Sales tax; exempt on retail sales of certain electronic devices.

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To: Ways and Means
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Representative Scott

HOUSE BILL NO. 181

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 27-65-111, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 1
TO EXEMPT FROM SALES TAXATION THE RETAIL SALES OF CERTAIN 2
ELECTRONIC DEVICES, EDUCATIONAL SOFTWARE, TEXTBOOKS AND OTHER 3
SCHOOL-RELATED SUPPLIES DURING THE LAST WEEKEND IN JULY; TO 4
PROVIDE THAT BEFORE SUCH EXEMPTION MAY TAKE EFFECT IT MUST FIRST 5
BE AUTHORIZED BY THE GOVERNING AUTHORITIES OF A MUNICIPALITY FOR 6
RETAIL SALES OCCURRING WITHIN THE CORPORATE LIMITS OF THE 7
MUNICIPALITY, OR BOARD OF SUPERVISORS OF A COUNTY FOR RETAIL SALES 8
OCCURRING IN THE COUNTY OUTSIDE THE CORPORATE LIMITS OF A 9
MUNICIPALITY; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 10
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 11
SECTION 1. Section 27-65-111, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 12
amended as follows: 13
27-65-111. The exemptions from the provisions of this 14
chapter which are not industrial, agricultural or governmental, or 15
which do not relate to utilities or taxes, or which are not 16
properly classified as one (1) of the exemption classifications of 17
this chapter, shall be confined to persons or property exempted by 18
this section or by the Constitution of the United States or the 19
State of Mississippi. No exemptions as now provided by any other 20
section, except the classified exemption sections of this chapter 21
set forth herein, shall be valid as against the tax herein levied. 22
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Any subsequent exemption from the tax levied hereunder, except as 23
indicated above, shall be provided by amendments to this section. 24
No exemption provided in this section shall apply to taxes 25
levied by Section 27-65-15 or 27-65-21. 26
The tax levied by this chapter shall not apply to the 27
following: 28
(a) Sales of tangible personal property and services to 29
hospitals or infirmaries owned and operated by a corporation or 30
association in which no part of the net earnings inures to the 31
benefit of any private shareholder, group or individual, and which 32
are subject to and governed by Sections 41-7-123 through 41-7-127. 33
Only sales of tangible personal property or services which 34
are ordinary and necessary to the operation of such hospitals and 35
infirmaries are exempted from tax. 36
(b) Sales of daily or weekly newspapers, and 37
periodicals or publications of scientific, literary or educational 38
organizations exempt from federal income taxation under Section 39
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as it exists as of 40
March 31, 1975, and subscription sales of all magazines. 41
(c) Sales of coffins, caskets and other materials used 42
in the preparation of human bodies for burial. 43
(d) Sales of tangible personal property for immediate 44
export to a foreign country. 45
(e) Sales of tangible personal property to an 46
orphanage, old men's or ladies' home, supported wholly or in part 47
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by a religious denomination, fraternal nonprofit organization or 48
other nonprofit organization. 49
(f) Sales of tangible personal property, labor or 50
services taxable under Sections 27-65-17, 27-65-19 and 27-65-23, 51
to a YMCA, YWCA, a Boys' or Girls' Club owned and operated by a 52
corporation or association in which no part of the net earnings 53
inures to the benefit of any private shareholder, group or 54
individual. 55
(g) Sales to elementary and secondary grade schools, 56
junior and senior colleges owned and operated by a corporation or 57
association in which no part of the net earnings inures to the 58
benefit of any private shareholder, group or individual, and which 59
are exempt from state income taxation, provided that this 60
exemption does not apply to sales of property or services which 61
are not to be used in the ordinary operation of the school, or 62
which are to be resold to the students or the public. 63
(h) The gross proceeds of retail sales and the use or 64
consumption in this state of drugs and medicines: 65
(i) Prescribed for the treatment of a human being 66
by a person authorized to prescribe the medicines, and dispensed 67
or prescription filled by a registered pharmacist in accordance 68
with law; or 69
(ii) Furnished by a licensed physician, surgeon, 70
dentist or podiatrist to his own patient for treatment of the 71
patient; or 72
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(iii) Furnished by a hospital for treatment of any 73
person pursuant to the order of a licensed physician, surgeon, 74
dentist or podiatrist; or 75
(iv) Sold to a licensed physician, surgeon, 76
podiatrist, dentist or hospital for the treatment of a human 77
being; or 78
(v) Sold to this state or any political 79
subdivision or municipal corporation thereof, for use in the 80
treatment of a human being or furnished for the treatment of a 81
human being by a medical facility or clinic maintained by this 82
state or any political subdivision or municipal corporation 83
thereof. 84
"Medicines," as used in this paragraph (h), shall mean and 85
include any substance or preparation intended for use by external 86
or internal application to the human body in the diagnosis, cure, 87
mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease and which is 88
commonly recognized as a substance or preparation intended for 89
such use; "medicines" do not include any auditory, prosthetic, 90
ophthalmic or ocular device or appliance, any dentures or parts 91
thereof or any artificial limbs or their replacement parts, 92
articles which are in the nature of splints, bandages, pads, 93
compresses, supports, dressings, instruments, apparatus, 94
contrivances, appliances, devices or other mechanical, electronic, 95
optical or physical equipment or article or the component parts 96
