First responders; include county and municipal road workers as eligible for death and disability benefits.

S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~ G1/2
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 1 (ab\tb)

To: Accountability,
Efficiency, Transparency
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) McLendon

SENATE BILL NO. 2652

AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 45-2-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 1
INCLUDE COUNTY AND MUNICIPALITY ROAD WORKERS DURING AND AFTER 2
EMERGENCIES AS INDIVIDUALS ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE BENEFITS FROM THE 3
LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND FIRE FIGHTERS DEATH AND DISABILITY 4
BENEFITS TRUST FUND; TO AMEND SECTION 45-2-21, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 5
1972, TO INCLUDE COUNTY AND MUNICIPALITY ROAD WORKERS DURING AND 6
AFTER EMERGENCIES AS INDIVIDUALS ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE BENEFITS FROM 7
THE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND FIRE FIGHTERS DISABILITY BENEFIT 8
TRUST FUND; TO AMEND SECTION 45-41-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO 9
ADD CONFORMING DEFINITIONS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 10
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 11
SECTION 1. Section 45-2-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 12
amended as follows: 13
45-2-1. (1) Whenever used in this section, the term: 14
(a) "Covered individual" means a law enforcement 15
officer or firefighter, including volunteer firefighters, and 16
county road and public works employees during and after 17
emergencies, as defined in this section when employed by an 18
employer as defined in this section; it does not include employees 19
of independent contractors. 20
(b) "Employer" means a state board, commission, 21
department, division, bureau or agency, or a county, municipality 22
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 2 (ab\tb)

or other political subdivision of the state, which employs, 23
appoints or otherwise engages the services of covered individuals. 24
(c) "Firefighter" means an individual who is trained 25
for the prevention and control of loss of life and property from 26
fire or other emergencies, who is assigned to firefighting 27
activity, and is required to respond to alarms and perform 28
emergency actions at the location of a fire, hazardous materials 29
or other emergency incident. 30
(d) "Law enforcement officer" means any lawfully sworn 31
officer or employee of the state or any political subdivision of 32
the state whose duties require the officer or employee to 33
investigate, pursue, apprehend, arrest, transport or maintain 34
custody of persons who are charged with, suspected of committing, 35
or convicted of a crime, whether the officer is on regular duty on 36
full-time status, an auxiliary or reserve officer, or is serving 37
on a temporary or part-time status. 38
(e) "Road/Public works" means an individual who is 39
trained for the maintenance and repair of publicly owned roads and 40
utilities of a county or municipality. Personnel who may be 41
deployed to bioterrorism attacks, terrorist attacks, catastrophic 42
or natural disasters and perform emergency actions at the location 43
of the incident to remove trees and debris, or control hazards 44
related to gas, power or water, so that other responders may 45
safely respond with life safety opeations. 46
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 3 (ab\tb)

( * * *f) "Cause of death" means any cause of death 47
that would be covered under the Public Safety Officers' Benefits 48
Act of 1976, the Hometown Heroes Survivors Benefits Act of 2003, 49
generally codified at 42 USCS Chapter 46, or the Safeguarding 50
America's First Responders Act of 2020. 51
(2) (a) (i) The Department of Public Safety shall make a 52
payment, as provided in this section, in the amount of One Hundred 53
Thousand Dollars ($100,000.00) when a covered individual, while 54
engaged in the performance of the person's official duties, dies 55
or receives accidental or intentional bodily injury that results 56
in the loss of the covered individual's life and such death is the 57
result of a covered cause of death, provided that the death is not 58
the result of suicide and that the bodily injury is not 59
intentionally self-inflicted. 60
(ii) In addition to the payment authorized in 61
subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, the Department of Public 62
Safety shall pay Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($25,000.00) per 63
child of the covered individual, not to exceed a total payment of 64
Two Hundred Fifty Thousand ($250,000.00) under this subsection 65
(2). 66
(b) The payment provided for in this subsection shall 67
be made to the beneficiary who was designated in writing by the 68
covered individual, signed by the covered individual and delivered 69
to the employer during the covered individual's lifetime. If no 70
such designation is made, then the payment shall be made to the 71
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 4 (ab\tb)

