You may have never had your eyebrows threaded, or your eyelashes extended, or makeup applied to your face. So why should you care that Governor Reeves signed legislation a few weeks ago that allows people to provide those services without being licensed?

Licensure laws may not seem like a pressing issue, but overregulation of the service industry is causing real harm in our state.

Excessive licensing laws have cost the state an estimated 13,000 jobs. That means we could add almost three times as many workers as the Nissan plant employs simply by eliminating unnecessary laws, and it wouldn’t cost taxpayers a dime.

The costs of excessive licensing fall disproportionately on the poor, minorities, and young people looking to get their start in life.

Unfortunately, eliminating unnecessary licenses is easier said than done. These exemptions were carved out only after brave business owners sued or threatened to sue the state for their right to work.

One of those lawsuits was filed by Dipa Bhattarai, an international student. She has been threading – removing stray hair by using a twisted cotton thread – for most of her life. It is a safe and common technique that originated in South Asian countries like her home country of Nepal.

Dipa saw an opportunity to pursue her version of the American Dream, and opened Deeva Brows and Beauty, a threading studio with locations in Columbus and Starkville.

Then the cosmetology board – our state’s eyebrow police – forced her to shut down. You see, she had not paid thousands of dollars to take 600 hours’ worth of classes to get a license. The kicker? The required classes don’t even teach anything about eyebrow threading.

Dipa partnered with the Mississippi Justice Institute (“MJI”), a nonprofit, constitutional litigation center that I work for, to challenge the constitutionality of the law. Ultimately, the state decided to back down and repeal the law rather than keep defending it in court.

But the cosmetology board continued trying to shut down other niche beauty businesses. This time, they sent the eyelash police after Amy Burks, who owns Lavish, an eyelash extension lounge in Madison.

Eyelash extensions are available for purchase in self-adhesive strips at most retail outlets. However, in recent years many customers have started paying lash technicians to apply individual false eyelashes, which results in a more natural look. This is a time-consuming and tedious process, but it is safe and easy to learn.

Mississippi law does not specifically require a license for lash technicians, but that did not stop the cosmetology board from interpreting the law to allow them to demand a license anyway.

Again, there is a kicker. If you guessed that the required classes don’t even teach anything about eyelash extensions, you are catching on.

After seven years of safely and openly running her business, Amy was issued a citation for operating an unlicensed salon.

Amy also teamed up with MJI, which sent a letter to the board threatening to file another lawsuit. The state again decided it would rather amend the law than face litigation.

It took yet another lawsuit to clear the way for Mississippians to apply makeup without a license, even though hundreds of millions of people apply makeup every day without formal training.

After years of honing her skills, Karrece Stewart started Get Glam Beauty, a makeup business in Fulton. She teaches makeup techniques and wants to be able to apply makeup for clients as well. But that would require a license.

Makeup is a very small component of the required training, which is primarily focused on skincare and hair removal. And given that applying makeup is not dangerous, this coursework is not needed to prevent any real harms.

Karrece filed her own lawsuit, this time retaining a private law firm that was willing to help her for free. And the pattern continued. Rather than defend the indefensible, the state decided to change the law.

This year’s exemptions are not the first time Mississippi has had to amend its cosmetology laws in response to litigation. In 2005, the state delicensed African-style hair braiding after Tupelo resident Melony Armstrong filed a lawsuit.

It’s encouraging to see the little guy – or in these cases, the little gal – fight back and win. But these small changes required litigation and front page news stories. Most victims of government overregulation suffer in silence. Mississippi’s elected leaders should continue to seek ways to eliminate excessive licensing laws that keep the American Dream out of reach for so many.

This opinion piece by Aaron Rice, Director of the Mississippi Justice Institute, originally appeared in the Clarion Ledger.

Several types of niche beauty service providers are now free to offer their services in Mississippi without being forced to pay for expensive classes that don’t teach them how to perform their trade. Under a newly enacted state law, eyebrow threaders, eyelash technicians, and makeup artists can open for business without obtaining esthetician licenses.

The new law was prompted by a series of lawsuits against the Mississippi State Board of Cosmetology, including one filed in 2019 by the Mississippi Justice Institute (MJI) and eyebrow threader Dipa Bhattarai, a letter that was sent by MJI and eyelash technician Amy Burks threatening litigation in 2020, and a lawsuit filed by Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and makeup artist Karrece Stewart in 2020. 

