Income verification system; bring forward code sections concerning.

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To: Medicaid
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE REGULAR SESSION 2026

By: Senator(s) Sparks

SENATE BILL NO. 2765

AN ACT TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 43-12-1, 43-12-3, 43-12-5, 1
43-12-7, 43-12-9, 43-12-11, 43-12-13, 43-12-15, 43-12-17, 2
43-12-19, 43-12-21, 43-12-23, 43-12-25, 43-12-27, 43-12-29, 3
43-12-31, 43-12-33, 43-12-35, 43-12-37, 43-12-39, 43-12-41, 4
43-12-43, 43-12-45, AND 43-12-47, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR 5
PURPOSES OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES. 6
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI: 7
SECTION 1. Section 43-12-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 8
brought forward as follows: 9
43-12-1. Short title. This chapter shall be known and may 10
be cited as the "Medicaid and Human Services Transparency and 11
Fraud Prevention Act." 12
SECTION 2. Section 43-12-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 13
brought forward as follows: 14
43-12-3. Integration of eligibility systems. The Division 15
of Medicaid shall submit a final Advanced Planning Document to the 16
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) for the purpose 17
of applying for the OMB A87 exception to support the integration 18
of eligibility systems between the division and any applicable 19
Department of Human Services program where an integrated system of 20
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eligibility will serve the state's interest in developing shared 21
eligibility services across health and human services programs, 22
while at the same time promoting and enhancing the state's efforts 23
of ensuring maximum program integrity across each agency. In 24
preparing the final Advanced Planning Document, the division also 25
shall: 26
(a) Identify functions that can be leveraged or shared 27
across the state Medicaid program and other Department of Human 28
Services programs; 29
(b) Weigh benefits of shared systems; 30
(c) Identify interoperability and integration goals; 31
(d) Seek guidance from the Centers for Medicaid and 32
Medicare Services (CMS) and the Office for the Administration of 33
Children and Families (ACF) on state ideas before submitting the 34
Advanced Planning Document; and 35
(e) Ensure that the enhancement to front end identity 36
and asset verification is an integral part of the advanced 37
planning and integration process going forward. 38
The division shall submit a report on its progress to the 39
chairmen of the House and Senate Medicaid Committees within ninety 40
(90) business days and on a quarterly basis thereafter until the 41
final Advanced Planning Document is completed. The report also 42
shall be provided to the other members of the Legislature upon 43
request. 44
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SECTION 3. Section 43-12-5, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 45
brought forward as follows: 46
43-12-5. Real-time eligibility verification service. (1) 47
Definitions. For purposes of Sections 43-12-5 through 43-12-17, 48
the following definitions apply: 49
(a) "Department" means the Division of Medicaid or the 50
Department of Human Services, as the case may be. 51
(b) "Identity information" means an applicant or 52
recipient's full name, aliases, date of birth, address, social 53
security number and other related information, including, but not 54
limited to, the information in subsection (2)(a) of this section. 55
(2) Establishment of enhanced eligibility verification 56
service. 57
(a) The department shall establish and use a 58
computerized income, asset, residence and identity eligibility 59
verification service in order to verify eligibility, eliminate the 60
duplication of assistance, and deter waste, fraud, and abuse 61
within each respective assistance program administered by the 62
department. The information verified shall include, but not be 63
limited to: 64
(i) Earned and unearned income; 65
(ii) Employment status and changes in employment; 66
(iii) Immigration status; 67
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(iv) Residency status, including a nationwide 68
best-address source to verify individuals are residents of the 69
state; 70
(v) Enrollment status in other state-administered 71
public assistance programs, as available in a cost-efficient 72
manner; 73
(vi) Financial resources; 74
(vii) Incarceration status; 75
(viii) Death records; 76
(ix) Enrollment status in public assistance 77
programs outside of this state, as available in a cost-efficient 78
manner; and 79
(x) Potential identity fraud or identity theft. 80
(b) The department may issue a Request for Proposals 81
(RFP) from multiple third-party vendors, regardless of the amount 82
of funds to be expended under the contract, for the purposes of 83
identifying fraud in the programs described in this chapter and 84
pursuant to the specifications prescribed in this subsection (2). 85
After evaluating the proposals submitted, the department shall 86
enter into a competitively bid contract with a third-party vendor 87
for the purposes of using and accessing an eligibility 88
verification service by which to verify the income, assets, 89
residence, identity, and other information in paragraph (a) of 90
