Rep. Sam Creekmore

Maddy summaryHB 584 designates the Union County Heritage Museum in Mississippi as the state's official barbecue museum, recognizing its role in preserving barbecue history. The bill directly affects the museum by granting it this official status, with no new funding or regulations attached. It takes effect on July 1, 2025, and is purely a ceremonial designation without substantive policy changes.

Maddy summaryHB 572 would create a loan repayment program for new mental health employees in Mississippi. Eligible full-time mental health employees (working 30+ hours/week for 12 consecutive months) with qualifying student loans could receive up to $6,000 annually for up to three years of service. The program would be funded by a new excise tax on vapor products, with funds deposited into a dedicated state "Mental Health Employee Retention Loan Repayment Fund." It excludes applicants with defaulted loans or prior participation in state-forgivable loan programs.

Maddy summaryHB 581 designates June 3 as "Bobbie Gentry Day" in Mississippi to commemorate the Mississippi-born singer-songwriter Bobbie Gentry (born Roberta Lee Streeter), recognizing her 1967 hit "Ode to Billie Joe" and her Grammy wins as Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance in 1968. The bill specifies this day is for commemoration and observation only, not as a legal holiday. It follows similar non-holiday designations in Mississippi law, such as Elvis Presley Day and Hernando de Soto Day. The bill died in committee on February 4, 2025, and did not become law.

Maddy summaryHB 583 requires Mississippi school resource officers (SROs) to remain assigned to specific student groups (cohorts) as those students move through grade levels within a school district, rather than rotating between different grade levels. This policy aims to build consistent trust and mentorship between SROs and students across multiple school years. The bill mandates the State Department of Education to create implementation guidelines for school districts, considering factors like district size and operational needs. It directly affects SROs, school districts, and students in Mississippi public schools by changing how SRO assignments are structured. The requirement includes exceptions when following cohorts is not feasible.

Maddy summaryHB 566, the "Mental Awareness Program for School Act," would require Mississippi public schools to provide mental health support by mandating at least one school counselor or mental health provider per 250 students and implementing trauma-informed training for educators. Key provisions include requiring schools to form trauma-informed teams, report counselor staffing to the Department of Education, and create a state toolkit for implementing trauma-informed practices. The bill also allows underfunded schools to deploy one counselor across multiple schools and authorizes partnerships with universities for supervised internships. The bill died in committee on February 4, 2025, and would have directly affected all public K-12 schools and students in Mississippi.

Maddy summaryHB 585 establishes a three-year pilot program to license and regulate two types of adult mental health facilities in Mississippi: residential treatment facilities (providing intensive, 24-hour care) and supportive residential facilities (offering less intensive, structured care). The bill requires facilities to obtain state licenses and meet specific staffing, safety, and service standards, while mandating Medicaid coverage for services provided by these facilities. It also sets initial fee schedules for four care levels and directs Medicaid to seek federal waivers for implementation. The pilot is limited to 50 participants through Region 3 Community Mental Health Center.

Maddy summaryHB 592, the "No Patient Left Alone Act," would require Mississippi hospitals, nursing homes, and similar care facilities to establish visitation policies ensuring designated essential caregivers (family, friends, or guardians) receive at least two hours of daily in-person visits. The bill prohibits facilities from demanding visitor vaccination proof, mandates visitation in specific circumstances like end-of-life care or major medical decisions, and requires policies to allow consensual physical contact. It also mandates that facilities make policies publicly accessible online and submit them to the State Department of Health during licensing. However, the bill died in committee on February 4, 2025, and has not become law.

Maddy summaryHB 571 would create a new criminal offense for "child grooming" in Mississippi, targeting adults who knowingly persuade, induce, or coerce minors under 18 into conduct that would constitute a sex offense. Penalties include up to one year in prison for offenders aged 18-21, and up to five years for those 21 or older on a first offense (with longer sentences for repeat offenses). The bill includes an exemption if the offender is under 18 and the minor is within three years of age in a dating relationship or marriage. This law directly affects adults who target minors for sexual activity, with provisions aimed at preventing predatory behavior before a sex offense occurs.

Maddy summaryHB 1092 proposed to amend Mississippi's Rural Fire Truck Acquisition Assistance Program by removing a restriction that previously limited counties to receiving funding for no more than eight rounds of fire trucks. The bill would have allowed counties and municipalities to apply for additional matching funds beyond the eight-round cap, enabling them to secure more fire trucks under the program. Specifically, it aimed to eliminate the requirement that a county must have received funding for only eight or fewer rounds to qualify for further assistance. This change would directly affect rural Mississippi counties and municipalities seeking to replace aging fire equipment, with funds covering up to $90,000 per fire truck for eligible purchases meeting NFPA standards. The bill died in committee on February 4, 2025, and was never enacted.

Maddy summaryHB 998 would have amended Mississippi law to include mental health care personnel in enhanced penalties for assault against healthcare workers. It also required all hospitals to establish hospital police departments, mandated campus security personnel to receive law enforcement-level training, and revised the legal definition of "hospital." The bill did not become law, as it died in committee on February 4, 2025. These changes aimed to strengthen protections for healthcare workers and improve security protocols in medical and campus settings.