The Mississippi Legislature will have $76.3 million more to spend than it did during its 2023 session.
Members of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee met Friday morning and adopted a revenue estimate for the upcoming fiscal year, which begins July 1. The estimate is $7.6 billion – up 1% from the final estimate from last year.
The estimate is a bit misleading because since the COVID-19 pandemic, as federal funds poured into Mississippi and state revenue soared, the Legislature has spent much less each year than the state collected.
For instance, despite a revenue estimate at the end of the 2023 session of $7.5 billion, the state appropriated only $6.66 billion in general funds, creating a surplus that can be used in future years primarily for one-time expenses instead of recurring expenses.
Setting the revenue estimate by the 14-member Legislative Budget Committee is a key step in developing a state budget to fund education, health care and other key services for the upcoming fiscal year.
Asked if the Legislature had the money to address all the needs during the 2024 session, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said, “We are hopeful. We have been prudent … We have issues, Medicaid, PERS, education.”
Hosemann was referring to efforts to expand Medicaid, though studies indicate there would be no cost to the state for a number of years if Medicaid was expanded to provide health care to those earning up to 138% of the federal poverty level as allowed by federal law. On the other hand, there would be a cost to the state to expand to less than 100% of the federal poverty level as Hosemann’s Senate plan proposes.
The federal government provides states more money for expanding to 138% of the federal poverty level as the House has proposed. During the final weeks of the session as legislators work to develop a budget, efforts also will be made to reconcile the House’s and Senate’s positions on Medicaid expansion.
Plus, some legislators are proposing a sizable cash infusion into the state’s massive Public Employees Retirement System, known as PERS, to help ensure its financial viability.
And both the House and Senate have proposed increasing funding for K-12 education by at least $200 million, but currently the two chambers appear at loggerheads on whether to divvy those funds under an existing funding formula or to develop a new one.
House Appropriations Chairman John Read, R-Gautier, said there is never enough money to meet all the needs.
“The money will only go so far,” he said. Read said he asks agencies for priorities, and he focuses on those priorities as he works to develop a budget.
The 14-member Budget Committee accepted the recommendation from five financial experts it depends on for advice on a revenue estimate.
Normally, the governor and budget committee adopt an initial revenue estimate in the fall based on the recommendations of the experts. But this past fall, Gov. Tate Reeves and the budget committee were unable to agree on an estimate.
The committee, led by Hosemann, contended the estimate made by the experts and embraced by Reeves was too high.
The estimate adopted Friday was about $40 million less than the estimate the financial experts recommended in the fall.
Hosemann pointed out that the growth in revenue collections this year is being fueled to a large extent by interest earnings caused by the rise in interest rates. State Economist Corey Miller, who speaks for the financial experts, pointed out to the legislative leaders “revenues from interest on investments are up 30%, coinciding with the increase in interest rates over the last two years.”
Though the bill got further this year than ever before, legislation to intercept gambling and sports betting winnings from people who owe child support to the state has died.
This law, which exists in several other states, including bordering Louisiana, passed the Senate but was not taken up by the House committee before the deadline Tuesday. Similar bills died during the 2022 and 2023 sessions.
Mississippi Department of Human Services, the state’s welfare agency that oversees the child support program, is advocating for this policy in order to increase child support collections and had hoped that, with the support of the Attorney General, it would have passed this year.
“While we are disappointed in the status of the legislation, MDHS is steadfast in our efforts to continue to seek opportunities to maximize the collection of child support arrearages on behalf of the Mississippi children that we serve,” said a spokesperson for MDHS.
The child support enforcement program, which touches more than half of the children in Mississippi based on federal data, already targets lottery payouts.
Under Senate Bill 2132, slot machine winnings over $1,200 and sports betting winnings over $600 would have been subject to child support withholding. Casinos are already required to keep tabs on winnings over these amounts for the IRS. Under the proposal, they would also have been required to check if a winner has child support arrears before issuing the money. The industry asked the state to create a real-time database that casinos can access before letting the law take effect so that they can still issue winnings immediately.
