whatever, it can be moved and they have to provide notice of that movement in the newspaper and post notice at the location so as not to confuse voters, but otherwise, locations need to be moved more than 60 days before an election in order to give voters enough time to be aware of those movements so they can go to the right place.”
Rep. Zakiya Summers, a Jackson Democrat, authored the bill. It says that in the event of “exigent circumstances,” authorities must disclose their reasoning for the decision during their next scheduled meeting, provide public notice of the change posted at city hall, the court house, the registrar’s office, the previous polling place if it is a public building, and publish the change in the newspaper for three consecutive weeks before the election.
Since 2020, the Mississippi Free Press has reported on hundreds of precinct closures and changes, including some that happened mere weeks before an election. In 2023, the Mississippi Free Press reported on how Hinds County officials moved two Jackson polling places just hours before voters headed to the polls for that year’s party primaries after realizing that they were not accessible for disabled voters, likely in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Months later, in February 2024, Summers introduced her first attempt at passing legislation to prevent last-minute polling place changes. The bill earned approval in the house that year, but it died in the Senate. After introducing the bill again this year, Summers called it “one of my key legislative priorities” on her website.
This year’s attempt passed both chambers with no members opposed, and Gov. Tate Reeves signed it into law on March 12.
It’s one of many new laws lawmakers adopted during this year’s session. Below are some other bills that lawmakers passed in the final weeks of the legislative session, which ended earlier this month.
Rape Kits, Victims’ Rights
All Mississippi hospitals with emergency rooms will soon have to stock rape kits and make them available to victims under a bill the Legislature passed and sent to the governor’s desk.
After weeks of negotiations between the House and the Senate, Senate Bill 2211 will serve as a vehicle to get two issues related to sexual assault in state law books. The original version of the legislation added to the Mississippi Crime Victims’ Bill of Rights to comply with the federal government’s requirements for a state to receive the STOP Violence Against Women grant.
Under the revised Crime Victims’ Bill of Rights, victims have the right to have written information regarding the policies for collecting and preserving sexual assault evidence kits and have the right to be informed of its tenets. Law enforcement agencies must also tell the victims within 60 days if the agency intends to destroy or dispose of any evidence related to an unsolved sexual assault case.
The House and Senate amended the original legislation to add language regarding sexual assault evidence collection kits from a bill that died earlier in the session.
“We want sexual assault survivors to know that we support them, and we will continue to fight for them to get the justice they deserve. This legislation guarantees that every rape victim who presents to a Mississippi emergency room will receive a rape kit examination, which is the first step to receiving this justice,” Rep. Dana McLean, R-Columbus, said in an April 3 press release. She sponsored the original rape-kit bill that died on March 4.
Under the final version of the legislation, all licensed hospitals in the state with emergency rooms should have at least one medical professional who could conduct forensic exams of sexual assault victims who come to the ER for examination or treatment, as well as provide sexual assault evidence collection kits to the victims.
On April 2, the House adopted the conference report by a 118-0 vote, and the Senate adopted it by a 47-0 vote. The Legislature sent the bill to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 7, and he has until April 24 to decide whether or not to sign it into law.
Banning Sexual Grooming of Children
A person over the age of 21 who grooms a child by knowingly engaging in communication to coerce the child to engage in sexually explicit conduct, human trafficking or sexual servitude could be found guilty of committing a felony, spend anywhere from two to 10 years in prison and pay a fine of up to $10,000 under House Bill 1308.
If the person grooming the child was in a “position of trust or authority” over the child, the person would be guilty of a felony, spend between five to 10 years in prison and pay up to a $20,000 fine under the bill. The legislation defines a person who is in a “position of trust or authority” over a child as a child’s teacher, counselor, doctor, psychologist, psychiatrist, minister, priest, physical therapist, chiropractor, legal guardian, parent, stepparent, aunt, uncle, scout leader or coach.
“We did engage with the Senate in negotiations. We loosened the penalties a little bit, we lowered them some, and we also removed (grooming) as a registerable offense,” Rep. Jansen Owen, R-Poplarville, said on the House floor on April 1.
On April 1, the House adopted the bill’s conference report by a 104-3 vote, and the Senate adopted it by a 49-0 vote. Legislative leaders sent the enrolled bill to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 7, and he has until April 24 to decide whether or not to sign it into law.
