Mississippi
Key legislation taking effect July 1 in Mississippi
- Here’s a recap of the legislation that passed during the 2024 legislative session. See what impacts you and your family.
July 1 marks the beginning of a new fiscal year for the state of Mississippi, and along with that comes new laws that take effect after being passed during the 2024 legislative session and signed by Governor Tate Reeves.
Here is a list of some of the key pieces of legislation that becomes law on Monday in the Magnolia State:
New education funding formula
The “Mississippi Student Funding Formula” replaces the “Mississippi Adequate Education Program,” or MAEP, as the mechanism by which public schools will be funded annually.
According to previous reporting, the new Mississippi Student Funding Formula and this year’s appropriated total for education provides nearly $230 million more for K-12 schools, bringing the amount to roughly $2.96 billion.
The new formula provides base student funding of $6,695 in the first year, and increases in 2026, 2027, 2028 based on inflation. Beginning in 2029, and once every four years thereafter, the State Board of Education will recommend a new base student funding amount based on a new “objective formula” that factors in instructional, administrative and facility costs.
The legislation also creates a series of “weights” that increase the amount of funding available to students in certain categories considered more expensive to educate such as students identified as special needs, low income, and English language learners, among others.
Medicaid presumptive eligibility for pregnant mothers
Lawmakers passed a measure that provides pregnant women with presumptive eligibility for Medicaid. Presumptive eligibility refers to the process of granting Medicaid services to those who may qualify before their eligibility is verified by the program.
As previously reported, statistics show that two-thirds of pre-term births in Mississippi are to mothers on Medicaid. However, gaining approval for Medicaid coverage for mothers within the eligibility group can take time. Presumptive eligibility allows them to receive care within a 60-day window prior to that approval.
The fiscal note attached to the legislation shows that it could cost the state up to $567,000 yearly. When compared to the costs accumulated from a pre-term birth, lawmakers believe it would promote a cost saving measure for the state as care for just one child in a pre-term birth can cost the state up to $1 million at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC).
Squatted vehicles no longer allowed on roads
Legislation that outlaws the “Carolina Squat” passed this year. It prohibits vehicles with a modification that lifts the front axle of a vehicle higher than the rear axle on Mississippi roadways.
Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell told Magnolia Tribune in June that the modification causes a visibility problem and creates a hazard during collisions.
“The reality is, it is a public safety issue and one in which those trucks, in the way that they are operating and being modified, created a dangerous condition,” Commissioner Tindell said. “And there is no manufacturer that would build a vehicle in that manner because of the safety concerns.”
Owners of affected vehicles will be given warnings until January 27, 2025. After then, tickets will be issued for violations. First offenses will entail a $100 fine, while second offenses will result in a $200 fine. Third and subsequent offenses will entail a $300 fine and result in the suspension of the driver’s license for a year.
Driver’s Ed for schools
Legislation this year mandates the creation and maintenance of a driver’s education program in every secondary school district within the state.
As noted in the measure, every person in Mississippi who seeks their first driver’s license, regardless of age, must present proof that they completed a driver’s education course. The intent is to ensure that every driver on the road has learned safe driving habits.
As previously reported, the Mississippi Department of Education has two years to create and implement such a statewide program, which will include providing the resources and teachers necessary so every student can take the now mandated course.
Runoffs moved back a week
Runoff elections in Mississippi will now be four weeks after the initial Election Day instead of three.
Senator Jeremy England, the bill’s author, told Magnolia Tribune in late June that the main reason for moving the runoff elections from three weeks to four was to give Circuit Clerks and election officials more time to properly prepare for a runoff.
He said the issue of moving runoff elections back a week was requested by many of the people who handle elections in the state, including the Secretary of State’s office and the associations for the County Circuit Clerks and Election Commissioners.
Sign language now a foreign language option
Mississippi’s high school students now have another option to meet their foreign language curriculum graduation requirement – sign language.
The new law directs the State Board of Education to develop a curriculum related to the study of sign language.
“Any such class developed by the board may count as an academic credit for foreign languages for the purposes of high school graduation requirements,” the law states, as previously reported.
Mississippi joins a growing number of other states across the nation that allow students to choose sign language as a foreign language option.
Protecting minors from online predators
Mississippi lawmakers passed the legislation this year in unanimous bipartisan votes in both chambers. It requires social media platforms to make reasonable efforts to prevent or mitigate children’s exposure to potentially harmful content while using the platforms.