“Are we not, through DHS, paying a law firm some $16 to $18 million a year to go after deadbeat dads, and if so, what kind of database are they using and why couldn’t you apply this database to this effort?” asked Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson during floor debate.
Horhn, who along with four other senators voted against the bill, seemed to question how much money the state would realistically recoup through casinos.
“Is there an expectation that there are a lot of lucky betters (with back child support) out there that are unlucky in love and lucky at the slots?” Horhn said.
Louisiana launched its gambling withholding program in 2011. In the first nine years, the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services intercepted an average of nearly $1 million a year from casinos, according to the National Child Support Engagement Association. This represents a roughly 0.2% increase in the state’s overall annual child support collections. Other states have collected much less through this method, such as $43,000 annually in New Mexico.
The Mississippi Department of Human Services requested the 2024 bill authored by Sen. Walter Michel, R-Ridgeland. It was also part of the policy agenda of Attorney General Lynn Fitch.
Since successfully arguing in 2022 for the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade – ending the landmark legislation that protected a woman’s right to an abortion – Fitch has put forth a policy initiative called The Empowerment Project that involves cracking down on child support.
“Enhancement of child support enforcement is a top priority of #TheEmpowermentProject, and I am grateful to Senator Walter Michel for working with us to move this bill through the Senate!” Fitch wrote in a Facebook post after the bill passed the senate.
Another piece of legislation in this vein – which would have allowed for child support obligations to begin accruing during pregnancy – was unsuccessful this session.
In 2022, the latest year for which data is available, Mississippi disbursed $336 million in collected child support payments – the lowest amount of any year since 2017. The number of children has also declined from about 379,000 to 362,000. On average, Mississippi disburses $77 per child per month, but many children receive nothing.
The recent reduction in disbursements is consistent with national trends. While most states saw a historic uptick of collections and disbursements in 2020 – $405 million in Mississippi – due to pandemic aid, those gains tapered off in 2021. All but seven states disbursed more in 2018 than they did in 2022. Mississippi only saw half-a-percent reduction in disbursements from 2018-2022 compared to a national average of 5%.
The most significant area of improvement in Mississippi’s program under Young Williams is in the state’s ability to secure support orders from judges in their cases. When a custodial parent enters the child support enforcement program – often by force in order to qualify for public assistance – the state seeks an order from a judge determining how much the noncustodial parent must pay each month. In 2022, 87% of cases in the system had a support order compared to just 58% in 2011.
One of the biggest complaints of the child support system is from custodial parents who say the state is failing to properly disburse the money it collects from noncustodial parents. Mississippi had accumulated $20.7 million in undistributed child support payments by the end of 2022 compared to $12.7 million in 2018. Most states have also seen an increase to their rate of undisbursed collections in the last five years.
In the previous five sessions, lawmakers filed at least 75 bills to address some area of the child support program – anywhere from the punishment of noncustodial parents who don’t pay, to the current contract privatizing the function, to the requirement that custodial parents cooperate with the program to be eligible for public assistance. Only four survived and were enacted.
In 2023, lawmakers passed a law to allow MDHS to administratively suspend child support debts from accruing when a noncustodial parent is incarcerated. This wasn’t necessarily Mississippi’s idea. The state had to enact the law to remain in compliance with a 2016 federal rule change so that it could continue drawing down federal funds.
Another law backed by Fitch and enacted last year increased the statute of limitations for criminal charges against a person who refuses to pay child support. Before, a person could be charged with desertion of a child if they wilfully neglected or refused to pay child support while the child is under 18. The bill increased that age to 21 and allowed for charges to be pursued for three years after the child turns 21.
A law passed in 2022 required the state treasurer to begin coordinating with the welfare agency to determine if anyone who owed child support was entitled to any unclaimed property that the state could intercept. MDHS told Mississippi Today that this legislation has already resulted in additional child support collections of about $2.3 million as of December 2023.
Lawmakers also changed the formula for computing a noncustodial parent’s monthly child support obligation – another rule change Mississippi had to enact to remain in federal compliance. Historically, when the state lacked information about a noncustodial parent’s earnings, it would assume minimum wage – $7.25-an-hour at 40 hours a week – to determine how much child support to order.