“Our clients took legal action to defend one of their most important constitutional rights, the right to earn an honest living in our state without being subjected to pointless and burdensome government regulation,” said Aaron Rice, director of MJI.  “Threaders, lash technicians, and makeup artists do not need full-blown esthetician training. They provide safe and simple services.  Now these niche beauty providers won’t have to pay thousands of dollars to attend hundreds of hours of classes which are unrelated to their practice.” 

Eyebrow Threading

Threading is a very safe and simple technique that allows threading artists to use nothing but twisted cotton thread, acting like a mini-lasso, to remove stray hair, most commonly around the eyebrows.  Threading originated in South Asian countries centuries ago, but is growing in popularity in the U.S. because it is an elegant, simple and relatively painless form of hair removal. 

In 2013, Mississippi law was amended to require threaders to obtain an esthetician license. But before taking the licensing exam, which does not test the applicant’s knowledge of threading, a would-be threader would have to take 600 hours of classroom instruction at a cost of up to $12,000.  And worse, not a single hour of that instruction teaches threading. 

Dipa Bhattarai is an international student who has been threading for most of her life.  She saw an opportunity to use her skills to pursue the American Dream, and opened a threading studio with locations in Columbus and Starkville and hired four employees.  But the cosmetology board shut her down because she did not have an esthetician license. 

 “I am so grateful that I can get back in business without having to get a completely unnecessary license,” said Bhattarai. “I can focus on my business and my education now without worrying that the government will shut me down.”

Eyelash Extensions

Eyelash extensions are available for purchase in self-adhesive strips at most retail outlets. However, in recent years many customers have started paying lash technicians to apply individual false eyelashes, which results in a more natural look. This is a time-consuming and tedious process, but it is safe and easy to learn.

Mississippi law does not specifically require lash technicians to obtain an esthetician’s license.  However, in 2019, the cosmetology board determined that applying eyelash extensions fell within its jurisdiction because it involved beautifying the face. That determination meant that lash technicians would also have to obtain esthetician licenses, despite the fact that the required classroom instruction also did not teach or test on eyelash extension application. 

Amy Burks opened an eyelash extension lounge in Madison in 2013 and hired four employees.  In 2019, the cosmetology board issued her a citation for operating an unlicensed salon, and said her and all of her employees would have to quit work and attend training. 

“I am so thrilled to see this law passed,” said Burks. “My team and I have poured everything we have into this business for the past eight years. To think that it was all going to be taken away was so heartbreaking.”

Makeup Artists

Applying makeup also requires an esthetician license, despite the fact that hundreds of millions of people apply makeup every day without formal training and the fact that makeup instruction is only a very small component of the required classwork, which is mostly focused on skincare and hair removal. 

Karrece Stewart started a makeup business in Fulton. She teaches makeup techniques and wants to be able to apply makeup for clients as well. But that would require a license.

“I started my own makeup business, Get Glam Beauty, to pursue my dreams and help give women the confidence they need to see themselves in a different way,” said Stewart. “Mississippi’s unconstitutional licensing requirements for cosmetologists were an obstacle to achieving that dream, but with this change, I will now be able to grow my business, better provide for my family, and use my skills to enhance women’s beauty.” 

House Bill 1312

The new law, House Bill 1312, was negotiated by MJI attorneys and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP with the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, before being passed by the Mississippi legislature and signed into law by Governor Tate Reeves on Friday, April 9, 2021. The new law took effect immediately. 

The new law prohibits the Mississippi State Board of Cosmetology from requiring any type of cosmetology license for persons whose practice is limited to threading, applying eyelash extensions, or makeup artistry.  It also prevents the board from imposing fines, civil or criminal penalties on unlicensed threaders, lash technicians, or makeup artists, or regulating the practice of those services. 

Everett White, an attorney with the law firm Sones & White, PLLC, served as an MJI volunteer attorney for Ms. Bhattarai. 

Andy Taggart, a founding partner of the Taggart, Rimes & Graham law firm, served as an MJI volunteer attorney for Ms. Burks. 

MJI Director Aaron Rice is available for interview requests. Please reach out to Hunter Estes via [email protected] to schedule.

The Mississippi Justice Institute is a nonprofit, constitutional litigation center and the legal arm of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.

The House Judiciary B Committee has just passed Senate Bill 2792, sponsored by Senator John Horhn.