Health Department to Inspect Parchman Infirmary Annually
The Mississippi Department of Health must conduct an annual “structural and environmental” inspection of the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman’s infirmary and compile a written report to submit within 30 days to the governor, the corrections commissioner and the warden or superintendent of Parchman under Senate Bill 2704.
Rep. Becky Currie, R-Brookhaven, said the legislation would help ensure incarcerated people receive quality health care. “What you do to the least of them, you do to me,” she said on the House floor on April 1, quoting Matthew 25:40 from the New Testament. The state budget pays for prison health care out of the general fund, but currently, no law dictates that the health department must inspect the infirmary.
“We’re spending $120 million on health care and we are not getting patients treated, inmates treated,” Currie said on April 1.
If the infirmary fails the health department’s inspection, MSDH would give guidelines to Parchman’s leadership and force them to comply with the department’s standards.
The Senate adopted the conference report by a 50-0 vote on March 31, and the House adopted it by a 109-3 vote on April 1. The Legislature sent the bill to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 7, and he has until April 24 to decide whether to sign it into law.
Mississippi Department of Tourism
Mississippi may soon have a Department of Tourism with a governor-appointed executive director to promote, develop and “support services for the tourism industry within the state,” Senate Bill 2573 says.
If the bill becomes law, the Tourism Division of the Mississippi Development Authority would transfer its authority and tasks to the Mississippi Department of Tourism on July 1, 2025, the legislation says. The governor would appoint the executive director of the tourism department.
The tourism department would be in charge of the state’s welcome centers, rest areas, state parks, museums, wildlife and natural areas, nature trails, culinary meeting venues, civil rights landmarks, music, beaches, casinos, and other attractions, the bill says.
On April 1, the House adopted the conference report by a 107-9 vote, and the Senate adopted it by a 47-2 vote. The Legislature sent the bill to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 7, and he has until April 24 to decide whether to sign it into law.
Anti-Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Legislation
The House and Senate approved the final version of the anti-diversity, equity and inclusion legislation, sending it to Gov. Tate Reeves for approval.
Mississippi public schools, state-accredited nonpublic schools and state-supported institutions of higher learning could not create, teach or promote diversity, equity and inclusion programs under a bill the Mississippi House and Senate have both passed and sent to Gov. Tate Reeves for him to sign into law. The legislation, House Bill 1193, would prohibit requiring diversity statements or training in hiring, admission and employment processes in educational institutions.
The final version of the legislation clarifies the complaint process that schools may undergo if a person believes the school is promoting diversity, equity and inclusion practices.
If a student, employee or contractor believed the school had violated H.B. 1193, the person could submit a formal complaint within 30 days of the alleged violation to the governing board overseeing the school, which would be either the local school board, the governing board of the charter school, the Mississippi Board of Education, the community college’s board of trustees or the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees. The person issuing a complaint must be 18 or older; a parent or guardian could submit a complaint for a minor.
The governing board would have to investigate the complaint within 30 days of receiving it and if it did not find that the complaint was valid, the board would have to issue a formal final finding. If the board found that the school violated the law, the board would report its findings to the person who submitted the complaint and the school. After the school received a notice of violation, it would have 25 days to “cure all actions relating to the violation,” the legislation says. If the school did not make remedies within 25 days, the person who filed the complaint could apply for injunctive relief to order the school board to correct the violation.
Instead of listing what the complaint process would look like, the legislation says the boards overseeing public schools, colleges and universities must create a complaint process, investigation procedures and other policies to address violations under H.B. 1193. Schools must submit an annual report to their governing boards that summarize all complaints made during that year. The governing boards must prepare a report that compiles all complaints and make recommendations to the Legislature for proposed changes to the law.
Sen. Bradford Blackmon, D-Canton, asked Sen. Tyler McCaughn, R-Newton, how schools could teach about slavery under H.B. 1193, considering that the premise of slavery was that white people were inherently superior to Black people.
“Senator, I’m going to be honest with you: I think you are expanding that beyond the level of this body right now and that you’re sitting out there saying that a white person is lesser than the others is what you’re telling me,” McCaughn told Blackmon on the Senate floor on April 2.
“No, it’s not at all. That’s not what I said,” Blackmon replied.
