Baby Safety Device; remove "intent" and revise termination of parental rights.
Mississippi's HB 1616 amends laws regarding "baby safety devices" (anonymous surrender boxes for newborns). It removes "intent" as a requirement for automatically terminating parental rights when a child is left in such a device, meaning surrender via the device now immediately ends parental rights. The bill also requires a shelter hearing within one business day if the Department of Child Protection Services takes custody of a child surrendered through a device. These changes directly affect parents using the devices, emergency medical providers who take custody, and the Department of Child Protection Services.
Bill status
died
3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Feb 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 12, 2026
Last action Mar 3, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons
What changed between versions
Committee Substitute
→
Current version
·
1 edit
MINOR
The bill title was updated from 'Committee Substitute' to 'As Passed the House', indicating it has moved forward in the legislative process. The substantive text of the act remains unchanged in this diff, with no modifications to the actual policy provisions regarding parental rights termination.
TECHNICAL
Updated bill version designation from 'Committee Substitute' to 'As Passed the House' to reflect its current legislative status.
Floor votes · House Feb 11, 2026
How they voted
117–3
Passed · 2 other
Total votes 122
Feb 11, 2026
D
Democratic40
90% Yea
I
Independent2
100% Yea
R
Republican80
98% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
7
Key actions
2
Committee
3
Feb 19, 2026
Committee
Referred To Judiciary, Division A
upper
Feb 12, 2026
Introduced
Transmitted To Senate
lower
Feb 11, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed
lower
Feb 3, 2026
Lower · Passed
Title Suff Do Pass Comm Sub
lower
Jan 19, 2026
Committee
Referred To Judiciary A
lower
1 primary · 1 co-sponsor
Sponsors
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