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To: Housing; Accountability,
Efficiency, Transparency
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026
By: Senator(s) Rhodes
SENATE BILL NO. 2756
AN ACT TO PROTECTING DISABLED CITIZEN CHOICE IN RESIDENTIAL 1
ACCESS ACT; TO STATE LEGISLATIVE PURPOSE AND INTENT; TO DEFINE 2
CERTAIN TERMS RELATING TO THIS ACT; TO PROVIDE FOR CITIZEN CHOICE 3
IN ACCESSING THE BENEFITS OF SINGLE-FAMILY RESIDENTIAL 4
SURROUNDINGS; TO AMEND SECTION 17-1-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, 5
TO CONFORM; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 7
SECTION 1. This act shall be known and shall be cited as the 8
"Protecting Disabled Citizen Choice in Residential Access Act." 9
SECTION 2. The purpose and intent of this act is: 10
(a) To ensure that persons with disabilities are 11
integrated into their communities and have full access to the 12
benefits of community living in residential surroundings. 13
(b) To ensure that counties and municipalities of this 14
state do not prohibit the choice of access and location of 15
residences of persons with disabilities in single-family dwellings 16
or exclude disabled citizens from access to the benefits of 17
single-family residential surroundings. 18
SECTION 3. For the purpose of this act: 19
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(a) "Supervised living services home" means any 20
dwelling occupied by four (4) or fewer persons with a disability 21
who need not be related by blood, which dwelling is certified by 22
the Mississippi Department of Mental Health. 23
(b) "Disability" means, with respect to a person: 24
(i) A physical or mental impairment that 25
substantially limits one or more of such person's major life 26
activities; 27
(ii) A record of having such an impairment; or 28
(iii) Being regarded as having such an impairment. 29
Such term does not include current, illegal use of or 30
addiction to a controlled substance, as defined in Section 102 of 31
the Controlled Substance Act, 21 USC § 802. 32
(c) "Certified provider" means a person, agency or 33
organization who provides supervised residential living services 34
for persons with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities 35
pursuant to Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) programs as 36
defined by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) 37
Final Rule, such as the ID/DD Waiver and IDD Community Support 38
Program, and is certified by the Mississippi Department of Mental 39
Health pursuant to Section 41-4-1 et seq. 40
SECTION 4. (1) It is hereby declared to be the policy of 41
the State of Mississippi that persons with a disability shall not 42
be excluded from the benefits of single family residential 43
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surroundings by any county or municipal zoning ordinance, 44
resolution or regulation. 45
(2) (a) No disabled person shall be eligible for placement 46
in a supervised living services home unless such person has been 47
evaluated by the Mississippi Department of Mental Health and a 48
determination has been made that the disabled person is suitable 49
for supervised living services home placement. A supervised 50
living services home shall not be a certified provider for the 51
purposes of evaluating or approving for placement a disabled 52
person in a supervised living services home. 53
(b) No person shall be eligible for placement in a 54
supervised living services home if such person is: 55
(i) Assigned to a community corrections program; 56
(ii) On parole from a correctional institution or 57
on probation for a felony offense; or 58
(iii) In a state mental institution following a 59
finding of mental disease or defect excluding criminal 60
responsibility. 61
(3) No person shall be placed in a supervised living 62
services home under this act unless such dwelling is certified as 63
a supervised living services home by the Mississippi Department of 64
Mental Health; 65
(4) No county or municipality shall prohibit the location of 66
a supervised living services home in any zone or area where 67
single-family dwellings are permitted. Any zoning ordinance, 68
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resolution or regulation that prohibits the location of a 69
supervised living services home in such zone or area or that 70
subjects supervised living services homes to regulations not 71
applicable to other single-family dwellings in the same zone or 72
area is invalid. Notwithstanding the provisions of this act, 73
supervised living services homes shall be subject to all other 74
regulations applicable to other property and buildings located in 75
the zone or area that are imposed by any county or municipality 76
through zoning ordinance, resolution or regulation, building 77
regulatory codes, subdivision regulations or other 78
nondiscriminatory regulations. 79
(5) No person or entity shall contract or enter into a 80
contract, restrictive covenant, equitable servitude or such 81
similar restriction that would restrict supervised living services 82
homes or their location in a manner inconsistent with the 83
provisions of subsection (4) of this section. 84
SECTION 5. Section 17-1-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 85
amended as follows: 86
17-1-3. (1) Except as otherwise provided in Section 87
17-1-21(2), Section 4 of this act and in Article VII of the 88
Chickasaw Trail Economic Development Compact described in Section 89
57-36-1, for the purpose of promoting health, safety, morals, or 90
the general welfare of the community, the governing authority of 91
any municipality, and, with respect to the unincorporated part of 92
any county, the governing authority of any county, in its 93
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discretion, are empowered to regulate the height, number of 94
stories and size of building and other structures, the percentage 95
of lot that may be occupied, the size of the yards, courts and 96
other open spaces, the density of population, and the location and 97
use of buildings, structures and land for trade, industry, 98
residence or other purposes, but no permits shall be required with 99
reference to land used for agricultural purposes, including 100
forestry activities as defined in Section 95-3-29(2)(b), or for 101
the erection, maintenance, repair or extension of farm buildings 102
or farm structures, including forestry buildings and structures, 103
outside the corporate limits of municipalities. The governing 104
authority of each county and municipality may create playgrounds 105
and public parks, and for these purposes, each of such governing 106
authorities shall possess the power, where requisite, of eminent 107
domain and the right to apply public money thereto, and may issue 108
bonds therefor as otherwise permitted by law. 109
(2) Local land use regulation ordinances involving the 110
placement, screening, or height of amateur radio antenna 111
structures must reasonably accommodate amateur communications and 112
must constitute the minimum practicable regulation to accomplish 113
local authorities' legitimate purposes of addressing health, 114
safety, welfare and aesthetic considerations. Judgments as to the 115
types of reasonable accommodation to be made and the minimum 116
practicable regulation necessary to address these purposes will be 117
determined by local governing authorities within the parameters of 118
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ST: Protecting Disabled Citizen Choice in
Residential Access Act; enact.
the law. This legislation supports the amateur radio service in 119
preparing for and providing emergency communications for the State 120
of Mississippi and local emergency management agencies. 121
SECTION 6. This act shall take effect and be in force from 122
and after its passage. 123