The bill expands Mississippi’s existing policy that the state is going to allow ex-offenders to obtain an occupational license, unless the ex-offender’s crime is directly and rationally related to his or her professional duties.

Sen. Horhn’s bill is based on legislation that MCPP championed in 2019. That first Fresh Start law, according to the Institute for Justice, was one of the best in the nation. Observes the Institute, “Following wide-ranging reforms in 2019, Mississippi now has some of the best laws in the country for ex-offenders seeking licenses.” This expansion of Fresh Start would make it even easier for ex-offenders to get a job and support their families.

Several boards in Mississippi have “good character” or “moral turpitude” bans that prohibit all ex-offenders from obtaining a license. Not every board has such a ban, but many do. Fresh Start creates a presumption on behalf of the ex-offender that if he or she meets all the requirements of a potential profession – and if the crime is unrelated to the profession – that person should be able to obtain a license. This particular bill adds to the list of professions eligible under Fresh Start.

Studies show that onerous licensing laws increase recidivism. According to a report published by Arizona State University, states with heavier occupational licensing restrictions have much higher 3-year recidivism rates.

Expanding Fresh Start has four primary benefits. First, it will protect more boards from litigation. We have already had one lawsuit against a board over this issue (Chunn v. Miss. (2015)). Instead of blanket bans, courts prefer a more rational approach to blocking ex-offenders from obtaining an occupational license.

Second, Fresh Start will increase employment opportunities for ex-offenders who are serious about turning their lives around. We are talking about good jobs, not just service jobs. If someone is going to invest thousands of dollars to get an education, take tests and get a license, it is clear that they want to do the right thing and stay out of trouble.

Third, by helping people work, taxpayers will benefit, as we see savings from people getting off of welfare and beginning to pay taxes.

Finally, Fresh Start will help increase diversity in Mississippi’s workforce. A disproportionate number of ex-offenders are minorities. This is a great way to increase minority employment and entrepreneurship. Moreover, Mississippi has one of the lowest workforce participation rates in the country. Fresh Start will help fix that.

Sen. Horhn’s Fresh Start bill now goes before the full House for consideration.

2020 proved to be one of the deadliest years in Jackson history. Records suggest that 130 homicides took place by the end of December. The previous high is believed to be in 1995 when 92 recorded homicides occurred.

A WLBT investigation revealed that, among 20 major cities, Jackson had the second-highest rate of per-capita homicides, only surpassed slightly by St. Louis last year. This startling statistic put Jackson ahead of Baltimore, Memphis, and New Orleans. It also reveals that Jackson’s homicide rate was close to three times higher than Washington DC and Chicago.

Justin Vicory of the Clarion Ledger noted, “[i]n a city with a population of roughly 164,422 residents, the 130 homicides equates to one violent death for about every 1,200 residents. It equates to a homicide in the state's largest city just under every three days.”

The violence represents part of a deadly larger pattern as 2018 and 2019 both proved to have incredibly high homicide numbers as well. Each of those years set an individual record for the highest rate of per capita homicides to have taken place in Jackson.

This startling three-year trend of escalating violence has left many residents concerned. The per capita murder rate continues to rise as Jackson’s population continues to decline and many city residents have sought to flee the enduring violence.

The fact is that Jackson’s crime problem continues to impact its population and hinder potential economic recovery for the city.

As I wrote in 2019, “If Mississippi aims to seriously contend with the existing brain drain, then it must explore the root of what is driving so many young people to leave the state. 

According to a recent Nielsen study, millennials are drawn to cities at greater rates than previous generations. Older Americans once sought suburban withdrawal, but Nielsen reveals that millennials are tending to seek life with more subways than driveways. Compared to surrounding states, Mississippi has less to offer in regard to urban life, a point that is heightened by Jackson’s continued decline.

To begin drawing in residents again (especially millennials), the state must prioritize urban renewal for the city that was once considered a “gem of the south,” and it ought to start by making its residents feel secure again. A fully funded crime center equipped with expanded technological capacities to monitor and respond to crime around the city (as was promised) would be a potential major step forward.”

Since that piece was written in the summer of 2019, the violence has only continued to get worse. It is increasingly difficult to imagine younger generations, who prefer urban living, to seek out Jackson as a destination when continued violence discourages long-term residency.

Many of Jackson’s downtown business sections continue to remain largely boarded up. The facades of businesses that once thrived and brought life to the area stand deadly silent now. As Jackson’s homicide rate continues to rise, it becomes increasingly difficult to sell private businesses on reinvesting in “The City with Soul.”

