Senate Bill 2249

AN ACT TO CREATE SECTIONS 47-1-65, 47-5-185 AND 7-3-61, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REQUIRE CORRECTION FACILITIES TO IMPLEMENT, AND THE SECRETARY OF STATE TO DEVELOP, A VOTING LAW CURRICULUM FOR INMATES TO ENCOURAGE THOSE WHO ARE NOT DISENFRANCHISED BY THEIR CONVICTION TO VOTE; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

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

SECTION 1. The following shall be codified as Section 47-1-65, Mississippi Code of 1972:

47-1-65. It is the duty of the board of supervisors of each county and of the governing authority of each municipality to provide voter education to every inmate incarcerated for a period exceeding sixty (60) days in any facility subject to the control of the board of supervisors or the governing authority of the municipality, whether by contract or otherwise, according to a curriculum developed by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 7-3-61, Mississippi Code of 1972.

SECTION 2. The following shall be codified as Section 47-5-185, Mississippi Code of 1972:

47-5-185. It is the duty of the commissioner to provide voter education to every inmate incarcerated for a period exceeding sixty (60) days in any facility subject to the control of the Department of Corrections, whether by contract or otherwise, according to a curriculum developed by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 7-3-61, Mississippi Code of 1972.

SECTION 3. The following shall be codified as Section 7-3-61, Mississippi Code of 1972:

7-3-61. It is the duty of the Secretary of State to develop a curriculum for use by all municipal and county jails, facilities operated by the Department of Corrections, and any private correctional facility offering services under contract to the Department of Corrections or any Mississippi county or municipality to inform inmates of the voting laws of this state with the purpose of encouraging qualified inmates and qualified ex-offenders to exercise the right to vote.

SECTION 4. The Attorney General of the State of Mississippi shall submit this act, immediately upon approval by the Governor, or upon approval by the Legislature subsequent to a veto, to the Attorney General of the United States or to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in accordance with the provisions of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended.

SECTION 5. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after the date it is effectuated under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended and extended.