Judicial office allowance; increase for circuit and chancery.

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To: Judiciary, Division A;
Appropriations
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Blount

SENATE BILL NO. 2006

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 9-1-36, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
INCREASE THE OFFICE ALLOWANCE FOR CIRCUIT AND CHANCERY JUDGES; AND 2
FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 3
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 4
SECTION 1. Section 9-1-36, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 5
amended as follows: 6
9-1-36. (1) Each circuit judge and chancellor shall receive 7
an office operating allowance for the expenses of operating the 8
office of the judge, including retaining a law clerk, legal 9
research, stenographic help, stationery, stamps, furniture, office 10
equipment, telephone, office rent and other items and expenditures 11
necessary and incident to maintaining the office of judge which 12
may include expenses to travel out of state once per state fiscal 13
year for continuing legal education classes and or seminars if 14
approved by the Chief Justice. The allowance shall be paid only 15
to the extent of actual expenses incurred by the judge as itemized 16
and certified by the judge to the Supreme Court in the amounts set 17
forth in this subsection; however, the judge may expend sums in 18
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excess thereof from the compensation otherwise provided for his 19
office. 20
From and after July 1, 2023, the office operating allowance 21
under this subsection shall be Fifteen Thousand Dollars 22
($15,000.00) per annum. 23
(2) In addition to the amounts provided for in subsection 24
(1), there is created a separate office allowance fund for the 25
purpose of providing support staff to judges. This fund shall be 26
managed by the Administrative Office of Courts. 27
(3) Each judge who desires to employ support staff must have 28
each candidate approved by the Administrative Office of Courts 29
before the positions may be filled. The Administrative Office of 30
Courts shall not approve any hire which does not first require the 31
expenditure of the funds in the support staff fund for 32
compensation of any of the support staff before expenditure is 33
authorized of county funds for that purpose. Upon approval by the 34
Administrative Office of Courts, the judge or judges may appoint 35
the employees to the position or positions, and each employee so 36
appointed will work at the will and pleasure of the judge or 37
judges who appointed him but will be employees of the 38
Administrative Office of Courts. Upon approval by the 39
Administrative Office of Courts, the appointment of any support 40
staff shall be evidenced by the entry of an order on the minutes 41
of the court. When support staff is appointed jointly by two (2) 42
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or more judges, the order setting forth any appointment shall be 43
entered on the minutes of each participating court. 44
(4) Support staff shall receive compensation pursuant to 45
personnel policies established by the Administrative Office of 46
Courts. Each judge shall be allotted the amount of * * * Two 47
Hundred and Sixty Thousand Dollars ($260,000.00) per fiscal year 48
for all support staff approved by the Administrative Office of 49
Courts. 50
The Administrative Office of Courts may approve expenditures 51
from the fund for additional equipment for support staff appointed 52
pursuant to this section in any year in which the allocation per 53
judge is sufficient to meet the equipment expense after provision 54
for the compensation of the support staff. 55
(5) For the purposes of this section, the following terms 56
have the meaning ascribed in this subsection unless the context 57
clearly requires otherwise: 58
(a) "Judges" means circuit judges and chancellors, or 59
any combination thereof. 60
(b) "Support staff" means court administrators, law 61
clerks, legal research assistants or secretaries, or any 62
combination thereof, but shall not mean school attendance 63
officers. 64
(c) "Compensation" means the gross salary plus all 65
amounts paid for benefits or otherwise as a result of employment 66
or as required by employment; however, only salary earned for 67
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services rendered shall be reported and credited for Public 68
Employees' Retirement System purposes. Amounts paid for benefits 69
or otherwise, including reimbursement for travel expenses, shall 70
not be reported or credited for retirement purposes. 71
(d) "Law clerk" means a clerk hired to assist a judge 72
or judges who has a law degree or who is a full-time law student 73
who is making satisfactory progress at an accredited law school. 74
(6) Title to all tangible property, excepting stamps, 75
stationery and minor expendable office supplies, procured with 76
funds authorized by this section, shall be and forever remain in 77
the State of Mississippi to be used by the circuit judge or 78
chancellor during the term of his office and thereafter by his 79
successors. 80
(7) Any circuit judge or chancellor who did not have a 81
primary office provided by the county on March 1, 1988, shall be 82
allowed an additional Seven Thousand Dollars ($7,000.00) per annum 83
to defray the actual expenses incurred by the judge or chancellor 84
in maintaining an office; however, any circuit judge or chancellor 85
who had a primary office provided by the county on March 1, 1988, 86
and who vacated the office space after that date for a legitimate 87
reason, as determined by the Department of Finance and 88
Administration, shall be allowed the additional office expense 89
allowance provided under this subsection. The county in which a 90
circuit judge or chancellor sits is authorized to provide funds 91
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ST: Judicial office allowance; increase for
circuit and chancery.
from any available source to assist in defraying the actual 92
expenses to maintain an office. 93
(8) The Supreme Court, through the Administrative Office of 94
Courts, shall submit to the Department of Finance and 95
Administration the itemized and certified expenses for office 96
operating allowances that are directed to the court pursuant to 97
this section. 98
(9) The Supreme Court, through the Administrative Office of 99
Courts, shall have the power to adopt rules and regulations 100
regarding the administration of the office operating allowance 101
authorized pursuant to this section. 102
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 103
and after July 1, 2026. 104