Charles “Butch” Slaughter is a physical therapist and owner of a clinic in Jackson, Mississippi, who would like to start a home health business to reach new patients who want or need to receive house calls. But Slaughter can’t offer this service because of a nearly 40-year-old law that makes it illegal to start new home health agencies in the state.

Even if this ban didn’t exist, he still might not be able to provide in-home services, since his competitors could use Mississippi’s Certificate of Needs laws to force him to battle them in court over whether the community really needs a new home health agency.

Today, the Mississippi Justice Institute (“MJI”), a non-profit constitutional litigation center and the legal arm of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, has filed a federal lawsuit over these unconstitutional laws on behalf of Slaughter.

”The ban on new home health agencies is an absurd law that serves absolutely no purpose other than preventing legitimate competition and creating an oligopoly for existing providers,” said MJI Director Aaron Rice. “The CON laws are just as bad, and essentially serve as a competitor’s veto for powerful industry insiders.” 

“Patients have been increasingly seeking in-home physical therapy during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Slaughter. “I can’t believe it is illegal for me to start a home health business to help more patients. Other companies are already doing this, but it’s illegal for anyone else to do it. It makes no sense.” 

Mississippi’s law requires many healthcare providers to apply for and receive a certificate of need from the Department of Health before opening, expanding, relocating, changing ownership, or acquiring major medical equipment. This a difficult and expensive process, during which existing competitors can protest that there is no “need” for a new healthcare facility. Getting this certificate has nothing to do with proving that the new facility will be safe, sanitary, or high quality. Rather, applicants must convince the government that opening a new health care facility will not financially hurt competing health care businesses.

Additionally, in 1981, Mississippi enacted a ban on the issuance of new certificates of need for home health agencies. This means that for almost four decades, the only way to enter the home health market has been to purchase a previously issued certificate of need from the owner of an existing home health agency who is seeking to sell the agency along with its certificate of need. If there are no previously issued certificates of need for sale in the desired service area, then healthcare entrepreneurs simply cannot provide home health services.

CON laws are a failed public policy that was originally intended to drive down health care costs. After experience showed that they actually had the opposite effect, some states abandoned them. But they remain on the books in 35 states, including Mississippi, because existing providers who benefit from them lobby furiously to keep them in place. Currently, Mississippi is one of only 16 states that require a CON to open a home health agency, and one of only two states that has a complete ban on new home health agencies.

Numerous studies have shown that CON laws do not live up to their original goals, but instead decrease access to healthcare, increase costs for consumers, and limit competition. In 2016, the Federal Trade Commission and the United States Department of Justice issued a joint statement, concluding, “CON laws, when first enacted, had the laudable goals of reducing healthcare costs and improving access to care. However, after considerable experience, it is now apparent that CON laws can prevent the efficient functioning of healthcare markets in several ways that may undermine those goals. First, CON laws create barriers to entry and expansion, limit consumer choice, and stifle innovation. Second, incumbent firms seeking to thwart or delay entry or expansion by new or existing competitors may use CON laws to achieve that end. Third, CON laws can deny consumers the benefit of an effective remedy following the consummation of an anticompetitive merger. Finally, the evidence to date does not suggest that CON laws have generally succeeded in controlling costs or improving quality.”

“The government cannot pass laws merely to protect businesses from legitimate competition,” said MJI volunteer attorney Seth Robbins. “Healthcare costs are out of control.  We need more competition in the healthcare industry and less government intervention and protectionism. We’re proud to stand with Mr. Slaughter in his fight against these senseless government policies.”

“Mississippi should be encouraging entrepreneurs, not outlawing them,” said Rice. “We look forward to vindicating Mr. Slaughter’s constitutional right to earn a living, and seeing him get back to growing his business”

The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Mississippi. 

In a year that’s potentially on pace for the highest homicide rate in Jackson history, police and city officials have sought a new ally in the fight on crime: your doorbell.

Jackson has been launched into the heart of an intense civil liberties debate over the discussion of a new program which would allow Jackson city officials to tap into private residential and business doorbell cameras.

Jackson residents can now register for the program, giving police a variety of access options to their personal cameras including alarm-triggered live feeds, 24/7 streams, and more.

In a discussion with WLBT, Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba noted, “[w]hat we’ll be able to do is get a location, draw a circle around it and pull up every camera within a certain radius. If someone is running out of a building, we can follow and trace them.”

