Below is a press release from the Mississippi Legislative Black Caucus:
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Senate Bill 2782 that would allow the survivors of officers, firefighters, and volunteer firefighters to collect a $100,000 death benefit if they died because of COVID-19 contracted while in performance of their duties.
Senate Bill 2822 would set aside $750 million from the state’s $1.8 billion American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 funds to create within the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, the Mississippi Municipality and County Water Infrastructure Grant Program under which municipalities and counties may apply for reimbursement when making necessary investments in water, wastewater, and stormwater infrastructure.
– Many cities and counties across the state have approached the legislature requesting such help in recent years to upgrade their aged and failing infrastructures.
Senate Bill 2706 would create for one year, the “Covid Impact Literacy-Based Promotion Modification Act,” that would allow third-grade students to advance to fourth grade with remedial training if they did not meet passing requirements, mainly because of the disruption created in schools by COVID-19, that caused some schools to close, students to miss in-class training and created chaos within the educational system.
Among other bills passed were:
– Senate Bill 2879 would establish a grant program from which counties and municipalities can purchase new voting machines.
– Senate Bill 2572 would allow election commissioners to serve without being tested.
– Senate Bill 2413 would prohibit spending private money on any aspect of communication regarding elections.
– Senate Bill 2120 would increase salaries for state troopers and officers with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigations and Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.
– Senate Bill 2803 would give salary increases to county sheriffs.
– Senate Bill 2066 would increase salaries for district attorneys and their investigators.
– Senate Bill 2772 would authorize the Mississippi Development Authority to create a private, nonprofit economic development agency.
– Senate Bill 2504 would create a separate division within the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks known as the Division of Parks and Recreation and create a new executive director position for that division.
– Senate Bill 2506 would create a three-day season the last weekend of September for bowhunters who wish to harvest a buck in velvet.
– Senate Bill 2600, “The Community Rebound Act of 2022”, seeks to reduce prison recidivism.
– Senate Bill 2530, the “Enterprise Security Program” would guard against ransomware attacks on state agencies. It would give the Mississippi Department of Information Technology Services security oversight over all state governmental data and information technology resources.
– Senate Bill 2735 would allow “free-standing,” emergency rooms in small, rural hospitals throughout the state.
– Senate Bill 2725 would require medical providers to release within 30 days, records of individuals who request them.
– Senate Bill 2643 would create the 13th grounds for divorce in Mississippi, by recognizing an “irretrievably broken,” union as justification.
– Senate Bill 2536 would create a Public Funds Offender Registry to identify people who have stolen or misappropriated public money.
– Senate Bill 2844 would seek the acquisition of land on which to build a new and modernized liquor warehouse to replace the state’s current 212,000 square foot facility located in Gluckstadt and seek private operators for it.
– Senate Bill 2875 would redefine the definition of beer, which could allow the sale of new products containing a greater percentage of alcohol.
– Senate Bill 2275 would extend the repeal date of the Pilot Work Release Program being done in Rankin County.
– Senate Bill 2450 would divert money collected under the Mississippi Windstorm Underwriting Association to the State and School Employees Insurance Fund. It was established after Hurricane Katrina to benefit six coastal counties.
– Senate Bill 2077 would create the Mississippi Farms and Families Program that would give dollar credits to SNAP beneficiaries to purchase fruits and vegetables.
– Senate Bill 2002 would establish the voluntary “Mississippi Grain Producer Indemnity Act,” to provide protection and the existence of adequate funds for compensation for losses by grain producers in Mississippi caused by the financial failure of grain dealers and warehouses in order to promote the state’s welfare by improving the economic stability of agriculture.” A companion bill, Senate Bill 2479, the “Mississippi Grain Warehouse and Grain Dealers Licensure Law” would update regulations and existing law to allow close monitoring of companies for fraud detection.
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House Concurrent Resolution 39 proposes an amendment to the Mississippi Constitution to create a new ballot initiative process.
The former process was nullified in May 2021 by the Mississippi Supreme Court when it struck down Initiative 65, or the medical marijuana initiative. Under the new process, Mississippi voters could change current statutes or introduce new statutes by a ballot initiative.
After several failed amendments, HC 39 passed 92-26 and has been sent to the Senate for consideration.
House Bill 1029 would create the Mississippi Broadband Accessibility Act.
The act establishes the Mississippi Broadband Commission, which would coordinate all broadband expansion efforts in the state and administer all federal broadband expansion programs.
The commission would be comprised of seven members: three appointed by the Governor and four appointed by the Lieutenant Governor, two of which being recommended by the Speaker of the House.
Some of the funds in the bill come from the American Rescue Plan Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, both passed by Congress in 2021.
House Bill 1029 passed by a vote of 111-6.
Several bills were introduced to the House that would also deal with federal funds from the American Rescue Plan Act.
Some of the bills included one that would establish a grant program for rural water associations (House Bill 1421);
a bill that would establish a grant program to assist in wastewater and drinking water infrastructure programs (House Bill 1425);
and a bill that would provide a premium to law enforcement officers and firefighters across the state (House Bill 1427).
House Bill 884 would establish the Accelerate Mississippi Scholarship Program.
These scholarships would be available to eligible students for dual-credit and dual-enrollment courses and career and technical education courses that lead to industry certification.
The bill passed by a vote of 114-5 and will now go through the process in the Senate.
House Bill 592 would suspend child support payments for incarcerated individuals under certain conditions.
The bill initially failed by a vote of 51-63, but after some amendments, it passed the House by a vote of 90-18.
House Bill 1196 would revise certain licensing requirements for barbers, nurses, and social workers.
Citizens with felonies who have paid their debt to society would now be eligible for a license in these respective fields.
Before being held on a motion to reconsider, the bill passed the House by a vote of 106-9.
That motion was then tabled later in the week.
House Bill 1510 was one of several bills dealing with the election process.
Along with revising other provisions related to the integrity of elections, the bill would authorize the Secretary of State to audit local elections.
The bill passed 75-43.
House Bill 1487 would designate Mississippi country artist Steve Azar’s song “One Mississippi” as the official state song.
Currently, the official state song is “Go Mississippi” by Houston Davis which was adopted by the Legislature in 1962.
Azar wrote the song to commemorate the bicentennial of Mississippi in 2017.
The bill passed by a vote of 95-12 and has been sent to the Senate.
Many bills passed the House with an overwhelming majority including a bill that would regulate the processing of sexual assault kits (House Bill 672);
a bill authorizing the Mississippi Department of Corrections to offer hospice care services for terminally ill inmates (House Bill 936);
a bill authorizing leave of absence to Civil Air Patrol members for certain emergency services (House Bill 1179);
two bills making changes to laws regarding campaign finance reports (House Bills 33 and 1476);
and a bill that would require all school districts to offer a gifted education program for seventh and eighth graders (House Bill 1168).
