MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2014 Regular Session
To: Judiciary B
By: Representative Rogers (61st)
AN ACT TO AMEND SECTION 83-39-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE CERTAIN DEFINITIONS RELATED TO BAIL AGENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 83-39-3, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE CERTAIN LICENSING REQUIREMENTS; TO AMEND SECTION 83-39-15, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE GROUNDS FOR DENIAL, SUSPENSION, REVOCATION AND REFUSAL TO RENEW LICENSES; TO AMEND SECTION 83-39-23, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, TO REVISE NOTICE TO SHERIFFS AND JUDICIAL OFFICIALS; TO AMEND SECTION 99-5-1, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, IN CONFORMITY; TO BRING FORWARD SECTION 83-39-29, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR PURPOSES OF AMENDMENT; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Section 83-39-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
83-39-1. The following terms when used in this chapter shall have the following meanings:
(a) "Department" means the Department of Insurance.
(b) "Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Insurance.
(c) "Insurer" means any domestic or foreign insurance corporation or association engaged in the business of insurance or suretyship which has qualified to transact surety or casualty business in this state.
(d) "Professional bail agent" means any individual who shall furnish bail, or monitor or supervise pretrial defendants acting as a licensed personal surety agent or as a licensed limited surety agent representing an insurer as defined by this chapter. The above definition shall not include, and this chapter does not apply to, any individual who is not licensed under this chapter who acts as personal surety in instances where there is no compensation charged or received for such service.
(e) "Soliciting bail agent" means any person who, as an agent or employee of a professional bail agent, or as an independent contractor, for compensation or otherwise, shall solicit, advertise or actively seek bail bond business for or on behalf of a professional bail agent and who assists the professional bail agent in presenting the defendant in court when required or assists in the apprehension and surrender of the defendant to the court or keeps the defendant under necessary surveillance or assists in monitoring or supervising pretrial defendants.
(f) "Bail enforcement agent" means a person who assists the professional bail agent in presenting the defendant in court when required, or who assists in the apprehension and surrender of the defendant to the court or who keeps the defendant under necessary surveillance or to assist the professional bail agent in monitoring and supervising pretrial defendants. Nothing herein shall affect the right of professional bail agents to have counsel or to ask assistance of law enforcement officers.
(g) "Limited surety agent" means any individual who is appointed by an insurer by power of attorney to execute or countersign bail bonds in connection with judicial proceedings, and who is duly licensed by the commissioner to represent such insurer for the restricted lines of bail, fidelity and surety, after successfully completing a limited examination by the department for the restricted lines of business.
(h) "Personal surety agent" means any individual who, having posted the necessary qualification bond with the commissioner as required by Section 83-39-7, and duly licensed by the commissioner, may execute and sign bail bonds in connection with judicial proceedings. All new personal surety agents licensed after July 1, 1994, shall complete successfully a limited examination by the department for the restricted lines of business.
(i) "Surety" means the insurer or the personal surety agent guaranteeing the bail bond and for the purpose of process does not mean the agent of such insurer or personal surety agent.
(j) "Bail" means the use of money, property or other security to cause the release of a defendant from custody and secure the appearance of a defendant in criminal court proceedings, or the monitoring or supervision of defendants who are released from custody on recognizance, parole or probation, except when such monitoring or supervision is conducted after conviction, sentencing or other adjudication and solely by public employees.
SECTION 2. Section 83-39-3, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
83-39-3. (1) No person shall act in the capacity of professional bail agent, soliciting bail agent or bail enforcement agent, as defined in Section 83-39-1, or perform any of the functions, duties or powers of the same unless that person shall be qualified and licensed as provided in this chapter. The terms of this chapter shall not apply to any automobile club or association, financial institution, insurance company or other organization or association or their employees who execute bail bonds on violations arising out of the use of a motor vehicle by their members, policyholders or borrowers when bail bond is not the principal benefit of membership, the policy of insurance or of a loan to such member, policyholder or borrower.
(2) (a) No license shall be issued or renewed except in compliance with this chapter, and none shall be issued except to an individual. No firm, partnership, association or corporation, as such, shall be so licensed. No professional bail agent shall operate under more than one (1) trade name. A soliciting bail agent and bail enforcement agent shall operate only under the professional bail agent's name. No license shall be issued to or renewed for any person who has ever been convicted of a felony or any crime involving moral turpitude or who is under twenty-one (21) years of age. No person engaged as a law enforcement or judicial official or attorney shall be licensed hereunder. A person who is employed in any capacity at any jail or corrections facility that houses state, county or municipal inmates who are bailable, whether the person is a public employee, independent contractor, or the employee of an independent contractor, may not be licensed under this section.