Mayor Lumumba further noted, “[u]litmately, what will happen is residents and businesses will be able to sign a waiver, if they want their camera to be accessed from the Real Time Crime Center. It would save (Jackson) from having to buy a camera for every place across the city.”

The Jackson City Council approved a 45-day trial for the program, but not all Council members are supportive. Councilman De’Keither Stamps questioned whether the technology could be abused and stated, “I don’t believe the government should be tapping into my Ring, I don’t believe we should be sponsoring this.”

Jackson will be partnering with Jackson-based technology company, PILEUM, and Georgia-based cloud service provider, FUSUS, in order to allow Jackson police to collect and access the videos.

What do you think? Would you sign up for the program/allow your device to be used by police?

Engage with us on Facebook and Twitter to discuss further!

While many warnings have been issued about trick-or-treating during a pandemic, it appears that decision will remain with families in most Mississippi cities. But even with the green light to go door-to-door, children may unknowingly run afoul with existing local laws.

These aren’t laws restricting criminal actions often associated with Halloween mischief, such as egging a house or smashing pumpkins that belong to someone else. Rather, these are restrictions on who can trick-or-treat, how late they can be out, and what they can or can’t wear.

A story on Roanoke, Virginia’s trick-or-treating laws went viral last year. In Roanoke, no one over 12 is allowed to trick-or-treat. Not only is it illegal, it is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in jail.

While the potential jail time might not apply, the city of Meridian also prohibits those over 12 from asking for candy. “It shall be unlawful for any person to appear on the streets, highways, public homes, private homes, or public places in the city to make trick or treat visitations; except, that this section shall not apply to children 12 years old and under on Halloween night,” the ordinance reads. And you have to be inside by 8 p.m.

Throughout the country, towns like Belville, Illinois, Bishopville, South Carolina, and Boonsboro, Maryland have similar age limits.

In the year of mandated face covernings, Meridian also restricts anyone over 12 from wearing a mask or any other disguise, unless they get a permission slip from the mayor or chief of police. Dublin, Georgia and Walnut Creek, California have similar mask restrictions.

The rest of your costume may also be illegal in some locales. In Alabama, it’s illegal to dress up as a minister, priest, nun, or any other member of clergy. Violators can be slapped with a $500 fine and a year in jail.

In a recent move that received national attention, the Kemper County Board of Supervisors approved a measure in 2016 that made it illegal for anyone to appear in public in a clown costume or clown makeup for Halloween that year. The ordinance expired the day after Halloween. That ordinance carried a fine of $150 for outlaws who wore clown costumes.

The conventional wisdom is that these ordinances aren’t enforced. Police aren’t asking boys who are starting to show signs of facial hair for identification to check their age. Chances are no one is spending 365 days in a county jail in Alabama for impersonating a priest or rabbi.

Which, of course, leads to the next question: Why have such laws? We already have laws on the books to restrict actual criminal activity. We don’t need additional laws that are confusing and do little but potentially ruin a fun night for millions of children.

We simply have too many laws in this country. It should not be government’s responsibility to regulate the behavior of children on a Halloween night running through the neighborhood in pursuit of treats. That responsibility belongs to the parents, just like it should on every other night of the year.

Because of Mississippi’s habitual offender laws, a mother of four is serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole for possession of less than two ounces of marijuana. 

That is the story of Tameka Drummer, who was regularly cited during attempts at reigning in Mississippi's habitual offender laws during the past legislative session. Now, there is a new Change.org petition calling for her pardon. 

In 2008, Drummer was sentenced to life in prison. She was driving without a car tag in Alcorn county, she was pulled over, and the police then searched her car and they found less than two ounces of marijuana. She actually had the tag in her back seat.

But because of this, her youngest child who was just four years old at the time has grown up without a mother. She has now served 12 years of her life sentence.

Why did Drummer receive such an oppressive sentence?

Because of the state’s habitual offender laws that were written to enforce long, and even draconian, sentences on individuals who have prior convictions. The law works in different ways, but in Drummer’s case, she was previously convicted of a violent crime, a drug charge, and then, finally, the marijuana charge that landed her life without parole. 

In the case of Drummer, she paid her debt to society with her past convictions, which is generally what we ask of prisoners. And each time she was convicted, the punishment got more serious while the charges against her tended to get less serious, not more serious. She went from a violent crime at 15 years old to marijuana possession, something that is legal or decriminalized in nearly half the states.