The law, known as the “Walker Montgomery Protecting Children Online Act,” is being challenged in federal court by NetChoice, a trade association which states that it advocates for free enterprise and free expression on the internet.
In conjunction with the legislation, lawmakers also passed a bill that creates the offense of sexual extortion and aggravated sexual extortion, often termed “sextortion.”
PERS employer rate increase phase-in
In the final days of the 2024 legislative session, the Mississippi House and Senate agreed on a bill that would redirect a Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) employer rate increase expected in July, and any potential increases thereafter.
The legislation, as previously reported, halted the expected 2% rate increase this summer and replaced it with a 0.5% increase that will be required each year through 2028.
The legislation also changed how future increases would be considered, providing for the input from two additional outside actuaries while making a rate increase dependent on the approval of the Legislature.
The structure of the PERS Board as currently comprised is being left as is, despite efforts early in the session to remake the Board.
Increased penalties for vehicle theft, shoplifting
Two bills provide stiffer penalties for stealing a vehicle and those indirectly involved in shoplifting of $1,000 or more in merchandise are now in effect, as previously reported by Magnolia Tribune.
It is now a felony to steal another person’s vehicle, or to steal vehicles from businesses where the sale, storage or rental of vehicles is part of their business model, regardless of its age or value.
Convictions for a first offense can lead to a sentence up to 15 years and/or a fine up to $10,000. A second conviction of the same crime can result in a sentence between 5 to 20 years and a fine up to $20,000. If the vehicle is stolen from a business that rents, sells or stores vehicles, the penalty can be between 10 to 30 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $20,000.
Other property covered in the bill includes farm machinery, construction equipment, and all-terrain and off-road vehicles.
In addition, a new law provides penalties for those who are indirectly involved in the crime of shoplifting that involves $1,000 or more in value. Shoplifting items totaling that amount is currently a felony.
Vetoes made by Governor
Governor Reeves partially vetoed two bills along with six others in their entirety.
Four of the vetoed bills were meant to restore the voting rights of felons.
One of the bills Reeves vetoed dealt with making the office of election commissioner nonpartisan while barring political parties from endorsing or contributing to candidates, while another centered on providing an additional resource for citizens in the capital city who may need assistance when Jackson Police could not readily respond. Governor Reeves cited concernsrelated to the Capitol Police enforcing certain Jackson ordinances inside the Capitol Complex Improvement District (CCID).
The partial vetoes handed down by Reeves focused on line-item appropriations.
Other laws taking effect
According to the Senate Legislative Services Office, 176 Senate bills and 209 House bills were approved to become law by Governor Reeves for the 2024 session. Reeves allowed another 5 Senate bills and 16 House bills to become law without his signature.
See all of the new laws and legislation passed during 2024 here:
MISSISSIPPI. (WLBT) – Diesel prices climbed this week across Mississippi and the nation, leaving truck drivers uncertain about their ability to continue hauling freight.
Lemone Guice said seeing diesel prices at the pumps was concerning.
“It’s rough right now with the economy. We don’t know how it’s going to be with it being up and down,” Guice said.
Guice and fellow truck driver Ronnie Tran said they don’t know how long their fuel will last.
“If it keeps going like this, I don’t think we can survive,” Tran said.
Tran said his fill-up costs have doubled.
“My normal fill-up: usually around $600 to $700. Now, you’re talking about a thousand to $1,200, so it’s, like, double,” Tran said.
King Gaulden said the situation has been difficult.
“Man, it’s been ridiculous. Ever since Trump said the gas prices would go down, they have been going up. We’re just trying to figure it out. It’s been hard out here, man,” Gaulden said.
According to AAA, the national average for a gallon of gas is $4.54. That’s the highest since the summer of 2022.
Guice said the spike is affecting decisions about whether to transport loads.
“For those of us that freight slows up, yes. You just don’t want to be just getting somewhere sitting and fuel you know… you don’t know whether you’re going to have a half of a tank or a quarter of tank. That isn’t good,” Guice said.
In Mississippi, the average price stands at $4.00, up more than 28 cents from last week.
Tran said his wish is simple.
“I wish the price would go back to $2 and something. Right now, it’s $4 and something. I wish it can go down to two or three something. That would be nice,” Tran said.