surviving child or children and spouse in equal portions, and if 72
there is no surviving child or spouse, then to the parent or 73
parents. If a beneficiary is not designated and there is no 74
surviving child, spouse or parent, then the payment shall be made 75
to the covered individual's estate. 76
(c) The payment made in this subsection is in addition 77
to any workers' compensation or pension benefits and is exempt 78
from the claims and demands of creditors of the covered 79
individual. 80
(3) (a) There is established in the State Treasury a 81
special fund to be known as the Law Enforcement Officers and Fire 82
Fighters Death Benefits Trust Fund. The trust fund shall be 83
funded by an initial appropriation of Two Hundred Thousand Dollars 84
($200,000.00), and shall be comprised of any additional funds made 85
available by the Legislature or by donation, contribution, gift or 86
any other source. 87
(b) The State Treasurer shall invest the monies of the 88
trust fund in any of the investments authorized for the funds of 89
the Public Employees' Retirement System under Section 25-11-121, 90
and those investments shall be subject to the limitations 91
prescribed by Section 25-11-121. 92
(c) Unexpended amounts remaining in the trust fund at 93
the end of the state fiscal year shall not lapse into the State 94
General Fund, and any income earned on amounts in the trust fund 95
shall be deposited to the credit of the trust fund. However, any 96
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 5 (ab\tb)

unexpended amounts transferred in accordance with Section 2 of 97
Chapter 315, Laws of 2022, and remaining in the trust fund at the 98
end of the state fiscal year shall lapse into the Coronavirus 99
State Fiscal Recovery Fund. 100
(4) The Department of Public Safety shall be responsible for 101
the management of the trust fund and the disbursement of death 102
benefits authorized under this section. The Department of Public 103
Safety shall adopt rules and regulations necessary to implement 104
and standardize the payment of death benefits under this section, 105
to administer the trust fund created by this section and to carry 106
out the purposes of this section. 107
SECTION 2. Section 45-2-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 108
amended as follows: 109
45-2-21. (1) Whenever used in this section, the term: 110
(a) "Covered individual" means a law enforcement 111
officer or firefighter, including volunteer firefighters, and 112
county road and public works employees during and after 113
emergencies, as defined in this section while actively engaged in 114
protecting the lives and property of the citizens of this state 115
when employed by an employer as defined in this section; it does 116
not include employees of independent contractors. 117
(b) "Employer" means a state board, commission, 118
department, division, bureau, or agency, or a county, municipality 119
or other political subdivision of the state, which employs, 120
appoints or otherwise engages the services of covered individuals. 121
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 6 (ab\tb)

(c) "Firefighter" means an individual who is trained 122
for the prevention and control of loss of life and property from 123
fire or other emergencies, who is assigned to firefighting 124
activity, and is required to respond to alarms and perform 125
emergency actions at the location of a fire, hazardous materials 126
or other emergency incident. 127
(d) "Law enforcement officer" means any lawfully sworn 128
officer or employee of the state or any political subdivision of 129
the state whose duties require the officer or employee to 130
investigate, pursue, apprehend, arrest, transport or maintain 131
custody of persons who are charged with, suspected of committing, 132
or convicted of a crime. 133
(e) "Road/Public works" means an individual who is 134
trained for the maintenance and repair of publicly owned roads and 135
utilities of a county or municipality. Personnel who may be 136
deployed to bioterrorism attacks, terrorist attacks, catastrophic 137
or natural disasters and perform emergency actions at the location 138
of the incident to remove trees and debris, or control hazards 139
related to gas, power or water, so that other responders may 140
safely respond with life safety operations. 141
(2) (a) The Attorney General's office shall make a monthly 142
disability benefit payment equal to thirty-four percent (34%) of 143
the covered individual's regular base salary at the time of injury 144
when a covered individual, while engaged in the performance of the 145
individual's official duties, is accidentally or intentionally 146
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 7 (ab\tb)