This didn’t take into account the parent’s realistic employability, potentially saddling them with monthly debts they could not pay. The new 2022 law allows the state to take into account other factors when determining how much to recommend.
Under Gov. Tate Reeves’ direction, MDHS has the authority to make some changes to its programs on its own without legislative action. It exercised this control in 2023 when it removed the requirement that a custodial parent must comply with child support enforcement against the other parent to qualify for child care assistance – a policy change long backed by advocates of low-income families.
Since the policy change, MDHS said it has seen an increase of nearly 10,300 children in the child care assistance program.
The child support cooperation requirement is still in place for parents seeking food assistance from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or cash assistance through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. When child support is collected from a parent whose child is or was ever receiving TANF, the state takes the child support payments to pay itself back for any cash assistance it provided to the custodial parent.
In 2021, MDHS also acted on its own to create a “pass through” so that parents in this predicament will at least receive the first $100 received by the child support office each month before the state recoups the rest.
You’re not alone. But what if we told you that putting Mom first could be the key to unlocking your empowerment? Introducing Mom.ME, the trailblazing organization reshaping the narrative of maternal care with a revolutionary approach.
Their mantra? Mom 1st! This isn’t just a catchy phrase – it’s a movement, a commitment to Teach, Advocate, Listen, and Know, encapsulated in their powerful motto. Mom.ME. understands the struggles mothers face, which is why they’re dedicated to providing more than just support groups – they offer a sanctuary.
Picture a space where moms come together, not just to share experiences, but to build genuine bonds, creating an unbreakable village of solidarity and understanding.
“I was pregnant when I came across Mom.ME.’s maternal education class. I chose to have a natural birth experience with my midwife, so I figured I needed to learn all that I could about the birthing process since this was my first child.
I didn’t really have a physical support system since I’m not from Mississippi and my own mother didn’t support or understand my decision to have a natural birth,” Lea Neely said.
“The founder, Mrs. Lauren actually participated in the class opening up and sharing about her own personal struggles with motherhood. I had been battling stress and depression and at that moment I knew I had found my place!
I was at home with a group of women who understood and got me without feeling like I was being judged for any choices I made. My baby girl will soon be two years old and we’re still a part of the village!”
In a world where maternal mental health often goes unnoticed, Mom.ME. shines as a beacon of hope. From Baby Blues to Postpartum Depression and Anxiety, they address it all, providing vital resources and a compassionate ear for mothers in need.
Here’s the real beauty of it all: as a mom, you’re never alone. Mom.ME. believes in learning from each other’s mistakes to improve the overall functionality of the family structure. Imperfection is embraced, and growth is celebrated.
Save the Date: Black Maternal Health Convention, April 11-13, 2024 It’s not just an event – it’s a journey towards healing and growth.
Come join us: April 11 – Benefit Bowl @ Highball Lanes, 6pm-9pm April 12 – Conference & Panel Discussions @ MS Rehabilitation Services, 9am-5pm April 13 – Miles for Mamas 5K Run @ Bean Path
Feeling lost? Unsure where to turn? Mom.ME. is here to redefine motherhood, one mom at a time. Join the movement and embrace the power of putting Mom first. Join us on this incredible journey! Let’s come together, heal, and grow.
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For the second straight year, Mississippi Today and Open Campus reporter Molly Minta was named a finalist for a coveted Education Writers Association award.
Molly Minta
The annual awards recognize the best education reporting in newsrooms big and small across the nation. Minta is one of three finalists in the small newsroom division of the beat reporting category, which honors excellence in everyday education reporting.
Minta, who was also named a finalist last year for an EWA award for feature reporting, was honored this year for several stories that uncovered secrecy and unfairness in Mississippi’s higher education system.