(b) (i) No person who is a relative of either a sworn state, county or municipal law enforcement official or judicial official, or an employee, independent contractor or the contractor's employee of any police department, sheriff's department, jail or corrections facility that houses or holds federal, state, county or municipal inmates who are bailable, shall write a bond in the county where the law enforcement entity or court in which the person's relative serves is located. "Relative" means a spouse, parent, grandparent, child, sister, brother, or a consanguineous aunt, uncle, niece or nephew. Violation of this prohibition shall result in license revocation.
(ii) No person licensed under this chapter shall act as a personal surety agent in the writing of bail during a period he or she is licensed as a limited surety agent, as defined herein.
(iii) No person licensed under this chapter shall give legal advice or a legal opinion in any form.
(3) The department is vested with the authority to enforce this chapter. The department may conduct investigations or request other state, county or local officials to conduct investigations and promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the enforcement of this chapter. The department may establish monetary fines and collect such fines as necessary for the enforcement of such rules and regulations. All fines collected shall be deposited in the Special Insurance Department Fund for the operation of that agency.
(4) Each license issued hereunder shall expire biennially on the last day of September, unless revoked or suspended prior thereto by the department, or upon notice served upon the commissioner by the insurer that the authority of a limited surety agent to act for or in behalf of such insurer had been terminated, or upon notice served upon the commissioner that the authority of a soliciting bail agent or bail enforcement agent had been terminated by such professional bail agent. A soliciting bail agent or bail enforcement agent may, upon termination by a professional bail agent or upon his cessation of employment with a professional bail agent, be relicensed without having to comply with the provisions of subsection (7)(a) of this section, if he has held a license in his respective license category within ninety (90) days of the new application, meets all other requirements set forth in Section 83-39-5 and subsection (7)(b) of this section, and notifies the previous professional bail agent in writing that he is submitting an application for a new license. Licenses shall expire on the last day of September of each odd-numbered year.
(5) The department shall prepare and deliver to each licensee a license showing the name, address and classification of such licensee, and shall certify that the person is a licensed professional bail agent, being designated as a personal surety agent or a limited surety agent, a soliciting bail agent or a bail enforcement agent. In addition, the license, if for a soliciting bail agent or bail enforcement agent, shall show the name of the professional bail agent and any other information as the commissioner deems proper.
(6) The commissioner, after a hearing under Section 83-39-17, may refuse to issue a privilege license for a soliciting bail agent to change from one (1) professional bail agent to another if he owes any premium or debt to the professional bail agent with whom he is currently licensed. The commissioner, after a hearing under Section 83-39-17, shall refuse to issue a license for a limited surety agent if he owes any premium or debt to an insurer to which he has been appointed. If a license has been granted to a limited surety agent or a soliciting bail agent who owed any premium or debt to an insurer or professional bail agent, the commissioner, after a hearing under Section 83-39-17, shall revoke the license.
(7) (a) Before the
issuance of any initial professional bail agent, soliciting bail agent or bail
enforcement agent license, the applicant shall submit proof of successful
completion of forty (40) classroom hours of prelicensing education approved by
the Professional Bail Agents Association of Mississippi, Inc., and conducted by
persons or entities approved by the Professional Bail Agents Association of
Mississippi, Inc. unless the applicant is currently licensed under this
chapter on July 1, 2014, and has maintained that license in compliance with the
continuing education requirements of subsection (8) of this section. All
applicants for a professional bail agent, soliciting bail agent or bail
enforcement agent license applying for * * * an original license after July 1, * * *
2014, shall
successfully complete a limited examination by the department for the
restricted lines of business. The hours required by this subsection shall be
classroom hours and may not be acquired through correspondence or over the
Internet. Any applicant who has met all continuing education requirements
as set forth in subsection (8)(a) of this section and has been properly
licensed under this chapter within ninety (90) days of submitting an
application for a * * *
license * * * shall
not be subject to the prelicensing education requirement.
(b) Beginning on July 1, 2011, in order to assist the department in determining an applicant's suitability for a license under this chapter, the applicant shall submit a set of fingerprints with the submission of an application for license. The department shall forward the fingerprints to the Department of Public Safety for the purpose of conducting a criminal history record check. If no disqualifying record is identified at the state level, the fingerprints shall be forwarded by the Department of Public Safety to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history record check. Fees related to the criminal history record check shall be paid by the applicant to the commissioner and the monies from such fees shall be deposited in the special fund in the State Treasury designated as the "Insurance Department Fund."