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and accessories thereof, or any alcoholic beverage or any other 97
drug or medicine not commonly referred to as a prescription drug. 98
Notwithstanding the preceding sentence of this paragraph (h), 99
"medicines" as used in this paragraph (h), shall mean and include 100
sutures, whether or not permanently implanted, bone screws, bone 101
pins, pacemakers and other articles permanently implanted in the 102
human body to assist the functioning of any natural organ, artery, 103
vein or limb and which remain or dissolve in the body. 104
The exemption provided in this paragraph (h) shall not apply 105
to medical cannabis sold in accordance with the provisions of the 106
Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act and in compliance with rules and 107
regulations adopted thereunder. 108
"Hospital," as used in this paragraph (h), shall have the 109
meaning ascribed to it in Section 41-9-3. 110
Insulin furnished by a registered pharmacist to a person for 111
treatment of diabetes as directed by a physician shall be deemed 112
to be dispensed on prescription within the meaning of this 113
paragraph (h). 114
(i) Retail sales of automobiles, trucks and 115
truck-tractors if exported from this state within forty-eight (48) 116
hours and registered and first used in another state. 117
(j) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 118
the Salvation Army and the Muscular Dystrophy Association, Inc. 119
(k) From July 1, 1985, through December 31, 1992, 120
retail sales of "alcohol-blended fuel" as such term is defined in 121
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Section 75-55-5. The gasoline-alcohol blend or the straight 122
alcohol eligible for this exemption shall not contain alcohol 123
distilled outside the State of Mississippi. 124
(l) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 125
the Institute for Technology Development. 126
(m) The gross proceeds of retail sales of food and 127
drink for human consumption made through vending machines serviced 128
by full-line vendors from and not connected with other taxable 129
businesses. 130
(n) The gross proceeds of sales of motor fuel. 131
(o) Retail sales of food for human consumption 132
purchased with food stamps issued by the United States Department 133
of Agriculture, or other federal agency, from and after October 1, 134
1987, or from and after the expiration of any waiver granted 135
pursuant to federal law, the effect of which waiver is to permit 136
the collection by the state of tax on such retail sales of food 137
for human consumption purchased with food stamps. 138
(p) Sales of cookies for human consumption by the Girl 139
Scouts of America if no part of the net earnings from those sales 140
inures to the benefit of any private group or individual. 141
(q) Gifts or sales of tangible personal property or 142
services to public or private nonprofit museums of art. 143
(r) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 144
alumni associations of state-supported colleges or universities. 145
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(s) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 146
National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, Inc., and chapters of 147
the National Association of Junior Auxiliaries, Inc. 148
(t) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 149
domestic violence shelters which qualify for state funding under 150
Sections 93-21-101 through 93-21-113. 151
(u) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 152
the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Mississippi Chapter. 153
(v) Retail sales of food for human consumption 154
purchased with food instruments issued the Mississippi Band of 155
Choctaw Indians under the Women, Infants and Children Program 156
(WIC) funded by the United States Department of Agriculture. 157
(w) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 158
a private company, as defined in Section 57-61-5, which is making 159
such purchases with proceeds of bonds issued under Section 57-61-1 160
et seq., the Mississippi Business Investment Act. 161
(x) The gross collections from the operation of 162
self-service, coin-operated car washing equipment and sales of the 163
service of washing motor vehicles with portable high-pressure 164
washing equipment on the premises of the customer. 165
(y) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 166
the Mississippi Technology Alliance. 167
(z) Sales of tangible personal property to nonprofit 168
organizations that provide foster care, adoption services and 169
temporary housing for unwed mothers and their children if the 170
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organization is exempt from federal income taxation under Section 171
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. 172
(aa) Sales of tangible personal property to nonprofit 173
organizations that provide residential rehabilitation for persons 174
with alcohol and drug dependencies if the organization is exempt 175
from federal income taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the 176
Internal Revenue Code. 177
(ab) (i) Retail sales of an article of clothing or 178
footwear designed to be worn on or about the human body and retail 179
sales of school supplies if the sales price of the article of 180
clothing or footwear or school supply is less than One Hundred 181
Dollars ($100.00) and the sale takes place during a period 182
beginning at 12:01 a.m. on the second Friday in July and ending at 183
12:00 midnight the following Sunday. This paragraph (ab) shall 184
not apply to: 185
1. Accessories including jewelry, handbags, 186
luggage, umbrellas, wallets, watches, briefcases, garment bags and 187
similar items carried on or about the human body, without regard 188
to whether worn on the body in a manner characteristic of 189
clothing; 190
2. The rental of clothing or footwear; and 191
3. Skis, swim fins, roller blades, skates and 192
similar items worn on the foot. 193
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(ii) For purposes of this paragraph (ab), "school 194