Higher education in Mississippi is a black box, but through public records requests, sourcing and shoe leather reporting, Minta revealed how secrecy operates at various levels of higher education in the state — including stories about public officials debating new ways to spend millions of dollars of state financial aid in closed-door meetings, and an investigation that found university hospital leaders told employees not to communicate in writing about their decision to stop treating trans kids at an LGBTQ+ clinic.
“Molly’s impact as a reporter in Mississippi speaks for itself, and she more than deserves to be recognized among the very best education reporters in America,” said Adam Ganucheau, Mississippi Today editor-in-chief. “We’re also very proud to have such a strong partner in Open Campus, which values the importance of strong local journalism.”
Minta’s articles that EWA jurors considered for this year’s award included:
The other two finalists in the small newsroom division for beat reporting are Brian Lopez of The Texas Tribune and Kate McGee of The Texas Tribune and Open Campus. The winner will be announced on May 30 at EWA’s national seminar in Las Vegas.
A bill that would designate children conceived in unique circumstances – via assisted reproduction after the death of one parent – as rightful heirs of their biological parents is moving forward.
The bill passed the Judiciary A committee late on deadline day and now heads to the Senate floor, where it has died on the calendar the last two years. It passed the House unanimously in mid-March.
House Bill 1542, authored by Dana McLean, R-Columbus, would change inheritance law so a child conceived via in vitro fertilization within 36 months of one parent dying is considered an heir of that parent – as long as the deceased parent consented to have his or her genetic material stored and used. This would apply to cases where a woman decided to continue implantation of an embryo after her husband’s death, as well as cases where a man decided to continue with an embryo through surrogacy after his wife’s death.
Currently, these children are not considered heirs of the deceased parent in Mississippi and therefore do not receive an inheritance because the law was written before assisted reproduction technology existed.
State Sen. Brice Wiggins, R-Pascagoula, during a Senate Corrections Committee meeting on Feb. 13, 2020, at the Capitol in Jackson. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Sen. Brice Wiggins, chairman of Judiciary A, met Tuesday morning with McLean’s constituent, Katie Studdard – the woman whose personal story inspired McLean to author this bill for the last five years. Hours after Mississippi Today published a story featuring Studdard and her daughter last week, a lawmaker reached out to Studdard saying Wiggins wanted to meet with her, Studdard said.
Wiggins, who for the past two years has allowed similar bills to die before bringing them to the full Senate, agreed at the last minute to hear testimony from Studdard during a late committee meeting at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, a legislative deadline day.
McLean said she is relieved the bill passed and expects lawmakers to work on it in a timely manner – given the fact that they’ve had years now to study the bill and address their concerns.
Rep. Dana McLean speaks with a Mississippi Today reporter at the Capitol in Jackson, Miss., Thursday, March 7, 2024. Credit: Eric J. Shelton/Mississippi Today
“I’m happy that Katie was able to appear before the Senate committee yesterday so that the members could directly hear her story,” McLean said. “We are relieved that it passed through committee, even at the 11th hour. Hopefully, the concerns raised by the members can be worked through before the floor deadline so the bill can finally pass this session.”
Wiggins told Mississippi Today that Studdard shared with him what other states are doing and information from her attorney about what would need changing in Mississippi, and as a result, the bill could fare differently this year. He voiced support for the spirit of the bill and said he intends to work with Sen. Chuck Younger, a Republican who represents Studdard’s district, on the language of the bill.
“For whatever reason, the bureaucracy of the Social Security Administration is telling her and others that she can’t get survivor benefits because for whatever reason, because of IVF, that their child is not who they say she is,” Wiggins said. “As far as I’m concerned, that’s all crazy … Senator Younger has stepped up and will help and the committee members have said that they will help to try to get the bill in a position it can pass the floor.”
However, Wiggins did not commit to bringing the bill up on the floor this year and said the bill would need the “proper amendments” before he would bring it to a vote in the Senate. Similar bills passed out of committee the past two years, but Wiggins did not bring them forward for a vote in front of the full Senate.
While Studdard’s circumstances might seem rare, they are increasingly more common in a world where women are having children later in life and families are becoming more reliant on assisted reproduction. Forty-two percent of Americans say that they have used fertility treatments or personally know someone who has.