this subsection (2) to prevent fraud, misrepresentation, and 91
inadequate documentation when determining an applicant's 92
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eligibility for assistance before the distribution of benefits, 93
periodically between eligibility redeterminations, and during 94
eligibility redeterminations and reviews, as prescribed in this 95
section. The department may use more than one (1) eligibility 96
verification service and/or third-party vendor, if doing so is 97
more cost-efficient. The department may renegotiate an existing 98
contract with a current vendor for the purposes stated in this 99
paragraph (b) if doing so is more cost-efficient than issuing a 100
Request for Proposals (RFP) from multiple third-party vendors. If 101
the department determines that it is not more cost-efficient to 102
renegotiate an existing contract with a current vendor, the 103
department shall issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) from multiple 104
third-party vendors as provided in this paragraph (b), regardless 105
of the amount of funds to be expended under the contract. The 106
department may also enter into a competitively bid contract with a 107
third-party vendor to provide information to facilitate reviews of 108
recipient eligibility conducted by the department. 109
(c) When the department enters into a competitively bid 110
contract with a third-party vendor or renegotiates an existing 111
contract with a current vendor for the purposes of carrying out 112
this eligibility verification service, the vendor, in partnership 113
with the department, shall be required by contract to establish 114
annualized savings realized from implementation of the eligibility 115
verification service. It is the intent of the Legislature that 116
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savings exceed the total yearly cost for implementing the 117
eligibility verification service. 118
(d) To avoid any conflict of interest, when the 119
department enters into a competitively bid contract with a 120
third-party vendor or renegotiates an existing contract with a 121
current vendor, that primary vendor may not currently or will not 122
be allowed to bid on or be awarded a state contract to run 123
enrollment services. 124
(e) It shall be the responsibility of the contracted 125
third-party vendor to obtain access to any data, data sources and 126
databases, not already being used by the department, for the 127
purposes of implementing the eligibility verification service. 128
The payment structure for the contracted third-party vendor shall 129
be based on a per-applicant rate. 130
(f) Nothing in this section shall preclude the 131
department from continuing to conduct additional eligibility 132
verification processes, not detailed in this section, that are 133
currently in practice; and nothing in this section shall require 134
the department or third-party vendor to violate the Fair Credit 135
Reporting Act. 136
(3) The department shall have the eligibility verification 137
service required by this section implemented and operational not 138
later than July 1, 2019. The department shall submit a report 139
every six (6) months on its progress on implementing the 140
eligibility verification service to the Chairmen of the House and 141
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Senate Appropriations Committees, the House Public Health and 142
Human Services Committee and the Senate Public Health and Welfare 143
Committee, and the House and Senate Medicaid Committees. The 144
report also shall be provided to the other members of the 145
Legislature upon request. 146
(4) (a) As used in this subsection, the following terms 147
shall be defined as provided in this paragraph: 148
(i) "Abuse" includes any practice that is 149
inconsistent with acceptable fiscal, business or medical practices 150
that unnecessarily increase cost. 151
(ii) "Fraud" means misrepresenting the truth to 152
obtain an unauthorized benefit. 153
(b) The department shall enter or have entered into a 154
competitively-bid contract with a third-party vendor for the 155
purposes of identifying waste, abuse and fraud in the programs 156
administered by the department, focusing on detecting and 157
preventing abuse and fraud by providers of services in those 158
programs, and recovering improper payments made to providers of 159
services in those programs. 160
SECTION 4. Section 43-12-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 161
brought forward as follows: 162
43-12-7. (1) Before awarding assistance, the department 163
shall verify eligibility for assistance by using the enhanced 164
eligibility verification service established in Section 165
43-12-5(2). The department shall also conduct enhanced 166
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eligibility verification under Section 43-12-5(2) periodically 167
between eligibility redeterminations and during eligibility 168
redeterminations when there is a risk of changes in income, 169
assets, residency or other relevant factors and the department has 170
determined that the benefits of enhanced eligibility verification 171
outweigh the cost. 172
(2) It is the intent of the Legislature that any recipient 173
who has moved out of state shall be terminated from the rolls of 174