What has this meant to the state’s criminal justice system? A November 2019 analysis found that over 2,600 people have been incarcerated under these statutes. This includes 906 people serving 20 years or more in prison, and 439 people serving life sentences. There are 78 people who are serving life sentences for drug charges alone. 

Taxpayers are spending about $20,000 per year to house Drummer. By the time Drummer is 70, taxpayers would have spent $700,000 on someone who is in prison for less than two ounces of marijuana. Is that a good use of taxpayer money?

Even after a series of criminal justice reforms, Mississippi continues to have the third highest incarceration rate in the world, more than all but two other states and every other industrialized country. At the same time, our state continues to fall behind economically, with a workforce participation rate that is growing at a slower pace than most other states. And more children grow up with just one parent in Mississippi than any other state in the country. This is all related.

Multiple bills that would have impacted habitual offender laws did not make it past the finish line this session and another bill that would have reformed parole for up to 2,000 prisoners was vetoed by Gov. Tate Reeves last month. 

That shouldn't be the last word. We know much needs to be done.

To help Drummer and others in a similar situation and to combat the state’s stubbornly high incarceration rate and the ever-growing cost to taxpayers, the state should continue to look for measures that reform parole and eliminate the state’s mandatory minimum habitual sentencing structure that imposes disproportionately long prison sentences on individuals, even for minor crimes.

At the end of the day, we are not safer because Drummer is in prison for the rest of her life, her children are not better off by being raised by someone other than their mother, and taxpayer money could certainly be better invested in something else.

Amidst a national backdrop of protests, civil unrest, and renewed calls to change the state flag in Mississippi, the Republican dominated state legislature in the Magnolia State is quietly pushing a number of new criminal justice reform measures. 

If these bills become law, it will continue and expand upon a five-year trend in the right direction for a state with a prison system that cost taxpayers more than $340 million a year to house more inmates per capita than all but two other states.  

HB 658: This will update the state’s expungement law to allow individuals with multiple convictions for drug offenses to apply for expungement. Right now, only one offense is eligible for expungement.  

HB 838: This will allow individuals leaving state prisons to use MDOC documents as qualifying papers to obtain a driver’s license. For ex-offenders to land gainful employment, they generally need a driver’s license. Something that has been a hinderance. This will make that process easier by allowing MDOC documents in lieu of a birth certificate or social security card. 

HB 1024: This will make various reforms to Mississippi’s “three strikes” habitual offender law for nonviolent drug offenses. It prevents offenses from more than 15 years ago counting toward the enhancement and prevents nonviolent offenses from triggering a life sentence. 

HB 1476: This will make inmates with certain medical conditions eligible for parole. 

SB 2112: This is the ‘Ban The Box Act,’ which will prohibit public employers from using criminal history as a preliminary bar for employment.  

SB 2123: This will allow the Parole Board to consider individuals after they have served 25 percent of their sentence for a nonviolent offense and 50 percent for a violent offense. 

SB 2759: This will update the state’s Fresh Start Act, initially adopted last year, that prevents occupational licensing boards from denying an individual an occupational license because of a past offense unless the conviction is directly linked to the occupation. 

After Wednesday's legislative deadline, all of these bills are still alive and will likely be headed to conference where the House and Senate will hash out differences before agreeing to a final bill that lawmakers will again have to support.

In 2014, Mississippi policymakers began to study criminal justice issues and explore policy options that would help decrease both crime and incarceration while providing better outcomes for people who encounter the criminal justice system.

The passage of House Bill 585 in 2014 began this process by establishing certainty in sentencing and prioritizing prison bed space for people facing serious offenses. This helped reduce the state’s prison population by 10 percent and generated nearly $40 million in taxpayer savings. Prior to this year, policymakers have also passed several pieces of legislation since then aimed at removing barriers to re-entry for those leaving the prison system. 

While the state has been lauded for these reforms, the prison population remains stubbornly high. The latest numbers show that the state is falling further behind economically, as our workforce participation is growing at a slower pace than most other states. While other states are moving to reform their criminal justice systems to reduce reliance on prison, Mississippi cannot rest on its laurels. 

But by advancing innovative policy solutions, Mississippi can begin to close the gap by reducing our state’s prison population, ending the cycle of crime, and better spending taxpayer dollars to protect public safety.