Studdard, who lives in Columbus, started fertility treatments with her late husband, Chris McDill, before he died of cancer. She did not have success with the embryos while her husband was alive, but decided to continue trying for a baby after her husband’s death. She conceived her now 5-year-old daughter Elyse a year after her husband died.
When she tried to register her daughter at the Social Security office, she was told – after six months of waiting – that the state didn’t recognize Elyse as the legal child of McDill because she was conceived via IVF shortly after McDill’s death.
That meant that Elyse, the biological child of McDill, did not qualify for the survivor benefits she would have received had she been considered her father’s legal daughter, and Studdard did not qualify for the “mother benefits” she would have received had she been recognized as caring for a legal child of McDill.
This is the fifth year McLean has introduced a bill to address the issue of inheritance for posthumously conceived children – those born after one parent’s death – as 27 states have done.
The last five years have been difficult for Studdard to make ends meet as a middle school art teacher without those monthly social security payments – especially after spending tens of thousands of dollars on fertility treatments.
“I wiped out our complete life savings to have this baby,” Studdard said. “For them to come back and say ‘you know what, we’re not denying that he’s the biological father, but we’re not going to say he’s the legal father,’ because God forbid they give that child anything that she’s owed.”
Studdard has shared her story dozens of times over the last few years with lawmakers. But she said she won’t stop until the law is amended.
“I’m never going to give up, you know, because it’s for my child.”
We’ve got two compelling Final Fours coming up this weekend and the women’s version might be the more interesting of the two. It certainly has more star power. There’s also plenty to talk about with college baseball, college baseball recruiting and a good week for Mississippians on the PGA Tour.
Brian Howey and Nate Rosenfield, investigative reporters for the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting at Mississippi Today, have been selected for 2024 New York TimesLocal Investigations Fellowship.
The program, led by Dean Baquet, a former executive editor of The New York Times, gives journalists the opportunity to produce signature investigative work focused on the state or region they’re reporting from. Mississippi Today’s 2023 reporting in partnership with the Local Investigations Fellowship has been named as a finalist for the 2024 Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting.
“It has been so rewarding to help reporters turn their ideas into stories, and to produce work that has a huge local impact,” said Baquet. “It has also been exciting to work closely with newsrooms across the country, to see how many of them are doing great coverage sometimes against the odds.”
Mississippi Today and The New York Times’ yearlong examination of abuses by sheriffs departments in Mississippi is the most comprehensive examination of law enforcement misconduct in these communities to date. This series led to legislation that would require sheriffs and deputies, for the first time, to get law enforcement training and would give the licensing board the power to investigate law enforcement misconduct. Officers involved in the abuse have been indicted in state and federal court.
Howey and Rosenfield will build on the high impact of the 2023 investigation of Mississippi sheriffs, delving deeper into law enforcement issues in Mississippi through the 2024 New York Times Local Investigations Fellowship.
“Brian and Nate getting to keep reporting here is invaluable to Mississippians’ understanding of one of the most important stories of our time,” said Adam Ganucheau, Mississippi Today’s editor-in-chief. “This innovative partnership with the Times has made their reporting so much more impactful. We’re proving that strong investigative journalism is so necessary at the local level.”
The work produced by fellows will be primarily edited by Dean Baquet; Chris Davis, deputy for the Local Investigative Reporting Fellowship; Kathleen McGrory, investigations editor; Adam Playford, data and investigations editor; and Rebecca Corbett, a senior investigative editor at The Times.
To support the data work of the fellows, Big Local News, a data-sharing journalism lab based at Stanford University, will be working with the fellows on obtaining and analyzing data for their projects and providing ongoing training on investigative data techniques.
The fellowship was introduced to help develop the next generation of reporters to produce accountability journalism at the local level. In addition to producing signature investigative work, fellows will receive frequent training opportunities to learn investigative reporting techniques, make trips to the Times’ New York offices and attend conferences for additional training and mentorship.
Brian Howey has a master’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, Graduate School of Journalism and has written about policing, homelessness and conservation issues for local and national publications.