eligible recipients within three (3) months of the department 175
being made aware of their change of residency. 176
SECTION 5. Section 43-12-9, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 177
brought forward as follows: 178
43-12-9. Enhanced identity authentication process. Before 179
awarding assistance, applicants for benefits must complete a 180
computerized identity authentication process that shall confirm 181
the applicant owns the identity presented in the application. The 182
department shall continue to review the recipient's identity 183
ownership periodically to verify and protect the identity of the 184
recipient. 185
SECTION 6. Section 43-12-11, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 186
brought forward as follows: 187
43-12-11. Discrepancies and case review. (1) If a 188
discrepancy results from an applicant or recipient's identity 189
information and one or more of the databases or information tools 190
authorized under Sections 43-12-5 through 43-12-17, the department 191
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shall review the respective applicant or recipient's case using 192
the following procedures: 193
(a) If the information discovered does not result in 194
the department finding a discrepancy or change in an applicant's 195
or recipient's circumstances that may affect eligibility, the 196
department shall take no further action. 197
(b) If the information discovered under Sections 198
43-12-5 through 43-12-17 results in the department finding a 199
discrepancy or change in a recipient's circumstances that may 200
affect eligibility, the department shall promptly redetermine 201
eligibility after receiving such information within ten (10) 202
business days, or the minimum required by federal law. 203
(c) If the information discovered under Sections 204
43-12-5 through 43-12-17 results in the department finding a 205
discrepancy or change in an applicant's or recipient's 206
circumstances that may affect eligibility, the applicant or 207
recipient shall be given an opportunity to explain the 208
discrepancy; however, self-declarations by applicants or 209
recipients shall not be accepted as verification of categorical 210
and financial eligibility during eligibility evaluations, reviews, 211
and redeterminations. 212
(d) Unless prohibited by federal law, the department 213
shall provide written notice, within ten (10) business days, or 214
the minimum required by federal law to the applicant or recipient, 215
which shall describe in sufficient detail the circumstances of the 216
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discrepancy or change, the manner in which the applicant or 217
recipient may respond, and the consequences of failing to take 218
action. The applicant or recipient shall have ten (10) business 219
days, or the minimum required by federal law, to respond in an 220
attempt to resolve the discrepancy or change. The explanation 221
provided by the recipient or applicant shall be given in writing. 222
After receiving the explanation, the department may request 223
additional documentation if it determines that there is risk of 224
fraud, misrepresentation, or inadequate documentation. 225
(e) Unless prohibited by federal laws, if the applicant 226
or recipient does not respond to the notice, the department shall, 227
within ten (10) business days, or the minimum required by federal 228
law deny or discontinue assistance for failure to cooperate, in 229
which case the department shall provide notice of intent to deny 230
or discontinue assistance. Eligibility for assistance shall not 231
be established or reestablished until the discrepancy or change 232
has been resolved. 233
(f) If an applicant or recipient responds to the notice 234
and disagrees with the findings of the match between his or her 235
identity information and one or more databases or information 236
tools authorized under Sections 43-12-5 through 43-12-17, the 237
department shall review the matter. If the department finds that 238
there has been an error, the department shall take immediate 239
action to correct it and no further action shall be taken. If, 240
after a review, the department determines that there is no error, 241
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the department shall determine the effect on the applicant's or 242
recipient's case and take appropriate action. Written notice of 243
the respective department's action shall be given to the applicant 244
or recipient. 245
(g) If the applicant or recipient agrees with the 246
findings of the match between the applicant's or recipient's 247
identity information and one or more databases or information 248
tools authorized under Sections 43-12-5 through 43-12-17, the 249
department shall determine the effect on the applicant or 250
recipient's case and take appropriate action. Written notice of 251
the department's action shall be given to the applicant or 252
recipient. In no case shall the department discontinue assistance 253
upon finding a discrepancy or change in circumstances between an 254
individual's identity information and one or more databases or 255
information tools authorized under Sections 43-12-5 through 256
43-12-17 until the applicant or recipient has been given notice of 257
the discrepancy and the opportunity to respond as required under 258
this section. 259