“That’s what you said,” McCaughn responded.
“I said the history of slavery,” Blackmon said.
“I agree with you,” McCaughn said.
“I didn’t say that … any race is inherently superior; I said that the history of slavery and the reason it was allowed to happen, to be perpetuated was because of that,” Blackmon explained.
“No, sir, so what I understood you saying was (to) perpetuate that a white person had done this, and I’m going to be honest with you. I don’t think that’s right. I think that time period in there was not good for anybody and that it should be taught,” McCaughn told Blackmon.
The House adopted the conference report by a 73-40 vote on April 1 and the Senate adopted it by a 31-13 vote on April 2. The Legislature sent the final version of the legislation to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 7. He has until April 24 to decide whether or not to sign it into law.
Revising Candidate Qualifications
Potential candidates for state and federal offices in Mississippi will be eligible to run if they are “found to have voted in any election outside of the jurisdiction that he or she seeks to represent during the period in which the candidate is required to have resided in the jurisdiction” under a new bill changing candidate qualification requirements.
House Bill 811 says a candidate would not be disqualified if it appears they were inside their former district before the Legislature redrew the district.
“When you go to vote, you’re claiming that you reside where you vote. If you don’t reside where you vote, that’s voter fraud,” Rep. Noah Sanford, R-Collins, said on the House floor on April 1.
The original version of the legislation included an appeal process where the potential candidate could appeal to the Mississippi Secretary of State and then a circuit court if the executive committee of the political party denied the candidate’s application. The bill requires the executive committee or secretary of state to determine whether or not a candidate has been convicted of any felonies.
“I do see this bill as a way to limit who runs for office,” Rep. Zakiya Summers, D-Jackson, said on the House floor on April 1.
She later asked Sanford if President Donald Trump would be eligible to run for office in Mississippi under the legislation since he has been convicted of felonies.
“I would assume not, but any of that’s current law, lady. We’re just on the conference report now,” Sanford replied.
Rep. Kabir Karriem, D-Columbus, asked Sanford if the legislation applies to municipalities. Sanford said no.
Under the legislation, candidates must also present a valid Mississippi identification card, pay fees and provide the following documents to their circuit clerk’s office: a notarized, written statement with their name, address, political party, email address and office sought. It also sets fines for party executive committees that fail to “transmit any written statements and other required documents and accompanying fees” to the Secretary of State by 6 p.m. on the deadline.
On April 1, the House adopted the conference report by a 91-23 vote, and the Senate adopted it by a 39-10 vote. The Legislature sent the bill to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 7, and he has until April 24 to choose whether or not to sign it into law.
Judicial Redistricting
The Mississippi Legislature redrew the chancery and circuit court judicial districts so that no district will only have one judge, Sen. Brice Wiggins, R-Pascagoula, explained on the Senate floor on April 2. The judges for each district must reside in the district in which they preside, but they do not have to be residents of the subdistricts in their jurisdiction. The redrawn districts go into effect starting Jan. 1, 2027.
“We said there are not going to be any single-judge circuit districts in this state. It’s not fair. It doesn’t allow for trust in the judiciary and both the House and the Senate saw that,” Wiggins said on the Senate floor on April 2.
House Bill 1544 modifies the 4th, 6th, 7th, 9th and 14th circuit court districts. The legislation puts Holmes, Humphreys, Leflore, Sunflower and Washington counties in the Fourth Circuit Court District; Adams, Amite, Franklin and Pike counties in the Sixth Circuit Court District; Claiborne, Hinds and Jefferson counties in the Seventh Circuit Court District; Issaquena, Sharkey, Warren and Yazoo counties in the Ninth Circuit Court District; and Copiah, Jefferson Davis, Lawrence and Lincoln counties in the Fourteenth Circuit Court District.
H.B. 1544 also changes the residency requirements for the judges of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 14th, 15th, 21st and 22nd.
The House adopted the conference report by a 78-36 vote on April 1, and the Senate adopted it by a 33-8 vote on April 2. The Legislature sent H.B. 1544 to Gov. Tate Reeves on April 8, and he has until April 25 to decide whether or not to sign it into law.
Senate Bill 2768 modifies the residency requirements for the judges of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th chancery court districts.