Nate Rosenfield was recently awarded a grant by the Brown Institute for Media Innovation to design a tool using large language models that will help reporters gain new insights into the regulatory process.
A House plan to dissolve the member-elected board that governs Mississippi’s massive public employee pension plan and replace it with a board dominated by political appointees died Tuesday in the Senate Government Structure Committee.
The bill’s death angered House Speaker Jason White, who called the move “irresponsible.”
Sen. Chris Johnson, R-Hattiesburg, chairman of the committee, said Tuesday afternoon — hours before a deadline for action on the measure — that he would not call the bill up for consideration. Instead, he called for the current board to become more transparent by livestreaming all of its meetings.
He also urged the board to delay the start of its plan to increase by 5% the amount public entities, state and local governments, school districts and universities and colleges must contribute to the program.
The 5% increase is scheduled to begin with a 2% increase in July and be phased in over three years.
That planned increase, which board members said their financial experts reported was needed to ensure the long-term financial stability of the Public Employees Retirement System, caused controversy in the Legislature. It led to the House plan to replace the existing elected board. The House acted after many state agency heads and local officials said the increase would cause financial distress and a possible reduction in services.
As of now, the board’s plan to increase the amount governmental entities contribute to their employees’ paychecks for retirement benefits from 17.4% to 22.4% over a three-year period remains in effect.
Ray Higgins, executive director of PERS, did not say whether the PERS board would heed Johnson’s advice.
“We appreciate the committee’s focus on PERS and their suggestions,” Higgins said. “PERS is such a very important system, not just for our membership but for the entire state. We support the continuation and sustainability of PERS and look forward to working with the Legislature in the future.”
Johnson said senators had received messages from “thousands and thousands of PERS members” who objected to dissolving the board. The current board is comprised primarily of people elected by PERS members. PERS has a massive impact on the state with about 360,000 members, including retirees, current employees and former public sector employees who have not yet retired. Under the House plan that was killed in the Senate committee Tuesday, the new board would be comprised of people appointed by the governor and lieutenant governor.
Killing the legislation “was the right thing to do,” said Ed LeGrand, past president of the Mississippi Retired Public Employee Association and a former member of the PERS board. He said he supported keeping the current board in place and had mixed emotions about recommendations to delay the increase in the employer contribution rate.
“That will be up to the current board to decide,” he said. Earlier, board members had voiced opposition to the House plan to dissolve the current PERS board.
Speaker White, R-West, said in a statement he was disappointed the Senate killed the House bill. He criticized Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann specifically for the demise of the legislation.
“The lieutenant governor and Senate’s failure to address the long-term sustainability of our state’s retirement program is irresponsible to not only PERS retirees and participants in the system but Mississippi taxpayers,” White said.
Hosemann in a statement said: “The PERS system’s long-term viability continues to be a serious concern. The Senate and the House need to work together to find a solution. Transparency and trust, from both the Legislature and retirees and employees, will be critical for us to move forward. The Senate is committed to protecting retiree and current employee benefits while balancing the budget.”
The system has assets of about $32 billion, but debt of about $25 billion. But Johnson said that debt was “a snapshot” that would be reduced by strong performances from the stock market.
He stressed that no member of the Senate Government Structure Committee supported any change in the benefits that PERS members received. He said the system had assets to meet its obligations.
The system depends on the contributions from governmental entities, a 9% contribution from employees and its investment earnings for its revenue. Some senators said they believed the board overreacted by imposing the employer contribution increase. Whether the board will heed Johnson’s recommendation to postpone the increase in the employer contribution remains to be seen. Another option would be for the Legislature to infuse funds from its current revenue surplus into the system.
But White said, “Over the next three years, and the foreseeable future if no action is taken, the proposed 5%-10% increase requested to fund PERS will also have the effect of limiting government services, and eliminating state and local government employees.”
Senate Constitution Chairwoman Angela Burks Hill killed this year’s substantive effort to restore voting rights to people convicted of nonviolent felonies by deciding not to hold a committee meeting before a Tuesday night deadline.