Mississippi still ranks among the states with the lowest gas prices.
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This is The Marshall Project – Jackson’s newsletter, a monthly digest of criminal justice news from around Mississippi gathered by our staff of local journalists. Want this delivered to your inbox? Sign up for future newsletters.
The future of the Voting Rights Act runs through a legal fight over Mississippi’s Supreme Court. Also, violence persists in the Hinds County jail, even under federal oversight, and immigration enforcement in Mississippi is drawing more attention.
– Caleb Bedillion and Daja E. Henry
Mississippi grapples with SCOTUS voting rights decision
Last year, U.S. District Court Judge Sharion Aycock ruled that the voting districts used to elect the Mississippi Supreme Court’s nine justices illegally dilute the influence of Black voters. About 38% of Mississippi is Black, but only one justice currently sitting on the bench is Black. All the other judges are White.
Then last week, the U.S. Supreme Court set off a legal earthquake by releasing a decision that significantly weakens the Voting Rights Act and makes it harder for racial minorities to claim in court that they are disadvantaged by voting districts used in elections.
The opinion in Louisiana v. Callais shifts voting rights law so much that the civil rights plaintiffs who filed the Mississippi lawsuit and the defendants have jointly asked a federal appeals court to void (the legal term is “vacate”) the ruling by Aycock and send the case back to her for new arguments.
As of Friday, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals had not yet ruled in response to this joint motion.
The Callais ruling has triggered intense speculation about its impact on a partisan redistricting war raging across the country ahead of midterm elections. With fewer voting protections in place for racial minorities, states across the South could try to eliminate voting districts drawn to favor those voters. This week, Tennessee lawmakers voted to eliminate the state’s lone Black-majority congressional district.
In Mississippi, the state Supreme Court districts loom as the most immediate issue.
When she found last year that the current maps discriminate against Black voters, Aycock gave state lawmakers an opportunity to draw a new voting map. In a legislative session that ended in April, they failed to do so.
A special session called by Gov. Tate Reeves is now scheduled for later this month, during which legislators could potentially change the voting districts of the Mississippi Supreme Court.
Will those lawmakers decide again to leave the status quo in place? Will they adopt a map that is more favorable to Black voters in a bid to bring litigation to a close? Could the Republican-controlled body take Callais as a signal to make the districts less favorable to Black voters?
At the same time, public speculation has mostly centered on whether Reeves will expand the scope of the special session to include the state’s Congressional districts. Some elected officials in the state — as well as President Donald Trump — are calling for more sweeping changes that will change the state’s congressional districts to eliminate a Black-majority district currently represented by Bennie Thompson, a Democrat.
Violence continues at Hinds County jail
Violence continues to plague Hinds County’s Raymond Detention Center, now under the control of a court-appointed federal receiver. Two men were assaulted at the jail on April 23, Sheriff Tyree Jones confirmed to Mississippi Today.
The men were identified as 26-year-old Isaac Gibson and 22-year-old Quandarius Beasley. Gibson’s aunt told Mississippi Today that he had been stabbed.
Violence is just one of the systemic issues that have plagued the facility for decades, leading to the federal takeover. U.S. District Court Judge Carlton W. Reeves ordered the receivership in 2022 after the county repeatedly failed to address constitutional violations found in the U.S. Department of Justice’s 2014 investigation.
Federal receiver, Wendell M. France Sr., took over operations at the facility in October 2025. In a February 2026 court hearing, France said staffing levels at the facility were “woeful.” The building is deteriorating and overcrowded, he reported.
“We will never reach a constitutional, sustainable jail if we do not increase the staff,” France said in the hearing.
According to logs obtained by The Marshall Project – Jackson, dispatchers responded to at least 121 assaults, one stabbing, and 29 aggravated assaults which involved the use of a weapon, in the facility in 2025.
Last year, eight people died in the jail, and one of those deaths was ruled a homicide, according to documents obtained by The Marshall Project – Jackson. In April 2025, 37-year-old Anthony Johnson was found unresponsive in his cell after being assaulted. Three people have been charged in connection with his death.
At least four more people have died in the facility this year.