It also changes the makeup of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 6th and 7th chancery court districts
The legislation places Covington, Jasper, Jefferson Davis, Newton, Simpson, Scott and Smith counties in the 2nd Chancery Court District; Carroll, Grenada, Montgomery, Panola, Tallahatchie, Tate and Yalobusha counties in the 3rd Chancery Court District; Adams, Amite, Franklin, Jefferson, Pike and Wilkinson counties in the 4th Chancery Court District; Attala, Choctaw, Kemper, Neshoba, Webster and Winston counties in the 6th Chancery Court District; Bolivar, Coahoma, Leflore, Quitman, Sunflower and Tunica counties in the 7th Chancery Court District.
S.B. 2768 puts Hancock and Harrison counties in the 8th Chancery Court District; Humphreys, Issaquena, Sharkey, Warren and Washington counties in the 9th Chancery Court District; Lamar, Marion, Pearl River and Walthall counties in the 10th Chancery Court District; Forrest, Perry and Stone counties in the 13th Chancery Court District; Chickasaw, Clay, Lowndes, Noxubee and Oktibbeha counties in the 14th Chancery Court District; Claiborne, Copiah, Lawrence and Lincoln counties in the 15th Chancery Court District; George and Jackson counties in the 16th Chancery Court District; DeSoto County in the 17th Chancery Court District; and Greene, Jones and Wayne counties in the 19th Chancery Court District.
“In the conference report, there’s a net loss of three (judges),” Wiggins said on the Senate floor on April 2.
The House adopted the conference report by a 76-37 vote on April 1, and the Senate adopted it by a 38-9 vote on April 2. Lawmakers sent the enrolled bill to the governor on April 7, and he has until April 24 to decide whether or not to sign it into law.
Giving Immunity for Sexual Assault Victims and Witnesses
Victims who report sexual assaults while under the influence or in possession of a controlled substance will not be charged for drug or alcohol use under House Bill 861.
The bill says the same immunity would apply to people under 21 who are under the influence or in possession of alcohol when seeking treatment for or reporting a sexual crime. Sexual assault victims and witnesses are covered under the legislation.
“This person would not be prosecuted for having the drugs or alcohol because they’re in good faith reporting a sexual assault like a rape or something. Because many times, when sexual assaults happen, drugs and alcohol are involved. We don’t want to prevent someone from reporting a sexual assault just because they happened to be under the influence of alcohol or have that present,” Sen. Angela Burks-Hill, R-Picayune, said on the Senate floor on April 1.
Dead Bill: Early Voting
An effort to adopt 22 days of no-excuse early voting failed after Senate Bill 2654 died on the Senate’s calendar on April 3.
“We were one step away from the governor’s desk. At the end, I think looking through the product we had, there’s still a little bit of work that I wanted to do on behalf of our (circuit) clerks, our election commissioners, (and the) secretary of state. It ended up being a good bill and I just wish I could put a better bill forth next go-around,” the bill’s author, Sen. Jeremy England, R-Pascagoula, told reporters on April 3.
The senator said that next session, he hoped to clarify that the bill was doing away with in-person absentee voting, which required an excuse, and replace it with no-excuse early voting.
Dead Bill: Labor Union Restrictions for Businesses Receiving State Funds
An effort to restrict labor union organizing by requiring workers to voted on a secret ballot for any company that receives state funds died with Senate Bill 2849 on April 3.
The legislation says private businesses receiving state funds or benefits could not “voluntarily” give a labor organization an employee’s personal contact information without the employee’s consent. The bill also applies to subcontractors.
Rep. Lee Yancey, R-Rankin, said supporters of the legislation include the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Nissan, Toyota and the Business and Industry Political Education Committee. He said he neither reached out to nor heard from any labor unions regarding the bill.
“We want to attract more businesses to our state because more than 90% of our businesses are non-unionized at this point, and we don’t want more unions coming into Mississippi,” Rep. Lee Yancey, R-Rankin, said
Rep. Oscar Denton, D-Vicksburg, noted that Mississippians already have the right to join unions via secret-ballot elections. Several Democratic representatives spoke out against Senate Bill 2849, saying they believe the bill would make it harder for employees to unionize in the state.
Mississippi is a right-to-work state, meaning businesses can hire and fire employees at will.
“Unions have provided more for this country than any other organization,” Denton said on the House floor on April 2.
