SB2102 • 2026

High school graduation requirements; include passing score on U.S. citizenship test.

AN ACT TO REQUIRE THAT, BEGINNING IN THE 2027-2028 SCHOOL YEAR, EVERY PUBLIC AND CHARTER SCHOOL STUDENT WITHIN THE STATE PASS THE USCIS NATURALIZATION CIVICS TEST AS A REQUIREMENT FOR HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION; TO PROVIDE THAT STUDENTS MUST PASS THE TEST DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR BEFORE GRADUATION; TO PROVIDE THAT SCHOOLS SHALL DESIGNATE FACULTY TO ADMINISTER THE TEST IN WRITING UNDER STANDARD TESTING CONDITIONS FOUR TIMES PER SCHOOL YEAR; TO REQUIRE THAT THE TEST CONSIST OF 20 QUESTIONS SELECTED FROM THE LIST OF 128 CIVICS TEST QUESTIONS IN THE USCIS QUESTION POOL; TO SPECIFY THAT A STUDENT MUST ANSWER 12 OF THE 20 QUESTIONS CORRECTLY TO PASS; TO REQUIRE THAT THE QUESTIONS BE ROTATED SO THAT NO QUESTIONS ARE REPEATED ON ANY OF THE FOUR TESTS WITHIN THE SAME SCHOOL YEAR; TO ALLOW SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER SCHOOLS FLEXIBILITY AS TO THE MEANS OF EQUIPPING THEIR STUDENTS WITH THE KNOWLEDGE NEEDED TO PASS THE TEST; TO AUTHORIZE THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS TO GUIDE SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTERS SCHOOLS IN IMPLEMENTING THIS ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

Education

Did Not Pass

The latest official action shows that this bill did not move forward in that session.

Sponsor: Hill
Last action: 2026-02-03
Official status: Dead
Effective date: July 1, 20

Plain English Breakdown

The bill did not pass in its session, so it has no effective date or further implementation details.

High School Graduation Requirements Include U.S. Citizenship Test

This bill requires Mississippi public and charter school students to pass the USCIS Naturalization Civics Test as a condition for high school graduation starting in the 2027-2028 school year.

What This Bill Does

Requires all public and charter school students to pass the USCIS Naturalization Civics Test by their senior year of high school.
Specifies that schools must offer the test four times a year under standard testing conditions.
States that the test will consist of 20 questions selected from a pool of 128 civics questions, and students need to answer at least 12 correctly to pass.
Allows schools flexibility in teaching methods to help students prepare for the test.
Gives the State Department of Education authority to create rules for implementing this requirement.

Who It Names or Affects

Public school students in Mississippi
Charter school students in Mississippi
School faculty responsible for administering the test

Terms To Know

USCIS Naturalization Civics Test: A test that assesses knowledge of U.S. history and government, required for naturalized citizenship.
Standard testing conditions: Rules and procedures to ensure fairness and consistency during the administration of a test.

Limits and Unknowns

The bill did not pass in its session.
It is unclear how schools will adapt their curriculum to prepare students for this new requirement.
There are no details on what happens if a student fails to pass the test by graduation year.

Bill History

2026-02-03 Mississippi Legislative Bill Status System
02/03 (S) Died In Committee
2026-01-09 Mississippi Legislative Bill Status System
01/09 (S) Referred To Education

Official Summary Text

High school graduation requirements; include passing score on U.S. citizenship test.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

S. B. No. 2102 *SS36/R22* ~ OFFICIAL ~ G1/2
26/SS36/R22
PAGE 1 (icj\kr)

To: Education
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Hill

SENATE BILL NO. 2102

AN ACT TO REQUIRE THAT, BEGINNING IN THE 2027-2028 SCHOOL 1
YEAR, EVERY PUBLIC AND CHARTER SCHOOL STUDENT WITHIN THE STATE 2
PASS THE USCIS NATURALIZATION CIVICS TEST AS A REQUIREMENT FOR 3
HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION; TO PROVIDE THAT STUDENTS MUST PASS THE 4
TEST DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR BEFORE GRADUATION; TO PROVIDE THAT 5
SCHOOLS SHALL DESIGNATE FACULTY TO ADMINISTER THE TEST IN WRITING 6
UNDER STANDARD TESTING CONDITIONS FOUR TIMES PER SCHOOL YEAR; TO 7
REQUIRE THAT THE TEST CONSIST OF 20 QUESTIONS SELECTED FROM THE 8
LIST OF 128 CIVICS TEST QUESTIONS IN THE USCIS QUESTION POOL; TO 9
SPECIFY THAT A STUDENT MUST ANSWER 12 OF THE 20 QUESTIONS 10
CORRECTLY TO PASS; TO REQUIRE THAT THE QUESTIONS BE ROTATED SO 11
THAT NO QUESTIONS ARE REPEATED ON ANY OF THE FOUR TESTS WITHIN THE 12
SAME SCHOOL YEAR; TO ALLOW SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER SCHOOLS 13
FLEXIBILITY AS TO THE MEANS OF EQUIPPING THEIR STUDENTS WITH THE 14
KNOWLEDGE NEEDED TO PASS THE TEST; TO AUTHORIZE THE STATE 15
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION TO PROMULGATE RULES AND REGULATIONS TO 16
GUIDE SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTERS SCHOOLS IN IMPLEMENTING THIS 17
ACT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 18
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 19
SECTION 1. (1) Beginning in the 2027-2028 school year, 20
every public and charter school student within the state must pass 21
the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) 22
Naturalization Civics Test as a requirement for high school 23
graduation. Students must pass the test during the school year 24
before graduation. 25
S. B. No. 2102 *SS36/R22* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS36/R22
PAGE 2 (icj\kr)
ST: High school graduation requirements;
include passing score on U.S. citizenship test.
(2) Public and charter schools shall designate faculty to 26
administer the test, which shall be offered under standard testing 27
conditions four (4) times throughout the school year and need not 28
be connected with any particular course. The faculty member shall 29
administer the test in writing, selecting twenty (20) questions 30
from the list of one hundred twenty-eight (128) civics test 31
questions in the USCIS question pool. A student must answer 32
twelve (12) of the twenty (20) questions correctly to pass the 33
test. The questions shall be rotated so that no questions are 34
repeated on any of the four (4) tests within the same school year. 35
(3) School districts and charter schools shall have 36
flexibility as to the means of equipping their students with the 37
knowledge needed to pass the test. 38
(4) The State Department of Education may promulgate rules 39
and regulations to guide school districts and charters schools in 40
implementing this section. 41
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from 42
and after July 1, 2026. 43