Municipal judges; provide a term of office for.
HB 1398 amends Mississippi law to require municipal judges to serve fixed terms that align with the terms of the municipal governing authorities (like city councils) that appoint them. It also states that a municipal judge must forfeit their position and become ineligible to serve if they lose qualifications for any reason (e.g., failing to meet residency or legal requirements). The bill affects all cities with municipal judges, particularly those with populations over 10,000, by standardizing their terms and adding accountability for maintaining eligibility. This change applies to existing appointment rules under Sections 21-23-3, 21-23-5, and 21-23-9 of Mississippi Code. The bill died in committee in March 2025 and was never enacted.
Bill status
died
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2025
Committee Review
Feb 2025
House Passage
Feb 2025
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 6, 2025
Last action Mar 4, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison
What changed between versions
As Introduced
→
Current version
·
4 edits
MODERATE
This bill establishes fixed terms for municipal judges that align with the terms of the appointing governing authorities, ensuring judicial stability and preventing judges from serving beyond the authority that appointed them. It also clarifies eligibility requirements and forfeiture conditions for municipal judges across different municipality sizes.
Scope change
The bill's scope remains consistent between versions, applying to municipalities of varying population sizes with specific provisions for different population thresholds.
REQUIREMENT
Municipal judges now serve fixed terms that run concurrently with the appointing governing authorities' terms, replacing any previous indefinite appointment structure.
ELIGIBILITY
Judges must forfeit their office and become ineligible to serve if they become unqualified for any reason, with this provision now explicitly stated in multiple sections.
TIMELINE
The act specifies an effective date of July 1, 2025, providing a clear implementation timeline for the new requirements.
TECHNICAL
Minor formatting and markup changes occurred during the legislative process, including page numbering updates and session information adjustments.
Floor votes · House Feb 5, 2025
How they voted
96–15
Passed · 8 other
Total votes 119
Feb 5, 2025
D
Democratic39
51% Yea
I
Independent2
100% Yea
R
Republican78
94% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
6
Key actions
2
Committee
3
Feb 17, 2025
Committee
Referred To Judiciary, Division A
upper
Feb 6, 2025
Introduced
Transmitted To Senate
lower
Feb 5, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed
lower
Jan 28, 2025
Lower · Passed
Title Suff Do Pass
lower
Jan 20, 2025
Committee
Referred To Judiciary A
lower
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor
Sponsors
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