(8) (a) Before the renewal of the license of any professional bail agent, soliciting bail agent or bail enforcement agent, the applicant shall submit proof of successful completion of continuing education hours as follows:
(i) There shall
be no continuing education required for the * * * licensure
year of completion of the forty (40) hour pre-license class;
(ii) Except as provided in subparagraph (i), eight (8) classroom hours of continuing education for each year or part of a year of the two-year license period, for a total of sixteen (16) hours per license period.
(b) If an applicant for renewal failed to obtain the required eight (8) hours for each year of the license period during the actual license year in which the education was required to be obtained, the applicant shall not be eligible for a renewal license but shall be required to obtain an original license and be subject to the education requirements set forth in subsection (7). The commissioner shall not be required to comply with Section 83-39-17 in denying an application for a renewal license under this paragraph (b).
(c) The education hours required under this subsection (8) shall consist of classroom hours approved by the Professional Bail Agents Association of Mississippi, Inc., and provided by persons or entities approved by the Professional Bail Agents Association of Mississippi, Inc. The hours required by this subsection shall be classroom hours and may not be acquired through correspondence or over the Internet.
(d) The continuing education requirements under this subsection (8) shall not be required for renewal of a professional bail agent license for any applicant who is sixty-five (65) years of age and who has been licensed as a professional bail agent for a continuous period of twenty (20) years immediately preceding the submission of the application as evidenced by submission of an affidavit, under oath, on a form prescribed by the department, signed by the licensee attesting to satisfaction of the age, licensing, and experience requirements of this paragraph (d).
(9) No license as a professional bail agent shall be issued unless the applicant has been duly licensed by the department as a soliciting bail agent for a period of three (3) consecutive years immediately preceding the submission of the application. However, this subsection (9) shall not apply to any person who was licensed as a professional bail agent before July 1, 2011.
(10) A nonresident person may be licensed as a professional bail agent, bail soliciting agent or bail enforcement agent if:
(a) The person's home state awards licenses to residents of this state on the same basis; and
(b) The person has satisfied all requirements set forth in this chapter.
SECTION 3. Section 83-39-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
83-39-15. (1) The department may deny, suspend, revoke or refuse to renew, as may be appropriate, a license to engage in the business of professional bail agent, soliciting bail agent, or bail enforcement agent for any of the following reasons:
(a) Any cause for which the issuance of the license would have been refused had it then existed and been known to the department.
(b) Failure to post a qualification bond in the required amount with the department during the period the person is engaged in the business within this state or, if the bond has been posted, the forfeiture or cancellation of the bond.
(c) Material misstatement, misrepresentation or fraud in obtaining the license.
(d) Willful failure to comply with, or willful violation of, any provision of this chapter or of any proper order, rule or regulation of the department or any court of this state.
(e) Conviction of felony or crime involving moral turpitude.
(f) Default in payment to the court should any bond issued by such bail agent be forfeited by order of the court.
(g) Being elected or employed as a law enforcement or judicial official.
(h) Engaging in the practice of law.
(i) Writing a bond in violation of Section 83-39-3(2)(b)(i) and (ii).
(j) Giving legal advice or a legal opinion in any form.
(k) Acting as or impersonating a bail agent without a license.
(l) Use of any other trade name than what is submitted on a license application to the department.
(2) In addition to the grounds specified in subsection (1) of this section, the department shall be authorized to suspend the license, registration or permit of any person for being out of compliance with an order for support, as defined in Section 93-11-153. The procedure for suspension of a license, registration or permit for being out of compliance with an order for support, and the procedure for the reissuance or reinstatement of a license, registration or permit suspended for that purpose, and the payment of any fees for the reissuance or reinstatement of a license, registration or permit suspended for that purpose, shall be governed by Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be. If there is any conflict between any provision of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163 and any provision of this chapter, the provisions of Section 93-11-157 or 93-11-163, as the case may be, shall control.
(3) The department shall permanently revoke the license of any professional bail agent or soliciting bail agent or any insurer who issues a bail bond that contains information intended to mislead a court about the proper delivery by personal service or certified mail of a writ of scire facias, judgment nisi or final judgment.