injured in the line of duty as a direct result of a single 147
incident. The benefit shall be payable for the period of time the 148
covered individual is physically unable to perform the duties of 149
the covered individual's employment, not to exceed twelve (12) 150
total payments for any one (1) injury. Chronic or repetitive 151
injury is not covered. Benefits made available under this section 152
shall be in addition to any workers' compensation benefits and 153
shall be limited to the difference between the amount of workers' 154
compensation benefits and the amount of the covered individual's 155
regular base salary. Compensation under this section shall not be 156
awarded where a penal violation committed by the covered 157
individual contributed to the disability or the injury was 158
intentionally self-inflicted. 159
(b) Payments made under this subsection are exempt from 160
the claims and demands of creditors of the covered individual. 161
(3) (a) There is established in the State Treasury a 162
special fund to be known as the Law Enforcement Officers and Fire 163
Fighters Disability Benefits Fund. The fund shall be funded by 164
any funds made available by the Legislature or by donation, 165
contribution, gift or any other source. 166
(b) The State Treasurer shall invest the monies of the 167
fund in any of the investments authorized for the funds of the 168
Public Employees' Retirement System under Section 25-11-121, and 169
those investments shall be subject to the limitations prescribed 170
by Section 25-11-121. 171
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 8 (ab\tb)

(c) Unexpended amounts remaining in the fund at the end 172
of the state fiscal year shall not lapse into the State General 173
Fund, and any income earned on amounts in the fund shall be 174
deposited to the credit of the fund. 175
(4) The Attorney General's office shall be responsible for 176
the management of the fund and the disbursement of disability 177
benefits authorized under this section. The Attorney General 178
shall adopt rules and regulations necessary to implement and 179
standardize the payment of disability benefits under this section, 180
to administer the fund created by this section and to carry out 181
the purposes of this section. The Attorney General's office may 182
expend up to ten percent (10%) of the monies in the fund for the 183
administration and management of the fund and carrying out the 184
purposes of this section. 185
(5) From and after July 1, 2016, the expenses of the Law 186
Enforcement Officers and Fire Fighters Disability Benefits Fund 187
shall be defrayed by appropriation from the State General Fund and 188
all user charges and fees authorized under this section shall be 189
deposited into the State General Fund as authorized by law and as 190
determined by the State Fiscal Officer. 191
(6) From and after July 1, 2016, no state agency shall 192
charge another state agency a fee, assessment, rent or other 193
charge for services or resources received by authority of this 194
section. 195
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 9 (ab\tb)

SECTION 3. Section 45-41-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 196
amended as follows: 197
45-41-1. (1) This section shall be known and cited as the 198
"Mississippi Silver Alert System Act of 2010." 199
(2) The Legislature finds that: 200
(a) Wandering is a common behavior among those persons 201
with dementia or other cognitive impairments that causes great 202
concern for the families and caregivers of this state; 203
(b) This state is not currently equipped with the 204
systems necessary to locate those with dementia or other cognitive 205
impairments in a timely manner, with the unfortunate result that 206
some individuals are never returned home to their families; and 207
(c) It is imperative that this state develop a plan to 208
ensure that if an individual with dementia or other cognitive 209
impairments is missing, the appropriate infrastructure is 210
available and can be easily and timely activated to protect the 211
health and safety of these vulnerable citizens. 212
(3) When used in this section, unless the context requires a 213
different definition, the following terms shall have the following 214
meanings: 215
(a) "E911" means Enhanced Universal Emergency Number 216
Service or Enhanced 911 Service, which is a telephone exchange 217
communications service by which a Public Safety Answering Point 218
designated by the county or local communication district may 219
receive telephone calls dialed to the telephone number 911. 220
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 10 (ab\tb)

