The Domestic Violence Transparency Act; to require certain persons convicted of domestic violence to be placed on a public registry.

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To: Judiciary B;
Accountability, Efficiency,
Transparency
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representatives Varner, Blackwell, Boyd
(19th), Boyd (37th), Lott, McLean, McMillan,
Tubb, Waldo, Nelson

HOUSE BILL NO. 1371

AN ACT TO CREATE THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRANSPARENCY ACT; TO 1
REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY TO CREATE A REGISTRY THAT 2
INCLUDES IDENTIFYING INFORMATION FOR ANY PERSON CONVICTED ONE OR 3
MORE TIMES FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE; TO REQUIRE ANY PERSON WITH MORE 4
THAN ONE CONVICTION FOR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TO REGISTER WITH THE 5
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY; TO REQUIRE THE APPLICABLE COURT CLERK 6
TO SEND THE REQUIRED INFORMATION TO THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC 7
SAFETY UPON CONVICTION OR RELEASE; TO PROVIDE CONDITIONS AND TIME 8
PERIODS FOR WHICH THE REGISTRANT'S INFORMATION MUST BE REMOVED; TO 9
PROVIDE THAT THIS ACT APPLIES TO PERSONS CONVICTED FOR DOMESTIC 10
VIOLENCE ON OR AFTER JULY 1, 2026; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 11
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 12
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and may be cited as "The 13
Domestic Violence Transparency Act". 14
SECTION 2. For purposes of this act, unless the context 15
requires otherwise, the following terms shall have the meanings 16
ascribed herein: 17
(a) "Conviction" means a judgment entered by a 18
Mississippi court upon a plea of guilty, a plea of nolo 19
contendere, or a finding of guilt by a jury or the court, 20
notwithstanding any pending appeal or habeas corpus proceeding 21
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arising from the judgment. "Conviction" includes a disposition by 22
nonadjudication under Section 99-15-26. 23
(b) "Department" means the Department of Public Safety. 24
(c) "Offender" means a person with more than one (1) 25
conviction for a registrable offense. 26
(d) "Registrable offense" means a crime chargeable 27
under Sections 99-3-7, or chargeable as "Domestic Violence" as 28
defined by Section 93-21-125. 29
(e) "Registrant" means a person who is registered in 30
compliance with this act. 31
SECTION 3. (1) The Department of Public Safety shall create 32
and post a publicly accessible registry that lists qualifying 33
information for any person convicted one (1) or more times of 34
domestic violence as defined by this act. 35
(2) (a) The list shall include the offender's full legal 36
name, any aliases by which the offender is or has been known, 37
including any online or Internet identifiers, the offender's date 38
of birth and a photograph of the offender. 39
(b) The list shall not include the offender's social 40
security number, driver's license number, any other state or 41
federal identification number, physical address or telephone 42
numbers. 43
(3) (a) The department shall remove all identifying 44
information of a registrant in this act upon the occurrence of: 45
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(i) Five (5) years after the date of the most 46
recent conviction for an offense committed against a domestic 47
abuse victim if the offender has no more than one (1) prior 48
conviction for an offense committed against a domestic abuse 49
victim; 50
(ii) Seven (7) years after the date of the most 51
recent conviction for an offense committed against a domestic 52
abuse victim if the registrant has no more than two (2) prior 53
convictions for an offense committed against a domestic abuse 54
victim; 55
(iii) Ten (10) years after the date of the most 56
recent conviction for an offense committed against a domestic 57
abuse victim if the registrant has no more than three (3) prior 58
convictions for an offense committed against a domestic abuse 59
victim; or 60
(iv) Twenty (20) years after the date of the most 61
recent conviction for an offense committed against a domestic 62
abuse victim if the offender has four (4) or more prior 63
convictions for an offense committed against a domestic abuse 64
victim; and 65
(b) All fines, penalties and any restitution imposed on 66
the offender are paid in full. 67
(4) Any registered person may petition the department to be 68
removed from the list after the satisfaction of the conditions of 69
this subsection. Upon receipt and confirmation of a true and 70
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correct petition, the department shall remove the offender from 71
the registry. 72
SECTION 4. (1) The department shall maintain the registry 73
on the Internet, which shall contain a disclaimer informing the 74
public that: 75
(a) The information contained on the website is 76
obtained from public records, and the department does not 77
guarantee the website's accuracy or completeness; 78
(b) The list only includes persons convicted in 79
Mississippi state courts of domestic violence crimes. Persons who 80
are convicted in any federal court, or who are convicted of a 81
crime other than a registrable offense will not appear on the 82
registry. 83
(2) The department and any individual or entity acting at 84
the request or upon the direction of the department are immune 85
from civil liability for damages arising from reporting 86
information under this act and will be presumed to have acted in 87
good faith in performing its duties under this chapter. 88
SECTION 5. (1) Upon the entry of any order sentencing the 89
offender to probation or parole or upon the date of release of the 90
offender from the physical custody of the responsible agency, the 91
applicable court clerk shall check applicable records to determine 92
whether the offender has been convicted of any other crime of 93
domestic violence as defined by this act. If the offender has 94
one or more prior convictions, the applicable court clerk shall 95
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ST: The Domestic Violence Transparency Act; to
require certain persons convicted of domestic
violence to be placed on a public registry.
forward a copy of the conviction, sentencing order, name, sex, 96
date of birth and photograph of the offender to the Department of 97
Public Safety. 98
(2) An offender required to register on the basis of a 99
conviction entered shall register with the Department of Public 100
Safety and pay a registration fee of One Hundred Fifty Dollars 101
($150.00) within thirty (30) business days of the date of judgment 102
unless the offender is immediately confined or committed, in which 103
case the offender shall register before release in accordance with 104
the procedures established by the department. 105
SECTION 6. (1) The Department of Public Safety shall 106
promulgate rules in accordance with the Mississippi Administrative 107
Procedures Law to effectuate the purposes of this act. 108
(2) The provisions of this act shall only apply to persons 109
convicted of an offense committed against a domestic abuse victim 110
that occurred on or after July 1, 2026; provided, however, that a 111
prior conviction is not required to occur on or after July 1, 112
2026. 113
SECTION 7. This act shall take effect and be in force from 114
and after July 1, 2026. 115