Senate Education Committee Chair Dennis DeBar (R) met with his fellow committee members on Tuesday to start the 2026 legislative session off by taking up three bills. (Photo by Jeremy Pittari | Magnolia Tribune)
- Both bills are works in progress as lawmakers continue to move legislation out of committees for consideration.
The Mississippi Senate Education Committee passed two bills on Monday that could have far reaching implications.
One measure would create a small student transfer program for students in the lowest ranking school districts while a separate bill would mandate school districts receive notification within 24 hours of a student’s felony arrest.
Student Transfer Program
SB 2244 offers a potential path for students to transfer to any school they desire if they attend a public school in a district that has been rated an F two years in a row. An amendment to add a reverse repealer was approved early in the discussion of the bill due to several outstanding issues, one of those entails the total cost to implement the program. As a result, the potential need for the entire program to be scaled back prior to implementation could be warranted, lawmakers said.
Senate Education Committee Chair State Senator Dennis DeBar (R) said SB 2244 would cover the additional expenses associated with the transfer, to the tune of $7,200 per student, in addition to the base student cost. This current school year the base student cost was about $6,800.
“That is transportation and any other fees that might be incurred by the student,” DeBar explained.
The receiving school district would still retain the right to deny the transfer.
If every student attending a school within an F rated district decided to transfer, DeBar said the cost to the state would be in the hundreds of millions.
“That’s why we inserted a reverse repealer in it because of the fiscal amount of about $200 million,” DeBar added.
Senator Angela Hill (R) suggested cutting the $7,200 down by determining the student’s real need. She said that typically the receiving school district will test incoming students to determine their proficiency.
“That kid may actually not be all that far behind,” Hill said.
Other concerns expressed in the committee were that the current wording of the bill allows for student transfers even if the school they attend is rated a B or higher, even though the school is part of district rated an F.
Senator DeBar said the bill is still a work in progress and may not make it to the governor’s desk.
“So that’s why we have the reverse repealer, we may pare it down to a pilot [program] or just a few or one school, if it even makes it that far,” DeBar explained.
Student Felony Reporting
Another bill that passed out of the committee with a reverse repealer included was SB 2235. The bill would require law enforcement agencies in the state to notify school districts within 24 hours when one of their students is arrested for a felony offense.
State Senator Brian Rhodes (R) said he authored SB 2235 after discussions with some school district personnel, who expressed a need for knowledge of such offenses for student safety.
“It just seeks to have better communication between law enforcement and our educators and administrators,” Rhodes explained. “I’ve had school districts request this in a couple places. There’s been some kids that might have gotten arrested for a violent crime or a pretty bad crime over the weekend and show back at school on Monday with nobody knowing anything about it.”
DeBar and Rhodes stated the bill aims to ensure school staff are aware of violent offenses and whether a firearm was involved so they have the information they need to keep campuses safe. Additionally, that information could help educators connect the student with mental health intervention or find therapy.
Several senators expressed concern about the bill. State Senator Brice Wiggins (R) said it appears the bill conflicts with current law that protects a juvenile’s personal information, even when they are arrested.
“So, there’s a little bit of a conflict here,” Wiggins said.
Another concern lodged by State Senator Nollie Norwood (D) focused on the broad nature of the wording “felony arrest” as opposed to just reporting arrests involving violence and/or firearms. Norwood also said he was worried about the impact to the student if the arrest was false.
The question of who at the school district would receive the notification was also posed. State Senator Rod Hickman (D) said he would rather that information not be shared with the wrong staff members.
Both bills face long odds as lawmakers in both chambers continue their work.
