SB 2651 Mississippi Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Campaign finance laws; SOS to report to the Attorney General regarding judicial enforcement for violations of.

SB 2651 requires state-level candidates and political committees in Mississippi to file a "Statement of Organization" with the Secretary of State before accepting any contributions. This bill directly affects candidates for state legislative, statewide, or local offices, as well as political committees and parties. Key provisions include authorizing the Secretary of State to impose administrative penalties for non-compliance and directing the Attorney General or district attorneys to pursue legal action when requested. The bill also clarifies definitions of campaign contributions and expenditures under Mississippi’s campaign finance laws.

Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 20, 2025 Last action Feb 13, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

As Introduced → Current version · 6 edits

MODERATE

This bill significantly updates Mississippi's campaign finance laws by requiring candidates and political committees to file a Statement of Organization before accepting any contributions, regardless of the amount. It establishes stricter filing deadlines, creates new administrative penalties for non-compliance, and clarifies definitions of key terms like 'candidate' and 'political committee' to ensure broader oversight of campaign activities.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of campaign finance oversight to include individuals who have received or made contributions exceeding $200, even if they do not officially qualify for office, and requires all candidates to establish a candidate committee.

REQUIREMENT

New requirement that candidates and political committees must file a Statement of Organization before accepting any contributions, regardless of amount.

Political committees must now designate a Mississippi resident to receive service of process if the chair or treasurer is not a resident.

DEFINITION

Expanded definition of 'candidate' to include individuals who have received or made contributions exceeding $200, even without official qualification for office.

ENFORCEMENT

New administrative penalties ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 for first, second, and subsequent violations of filing requirements.

Enhanced enforcement mechanisms including expanded role for Secretary of State in pursuing judicial enforcement and new appeal procedures for penalty assessments.

TIMELINE

Changed filing deadline for Statement of Organization from 48 hours before receiving contributions to 48 hours after the deadline for prior to receiving contributions.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 4, 2025

Upper · Passed

Title Suff Do Pass Comm Sub

upper

Jan 20, 2025

Committee

Referred To Elections

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors