Mississippi Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Mississippi, with full citations and the original source on every page.
No Mississippi opinions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
If a Mississippi school district seat covers two counties, where does a candidate qualify in a special election, both counties or just one?
One county. Per the 1996 Eskridge opinion, a candidate for a multi-county school board seat files a single qualifying petition (signed by qualified electors of the district regardless of which county …
Can Mississippi CPS take a newborn into custody if the baby tests positive for meth or cocaine and is suffering withdrawals, even before the baby goes home?
Section 43-21-303 sets the conditions under which CPS or law enforcement may take a child into immediate custody without an order. The AG treated questions 1-4 (whether CPS could act in specific drug-…
Can a Mississippi sheriff or county use LIDAR, camera-based speed detection, or other non-radar speed devices, given that Section 63-3-519 limits 'radar' to certain agencies?
No. Section 63-3-519 prohibits all speed detection devices outside the Mississippi Highway Patrol and the specific municipalities listed in subsections (a) through (d), not just radar. AG opinions goi…
When a Mississippi municipal prisoner is bound over to the grand jury, who pays for housing the inmate, the city or the county?
The county. Once a municipal prisoner is bound over to the grand jury at preliminary hearing, or waives the hearing, the prisoner becomes a county prisoner. From that point, the county pays inmate exp…
After Mississippi's 2025 House Bill 291 changed plurality voting to majority voting for some offices, do legislative and state district offices still win on a plurality?
Yes to all three questions. After H.B. 291, the threshold for state legislative offices and state district offices (Public Service Commissioner, Transportation Commissioner) remains a plurality of vot…
Can a Mississippi state agency add a third-party processing fee on top of regulatory fees when users pay online, or does that count as raising the fee without statutory authority?
Yes. Section 27-104-33 expressly allows a Mississippi state agency to assess users a processing fee, paid directly to a third-party vendor, on top of statutory regulatory fees. The user pays the full …
Can a Mississippi school district hire a retired superintendent part-time without messing up his PERS retirement benefits?
Yes, twice. There is no statutory requirement that a Mississippi school district superintendent work full time. A PERS retiree may serve as a part-time superintendent and keep drawing retirement benef…
Can a Mississippi alderman tell city employees not to follow the mayor's instructions or sign up contractors without board approval?
No. In a code charter Mississippi municipality, executive power is vested in the mayor. Section 21-3-15(2)(a) explicitly says no member of the board of aldermen shall give orders to any employee or su…
If a Mississippi grandmother takes in her grandchild without going through CPS, can she get state supportive services payments under Section 43-15-17?
No. Section 43-15-17 supportive services payments are only available when CPS places the child in the relative's home. A relative who takes a child through chancery court guardianship outside CPS is n…
Can a Mississippi school district accept a donation, or a fee waiver, from a vendor or contractor who currently does business with the district?
Yes, with caution. There is no statutory prohibition on a school district accepting a donation, or a fee/interest waiver, from a vendor or contractor currently under contract with the district. The bo…
Can a private developer in Mississippi deed subdivision streets inside a town's corporate limits to the county, or do those streets become municipal property?
No on the deed to the county. Streets within a Mississippi municipality's corporate limits are municipal streets, and the county cannot take them through a developer's conveyance. Yes on cost-sharing:…
Are hemp-derived edibles, drinks, and other ingestible products legal to sell or possess in Mississippi without going through a medical cannabis dispensary?
No, generally illegal. Selling a hemp-derived ingestible product not approved by the FDA is prohibited under the Uniform Controlled Substances Law unless sold through a licensed medical cannabis dispe…
Can a Mississippi auxiliary deputy sheriff who is not certified make traffic stops, write tickets, transport inmates, or make arrests?
No to all of the above. An auxiliary deputy sheriff is a part-time law enforcement officer under Section 45-6-3(d) and must be BLEOST-certified. An uncertified person cannot serve as an auxiliary depu…
If a Mississippi alderman makes a motion that nobody seconds and nobody votes on, does the town have to put it in the meeting minutes?
The Open Meetings Act requires only final actions in the official minutes (members present, time, place, accurate record of final actions, votes by individual member). A motion that died for lack of a…
Can someone serve as both a Mississippi school board member and a city alderman at the same time?
No. A school board member is in the executive branch, exercising core executive powers. A city alderman is in the legislative branch, exercising core legislative powers. The Mississippi Constitution's…
Can a Mississippi city donate funds directly to a 501(c)(3) running a county-owned homeless transition center, or only through the county?
The local-and-private bill (H.B. 1801) authorizes Sunflower County to contribute extra funds, but does not authorize the City of Indianola to give money to the County. The City can, however, contribut…
Can a Mississippi public community college write off and permanently extinguish uncollectible student accounts receivable, or does the state constitution forbid that?
No. Article IV, Section 100 of the Mississippi Constitution prohibits a public community college from permanently extinguishing uncollectible student account balances. The college can use accounting c…
If my local Mississippi community college does not offer a CTE class my child wants, can a neighboring community college (or its curriculum at a neighboring school district's vo-tech) provide it for dual credit?
Yes for the neighboring community college's campus, no for a neighboring school district's vo-tech center. Section 37-73-5 lets a high school student take a CTE dual credit course on another participa…
How much can a Mississippi city pay a county to house its municipal inmates in the county jail?
Yes. Under amended Section 19-25-73(3), municipalities may pay a county up to $25 per day for the first 30 days a municipal pretrial detainee or prisoner is in the county jail, and up to $32.71 per da…
Can a Mississippi county employee use the county work vehicle to drive to meetings and business of a separate compensated state board position?
No. The personal use of a county vehicle for travel to a separately compensated elected state board position is an impermissible donation of public funds under Article IV, Section 66 of the Mississipp…
Does Mississippi law require a chiropractic extern applicant to pass all four parts of the National Board exam, or just some?
The statute (Section 73-6-14(1)) does not specify which parts of the National Board exam an applicant must pass. The Board of Chiropractic Examiners has broad authority to set academic and professiona…
Does a Mississippi disabled veteran have to be unemployable to qualify for the full homestead exemption, or is VA documentation enough?
Section 27-33-67(2)(a) does not require the veteran to be unemployable in the civilian job market. The statute only requires documentation of service-connected total disability and an honorable discha…
Does Mississippi's 3,000-foot residency rule for sex offenders cover state parks, walking trails, or hiking areas, and how do you measure the distance?
Whether a specific park, state forest, walking track, or trail counts as a 'playground or recreational facility' for the 3,000-foot residency restriction is a factual call by local authorities. The 3,…
If a Mississippi city had cleanup costs against a property but the property was sold by the State to a new owner, can the city still collect from the new owner?
If the city's cleanup lien was on file when the new owner bought from the State, the lien remains enforceable against the property. If the new owner had no actual or constructive notice of the lien, i…
Can a Mississippi drainage district assess land outside its boundaries that benefits from district improvements?
Yes. Section 51-29-29 says that if a drainage district's commissioners find lands outside the district benefit from district improvements, they 'shall' assess those lands. Property owners get notice a…
How much can a Mississippi city pay a county per day to hold a city's pretrial detainee or prisoner in the county jail?
Up to $25 per day for days one through thirty, and up to $32.71 per day for day 31 and beyond. Sections 19-25-73(3), 47-5-901, and 47-5-909 cap municipal payments to a county for housing municipal det…
Can a Mississippi city contract with a private vendor to run an ALPR camera system that mails traffic tickets to uninsured drivers and offers a paid diversion program?
Mississippi cities are not explicitly prohibited from using ALPR cameras for no-insurance enforcement under the Home Rule statute, but probable cause that the registered owner was driving cannot be pr…
Can a Mississippi county put circuit court and the district attorney's office in a new building separate from the courthouse?
Yes within limits. A Mississippi county may build a separate justice center and assign circuit court and DA functions to it. But Section 25-1-99 keeps circuit and chancery clerk offices at the courtho…
Can a Mississippi county zoning enforcement officer keep her county job if she's elected to city council?
Yes. The Hancock County solid waste/zoning enforcement officer's duties (citizen complaints, field investigations, warning notices, documentation) are administrative, not policy-making at the upper le…
Can a Mississippi school district adopt eligibility limits and caps on donated leave for catastrophic illness?
