Sales tax; exempt retail sales of firearm safes during annual Mississippi Second Amendment Weekend holiday.

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To: Ways and Means
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Bounds

COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
HOUSE BILL NO. 1793

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 27-65-111, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO EXEMPT FROM SALES TAXATION RETAIL SALES OF FIREARM SAFES DURING 2
THE ANNUAL MISSISSIPPI SECOND AMENDMENT WEEKEND HOLIDAY; AND FOR 3
RELATED PURPOSES. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 5
SECTION 1. Section 27-65-111, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 6
amended as follows: 7
27-65-111. The exemptions from the provisions of this 8
chapter which are not industrial, agricultural or governmental, or 9
which do not relate to utilities or taxes, or which are not 10
properly classified as one (1) of the exemption classifications of 11
this chapter, shall be confined to persons or property exempted by 12
this section or by the Constitution of the United States or the 13
State of Mississippi. No exemptions as now provided by any other 14
section, except the classified exemption sections of this chapter 15
set forth herein, shall be valid as against the tax herein levied. 16
Any subsequent exemption from the tax levied hereunder, except as 17
indicated above, shall be provided by amendments to this section. 18
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No exemption provided in this section shall apply to taxes 19
levied by Section 27-65-15 or 27-65-21. 20
The tax levied by this chapter shall not apply to the 21
following: 22
(a) Sales of tangible personal property and services to 23
hospitals or infirmaries owned and operated by a corporation or 24
association in which no part of the net earnings inures to the 25
benefit of any private shareholder, group or individual, and which 26
are subject to and governed by Sections 41-7-123 through 41-7-127. 27
Only sales of tangible personal property or services which 28
are ordinary and necessary to the operation of such hospitals and 29
infirmaries are exempted from tax. 30
(b) Sales of daily or weekly newspapers, and 31
periodicals or publications of scientific, literary or educational 32
organizations exempt from federal income taxation under Section 33
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as it exists as of 34
March 31, 1975, and subscription sales of all magazines. 35
(c) Sales of coffins, caskets and other materials used 36
in the preparation of human bodies for burial. 37
(d) Sales of tangible personal property for immediate 38
export to a foreign country. 39
(e) Sales of tangible personal property to an 40
orphanage, old men's or ladies' home, supported wholly or in part 41
by a religious denomination, fraternal nonprofit organization or 42
other nonprofit organization. 43
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(f) Sales of tangible personal property, labor or 44
services taxable under Sections 27-65-17, 27-65-19 and 27-65-23, 45
to a YMCA, YWCA, a Boys' or Girls' Club owned and operated by a 46
corporation or association in which no part of the net earnings 47
inures to the benefit of any private shareholder, group or 48
individual. 49
(g) Sales to elementary and secondary grade schools, 50
junior and senior colleges owned and operated by a corporation or 51
association in which no part of the net earnings inures to the 52
benefit of any private shareholder, group or individual, and which 53
are exempt from state income taxation, provided that this 54
exemption does not apply to sales of property or services which 55
are not to be used in the ordinary operation of the school, or 56
which are to be resold to the students or the public. 57
(h) The gross proceeds of retail sales and the use or 58
consumption in this state of drugs and medicines: 59
(i) Prescribed for the treatment of a human being 60
by a person authorized to prescribe the medicines, and dispensed 61
or prescription filled by a registered pharmacist in accordance 62
with law; or 63
(ii) Furnished by a licensed physician, surgeon, 64
dentist or podiatrist to his own patient for treatment of the 65
patient; or 66
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(iii) Furnished by a hospital for treatment of any 67
person pursuant to the order of a licensed physician, surgeon, 68
dentist or podiatrist; or 69
(iv) Sold to a licensed physician, surgeon, 70
podiatrist, dentist or hospital for the treatment of a human 71
being; or 72
(v) Sold to this state or any political 73
subdivision or municipal corporation thereof, for use in the 74
treatment of a human being or furnished for the treatment of a 75
human being by a medical facility or clinic maintained by this 76
state or any political subdivision or municipal corporation 77
thereof. 78
"Medicines," as used in this paragraph (h), shall mean and 79
include any substance or preparation intended for use by external 80
or internal application to the human body in the diagnosis, cure, 81
mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease and which is 82
commonly recognized as a substance or preparation intended for 83
such use; "medicines" do not include any auditory, prosthetic, 84
ophthalmic or ocular device or appliance, any dentures or parts 85
thereof or any artificial limbs or their replacement parts, 86
articles which are in the nature of splints, bandages, pads, 87
compresses, supports, dressings, instruments, apparatus, 88
contrivances, appliances, devices or other mechanical, electronic, 89
optical or physical equipment or article or the component parts 90
