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Mississippi Gov. Reeves signed SB 2114 directing state police to compile a registry of undocumented residents and criminalizing unlawful presence

On April 8, 2026, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves signed Senate Bill 2114, which directs the Mississippi Department of Public Safety to determine on an ongoing two-year basis the number and identities of all undocumented residents in the state, collecting names, addresses, country of origin, minor status, criminal history, and deportation-proceeding status. The law also criminalizes unlawful presence as a state offense, carrying a six-month minimum with felony enhancements, and requires state and county agencies to seek 287(g) cooperation agreements with ICE. Civil-rights groups warned the registry invites racial profiling and echoes historical list-making against disfavored groups.

Jurisdiction
state
Location
Jackson, Mississippi

Abuses documented

Actors

  • Tate Reeves (Governor of Mississippi)
  • Mississippi Legislature

On April 8, 2026, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves signed Senate Bill 2114 into law after the Legislature adopted the conference report on March 31, 2026. The measure directs the Mississippi Department of Public Safety to use "all reasonable lawful investigative means" to determine, on an ongoing two-year basis, the number and identities of every undocumented resident in the state, compiling names, addresses, country of origin, minor status, criminal history, and deportation-proceeding status. The bill was sponsored by state Sen. Angela Hill, who said states have a right and obligation to assist the federal government in discouraging illegal immigration.

Beyond the registry, SB 2114 criminalizes unlawful presence as a state-level offense — a misdemeanor carrying a minimum of six months, with felony enhancements reaching several years — and requires the Department of Public Safety and county jails to attempt 287(g) cooperation agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Associated Press reported that the law is silent on whether the resulting database may be shared with federal immigration authorities. The statute carries a repealer of July 1, 2028.

Civil-rights advocates, including the National Immigration Law Center, the ACLU of Mississippi, and the American Immigration Council, warned that a government mandate to catalog residents by immigration status invites racial profiling, sweeps in citizens and people with lawful status, and echoes historical government list-making that targeted disfavored groups. The ACLU of Mississippi noted the statute provides no probable-cause standard for questioning how a person entered the state.

Updates

2026-07-01 — SB 2114 took effect statewide [1]

The law became operative on July 1, 2026, activating the Department of Public Safety's registry mandate and the new state criminal penalties. As of that date, civil-rights organizations had signaled likely legal challenges but had not filed suit.

Why we recorded this

Equal protection and freedom from discriminatory state action bar government from singling out people for surveillance based on national origin or immigration status. Mississippi enacted a law directing its state police to compile an ongoing registry of undocumented residents — recording names, addresses, country of origin, and minor status — and criminalizing unlawful presence at the state level. Government list-making that identifies a disfavored group by who they are invites racial profiling and turns a protected characteristic into a basis for state tracking, eroding the principle that the state treats residents equally under law.

Sources

  1. A new law could create a list of immigrants illegally living in Mississippi — Associated Press primary accessed July 3, 2026
  2. Mississippi Senate Bill 2114 (as enacted) — Mississippi Legislature (via DocumentCloud) primary accessed July 3, 2026
  3. New Mississippi laws aimed at curbing illegal immigration could face challenges from ACLU — Magnolia Tribune secondary accessed July 3, 2026
  4. Mississippi Law Authorizes Statewide List of Undocumented Residents — Law Commentary secondary accessed July 3, 2026

See also