MS HB908

Authorizes municipalities with population of 10,000 or more, or those bordering the Mississippi Sound or Gulf of Mexico, to create, establish, develop, and operate harbors and recreational parks for small water crafts within their territorial limits.

Grants municipalities full ownership of docks, piers, slips, wharves, breakwaters, bulkheads, jetties, buildings, and structures associated with harbors and recreational parks, along with all revenues derived from their operation.

Establishes exclusive control of all harbors, recreational parks, and facilities by city authorities, prohibiting the Secretary of State from requiring cities to agree to leases with state agencies or other political subdivisions to exercise this authority.

Clarifies that harbors and recreational parks located on tidelands or submerged lands shall be held in trust by the municipality where they are located, and exempts such lands from the state's general public trust tidelands provisions.

Effective date: July 1, 2014.