(2) The executive director of the department, or his or her 260
designee, at his or her discretion may review the agency 261
conference record of a hearing to determine that the local or 262
state decision was correct. The executive director, or his or her 263
designee, shall prepare a decision summarizing the issue and the 264
basis for the decision. In cases in which the executive director, 265
or his or her designee, finds that the facts in the record are 266
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inadequate or that incorrect policy has been applied, he or she 267
will direct the county to get the facts or use correct policy and 268
change the decision, reinstate the payment, or correct the amount 269
of payment retroactively to the date of erroneous action. 270
(3) The department shall promulgate rules and regulations 271
necessary for the purposes of carrying out this section. 272
(4) Wherever applicable and cost-effective, the Division of 273
Medicaid and the Department of Human Services shall share data, 274
data sources, and verification processes aimed at reducing fraud 275
and waste. 276
SECTION 7. Section 43-12-13, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 277
brought forward as follows: 278
43-12-13. Referrals for fraud, misrepresentation, or 279
inadequate documentation. After reviewing changes or 280
discrepancies that may affect program eligibility, the department 281
shall refer, within forty-five (45) business days, suspected cases 282
of fraud, misrepresentation, or inadequate documentation to 283
appropriate agencies, divisions, or departments for review of 284
eligibility discrepancies in other public programs. This shall 285
also include cases where an individual is determined to be no 286
longer eligible for the original program. In cases where fraud 287
affecting program eligibility is substantiated, the department or 288
other appropriate agencies shall garnish wages or state income tax 289
refunds until the state recovers an amount equal to the amount of 290
benefits that were fraudulently received. 291
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SECTION 8. Section 43-12-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 292
brought forward as follows: 293
43-12-15. Reporting. (1) Thirty (30) business days before 294
entering into a competitively bid contract for the eligibility 295
verification service required by Section 43-12-5, the department 296
shall provide a written report to the Governor, the Chairmen of 297
the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, the House Public 298
Health and Human Services Committee and the Senate Public Health 299
and Welfare Committee, and the House and Senate Medicaid 300
Committees, detailing the data sources proposed to be used by the 301
third-party vendor for eligibility and redeterminations, the 302
relevancy of the information from the data sources, the frequency 303
of how often each data source will be accessed, and an explanation 304
of why other data sources that are readily available are not being 305
used. The report shall include a dynamic cost-benefit analysis 306
that shows the ratio of potential fraud detection to the types and 307
kinds of data sources and information tools proposed to be used by 308
the third-party vendor. The report also shall be provided to the 309
other members of the Legislature upon request. 310
(2) Six (6) months after the implementation of the 311
eligibility verification service required by Section 43-12-5, and 312
quarterly thereafter, the department shall provide a written 313
report to the Governor, the chairmen of the House and Senate 314
Appropriations Committees, the House Public Health and Human 315
Services Committee and the Senate Public Health and Welfare 316
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Committee, and the House and Senate Medicaid Committees, detailing 317
the effectiveness and general findings of the eligibility 318
verification service, including the number of cases reviewed, the 319
number of case closures, the number of referrals for criminal 320
prosecution, recovery of improper payments, collection of civil 321
penalties, and the savings that have resulted from the service. 322
The report also shall be provided to the other members of the 323
Legislature upon request. 324
SECTION 9. Section 43-12-17, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 325
brought forward as follows: 326
43-12-17. Transparency in Medicaid. Following the precedent 327
set by Medicare, the department shall electronically release to 328
the public data that includes, but is not limited to the 329
following: the provider's name and office locations; a provider's 330
National Provider Identifier (NPI); the type of service provided 331
by Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code; and 332
whether the service was performed in a facility or office setting. 333
This public data shall also include the number of services, 334
average submitted charges, average allowed amount, average 335
Medicaid payment, and a count of unique beneficiaries treated. 336
Nothing in this section shall be construed to require the 337
department to publicly share protected information as defined by 338
the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 339
(HIPAA). 340
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SECTION 10. Section 43-12-19, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 341