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and accessories thereof, or any alcoholic beverage or any other 91
drug or medicine not commonly referred to as a prescription drug. 92
Notwithstanding the preceding sentence of this paragraph (h), 93
"medicines" as used in this paragraph (h), shall mean and include 94
sutures, whether or not permanently implanted, bone screws, bone 95
pins, pacemakers and other articles permanently implanted in the 96
human body to assist the functioning of any natural organ, artery, 97
vein or limb and which remain or dissolve in the body. 98
The exemption provided in this paragraph (h) shall not apply 99
to medical cannabis sold in accordance with the provisions of the 100
Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act and in compliance with rules and 101
regulations adopted thereunder. 102
"Hospital," as used in this paragraph (h), shall have the 103
meaning ascribed to it in Section 41-9-3. 104
Insulin furnished by a registered pharmacist to a person for 105
treatment of diabetes as directed by a physician shall be deemed 106
to be dispensed on prescription within the meaning of this 107
paragraph (h). 108
(i) Retail sales of automobiles, trucks and 109
truck-tractors if exported from this state within forty-eight (48) 110
hours and registered and first used in another state. 111
(j) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 112
the Salvation Army and the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Inc. 113
(k) From July 1, 1985, through December 31, 1992, 114
retail sales of "alcohol-blended fuel" as such term is defined in 115
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Section 75-55-5. The gasoline-alcohol blend or the straight 116
alcohol eligible for this exemption shall not contain alcohol 117
distilled outside the State of Mississippi. 118
(l) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 119
the Institute for Technology Development. 120
(m) The gross proceeds of retail sales of food and 121
drink for human consumption made through vending machines serviced 122
by full-line vendors from and not connected with other taxable 123
businesses. 124
(n) The gross proceeds of sales of motor fuel. 125
(o) Retail sales of food for human consumption 126
purchased with food stamps issued by the United States Department 127
of Agriculture, or other federal agency, from and after October 1, 128
1987, or from and after the expiration of any waiver granted 129
pursuant to federal law, the effect of which waiver is to permit 130
the collection by the state of tax on such retail sales of food 131
for human consumption purchased with food stamps. 132
(p) Sales of cookies for human consumption by the Girl 133
Scouts of America if no part of the net earnings from those sales 134
inures to the benefit of any private group or individual. 135
(q) Gifts or sales of tangible personal property or 136
services to public or private nonprofit museums of art. 137
(r) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 138
alumni associations of state-supported colleges or universities. 139
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(s) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 140
National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, Inc., and chapters of 141
the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, Inc. 142
(t) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 143
domestic violence shelters which qualify for state funding under 144
Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113. 145
(u) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 146
the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Mississippi Chapter. 147
(v) Retail sales of food for human consumption 148
purchased with food instruments issued the Mississippi Band of 149
Choctaw Indians under the Women, Infants and Children Program 150
(WIC) funded by the United States Department of Agriculture. 151
(w) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 152
a private company, as defined in Section 57-61-5, which is making 153
such purchases with proceeds of bonds issued under Section 57-61-1 154
et seq., the Mississippi Business Investment Act. 155
(x) The gross collections from the operation of 156
self-service, coin-operated car washing equipment and sales of the 157
service of washing motor vehicles with portable high-pressure 158
washing equipment on the premises of the customer. 159
(y) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 160
the Mississippi Technology Alliance. 161
(z) Sales of tangible personal property to nonprofit 162
organizations that provide foster care, adoption services and 163
temporary housing for unwed mothers and their children if the 164
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organization is exempt from federal income taxation under Section 165
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. 166
(aa) Sales of tangible personal property to nonprofit 167
organizations that provide residential rehabilitation for persons 168
with alcohol and drug dependencies if the organization is exempt 169
from federal income taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the 170
Internal Revenue Code. 171
(ab) (i) Retail sales of an article of clothing or 172
footwear designed to be worn on or about the human body and retail 173
sales of school supplies if the sales price of the article of 174
clothing or footwear or school supply is less than One Hundred 175
Dollars ($100.00) and the sale takes place during a period 176
beginning at 12:01 a.m. on the second Friday in July and ending at 177
12:00 midnight the following Sunday. This paragraph (ab) shall 178