Tracking immigration enforcement in Mississippi
The privately run Adams County Correctional Center in Mississippi is among the largest ICE detention facilities. People from across the country are held there ahead of possible deportation. But the number of detainees has recently dropped sharply, according to Mississippi Today and The New York Times. With the ability to hold up to 2,500 people, the facility was holding 1,400 people during an April tour, U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, a Democrat from Mississippi, told the news outlets.
Nationally, detention numbers have not decreased. A spokesperson for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement denied any intent to close the facility.
The news outlets are reporting in partnership about immigration enforcement and detention in Mississippi. They have interviewed Thompson about his visits to the Adams County facility and probed the scant details about the death of a person held there.
Elsewhere in Mississippi, two brothers from the Republic of the Congo who were attending a public high school on the Mississippi Gulf Coast were recently released from ICE custody after the intervention of prominent Republican officials, according to the Mississippi Free Press. Israel and Max Makoka legally came to the U.S. on student visas, but then transferred from the private boarding school in Rankin County that they initially attended. In a statement, ICE told the Mississippi Free Press the brothers were out of compliance with their visa terms.
Though they are back home with their host parents for now, the brothers still face possible deportation.
Around the state
More redistricting news. Some Mississippi Republicans have urged caution in redistricting. SuperTalk. “Mississippi faces pressure to redistrict before congressional midterms, but also real-world constraints.” Magnolia Tribune Special legislative session on redistricting will take place in Mississippi’s notorious Old Capitol, where the state’s Jim Crow Constitution was approved. Mississippi Today TMP Context: Black candidates have a “bleak” history in Mississippi Supreme Court elections. The Marshall Project
Retaliation on Death Row. There is only one woman on Mississippi’s Death Row. After speaking to a news outlet earlier this year about the restrictive conditions she faces, Lisa Jo Chamberlin believes she faced retaliation. Mother Jones
“Goon Squad” scandal yields new lawsuit. Two men who were beaten and tortured by deputies with the Rankin County Sheriff’s Department are now suing an elected member of the county’s Board of Supervisors for defamation. Mississippi Today
Immigration cooperation. Two rural Mississippi counties recently inked local cooperation agreements with ICE, allowing deputies for the departments to perform certain immigration enforcement duties. One of the sheriffs acknowledged that his department hasn’t arrested a single undocumented immigrant within the last year. The Dispatch
Too much paperwork. Jackson’s new police chief recently told the City Council that the billing system currently in use requires that she spend hours reviewing invoices. WLBT
Odds of winning the Powerball and Mega Millions are NOT in your favor
Odds of hitting the jackpot in Mega Millions or Powerball are around 1-in-292 million. Here are things that you’re more likely to land than big bucks.
The Mississippi Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at May 7, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mississippi Match 5 numbers from May 7 drawing
01-03-20-28-29
Check Mississippi Match 5 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 3 numbers from May 7 drawing
Midday: 6-9-1, FB: 0
Evening: 4-1-1, FB: 2
Check Cash 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash 4 numbers from May 7 drawing
Midday: 3-9-8-8, FB: 0
Evening: 5-9-0-2, FB: 2
Check Cash 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash Pop numbers from May 7 drawing
Midday: 09
Evening: 12
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
Story continues below gallery.
Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
Winnings of $599 or less can be claimed at any authorized Mississippi Lottery retailer.
Prizes between $600 and $99,999, may be claimed at the Mississippi Lottery Headquarters or by mail. Mississippi Lottery Winner Claim form, proper identification (ID) and the original ticket must be provided for all claims of $600 or more. If mailing, send required documentation to:
Mississippi Lottery Corporation
P.O. Box 321462
Flowood, MS
39232
If your prize is $100,000 or more, the claim must be made in person at the Mississippi Lottery headquarters. Please bring identification, such as a government-issued photo ID and a Social Security card to verify your identity. Winners of large prizes may also have the option of setting up electronic funds transfer (EFT) for direct deposits into a bank account.
Mississippi Lottery Headquarters
1080 River Oaks Drive, Bldg. B-100
Flowood, MS
39232
Mississippi Lottery prizes must be claimed within 180 days of the drawing date. For detailed instructions and necessary forms, please visit the Mississippi Lottery claim page.
When are the Mississippi Lottery drawings held?
- Cash 3: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Cash 4: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
- Match 5: Daily at 9:30 p.m. CT.
- Cash Pop: Daily at 2:30 p.m. (Midday) and 9:30 p.m. (Evening).
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Mississippi editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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