Indigenous Peoples' Day; declare second Monday in October as a day of observance.

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To: Rules
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Crawford

HOUSE BILL NO. 1174

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 3-3-7, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
DECLARE THE SECOND MONDAY OF EACH OCTOBER AS A DAY OF OBSERVANCE 2
IN THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI TO BE PROCLAIMED "INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' 3
DAY"; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 5
SECTION 1. Section 3-3-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 6
amended as follows: 7
3-3-7. (1) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (2) 8
of this section, the following are declared to be legal 9
holidays * * *: the first day of January (New Year's Day); the 10
third Monday of January (Robert E. Lee's birthday and Dr. Martin 11
Luther King, Jr.'s birthday); the third Monday of February 12
(Washington's birthday); the last Monday of April (Confederate 13
Memorial Day); the last Monday of May (National Memorial Day and 14
Jefferson Davis' birthday); the fourth day of July (Independence 15
Day); the first Monday of September (Labor Day); the eleventh day 16
of November (Armistice or Veterans' Day); the day fixed by 17
proclamation by the Governor of Mississippi as a day of 18
Thanksgiving, which shall be fixed to correspond to the date 19
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proclaimed by the President of the United States (Thanksgiving 20
Day); and the twenty-fifth day of December (Christmas Day). In 21
the event any holiday * * * declared legal in this subsection 22
shall fall on Sunday, then the next following day shall be a legal 23
holiday. 24
(2) In lieu of any one (1) legal holiday provided for in 25
subsection (1) of this section, with the exception of the third 26
Monday in January (Robert E. Lee's birthday and Martin Luther 27
King, Jr.'s birthday) and the eleventh day of November (Armistice 28
or Veterans' Day), the governing authorities of any municipality 29
or county may declare, by order spread upon its minutes, Mardi 30
Gras Day or any one (1) other day during the year, to be a legal 31
holiday. 32
(3) August 16 is declared to be Elvis Aaron Presley Day in 33
recognition and appreciation of Elvis Aaron Presley's many 34
contributions, international recognition and the rich legacy left 35
to us by Elvis Aaron Presley. This day shall be a day of 36
recognition and observation and shall not be recognized as a legal 37
holiday. 38
(4) May 8 is declared to be Hernando de Soto Day in 39
recognition, observation and commemoration of Hernando de Soto, 40
who led the first and most imposing expedition ever made by 41
Europeans into the wilds of North America and the State of 42
Mississippi, and in further recognition of the Spanish explorer's 43
187-day journey from the Tombigbee River basin on our state's 44
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eastern boundary, westward to the place of discovery of the 45
Mississippi River on May 8, 1541. This day shall be a day of 46
commemoration, recognition and observation of Hernando de Soto and 47
European exploration and shall not be recognized as a legal 48
holiday. 49
(5) Armistice Day (Veterans' Day) shall be observed by 50
appropriate exercises in all the public schools in the State of 51
Mississippi. The superintendent of schools of each public school 52
district is authorized to provide for the appearance of uniformed 53
military personnel, uniformed veterans or the families of fallen 54
military personnel/veterans at such public school exercises in 55
honor of Armistice (Veterans') Day. The superintendent of schools 56
is also authorized to permit the school band and its director(s) 57
at any public school in the district to perform at Armistice 58
(Veterans') Day exercises in the school district upon the request 59
of public officials or veterans associations without loss of any 60
program credit by participating students and without loss of leave 61
by participating school personnel. 62
(6) The month of March is declared to be "Mississippi 63
Musicians Month" to recognize and celebrate the state's rich 64
musical heritage and to encourage the world to join Mississippi in 65
honoring our musicians and their contributions. 66
(7) In recognition of the service, courage and sacrifice of 67
the valiant service members of the Tuskegee Airmen who served 68
during World War II, the fourth Thursday of March is designated as 69
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ST: Indigenous Peoples' Day; declare second
Monday in October as a day of observance.
Tuskegee Airmen Day in Mississippi. This should be a day of 70
recognition and observation and shall not be recognized as a legal 71
holiday. 72
(8) The second Monday in October is declared to be Native 73
American or Indigenous Peoples' Day in recognition, observation 74
and commemoration of Native American Indian heritage and the 75
traditional ways of the culture in an effort to bring more 76
awareness to the unique, rich history of this nation that is 77
inextricably tied to the first people of this country and predates 78
the voyage of Christopher Columbus. The designation of this 79
observation further recognizes American Indians and Alaskan 80
Natives as thriving, contemporary sovereign nations who have 81
greatly contributed to the Constitution and foundation of the 82
United States by contributing to the social and cultural 83
enrichment of the quality of the American way of life, and who 84
holds a rightful place among the American family of governments. 85
This day shall be a day of commemoration, recognition and 86
observation of Native Americans and Indigenous People, who are the 87
first inhabitants of this country, and shall not be recognized as 88
a legal holiday. 89
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 90
and after July 1, 2026. 91