MDEQ; authorize to regulate placement of solar panels.

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To: Environment Prot, Cons
and Water Res
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Frazier

SENATE BILL NO. 2021

AN ACT TO GRANT THE MISSISSIPPI DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL 1
QUALITY AUTHORITY TO ADOPT REGULATIONS CONCERNING THE PLACEMENT OF 2
LARGE SOLAR PANELS; TO AMEND SECTION 49-2-9, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 3
1972, TO CONFORM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 4
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 5
SECTION 1. The Mississippi Department of Environmental 6
Quality shall have the authority to adopt rules and regulations 7
concerning the placement of large solar panels. 8
SECTION 2. Section 49-2-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 9
amended as follows: 10
49-2-9. (1) Effective July 1, 1979, the commission shall 11
have the following powers and duties: 12
(a) To formulate the policy of the department regarding 13
natural resources within the jurisdiction of the department; 14
(b) To adopt, modify, repeal, and promulgate, after due 15
notice and hearing, and where not otherwise prohibited by federal 16
or state law, to make exceptions to and grant exemptions and 17
variances from, and to enforce rules and regulations implementing 18
or effectuating the powers and duties of the commission under any 19
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and all statutes within the commission's jurisdiction, and as the 20
commission may deem necessary to prevent, control and abate 21
existing or potential pollution; 22
(c) To apply for, receive and expend any federal or 23
state funds or contributions, gifts, devises, bequests or funds 24
from any other source; 25
(d) To commission or conduct studies designed to 26
determine alternative methods of managing or using the natural 27
resources of this state, in a manner to ensure efficiency and 28
maximum productivity; 29
(e) To enter into, and to authorize the executive 30
director to execute with the approval of the commission, 31
contracts, grants and cooperative agreements with any federal or 32
state agency or subdivision thereof, or any public or private 33
institution located inside or outside the State of Mississippi, or 34
any person, corporation or association in connection with carrying 35
out the provisions of this chapter; but this authority under this 36
chapter and under any and all statutes within the commission's 37
jurisdiction, except those statutes relating to the Bureau of 38
Recreation and Parks, shall not include contracts, grants or 39
cooperative agreements which do not develop data or information 40
usable by the commission, or which provide goods, services or 41
facilities to the commission or any of its bureaus, and shall 42
exclude any monies for special interest groups for purposes of 43
lobbying or otherwise promoting their special interests; * * * 44
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(f) To discharge such other duties, responsibilities 45
and powers as are necessary to implement the provisions of this 46
chapter * * *; and 47
(g) To regulate placement of large solar panels, 48
pursuant to Section 1 of this act. 49
(2) The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality, 50
Office of Geology and Energy Resources shall be responsible for 51
program management, procurement, development and maintenance of 52
the Mississippi Digital Earth Model, which should include the 53
following seven (7) core data layers of a digital land base 54
computer model of the State of Mississippi: 55
(a) Geodetic control; 56
(b) Elevation and bathymetry; 57
(c) Orthoimagery; 58
(d) Hydrography; 59
(e) Transportation; 60
(f) Government boundaries; and 61
(g) Cadastral. With respect to the cadastral layer, 62
the authority and responsibility of the Mississippi Department of 63
Environmental Quality, Office of Geology and Energy Resources 64
shall be limited to compiling information submitted by counties. 65
For all seven (7) framework layers, the Mississippi 66
Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Geology and Energy 67
Resources shall be the integrator of data from all sources and the 68
guarantor of data completeness and consistency and shall 69
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ST: MDEQ; authorize to regulate placement of
solar panels.
administer the council's policies and standards for the 70
procurement of remote sensing and geographic information system 71
data by state and local governmental entities. 72
SECTION 3. This act shall take effect and be in force from 73
and after July 1, 2026. 74