Roughly a month into the legislative session, local legislators are advancing bills aimed at tackling issues ranging from sexual assault victim rights to education reform.
What bills are Golden Triangle lawmakers pushing this year? The following have moved out of their committees.
District 29 Representative Dana McLean
Authored by McLean, House Bill 861 would amend the state law that grants immunity from prosecution to individuals involved in a medical emergency related to intoxication. The law intends to encourage them to seek help without fear of legal consequences. McLean’s proposed change would extend that immunity to individuals reporting a sexual offense as well.
House Bill 863 expands the rights of sexual assault victims, requiring them to be informed of policy changes that could affect the collection and preservation of a sexual assault evidence collection kit. It also requires law enforcement to notify the victim at least 60 days before destroying or disposing of an evidence kit.
With House Bill 907, McLean proposes amending the state code to increase the amount of an income tax credit employers providing dependent care for employees during work hours. The 25% increase would also apply to employers who provide a child care stipend of at least $6,000 to employees.
McLean also authored House Bill 927, which would establish the licensure and regulation of professional midwifery and create the Mississippi State Board of Licensed Midwifery. The bill defines the scope of practice, procedures and penalties for licensed midwives and also mandates health coverage plans to reimburse services by licensed midwives.
Other bills from McLean include House Bill 928, proposing hospitals with an emergency department be required to have personnel trained to treat and collect evidence from sexual assault victims.
District 37 Representative Andy Boyd
House Bill 1687 aims to authorize tax credits for businesses that make voluntary cash contributions to 501(c)(3) organizations with programs aimed at advancing youth education achievement, physical development and social/emotional development. The organizations must also support workforce development.
The tax credits apply to income, insurance premium and ad valorem taxes, but not state income taxes.
District 17 Senator Chuck Younger
Younger, who was named chair of the Senate Highways and Transportation Committee this session, authored Senate Bill 2256, which allows trucks carrying concrete and solid waste to exceed the usual weight limits. The bill also allows counties and municipalities to impose more restrictive weight limits on roads and streets.
Senate Bill 2257 also deals with vehicle weight limits and also requires some harvest permit holders to get route approvals from county or municipal authorities.
Also authored by Younger, Senate Bill 2969 adds nonprofits that provide temporary housing for homeless people as an exemption from the state sales tax sales of tangible personal property.
Senate Bill 2727 amends state law to define “licensed social worker” and establishes a compact with other states to facilitate interstate practice for regulated social workers. The bill aims to increase public access to social work services and reducing duplicative licensing requirements.
Senate Bill 2898 would require the Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review to do an evaluation of Medicaid’s nonemergency transportation program every two years after the start of a new contract with the State Department of Health.
District 41 Representative Kabir Karriem
Karriem is the principal author for two house resolutions. House Resolution 4 is an apology for the role the state played in the murder of Emmett Till in 1955 and the acquittal of his killers.
The second resolution, House Resolution 5, would require any proposed bills to include a racial and ethnic impact statement that describes the effects the legislation could have on racial and ethnic populations in the state. The statement must be “factual, impartial, simple and understandable.”
District 43 Representative Rob Roberson
Roberson, who chairs the House Education Committee, has several bills that could impact public education, including House Bill 1431, which would create a task force to study counties with two or more school districts inside with the goal of determining how to “substantially reduce” the number of districts in the state.
House Bill 1527 would require the State Board of Education to create a financial literacy curriculum for sixth through eighth-graders statewide. House Bill 1621 would also affect students directly, allowing grant funds to cover the basic operation of career and technical education programs and new equipment.
Roberson is also the principal author of House Bill 1617, which would create the Tim Tebow Act. The bill would allow homeschool students to participate in extracurricular activities in public schools.
House Bill 1434 aims to improve workforce readiness and postsecondary outcomes for low-income students near Delta State, Mississippi Valley and Alcorn State universities. The bill would create specialized academic programs targeting ninth through twelfth-graders in disciplines like aeronautics, geospatial studies, engineering, nursing and technical skills. The students would have prioritized enrollment opportunities at the partnering universities.
Roberson’s House Bill 1432 would expand eligibility for charter schools to open in districts with low ratings.
District 15 Senator Bart Williams
Authored by Williams, Senate Bill 2426 aims to establish a task force to study and evaluate the applications and risks of artificial intelligence. The task force would report to the legislature annually to present findings and policy recommendations.
Another technology related bill authored by Williams, Senate Bill 2471, would keep government entities, like counties and municipalities, from being held liable for cybersecurity incidents if they have adopted standards consistent with best practices.
Senate Bill 2298 would amend state code to allow for prequalification of bidders if the construction project cost at least $10 million and is deemed by the governing authority to be in the best interest of the state.
Williams also authored Senate Bill 2221, which would require public institutions of higher learning to make reports on their co-ed dormitories, including details of the types of dorms and living arrangements as well as visitor policies, access methods and incidents to compare to single-sex dormitories.
Other bills authored by Williams include a proposal to establish either the Saturday or Sunday before Thanksgiving as a tax-free day for groceries with Senate Bill 2810 and the establishment of the Technology Innovation Fund to use technological solutions to enhance government services in Senate Bill 2443.
District 16 Senator Angela Turner-Ford
Two bills authored by Turner-Ford aim to fund repairs and renovations at the Black Prairie Blues museum in West Point. Senate Bill 2099 would appropriate $2 million toward the project, and Senate Bill 2098 would authorize general obligation bonds to provide funds for the same purpose.
Three other bills Turner-Ford has authored deal with controlled and over-the-counter substances.
The first, Senate Bill 2354, would establish a screening and approval program for over-the-counter products containing substances that could result in recreational use or abuse, like bath salts and kratom.
Senate Bill 2355 adds kratom as a schedule III drug in the Uniform Controlled Substances Act, and Senate Bill 2356 amends that act to reclassify 16 substances as schedule I controlled substances, most of which include fentanyl.
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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