brought forward as follows: 342
43-12-19. Work requirements. The Department of Human 343
Services shall not seek, apply for, accept or renew any waiver of 344
requirements established under 7 USC Section 2015(o), except 345
during a formal state or federal declaration of a natural 346
disaster. 347
SECTION 11. Section 43-12-21, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 348
brought forward as follows: 349
43-12-21. Federal asset limits for the Supplemental 350
Nutrition Assistance Program. In no case shall the resource limit 351
standards of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) 352
exceed the standards specified in 7 USC Section 2014(g)(1), unless 353
expressly required by federal law. In no case shall categorical 354
eligibility exempting households from these resource limits be 355
granted for any noncash, in-kind or other benefit, unless 356
expressly required by federal law. 357
SECTION 12. Section 43-12-23, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 358
brought forward as follows: 359
43-12-23. Broad-based categorical eligibility. (1) In no 360
case shall categorical eligibility under 7 USC Section 2014(a) or 361
7 CFR Section 273.2(j)(2)(iii) be granted for any noncash, in-kind 362
or other benefit unless expressly required by federal law for the 363
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). 364
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(2) The Department of Human Services shall not apply gross 365
income standards for food assistance higher than the standards 366
specified in 7 USC Section 2014(c) unless expressly required by 367
federal law. Categorical eligibility exempting households from 368
such gross income standards requirements shall not be granted for 369
any noncash, in-kind or other benefit, unless expressly required 370
by federal law. 371
SECTION 13. Section 43-12-25, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 372
brought forward as follows: 373
43-12-25. Sharing enrollee information across agencies. (1) 374
The Division of Medicaid and the Department of Human Services 375
shall share eligibility information with each other within thirty 376
(30) business days when an enrollee has been disenrolled for any 377
financial or nonfinancial reason that may result in the enrollee's 378
disqualification for benefits with the other department, and shall 379
include the rationale for the action. 380
(2) Any department, agency or division receiving information 381
under subsection (1) of this section shall establish procedures to 382
redetermine eligibility for any enrollee whose eligibility or 383
benefit levels could change as a result of new information 384
provided under subsection (1) of this section. 385
SECTION 14. Section 43-12-27, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 386
brought forward as follows: 387
43-12-27. Maximum family grant. For purposes of determining 388
the maximum aid payment under the TANF program, the number of 389
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persons in a household shall not be increased for any child born 390
into a household that has received aid under TANF continuously for 391
the ten (10) months before the birth of the child. 392
SECTION 15. Section 43-12-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 393
brought forward as follows: 394
43-12-29. Verify identities and household composition, and 395
all expenses of welfare applicants. The Department of Human 396
Services shall verify identity, household composition, expenses, 397
and any other factor affecting eligibility allowed under 7 CFR 398
Section 273.2(f)(3). 399
SECTION 16. Section 43-12-31, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 400
brought forward as follows: 401
43-12-31. Full cooperation with fraud investigations. The 402
Department of Human Services shall communicate the expectation of 403
mandatory cooperation with a fraud investigation and that 404
noncompliance could result in case closure and termination of 405
benefits within thirty (30) business days. 406
SECTION 17. Section 43-12-33, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 407
brought forward as follows: 408
43-12-33. The Department of Human Services shall not 409
establish or use a simplified reporting system under 7 CFR Section 410
273.12(a)(5). The department shall provide a written report to 411
the Chairmen of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, 412
the House Public Health and Human Services Committee and the 413
Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee, and the House and 414
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Senate Medicaid Committees, on the costs and state and federal 415
savings of not using a simplified reporting system. The report 416
also shall be provided to the other members of the Legislature 417
upon request. 418
SECTION 18. Section 43-12-35, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 419
brought forward as follows: 420
43-12-35. Noncompliance with Temporary Assistance for Needy 421
Families program rules. (1) The Department of Human Services 422
shall only grant benefits when an approved applicant has signed a 423
written agreement clearly enumerating continued eligibility 424
requirements, circumstances in which sanctions may be imposed, and 425