supplies" means items that are commonly used by a student in a 195
course of study. The following is an all-inclusive list: 196
1. Backpacks; 197
2. Binder pockets; 198
3. Binders; 199
4. Blackboard chalk; 200
5. Book bags; 201
6. Calculators; 202
7. Cellophane tape; 203
8. Clays and glazes; 204
9. Compasses; 205
10. Composition books; 206
11. Crayons; 207
12. Dictionaries and thesauruses; 208
13. Dividers; 209
14. Erasers; 210
15. Folders: expandable, pocket, plastic and 211
manila; 212
16. Glue, paste and paste sticks; 213
17. Highlighters; 214
18. Index card boxes; 215
19. Index cards; 216
20. Legal pads; 217
21. Lunch boxes; 218
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22. Markers; 219
23. Notebooks; 220
24. Paintbrushes for artwork; 221
25. Paints: acrylic, tempera and oil; 222
26. Paper: loose-leaf ruled notebook paper, 223
copy paper, graph paper, tracing paper, manila paper, colored 224
paper, poster board and construction paper; 225
27. Pencil boxes and other school supply 226
boxes; 227
28. Pencil sharpeners; 228
29. Pencils; 229
30. Pens; 230
31. Protractors; 231
32. Reference books; 232
33. Reference maps and globes; 233
34. Rulers; 234
35. Scissors; 235
36. Sheet music; 236
37. Sketch and drawing pads; 237
38. Textbooks; 238
39. Watercolors; 239
40. Workbooks; and 240
41. Writing tablets. 241
(iii) From and after January 1, 2010, the 242
governing authorities of a municipality, for retail sales 243
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occurring within the corporate limits of the municipality, may 244
suspend the application of the exemption provided for in this 245
paragraph (ab) by adoption of a resolution to that effect stating 246
the date upon which the suspension shall take effect. A certified 247
copy of the resolution shall be furnished to the Department of 248
Revenue at least ninety (90) days prior to the date upon which the 249
municipality desires such suspension to take effect. 250
(ac) The gross proceeds of sales of tangible personal 251
property made for the sole purpose of raising funds for a school 252
or an organization affiliated with a school. 253
As used in this paragraph (ac), "school" means any public or 254
private school that teaches courses of instruction to students in 255
any grade from kindergarten through Grade 12. 256
(ad) Sales of durable medical equipment and home 257
medical supplies when ordered or prescribed by a licensed 258
physician for medical purposes of a patient. As used in this 259
paragraph (ad), "durable medical equipment" and "home medical 260
supplies" mean equipment, including repair and replacement parts 261
for the equipment or supplies listed under Title XVIII of the 262
Social Security Act or under the state plan for medical assistance 263
under Title XIX of the Social Security Act, prosthetics, 264
orthotics, hearing aids, hearing devices, prescription eyeglasses, 265
oxygen and oxygen equipment. Payment does not have to be made, in 266
whole or in part, by any particular person to be eligible for this 267
exemption. Purchases of home medical equipment and supplies by a 268
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provider of home health services or a provider of hospice services 269
are eligible for this exemption if the purchases otherwise meet 270
the requirements of this paragraph. 271
(ae) Sales of tangible personal property or services to 272
Mississippi Blood Services. 273
(af) (i) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph 274
(af), retail sales of firearms, ammunition and hunting supplies if 275
sold during the annual Mississippi Second Amendment Weekend 276
holiday beginning at 12:01 a.m. on the last Friday in August and 277
ending at 12:00 midnight the following Sunday. For the purposes 278
of this paragraph (af), "hunting supplies" means tangible personal 279
property used for hunting, including, and limited to, archery 280
equipment, firearm and archery cases, firearm and archery 281
accessories, hearing protection, holsters, belts and slings. 282
Hunting supplies does not include animals used for hunting. 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
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
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(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
(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
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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
(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
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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
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
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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
(bb) Retail sales of computers, printers and printer 378
supplies, and educational software, with a sales price of One 379
Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($1,500.00) or less per item and the 380
sale takes place during a period beginning at 12:01 a.m. on the 381
last Friday in July and ending at 12:00 midnight the following 382
Saturday. For purposes of this paragraph (bb), "computer" means a 383
central processing unit for personal use and any peripherals sold 384
with it and any computer software installed at the time of 385
purchase. 386
From and after January 1, 2026, the governing authorities of 387
a municipality, for retail sales occurring within the corporate 388
limits of the municipality, may suspend the application of the 389
exemption provided for in these paragraphs (ab) and (bb) by 390
adoption of a resolution to that effect stating the date upon 391
which the suspension shall take effect. A certified copy of the 392
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ST: Sales tax; exempt on retail sales of
certain electronic devices.
resolution shall be furnished to the Department of Revenue at 393
least ninety (90) days before the date upon which the municipality 394
desires such suspension to take effect. 395
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 396
and after its passage. 397