SB 3229 Mississippi Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Bonds; authorize revenue bonds to be issued to pay for damage to electric utilities caused by the 2026 winter storm.

SB 3229 authorizes the State of Mississippi to issue revenue bonds to cover repair costs for electric utilities damaged by the 2026 winter storm. Electric utilities can petition the Public Service Commission for a financing order, which, if approved, allows the state to issue bonds for storm-related repairs. The cost will be recovered through a new "system restoration charge" added to customers' monthly utility bills, adjusted annually to ensure it covers bond payments. The bonds are limited to the exact repair costs specified in the financing order and cannot be used for other purposes.

Issues: ✓ Budget & Taxes

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Feb 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Signed into Law

Apr 2026

Introduced Feb 26, 2026 Signed Apr 8, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

As Passed the upper → Current version · 3 edits

MINOR

The bill was finalized and sent to the Governor, removing a provision to bring forward a specific state code section for future amendment. The text was cleaned up to remove internal drafting notes and formatting errors. The core policy regarding winter storm relief funding remains unchanged.

Scope change

The bill's scope regarding the creation of a $275 million storm relief fund and the issuance of bonds remains the same; the only change is the removal of a procedural clause intended to update state code.

REQUIREMENT

Removed the instruction to bring forward Section 77-3-2 of the Mississippi Code of 1972 for possible amendment, which was a procedural step no longer needed in the final version.

TECHNICAL

Changed the bill title from 'As Passed the Senate' to 'As Sent to Governor' to reflect its final legislative status.

Deleted internal drafting annotations (such as '1...1' and stray characters) that were used to mark deletions and insertions during the legislative process.

As Introduced → As Passed the upper · 7 edits

MODERATE

The bill was reformatted from a standard legislative draft to a 'Passed Senate' version, adding specific procedural details and clarifying definitions. The most significant substantive change is the addition of a requirement for an independent audit of utility costs by a public accounting firm before the petition is filed, ensuring costs are properly identified. The bill also expanded the definition of 'storm' to explicitly include the January 2026 winter storm declared a major disaster by FEMA.

Scope change

The bill's scope remains focused on the 2026 winter storm, but the definition of the storm was expanded to explicitly reference the FEMA declaration date, and the mechanism for cost recovery now includes a mandatory pre-petition audit.

REQUIREMENT

Added a mandatory requirement for the Public Utilities Staff to hire a public accounting firm to independently audit the electric utility's system restoration costs before the utility can petition for a financing order.

DEFINITION

Expanded the definition of 'storm' to explicitly state it began on January 23, 2026, and was declared a major disaster by FEMA on February 6, 2026.

Added a new definition for 'system restoration property,' clarifying that rights to collect charges are transferred to the state and are not assets of the electric utility.

FISCAL

Created a new 'Mississippi 2026 Severe Winter Storm Customer Relief and Electric Utility System Restoration Fund' within the State Treasury to manage bond proceeds and disbursements.

Established a 'system restoration bond sinking fund' for each utility to ensure timely payment of bond principal and interest, with excess funds credited to the State General Fund after bonds are retired.

TIMELINE

Set specific deadlines, such as requiring the Public Service Commission to issue a financing order within 60 days of a petition and allowing utilities 60 days to request bond issuance after the order is granted.

ENFORCEMENT

Added a pledge by the state not to alter the irrevocable provisions of the act or reduce the system restoration charge until all bond obligations are fully paid.

Floor votes · Senate Feb 25, 2026 · House Mar 17, 2026

How they voted

49–0

Passed · 3 other

Total votes 52

Feb 25, 2026

D Democratic18

16 Yea 2

88% Yea

R Republican34

33 Yea 1

97% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Apr 8, 2026

Signed into law

Approved by Governor

executive

Mar 29, 2026

Lower · Passed

Conference Report Adopted

lower

Mar 27, 2026

Upper · Passed

Conference Report Filed

upper

Mar 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Passed As Amended

lower

Mar 17, 2026

Lower · Passed

Amended

lower

Mar 3, 2026

Lower · Passed

Title Suff Do Pass As Amended

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Committee

Referred To Ways and Means

lower

Feb 26, 2026

Introduced

Transmitted To House

upper

Feb 25, 2026

Upper · Passed

Passed

upper

Feb 24, 2026

Upper · Passed

Title Suff Do Pass

upper

Feb 24, 2026

Committee

Referred To Finance

upper

1 primary · 2 co-sponsors