any potential penalties for noncompliance. 426
(2) The department shall require all enrollees to be 427
compliant with all program requirements, including work 428
requirements, before granting benefits. 429
(3) The department shall institute a three-month, 430
full-household sanction for the first instance of noncompliance 431
with any TANF requirement, unless expressly prohibited by federal 432
law. 433
(4) The department shall terminate benefits for the second 434
instance of noncompliance with any TANF requirement, unless 435
expressly prohibited by federal law. 436
(5) An individual sanctioned under subsection (3) of this 437
section shall not have benefits reinstated without reviewing the 438
agreement required under subsection (1) of this section. 439
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(6) The department shall deny benefits to any adult member 440
of a household where another adult member of the household has 441
been found to have committed benefits fraud. 442
SECTION 19. Section 43-12-37, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 443
brought forward as follows: 444
43-12-37. Noncompliance with Supplemental Nutrition 445
Assistance Program rules. (1) The Department of Human Services 446
shall set disqualification periods for all instances of 447
noncompliance with any SNAP requirement, unless expressly 448
prohibited by federal law. 449
(2) The department shall institute a three-month, 450
full-household disqualification period for the first instance of 451
noncompliance, unless expressly prohibited by federal law. 452
(3) The department shall institute a six-month, 453
full-household disqualification period for the second instance of 454
noncompliance, unless expressly prohibited by federal law. 455
(4) The department shall institute a permanent 456
disqualification period for the third instance of noncompliance, 457
unless expressly prohibited by federal law. 458
(5) If a recipient is subject to a disqualification period 459
under subsection (4) of this section, the department shall 460
institute a six-month disqualification period for the recipient's 461
entire household, unless expressly prohibited by federal law. 462
(6) Unless expressly prohibited by federal law, recipients 463
shall be subject to disqualification for failure to perform 464
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actions required by other federal, state, or local means-tested 465
public assistance programs. 466
SECTION 20. Section 43-12-39, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 467
brought forward as follows: 468
43-12-39. Out-of-state spending. (1) The Department of 469
Human Services shall post on its website and make available on an 470
annual basis to the chairmen of the House and Senate 471
Appropriations Committees, the House Public Health and Human 472
Services Committee and the Senate Public Health and Welfare 473
Committee a report of SNAP and TANF benefit spending. The report 474
also shall be provided to the other members of the Legislature 475
upon request. 476
(2) The report required under subsection (1) of this section 477
shall include: 478
(a) The dollar amount and number of transactions of 479
SNAP benefits that are accessed or spent out-of-state, 480
disaggregated by state; 481
(b) The dollar amount and number of transactions of 482
TANF benefits that are accessed or spent out-of-state, 483
disaggregated by state; 484
(c) The dollar amount, number of transactions, and 485
times of transactions of SNAP benefits that are accessed or spent 486
in-state, disaggregated by retailer, institution, or location, 487
unless expressly prohibited by federal law; and 488
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(d) The dollar amount, number of transactions, and time 489
of transactions of TANF benefits that are accessed or spent 490
in-state, disaggregated by retailer, institution, or location. 491
(3) The report required under subsection (1) of this section 492
shall be de-identified to prevent identification of individual 493
recipients. 494
SECTION 21. Section 43-12-41, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 495
brought forward as follows: 496
43-12-41. Public reporting. (1) The Division of Medicaid 497
and the Department of Human Services shall provide on an annual 498
basis to the chairmen of the House and Senate Appropriations 499
Committees, the House Public Health and Human Services Committee 500
and the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee, and the House 501
and Senate Medicaid Committees, a report of characteristics of 502
recipients of Medicaid, SNAP and TANF benefits. The report also 503
shall be provided to the other members of the Legislature upon 504
request. 505
(2) The report required under subsection (1) of this section 506
shall include: 507
(a) The length of enrollment, disaggregated by program 508
and eligibility group; 509
(b) The share of recipients concurrently enrolled in 510
one or more additional means-tested programs, disaggregated by 511
program and eligibility group; 512
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(c) The number of means-tested programs recipients are 513
concurrently enrolled in, disaggregated by program and eligibility 514
group; 515
(d) The demographics and characteristics of recipients, 516
disaggregated by program and eligibility group; and 517