Mostly no. A Mississippi school board cannot adopt donated-leave rules that are stricter than what Section 37-7-307 allows. Eligibility, maximums received, and the donate-after-notice question are all…
Can a Mississippi county put leftover insurance money into the general fund after a covered building has been fully repaired?
No. Under Mississippi Supreme Court precedent (Adams v. Helms, 1909), insurance proceeds for a damaged county building are not part of the general fund. They are a trust fund reserved for repairing, m…
Can a Mississippi county tax assessor use the affordable housing appraisal method on a property qualified under a city's local affordable housing ordinance alone?
Maybe. Section 27-35-50(4)(d) applies only if a development meets the statutory definition of 'affordable rental housing' (income-and-rent restricted under federal programs or a similar program). Whet…
Can a family member or hospital override a registered organ donor's decision in Mississippi?
No. Once a Mississippi resident has registered as an organ donor, no one else (not family, not hospital staff) can revoke that decision without legal or clinical justification. Hospitals must cooperat…
Can a Mississippi school board member vote to hire or set the salary of a relative working in the same district?
No. Section 37-9-21 prohibits a school board member from voting on hiring any superintendent, principal, or licensed employee related within the third degree by blood or marriage, or financially depen…
Who has fire code authority over a Mississippi community college building, the State Fire Marshal or the local fire marshal?
Default to local. Mississippi community college buildings are not state-owned, so the State Fire Marshal's MS Fire Prevention Code does not automatically apply. Local fire code and local fire marshal …
Can a Mississippi city use municipal labor and equipment to install a private individual's commemorative banners on city utility poles for free?
Generally no. A Mississippi city cannot donate municipal labor, equipment, or pole space to a private, for-profit individual for free, even for a commemorative banner project. But Section 17-3-1 lets …
Can a Mississippi county use county equipment, labor, and materials to help a private water association with drainage repairs?
Generally no. The county home rule statute bars using public funds, equipment, or supplies for private purposes. But Section 19-5-92.1 carves out one exception: a county may provide labor, materials, …
Can a Mississippi tax collector accept a consular ID card or a foreign passport to register a vehicle?
No. While Section 27-19-57 does not allow a Mississippi tax collector to demand a Mississippi driver's license specifically, when proof of ID is required, it must be a driver's license or other govern…
Can a person serve as a Mississippi city fire chief and a county justice court judge at the same time?
No. The fire chief manages the entire fire department, serves as Civil Defense Director, and can hire and fire department staff. Those duties are executive core powers, so the same person cannot simul…
Can a Mississippi city use general fund money to subsidize rising garbage collection costs instead of raising fees?
No. The city can adopt an ordinance exempting certain residents from a portion of garbage fees, but it cannot tap the general fund to cover rising waste disposal costs. A 2016 amendment to Section 19-…
Does Tennessee Public Safety Network peer-support training count for Mississippi's certified peer support member designation?
The statute is clear: a certified peer support member must have critical incident stress management training and must be certified by the Mississippi State Board of Health or the Mississippi Departmen…
Can a Mississippi county pay a coroner mileage for using a personal vehicle to transport bodies for autopsies when the county vehicle is unreliable?
Yes. Sections 41-61-75 and 41-61-61 let a Mississippi county pay a coroner's actual expenses, including mileage, when the coroner transports a body for autopsy. If the county-assigned vehicle is unava…
Can the Mississippi State Auditor conduct managerial studies without a request from the Governor or Legislature?
No. Section 7-7-211(d)'s independent audit authority is limited to financial audits. Section 7-7-211(c) allows the Department of Audit to conduct managerial studies, but only on written request from t…
If a Mississippi tax sale is voided, does that erase the landowner's liability for unpaid special assessments?
No. A Mississippi board of supervisors voiding tax sales for prior years does not erase the landowner's underlying liability for special and maintenance assessments to a public improvement district. S…
Can a Mississippi county collect delinquent garbage fees from sixteenth section land when the leaseholder has abandoned the property?
