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LEGISLATIVE UPDATEWe are getting close to the half way mark of the 2020 session of the Mississippi Legislature and thingsare really picking up speed. The filing of general bills deadline has passed and committee meetings arein full force. It is a much busier time for me as I now chair the Business and Financial InstitutionCommittee and I have spent much time going over bills assigned to my committee and determiningwhat bills to bring out and what bills to let die in committee.One of those bills that I will be bringing out of committee this week are Senate Bill 2854 of which I amthe author that authorizes the Department of Revenue to revise the individual income tax forms toallow designation of two bank accounts for direct deposit on receiving your state refund. This is just amechanism hopefully to get people to put money into some sort of savings account or savings plan.Often times once that money gets deposited into ones checking it doesn’t take long to spend it and bydoing this hopefully this will encourage someone to put some back for savings purposes.Another bill which I would like to mention that actually didn’t get referred to my committee butprobably should have is Senate Bill 2202 The Elders Abuse Bill. I am also the author of this bill and whatthis bill does is that if someone over 65 years old is the only one on an account and people in the bankknow this person well and have really good reason to believe that this person is getting exploited orscammed, then the bank can if they choose put a hold on that transaction for 15 days and contact lawenforcement to help in the matter. We see this happen way too often in our workplaces today and toomany times there is nothing we can do to help and feel absolutely helpless in the matter. At least withthis bill, this can buy some time to save the money for the owner of the funds and hopefully stop anexploitation from taking place.One other bill I would like to mention that I am the author of is Senate Bill 2187 which is the Certificateof Foreign Birth Bill. Right now parents from Mississippi who go overseas to adopt babies from othercountries go through a long, brutal, expensive process. Now, I understand that a lot is needed in ourcrazy world we live in but the problem lies when they get back home to Mississippi in order to get abirth certificate from the State they have to go through another round of practically the same processand info. Another round of attorney expenses. Another round of the same paper work. Another roundof drawn out time lost. This bill does exactly what they do in Alabama which says the adoptive parentscan go through the State Registrar to get a Certificate of Foreign Birth without judicial proceedings aslong as you have done everything you were supposed to do.As always, it my honor to serve you in the State Legislature as your State Senator. Please contact meanytime in I can be of assistance. God Bless!!Senator Chris CaughmanDistrict 35
