Senate Bill 2578

(COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE)

AN ACT TO CREATE SECTION 25-61-11.3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO EXEMPT TEXT MESSAGES FROM THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE MISSISSIPPI PUBLIC RECORDS ACT, UNLESS THE MESSAGES ARE RELATED TO THE BUSINESS OF THE PUBLIC BODY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. The following shall be codified as Section 25-61-11.3, Mississippi Code of 1972:

25-61-11.3. Text, short message service (SMS), multimedia messaging service (MMS) or rich communication service (RCS) messages on personal phones or devices are exempt from the Public Records Act as provided in Section 25-61-2, unless the messages are about public business and either have been prepared by a member of the public body, prepared for a member of the public body, used by a member of the public body, received by a member of the public body, possessed by a member of the public body or controlled by a member of the public body.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2025.