Senate Bill 2599 Summary

• Governor may restore voting rights to persons disqualified by conviction of vote fraud or crimes listed in Mississippi Constitution Section 241 after they complete their sentence, including incarceration, parole, probation, and post-release supervision, and pay all court-imposed fines and fees.

• Executive orders restoring suffrage rights serve as sufficient evidence for voter registration and prevent denial of registration based on prior disenfranchising conviction; circuit clerks must maintain files of certified copies of these orders.

• Department of Corrections and courts must automatically provide written reports to the Governor on persons meeting conditions for suffrage restoration, and persons who qualified before July 1, 2020, may request such reports within 45 days.

• Statewide Elections Management System must be updated to allow local election officials to verify whether a person has been issued an executive order restoring suffrage rights, and voter registration applications must state that persons restored suffrage by executive order are not disqualified from voting.

• Persons granted full gubernatorial pardons are entitled to have their conviction records expunged; Department of Corrections must submit quarterly reports to Governor on individuals who should be considered for pardon or commutation.