Hill, R-Picayune, did not conduct a single committee meeting over the last two weeks to consider any House bills that the lieutenant governor’s office referred to her committee for consideration. The Pearl River County lawmaker wouldn’t substantively comment on why she declined to advance any bills.
“The constitution speaks for itself,” Hill said.
The drafters of Mississippi’s 1890 Constitution, who first enacted the provision that strips voting rights away from certain convicted felons for life, did speak loudly at the time when they wrote the document that still governs the Magnolia State today.
“There is no use to equivocate or lie about the matter … Mississippi’s constitutional convention of 1890 was held for no other purpose than to eliminate the n—– from politics,” Mississippi Gov. James K. Vardaman said at the time.
George Melchoir of Bolivar County, a delegate to the 1890 convention, also said at the time, … “It is the manifest intention of this convention to secure to the state of Mississippi white supremacy.”
The original disenfranchising crimes chosen at the time thought to be more likely committed by Black people.
Under the Mississippi Constitution, people convicted of any of 10 felonies — including perjury, arson and bigamy — lose their voting rights for life. A 2009 opinion from the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office expanded the list of disenfranchising felonies to 22.
Mississippi is one of only a handful of states that does not automatically restore voting rights to people who complete their sentences.
About 37,900 names are on the Secretary of State’s voter disenfranchisement list as of Jan. 29. The list, provided to Mississippi Today through a public records request, goes back to 1992 for felony convictions in state court. That number, however, may not be wholly accurate because no state agency tracks people once they are struck from the voter rolls. Studies commissioned by civil rights organizations in 2018 estimated between 44,000 and 50,000 Mississippians were disenfranchised.
The House overwhelmingly passed legislation last month that created an automatic process for people previously convicted of some nonviolent felony offenses to have their voting rights restored.
A bipartisan pair of House members told Mississippi Today on Tuesday afternoon they were disheartened to hear that Hill declined to advance their measure in committee, given that a large majority of Republicans and Democrats supported the measure.
“I think we were taking a step in the right direction to get someone who has paid their debt to society and remained on the straight and narrow for five years to get their right to vote back,” Republican Rep. Fred Shanks of Brandon said.
Rep. Kabir Karriem, D-Columbus, has filed legislation for years to create a pathway for people convicted of nonviolent felony offenses to regain their voting rights. Even though Hill won’t consider the legislation this year, Karriem said he intends to continue advocating for suffrage restoration.
“It seems like the Senate kills good legislation and passes bad legislation, so I’m not surprised,” Karriem said. “But we have to find a way to give people their rights back.”
Even though the suffrage bill is dead, lawmakers can still introduce individual bills to restore voting rights on behalf of citizens, but the process is burdensome. It requires two-thirds of lawmakers in both legislative chambers to vote in favor of restoring suffrage in individual cases.
The Legislature last year did not pass any suffrage restoration bills. A person can also seek a gubernatorial pardon, though no executive pardon has been handed down since Gov. Haley Barbour’s final days in office in 2011.
Hill’s decision to kill the bill marks the latest example in a litany of efforts to reform Mississippi’s felony suffrage process that have fizzled.
Former House Judiciary B Chairman Nick Bain, a Republican from Corinth, led a proposal through the Legislature in 2022 that sought to clarify that people who have had a disenfranchising felony expunged from their criminal record would regain their voting rights. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves vetoed Bain’s proposal, and the Legislature did not override the veto.
The last time the Legislature substantively addressed felony suffrage was when the House overwhelmingly passed legislation in 2008 to restore voting rights to all Mississippians convicted of felonies, except for those convicted of murder or rape.
The 2008 legislation later died in the Senate, where Phil Bryant — who would later become governor and not pardon a single Mississippian convicted of any crime — presided as lieutenant governor.
The last time the Legislature successfully passed a bill that restored suffrage to a class of people was in the 1940s when then-Rep. William Winter of Grenada, who would later become governor, shepherded a measure through the Capitol that restored suffrage to all World War I and World War II veterans convicted of felonies.