(b) "First responders" means state and local law 221
enforcement personnel, fire department personnel, emergency 222
medical personnel, emergency management personnel and public works 223
personnel who may be deployed to bioterrorism attacks, terrorist 224
attacks, catastrophic or natural disasters and emergencies. 225
(c) "Originating local law enforcement agency" means a 226
local police or sheriff's office that has jurisdiction over the 227
area where a person became missing. 228
(d) "Road/Public works" means an individual who is 229
trained for the maintenance and repair of publicly-owned roads and 230
utilities of a county or municipality. Personnel who may be 231
deployed to bioterrorism attacks, terrorist attacks, catastrophic 232
or natural disasters and perform emergency actions at the location 233
of the incident to remove trees and debris, or control hazards 234
related to gas, power or water, so that other responders may 235
safely respond with life safety operations. 236
(4) (a) The Bureau of Investigation of the Department of 237
Public Safety shall implement a statewide "Silver Alert System" 238
that has the purpose of providing a tiered, rapid response system 239
to notify the public about missing endangered adults, who are age 240
eighteen (18) or older, with dementia or other cognitive 241
impairments. The initial response may be local, statewide or 242
national based on available information about the missing person. 243
(b) A Silver Alert activation request may be made only 244
by a law enforcement agency, and the Bureau of Investigation of 245
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 11 (ab\tb)

the Department of Public Safety may only activate a Silver Alert 246
after a request is made. 247
(c) To activate a Silver Alert, all of the following 248
criteria must be met: 249
(i) The missing adult, age eighteen (18) or older, 250
is believed to have dementia or other cognitive impairments; 251
(ii) The person is believed to be missing and in 252
imminent danger regardless of circumstance; 253
(iii) The family, legal caregiver or custodian of 254
the missing person has submitted a missing person's report to the 255
local law enforcement agency in the jurisdiction where the person 256
became missing, with all waiting periods being waived; and 257
(iv) The law enforcement agency that has 258
jurisdiction of where the person became missing reports the 259
incident to the Bureau of Investigation of the Department of 260
Public Safety through the Mississippi Highway Patrol Headquarters 261
Communication Center. 262
(d) To initiate a request to activate a Silver Alert, 263
the family, legal caregiver or custodian of the missing person 264
must file immediately a report of the missing person with the 265
local law enforcement agency where the person became missing that 266
includes the following information: 267
(i) A description of the missing person including 268
physical characteristics, clothing and photos, if available; 269
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 12 (ab\tb)

(ii) A description of the known circumstances 270
under which the person became missing including the time, place, 271
direction, possible destinations, whether the person is walking or 272
in a vehicle, and all other pertinent information concerning where 273
the person may have become missing; and 274
(iii) Updates on the missing person as new 275
information becomes available. 276
(e) The originating local law enforcement agency, after 277
completing the investigation expeditiously and determining that 278
the case meets the qualifying criteria prescribed in this section, 279
shall: 280
(i) Waive in the case of a Silver Alert, any 281
waiting periods for a missing person's report in order to 282
galvanize the appropriate communities rapidly to assist in the 283
search for and the safe recovery of the missing person; 284
(ii) Notify the Mississippi Highway Patrol 285
Headquarters Communication Center and electronically send to the 286
center the completed Silver Alert forms and available photos, 287
signed by the police chief, sheriff, commanding officer or his or 288
her designee; 289
(iii) Enter the information into the National 290
Crime Information Center (NCIC); 291
(iv) Using a tiered approach based on known 292
circumstances, initiate an alert bulletin to all local law 293
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 13 (ab\tb)

enforcement, E911 and first responder agencies to search the 294
immediate area; 295
(v) Activate secondary alert systems to residents, 296
businesses, and broadcast media in the immediate area; 297
(vi) Provide a twenty-four-hour phone number to 298
receive calls while continuing the investigation; and 299
(vii) Update the family, legal caregiver or 300
custodian of the missing person as new information becomes 301
available. 302
(5) (a) After the Bureau of Investigation of the Department 303
of Public Safety has been contacted by a local law enforcement 304
agency requesting a Silver Alert activation, the Criminal 305
Information Center shall consider before the activation of the 306
Silver Alert procedures by the Silver Alert coordinator, or his or 307
her designee, the information contained in the initial Silver 308
Alert report form to ensure that it meets all criteria specified 309
in subsection (4)(c) of this section. Elements of the missing 310
person case to be considered are: 311
(i) Threat of imminent harm or death to the 312
missing person because of age, health, mental or physical 313
disability, environmental or weather conditions; 314
(ii) Time of initial report in relation to the 315
time of disappearance, including whether the disappearance is 316
unexplained, involuntary or is under suspicious circumstances; 317
(iii) Believed to be walking or in a vehicle; 318
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 14 (ab\tb)

