Living

The 2022 Legislature enacted HB 1029 creating an office of broadband for the State of Mississippi. Governor Tate Reeves then appointed former Senator Sally Burchfield Doty as director of the office which is known as BEAM (Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi). The State will now have one point of contact for all broadband issues. The BEAM office will function under the Department of Finance and Administration.

At the direction of the 2020 Legislature, the Public Utilities Staff administered $75 million in CARES Act funding in broadband grants primarily for Electric Power Associations. More recently, in February of 2022, the Public Utilities Staff was awarded a $32 million grant for ten projects across the state. This administration and monitoring of this $32 million grant will be transferred to BEAM.

The Mississippi Board of Examiners for Social Workers and Marriage and Family Therapists was established by the state legislature in 1987. Our mission is to ensure that the public is protected from the unprofessional, improper, unauthorized and unqualified practice of social work and marriage and family therapy.

The Board also regulates the practice of social work and marriage and family therapy in the state through investigation and disciplinary authority granted by Title 73, Chapters 53 and 54 of the Mississippi Code.

Located in Oxford, the North Mississippi Regional Center (NMRC) is a comprehensive regional program providing an array of services in the northern 32 counties of the state. NMRC operates under the authority of the MS Department of Mental Health and is licensed as an Intermediate Care Facility for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IID).

The Mississippi Autism Board consists of five (5) members appointed by the Governor and Lieutenant Governor. The board consists of one (1) licensed psychologist practicing in the area of applied behavior analysis, three (3) licensed behavior analysts, and one (1) non-licensed public member who is the family member of a recipient of applied behavior analysis services to provide for the licensure and regulation of the practice of applied behavior analysis.

Connect with key providers of workforce training and employment opportunities in government, education and private sectors.

The purpose of the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation Human Trafficking / Special Victims Unit (MBI HT / SVU) is to foster a collaborative, multidisciplinary effort among state agencies, service providers, first responders, local and federal law enforcement, local and federal prosecutors, and lawmakers to develop and implement a victim-centered, trauma-informed, offender-focused, sustainable, uniform protocol for identifying and effectively responding to incidents of all forms of human trafficking, and the crimes associated with human trafficking are presented for prosecution. The unit is comprised of the statewide human trafficking coordinator, a supervisory special agent, four regional human trafficking special agents, and a human trafficking intelligence analyst.

The vision of the Mississippi Commission on the Status of Women is the improvement of the overall quality of life of women, specifically in the areas of education, health, economics, political participation, and race relations. The Mississippi Commission on the Status of Women was created in 2001 by the Mississippi Legislature under House Bill 797, and is codified in Miss. Code Ann. Section 43-59-1.  Our Commissioners are appointed by the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the Attorney General.  Each of our Commissioners serves in a voluntary capacity, with a particular focus on issues that impact the lives of our state's women and children, and by extension, all Mississippians.

The Veterans' Home Purchase Board (VHPB) was established by an Act of the Mississippi State legislature to provide a benefit in the form of a mortgage loan to Mississippi veterans in appreciation for their service to our country. Providing affordable interest rates and utilizing VA mortgage financing enables the VHPB to provide affordable home ownership opportunities and improve quality of life for many Mississippi veterans. With our advantageous interest rates, the VHPB is able to assist many veterans who would not normally qualify for another mortgage loan. 

The Mississippi Department of Transportation is responsible for providing a safe intermodal transportation network that is planned, designed, constructed and maintained in an effective, cost efficient and environmentally sensitive manner.

Mississippi has a two-tier appellate court system that reviews decisions of law and fact made by the trial courts. The Mississippi Supreme Court is the court of last resort among state courts. Decisions of the Chancery, Circuit and County Courts, and Court of Appeals may be appealed to the Supreme Court. Appeals which go directly to the Supreme Court include annexations, bond issues, constitutionality challenges, death penalty cases, disciplinary matters involving attorneys and judges, election contests, certified questions from federal court, utility rates, cases of first impression and issues of broad public interest.

Nine Supreme Court justices are elected from three districts. Non-partisan elections are staggered so that not all positions are up for election at once. Supreme Court justices serve eight-year terms. Each Supreme Court justice participates in deciding appeals from the entire state. Decisions are by a majority vote of the court.