not apply to: 179
1. Accessories including jewelry, handbags, 180
luggage, umbrellas, wallets, watches, briefcases, garment bags and 181
similar items carried on or about the human body, without regard 182
to whether worn on the body in a manner characteristic of 183
clothing; 184
2. The rental of clothing or footwear; and 185
3. Skis, swim fins, roller blades, skates and 186
similar items worn on the foot. 187
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(ii) For purposes of this paragraph (ab), "school 188
supplies" means items that are commonly used by a student in a 189
course of study. The following is an all-inclusive list: 190
1. Backpacks; 191
2. Binder pockets; 192
3. Binders; 193
4. Blackboard chalk; 194
5. Book bags; 195
6. Calculators; 196
7. Cellophane tape; 197
8. Clays and glazes; 198
9. Compasses; 199
10. Composition books; 200
11. Crayons; 201
12. Dictionaries and thesauruses; 202
13. Dividers; 203
14. Erasers; 204
15. Folders: expandable, pocket, plastic and 205
manila; 206
16. Glue, paste and paste sticks; 207
17. Highlighters; 208
18. Index card boxes; 209
19. Index cards; 210
20. Legal pads; 211
21. Lunch boxes; 212
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22. Markers; 213
23. Notebooks; 214
24. Paintbrushes for artwork; 215
25. Paints: acrylic, tempera and oil; 216
26. Paper: loose-leaf ruled notebook paper, 217
copy paper, graph paper, tracing paper, manila paper, colored 218
paper, poster board and construction paper; 219
27. Pencil boxes and other school supply 220
boxes; 221
28. Pencil sharpeners; 222
29. Pencils; 223
30. Pens; 224
31. Protractors; 225
32. Reference books; 226
33. Reference maps and globes; 227
34. Rulers; 228
35. Scissors; 229
36. Sheet music; 230
37. Sketch and drawing pads; 231
38. Textbooks; 232
39. Watercolors; 233
40. Workbooks; and 234
41. Writing tablets. 235
(iii) From and after January 1, 2010, the 236
governing authorities of a municipality, for retail sales 237
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occurring within the corporate limits of the municipality, may 238
suspend the application of the exemption provided for in this 239
paragraph (ab) by adoption of a resolution to that effect stating 240
the date upon which the suspension shall take effect. A certified 241
copy of the resolution shall be furnished to the Department of 242
Revenue at least ninety (90) days prior to the date upon which the 243
municipality desires such suspension to take effect. 244
(ac) The gross proceeds of sales of tangible personal 245
property made for the sole purpose of raising funds for a school 246
or an organization affiliated with a school. 247
As used in this paragraph (ac), "school" means any public or 248
private school that teaches courses of instruction to students in 249
any grade from kindergarten through Grade 12. 250
(ad) Sales of durable medical equipment and home 251
medical supplies when ordered or prescribed by a licensed 252
physician for medical purposes of a patient. As used in this 253
paragraph (ad), "durable medical equipment" and "home medical 254
supplies" mean equipment, including repair and replacement parts 255
for the equipment or supplies listed under Title XVIII of the 256
Social Security Act or under the state plan for medical assistance 257
under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, prosthetics, 258
orthotics, hearing aids, hearing devices, prescription eyeglasses, 259
oxygen and oxygen equipment. Payment does not have to be made, in 260
whole or in part, by any particular person to be eligible for this 261
exemption. Purchases of home medical equipment and supplies by a 262
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provider of home health services or a provider of hospice services 263
are eligible for this exemption if the purchases otherwise meet 264
the requirements of this paragraph. 265
(ae) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 266
Mississippi Blood Services. 267
(af) (i) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph 268
(af), retail sales of firearms, ammunition * * *, hunting supplies 269
and firearm safes if sold during the annual Mississippi Second 270
Amendment Weekend holiday beginning at 12:01 a.m. on the last 271
Friday in August and ending at 12:00 midnight the following 272
Sunday. For the purposes of this paragraph (af), "hunting 273
supplies" means tangible personal property used for hunting, 274
including, and limited to, archery equipment, firearm and archery 275
cases, firearm and archery accessories, hearing protection, 276
holsters, belts and slings. Hunting supplies does not include 277
animals used for hunting. For the purposes of this paragraph 278
(af), the term "firearm safe" means a locking container or other 279
enclosure, excluding glass-faced containers, equipped with a 280
padlock, key lock, combination lock, or other locking device that 281
is designed and intended for the secure storage of one (1) or more 282
firearms. 283
(ii) This paragraph (af) shall apply only if one 284
or more of the following occur: 285
1. Title to and/or possession of an eligible 286
item is transferred from a seller to a purchaser; and/or 287
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2. A purchaser orders and pays for an 288
eligible item and the seller accepts the order for immediate 289
shipment, even if delivery is made after the time period provided 290
in subparagraph (i) of this paragraph (af), provided that the 291
purchaser has not requested or caused the delay in shipment. 292
(ag) Sales of nonperishable food items to charitable 293
organizations that are exempt from federal income taxation under 294
Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and operate a food 295
bank or food pantry or food lines. 296
(ah) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 297
the United Way of the Pine Belt Region, Inc. 298
(ai) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 299
the Mississippi Children's Museum or any subsidiary or affiliate 300
thereof operating a satellite or branch museum within this state. 301
(aj) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 302
the Jackson Zoological Park. 303
(ak) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 304
the Hattiesburg Zoo. 305
(al) Gross proceeds from sales of food, merchandise or 306
other concessions at an event held solely for religious or 307
charitable purposes at livestock facilities, agriculture 308
facilities or other facilities constructed, renovated or expanded 309
with funds for the grant program authorized under Section 18, 310
Chapter 530, Laws of 1995. 311
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(am) Sales of tangible personal property and services 312
to the Diabetes Foundation of Mississippi and the Mississippi 313
Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. 314
(an) Sales of potting soil, mulch, or other soil 315
amendments used in growing ornamental plants which bear no fruit 316
of commercial value when sold to commercial plant nurseries that 317
operate exclusively at wholesale and where no retail sales can be 318
made. 319
(ao) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 320
the University of Mississippi Medical Center Research Development 321
Foundation. 322
(ap) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 323
Keep Mississippi Beautiful, Inc., and all affiliates of Keep 324
Mississippi Beautiful, Inc. 325
(aq) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 326
the Friends of Children's Hospital. 327
(ar) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 328
the Pinecrest Weekend Snackpacks for Kids located in Corinth, 329
Mississippi. 330
(as) Sales of hearing aids when ordered or prescribed 331
by a licensed physician, audiologist or hearing aid specialist for 332
the medical purposes of a patient. 333
(at) Sales exempt under the Facilitating Business Rapid 334
Response to State Declared Disasters Act of 2015 (Sections 335
27-113-1 through 27-113-9). 336
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(au) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 337
the Junior League of Jackson. 338
(av) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 339
the Mississippi's Toughest Kids Foundation for use in the 340
construction, furnishing and equipping of buildings and related 341
facilities and infrastructure at Camp Kamassa in Copiah County, 342
Mississippi. This paragraph (av) shall stand repealed on July 1, 343
2028. 344
(aw) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 345
MS Gulf Coast Buddy Sports, Inc. 346
(ax) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 347
Biloxi Lions, Inc. 348
(ay) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 349
Lions Sight Foundation of Mississippi, Inc. 350
(az) Sales of tangible personal property and services 351
to the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life 352
(ISJL). 353
(ba) Sales of coins, currency, and bullion. For the 354
purposes of this paragraph (ba), the following words and phrases 355
shall have the meanings ascribed in this paragraph (ba) unless the 356
context clearly indicates otherwise: 357
(i) "Bullion" means a bar, ingot, or coin: 358
1. Manufactured, in whole or in part, of 359
gold, silver, platinum, or palladium; 360
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2. That was or is used solely as a medium of 361
exchange, security, or commodity by any state, the United States 362
Government, or a foreign nation; and 363
3. Sold based on the intrinsic value of the 364
bar, ingot, or coin as a precious metal or collectible item rather 365
than its form or representative value as a medium of exchange. 366
(ii) "Coin or currency" means a coin or currency: 367
1. Manufactured, in whole or in part, of 368
gold, silver, other metal, or paper; 369
2. That was or is used solely as a medium of 370
exchange, security, or commodity by any state, the United States 371
Government, or a foreign nation; and 372
3. Sold based on the intrinsic value of the 373
coin or currency as a precious metal or collectible item rather 374
than its form or representative value as a medium of exchange. 375
"Coin or currency" does not include a coin or currency that has 376
been incorporated into jewelry. 377
SECTION 2. Nothing in this act shall affect or defeat any 378
claim, assessment, appeal, suit, right or cause of action for 379
taxes due or accrued under the sales tax laws before the date on 380
which this act becomes effective, whether such claims, 381
assessments, appeals, suits or actions have been begun before the 382
date on which this act becomes effective or are begun thereafter; 383
and the provisions of the sales tax laws are expressly continued 384
in full force, effect and operation for the purpose of the 385
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ST: Sales tax; exempt retail sales of firearm
safes during annual Mississippi Second Amendment
Weekend holiday.
assessment, collection and enrollment of liens for any taxes due 386
or accrued and the execution of any warrant under such laws before 387
the date on which this act becomes effective, and for the 388
imposition of any penalties, forfeitures or claims for failure to 389
comply with such laws. 390
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from 391
and after July 1, 2026. 392