(e) The dollar amount spent on advertising and 518
marketing for TANF, SNAP, Medicaid, and other means-tested 519
programs, including both state and federal funds, disaggregated by 520
program. 521
(3) The report required under subsection (1) of this section 522
shall be de-identified to prevent identification of individual 523
recipients. 524
SECTION 22. Section 43-12-43, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 525
brought forward as follows: 526
43-12-43. Pilot program for photos on EBT cards. (1) The 527
Department of Human Services may establish a pilot program in 528
which a photograph of the recipient is included on any electronic 529
benefits transfer card issued by the department to the recipient, 530
unless the recipient declines to have the photograph included. 531
When a recipient is a minor or otherwise incapacitated individual, 532
a parent or legal guardian of such recipient may have a photograph 533
of such parent or legal guardian placed on the card. 534
(2) The Department of Human Services shall explore 535
opportunities with other state agencies, departments, or 536
divisions, including the Department of Public Safety, to share 537
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photographs when available. The Department of Human Services may 538
sign one or more memorandum of understanding with such agencies, 539
departments, or divisions as necessary to implement this section. 540
SECTION 23. Section 43-12-45, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 541
brought forward as follows: 542
43-12-45. Limits on spending locations. (1) Funds 543
available on electronic benefit transfer cards shall not be used 544
to purchase alcohol, liquor or imitation liquor, cigarettes, 545
tobacco products, bail, gambling activities, lottery tickets, 546
tattoos, travel services provided by a travel agent, money 547
transmission to locations abroad, sexually oriented adult 548
materials, concert tickets, professional or collegiate sporting 549
event tickets, or tickets for other entertainment events intended 550
for the general public. 551
(2) Electronic benefit transfer card transactions shall be 552
prohibited at all retail liquor stores, casinos, gaming 553
establishments, jewelry stores, tattoo parlors, massage parlors, 554
body piercing parlors, spas, nail salons, lingerie shops, tobacco 555
paraphernalia stores, vapor cigarette stores, psychic or fortune 556
telling businesses, bail bond companies, video arcades, movie 557
theaters, cruise ships, theme parks, dog or horse racing 558
facilities, pari-mutuel facilities, sexually oriented businesses, 559
retail establishments that provide adult-oriented entertainment in 560
which performers disrobe or perform in an unclothed state for 561
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entertainment, and businesses or retail establishments where 562
minors under eighteen (18) years of age are not permitted. 563
(3) Upon enrollment, the Department of Human Services shall 564
provide new applicants an itemized list of prohibited purchases, 565
including those specified in subsection (1) of this section, and 566
make such a list available on the department's website. 567
(4) The department shall prohibit establishments identified 568
under subsection (2) of this section from operating ATMs that 569
accept electronic benefit transfer cards. Businesses found in 570
violation of this subsection shall be subject to appropriate 571
licensing sanctions. 572
(5) If a recipient is found to have violated subsection (1) 573
of this section, the department shall issue a warning in writing 574
to the recipient. The recipient shall be subject to 575
disqualification of benefits for up to three (3) months following 576
the first offense and a permanent termination of benefits 577
following the second offense, unless expressly prohibited by 578
federal law. 579
SECTION 24. Section 43-12-47, Mississippi Code of 1972, is 580
brought forward as follows: 581
43-12-47. Excessive EBT card loss. (1) The Department of 582
Human Services shall send all recipients that have requested four 583
(4) replacement cards within a twelve-month-period a letter 584
informing them that another request shall require participation in 585
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ST: Income verification system; bring forward
code sections concerning.
a face-to-face interview with a fraud investigator and eligibility 586
expert. 587
(2) If a third-party vendor is administering replacement 588
cards directly to recipients, it shall notify the department after 589
the request for a fourth replacement card in a 590
twelve-month-period, and any subsequent request thereafter. 591
(3) Upon a recipient's request of a fifth replacement card 592
within any twelve-month-period, and any subsequent request 593
thereafter, the department shall schedule an interview, within 594
thirty (30) business days, with a fraud investigator and 595
eligibility expert before another new card is issued. 596
(4) Unless expressly prohibited by federal law, if a 597
recipient fails to appear at an interview scheduled under 598
subsection (3) of this section, the department shall terminate the 599
recipient's benefits within ten (10) business days, or the minimum 600
required by federal law. 601
SECTION 25. This act shall take effect and be in force from 602
and after July 1, 2026. 603