SECTION 4. Section 83-39-23, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
83-39-23. No sheriff or other official shall accept bond from a professional bail agent unless the bail agent is licensed under this chapter and unless the bail agent shall exhibit to the court a valid certificate or license issued by the department, and the license of the bail agent shall not have been suspended or revoked. The department shall provide notice to the sheriff of every county of any suspension of revocation of professional, soliciting or bail enforcement license. The department, upon request, may furnish to any sheriff, district, circuit court or municipal judge additional information which would appropriately identify the duly licensed professional bail agent and insurers whose operation in the writing of bail is covered by this chapter.
SECTION 5. Section 99-5-1, Mississippi Code of 1972, is amended as follows:
99-5-1. Bail may be taken in the following form, viz:
"State of Mississippi,
______________ County.
We ______________, principal, and ______________ and ______________, sureties, agree to pay the State of Mississippi ______________ Dollars, unless the said ______________ shall appear at the next term of the Circuit Court of ______________ County, and there remain from day to day and term to term until discharged by law, to answer a charge of ______________.
Signed ___________________
___________________
Approved ______________
______________"
When the bail is for appearance before any committing court or a judge, the form may be varied to suit the condition.
When a bond is taken from a professional bail agent, the following must be preprinted or stamped clearly and legibly on the bond form: full name of the professional bail agent, Department of Insurance license number, full and correct legal address of the professional bail agent and complete phone number of the professional bail agent. In addition, if the bond is posted by a limited surety professional bail agent, the name of the insurer, the legal address of the insurer on file with the department and phone number of the insurer must be preprinted or stamped, and a true and correct copy of an individual's power of attorney authorizing the agent to post such bond shall be attached.
If the bond is taken from a soliciting bail agent, the full name of the soliciting bail agent and the license number of such agent must be preprinted or stamped clearly and legibly along with all information required for a professional bail agent and a true and correct copy of an individual's power of attorney authorizing such soliciting bail agent to sign the name of the professional bail agent.
Any professional bail agent and/or soliciting bail agents who issue a bail bond that does not contain this required information may have their license suspended up to six (6) months and/or be fined not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) for the first offense, may have their license suspended up to one (1) year and/or be fined not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) for the second offense and shall have their license permanently revoked if they commit a third offense.
The department shall permanently revoke the license of any professional bail agent or soliciting bail agent or insurer who issues a bail bond that contains information intended to mislead a court about the proper delivery by personal service or certified mail or a writ of scire facias, judgment nisi or final judgment.
SECTION 6. Section 83-39-29, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
83-39-29. (1) The department may provide information to the district attorney in the district in which a professional bail agent, a soliciting bail agent or bail enforcement agent is domiciled so that proper legal action may be pursued against any licensee who is alleged to have violated any provision of Chapter 39, Title 83. Such licensee is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year, or both. Any insurer violating any provision of Chapter 39, Title 83 may be fined in an amount not to exceed Fifty Thousand Dollars ($50,000.00).
(2) Any person who acts or attempts to solicit, write or present a bail bond as a professional bail agent, soliciting bail agent, or bail enforcement agent as defined in this chapter and who is not licensed under this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year, or both.
(3) Any person who acts or attempts to act, represents himself to be, or impersonates a professional bail agent, a soliciting bail agent or a bail enforcement agent as defined in this chapter by attempting to arrest or detaining any person, and who is not licensed under this chapter, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), imprisonment for not more than one (1) year, or both.
(4) A bail agent, bail enforcement agent or bail enforcement agent from another state shall report to the sheriff's department of the county in which he is attempting to locate a fugitive prior to beginning to look for the fugitive to prove his licensing and legal right to the fugitive. Failure to prove licensing shall be an offense punishable by a fine not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00).
(5) Any person charged with a criminal violation who has obtained his release from custody by having a professional bail agent, insurer, agent of a bail agent or insurer, or any person other than himself furnish his bail bond and who fails to appear in court, at the time and place ordered by the court, is guilty of "bond jumping" and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year, or both, and payment of restitution for reasonable expenses incurred returning the defendant to court.
(6) Any person who knowingly and intentionally aids and abets any person in the commission of the offense of bond jumping, whether the person committing the principal offense is actually convicted, shall be guilty of aiding and abetting bond jumping and, upon conviction, shall be subject to a fine of not more than One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) or imprisonment in the county jail for not more than one (1) year, or both, and payment of restitution for reasonable expenses incurred in returning the defendant to court. Any person who is convicted of aiding and abetting shall be jointly and severally liable for payment of restitution for reasonable expenses incurred in returning the defendant to court.
(7) Any bail agent who is prejudiced or injured by the commission of any of the offenses set forth in this section shall have standing to file a complaint alleging the commission of the offense or offenses.
SECTION 7. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2014.