The Mississippi Board of Education is not the 'owner' of sixteenth section land; the State of Mississippi owns it in trust for the public schools. The county's Section 19-5-22 lien attaches to the lea…
Can a Mississippi city forgive water bills that customers underpaid because of a city billing error?
No. The Mississippi Constitution forbids remitting any debt owed to a municipality except by payment. So when a city's billing error or faulty meter results in underbilled accounts, the city must coll…
Can a Mississippi city pay annual membership dues to a chamber of commerce?
A Mississippi city may pay chamber of commerce annual membership fees if its governing authorities find, on the minutes, that the dues serve advertising and economic-development purposes under Section…
Can a private vendor manage Mississippi sheriff's deputies' off-duty security work and charge clients an additional fee for profit?
Section 17-25-11 does not prohibit a third-party vendor from facilitating sheriff's deputies' off-duty security details and charging the client an additional fee for profit, as long as Section 17-25-1…
How does a Mississippi city handle unclaimed cash found by police, and does a court order have to authorize transfer to the city general fund?
When Mississippi police find unclaimed cash that is not part of a criminal investigation, Section 21-39-21 governs disposal: post notice in three public places, wait 120 days for any owner to claim it…
How may a Mississippi city spend opioid settlement funds, and can it donate those funds to a nonprofit?
Litigation settlement funds, including opioid settlement money, become public funds when received by a Mississippi city. They must be expended in accordance with state law. Cities are prohibited from …
Can a Mississippi game warden write you a traffic ticket on a county road?
Yes. Section 49-1-43(4)(d) gives Mississippi conservation officers (game wardens) broad warrantless arrest authority for any misdemeanor or felony committed in their presence. The AG read that to incl…
Can a Mississippi property owner block a public alley with a fence, and what can the city do?
A public right-of-way is the public's right of passage on roads, alleys, and similar thoroughfares. A property owner cannot permanently obstruct one. Mississippi cases have ordered removal of fences a…
Can a Mississippi city charge a franchise fee on an electric co-op's broadband affiliate?
No. Mississippi's 2% franchise fee under Section 77-3-17 covers public utility services, but broadband is excluded from the definition of 'public utility' under Section 77-3-3(d)(iii). The Mississippi…
Do Mississippi corrections officers, parole officers, or health-department compliance inspectors exercise 'core powers' of the executive branch?
Whether a particular Mississippi corrections officer, parole officer, or Department of Health compliance inspector exercises 'core powers' of the executive branch (and is therefore barred from also se…
Can a Mississippi sheriff use inmate canteen funds to buy a boiler valve and a jail laundry washer and dryer?
Yes to both. Section 19-3-81(1)(b) lets the sheriff spend inmate canteen money on educational expenses, equipment, supplies, and equipment maintenance for the benefit and welfare of inmates. A boiler …
After Mississippi's 2024 amendment, does circuit court or chancery court have jurisdiction over civil commitment when a respondent has felony charges?
After the 2024 amendment to Section 41-21-63 by HB 1088, circuit courts have exclusive jurisdiction over civil commitment proceedings for respondents with unresolved felony charges. Chancery courts re…
Can a Mississippi city contribute funds to maintain rivers and drainage outside city limits?
A Mississippi city may contribute public funds to maintain rivers and drainage outside its corporate limits only if the city makes a factual finding that the work promotes the health, comfort, and con…
Can a Mississippi jail buy a washing machine and clothes dryer for inmate uniforms with canteen funds?
Yes. A Mississippi sheriff may use inmate canteen funds to buy a washing machine and clothes dryer for inmate uniforms, so long as the purchase is made 'for the benefit and welfare of the inmates inca…
Can a Mississippi county use public law library funds to buy metal detectors for the courthouse?
Yes. Section 19-7-31 authorizes a Mississippi county board of supervisors to use public law library funds to purchase equipment for the library, and metal detectors at the entrance of a courthouse tha…
Can a Mississippi county contract with a hospital and a private ambulance provider to subsidize ambulance services without competitive bidding?
Yes on all three counts. A Mississippi county may contract with a public hospital and the hospital's private ambulance provider for ambulance services under Section 41-55-3, may subsidize a private am…
Browse Mississippi opinions by topic
Attorney general opinions in Mississippi are written by the Mississippi Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.