Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 2 February, 2026; 4:30 P.M., 925, all

Summary: The committee took up a series of criminal justice and public safety bills. Early discussion focused on immigration-related concerns and the costs of enforcement, with one senator pressing for data to support claims about crimes by undocumented immigrants and another citing specific cases and DPS removals of drivers with falsified CDLs. The committee also heard a bill requiring the sex marker on a driver’s license to match sex at birth; the sponsor said it was the same measure passed by the committee the prior year, and it received a title sufficient/do pass recommendation. Several bills addressed corrections and court procedures. One bill clarified that people in intervention court are subject to the sentencing judge’s sanctions and are not entitled to a separate technical-violation hearing like probationers or parolees; the sponsor said it would reduce, not increase, leniency, and the committee passed it. Another bill extended the statute of limitations for felonious assistance program fraud from five to ten years, citing the TANF fraud case and the need for more time to detect abuse in executive agency programs; it also passed. The committee then approved a bill allowing judges, after a hearing and specific findings, to order firearms removed in domestic violence cases and protective-order proceedings when the weapons pose a credible threat. The committee also advanced a bill increasing penalties for witness tampering, with the sponsor saying prosecutors wanted a stronger tool because defendants were sometimes willing to accept the current five-year penalty rather than face the underlying offense. Members discussed whether the bill covered intimidation versus tampering and whether the penalty should be tied to the underlying crime; a motion to reconsider/adjust the bill was adopted, and the bill ultimately received a do pass recommendation. Another measure increased fines for handheld mobile device violations while driving, especially in school and work zones, and members discussed whether the bill should be stronger and how any collected fines would be used; it passed. Finally, the committee approved a bill requiring reporting of certain convictions and adjudications to the Child Protective Services central registry, and ended by passing a bill increasing the fine for failing to use a screen on loads that can spill from vehicles and damage windshields, with members noting the fine had not been updated since 1974.

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 29 January, 2026; 9:30 A.M., 925, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This is the child support continuing past the age of majority for disabled children.
• typical age of majority for an adult who's incapable of self-support due to a physical or mental disability
• Obviously, this individual doesn't stop having this severe disability when they reach the age of 18,
• Obviously, this individual doesn't stop having this severe disability when they reach the age of 18,
• Obviously, this individual doesn't stop having this severe disability when they reach the age of 18,

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 216, 29 January, 2026; 3:00 PM, 925, all

Summary: The committee met to discuss several bills, beginning with a block motion on Senate Bills 2138, 2697, 2707, 2717, and 2726. Those measures were described as code-section updates involving redrawn Supreme Court districts, youth court reforms, Administrative Office of Courts matters, replacement of the MyKids youth court computer system, and Mississippi opioid settlement commission procedures. The committee agreed to take them up together, and the motion to report them title sufficient and due pass carried without opposition. The committee then considered Senate Bill 2890, dealing with the judicial operations fund. Members were told the fund no longer has sufficient revenue to cover court operations and requested judicial raises, and the proposed committee substitute would repeal the fund while conforming related code references. The substitute was adopted and the bill was reported title sufficient and due pass. Senate Bill 2730, granting immunity to nonprofits and churches that open during declared emergencies, was amended with a reverse repealer and then passed as amended. Next, Senate Bill 2135 was explained as a change to jury summons procedures so clerks could use the SEMS active/inactive voter designation and summon only active voters, without removing anyone from the voter rolls. The bill drew no opposition and passed, though a reverse repealer was later requested on similar procedural grounds in other bills. Senate Bill 2360 would create a public registry of entities that, though appearing private, are covered by the Mississippi Tort Claims Act; members discussed whether such entities should also be required to identify themselves on websites and written materials, and an amendment to that effect was adopted. A reverse repealer was then added, and the bill passed as amended. Finally, Senate Bill 2362 was presented as a proposal to create a private cause of action under the Unfair Trade Practices Act, allowing claimants to sue directly while still notifying the Attorney General. The sponsor said the bill would not add extra damages and noted similar laws in other states. The committee discussion was cut off in the transcript before a final vote on that bill is shown.

Transcript Highlights:

• oversees the driver services division.
• Um, and so the goal is to instead of maybe one day having 11 divisions, we have four or five divisions
• It was three of our different divisions.
• They were of our different divisions.
• <00:32:18.000> at in the opinions and policy division at in the opinions and policy division

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 28 January, 2026; 9:00 A.M., 925, all

Summary: The committee first took up Senate Bill 21104, a Gaming Commission criminal penalties bill presented by Commissioner Jay McDaniel. He said the measure is essentially the same as a bill passed by the Senate last year and would keep penalties low for people merely playing gaming, but make it a felony for operators of illegal online gaming platforms, with a $100,000 fine per conviction and forfeiture authority for funds tied to the crime. The committee substitute was described as clarifying that the penalties target the operator rather than the platform being used. After no questions, the committee moved and adopted the bill. The committee then heard three Department of Public Safety bills from Commissioner Tindle. Senate Bill 2232 would raise seat belt fines from $25 to $100 and direct the additional revenue into existing driver education-related funds, with the stated goal of supporting driver education programs and improving teen road safety. Members asked about the revenue impact and whether the money would be appropriated back to the department and schools; Tindle said the funds would still be subject to legislative appropriation. The bill was moved and adopted, though some members raised concerns about redirecting local fine revenue. Senate Bill 2314 was described as a cleanup bill for driver’s license statutes, updating outdated references, removing obsolete paperwork requirements, allowing first-class mail and optional digital notice through mobile ID, and reflecting the department’s move from Jackson to Pearl. Members questioned whether first-class mail could shorten response time for suspension notices and how mobile ID notices would work; Tindle said the change was intended to save money and allow electronic notice if users opt in. The committee also adopted this bill. Senate Bill 2817 would reorganize DPS by consolidating several divisions into a new Mississippi State Bureau of Investigations, combine equipment and software purchases, raise autopsy fees from $1,000 to $1,200, increase salvage title inspection fees from $75 to $125, and open a broader discussion about the Highway Patrol’s future role. It was also moved and adopted. The committee then heard Senate Bill 2230 from Senator Hill, which would extend electronic warrants to misdemeanors; members discussed efficiency, warrant databases, and Fourth Amendment concerns, but no final action on that bill was shown in the excerpt.

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 216, October 23, 2025; 9:00 AM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 216, September 24, 2025; 10:00 AM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 216, 29 May, 2025; 1:15 PM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 13 March, 2025; 9:30 AM., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 216, 4 March, 2025; 4:25 PM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 409, 4 March, 2025; 2:15 P.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 4 March, 2025; 9:00 A.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 216, 27 February, 2025; 2:00 PM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 216, 27 February, 2025; 3:00 PM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 4 February, 2025; 9:00 A.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 409, 4 February, 2025; 2:00 P.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division 4 - Room 409, 4 February, 2025; 4:00 P.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 409, 4 February, 2025; 8:30 A.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 30 January, 2025; 3:45 P.M., 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division A - Room 216, 30 January, 2025; 3:00 PM, 925, all

Keywords: Judiciary, Division B - Room 409, 29 January, 2025; 9:30 A.M., 925, all