Archives department seeks flexibility to use county filing fees for records management and museum services

The Senate committee reported out Senate Bill 2372 after an explanation from the chair and testimony from the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

“My name is Barry White. I'm the incoming director at the Department of Archives and History,” Barry White said, explaining the bill’s intent: to allow counties to use excess filing-fee revenues not only for preserving historic records but also for records management, historic-preservation programming and museum services. White said the change would not expand authority for capital expenditures but would permit services such as building assessments and museum recommendations.

The chair framed the problem as a mismatch between collected fees and the number of physical records needing preservation: the department now has more money than record-storage needs in some counties and wants flexibility to support related services. Senator Turner asked whether the county share of the filing fee would remain intact; White and the chair confirmed that half of the filing fee remains with counties and municipalities.

The committee moved and approved a motion to report the bill out of committee.

If enacted, the change would give local archives officials new options for spending existing local fees on service-oriented preservation work rather than capital projects. The bill’s text in lines 34–37 and the department’s explanation indicate the change is intended to broaden allowable uses without reducing the county portion of the fee.

The committee did not record a roll-call tally in the transcript; the chair ruled the motion carried by voice vote. The bill was reported out for further consideration.