(iv) Witness information; 319
(v) Possible domestic dispute involving the 320
missing person; and 321
(vi) Other facts that indicate the missing person 322
is in danger of serious injury or death, including whether there 323
is possible criminal intent toward the missing person or whether 324
someone witnessed the disappearance. 325
(b) Each case shall be reviewed on its own merits, and 326
if there are extenuating circumstances, the required criteria in 327
this section may be amended or expanded depending on the merits 328
presented. 329
(c) Only the Silver Alert coordinator, or his or her 330
designee, may authorize activation of a statewide Silver Alert and 331
if an activation is authorized, the Criminal Information Center 332
shall: 333
(i) Prepare an announcement concerning the missing 334
person; 335
(ii) Contact the designated media stations to 336
activate the alert; and 337
(iii) Request the Mississippi Department of 338
Transportation to activate electronic signs, if appropriate. 339
(d) If the missing person is believed to be in a 340
vehicle, the Silver Alert coordinator shall send information and 341
available photos via emails and fax to the statewide 342
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 15 (ab\tb)

communications systems, news media and other forms of public 343
communication or electronic resources. 344
(6) (a) Following the initial alert, a Silver Alert 345
broadcast shall be updated by television and radio stations as 346
necessary until such time that an end of alert message is received 347
from the law enforcement agency that requested the initial Silver 348
Alert. 349
(b) Local and statewide broadcast stations shall 350
exercise their own independent discretions as to whether to repeat 351
the required broadcasts prescribed in this section more frequently 352
and shall determine the frequency in which the alert is 353
re-broadcast following the initial alert. 354
(c) The Silver Alert termination notification shall be 355
issued twenty-four (24) hours after the airing of the latest and 356
most current information or when the case has been resolved and 357
verification from the originating local law enforcement agency has 358
been received by the Department of Public Safety. 359
(7) (a) If the circumstances of a person's disappearance do 360
not meet the criteria for a Silver Alert to activate statewide 361
communication systems, in addition to a local law enforcement 362
agency activating a Purple Alert, the Bureau of Investigation of 363
the Department of Public Safety may offer an alternate form of 364
mass notification as provided in this section. 365
(b) The alternate form of mass notification may be an 366
email that includes a photograph and the Silver Alert initial 367
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 16 (ab\tb)

reporting form that is sent through a statewide network of law 368
enforcement and first responder agencies, news media offices and 369
other forms of public communication. 370
(c) The email authorized in paragraph (b) of this 371
subsection (7) shall contain information taken from the Silver 372
Alert initial reporting form that is submitted by the originating 373
local law enforcement agency. 374
(d) The email alerting news media and law enforcement 375
agencies of a person's disappearance that does not meet the 376
criteria of a Silver Alert activation shall include the following 377
paragraph at the beginning of the email: 378
"The (name of law enforcement agency) has requested the 379
following information be provided to the Mississippi news media 380
and law enforcement agencies: At the present time, information 381
being provided to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety by 382
the (name of law enforcement agency) does not meet the criteria to 383
activate a Silver Alert. It is left to the discretion of each law 384
enforcement agency and news department receiving this email as to 385
whether the attached information, regarding the disappearance of 386
this person and/or the photograph of this person, will be released 387
to the public." 388
(e) If further investigation into the disappearance 389
produces evidence that may change the initial circumstances as 390
reported to local law enforcement, the Department of Public Safety 391
may reconsider activating a Silver Alert notwithstanding the 392
S. B. No. 2652 *SS08/R38* ~ OFFICIAL ~
26/SS08/R38
PAGE 17 (ab\tb)
ST: First responders; include county and
municipal road workers as eligible for death and
disability benefits.
existence of an active Purple Alert previously initiated by a 393
local law enforcement agency. 394
SECTION 4. This act shall take effect and be in force from 395
and after July 1, 2026. 396