Mississippi Sen. David Parker (D2) has introduced a bill that targets the State Auditor’s Office.

The bill would remove the ability of the Auditor’s office to:

• Perform audits of some nonprofits and for-profit companies spending taxpayer money.
• Audit for government waste.
• File suit to recover stolen or misspent taxpayer funds.

“At a time when President Trump is cutting government fat, Mississippi’s swamp creatures and establishment politicians are trying to stop me from finding waste and theft of taxpayer funds. You may as well call this the Mississippi Corruption Act of 2025,” State Auditor Shad White said Monday in response.

According to White, the auditor’s office used its ability to audit for-profit companies receiving taxpayer money to investigate a large pharmacy benefit manager in 2020, which resulted in the largest civil recovery ($55 million) in the history of the Office of the State Auditor. The welfare scandal (the largest public fraud scheme in state history) was only stopped because the auditor’s office could audit these kinds of entities.

White recently released an audit finding $335 million in state government “waste”; and although Attorney General Lynn Fitch sued White to stop a suit to recover welfare monies, the court ruled in White’s favor.

“This bill defies common sense,” said White. “The real question here is why are these politicians doing this? What are they hiding? I encourage all Mississippians to call Lt. Gov. Hosemann’s office at (601) 359-3200 and say they are opposed to the Mississippi Corruption Act of 2025 (SB 2847).”

Senate Bill 2847 was introduced Jan. 20 and has been referred to the Committee on Accountability, Efficiency, and Transparency. Parker is the chairman of that committee. Jason Barrett of Brookhaven is the vice-chair.

The official summary of the bill is as follows:

An Act To Require That All State Agencies And Officials Shall Provide The Governor And Legislature With Written Notice Before Entering Into Any Agreed Judgment, Consent Decree Or Other Settlement Of Any Litigation Or Claim Against The State If The Settlement Would Require An Expenditure In An Amount That Exceeds $1,000,000.00, Or Would Impact The Administration Of Any Election; To Provide That Any Settlement Agreement Subject To The Provisions Of This Section Will Not Go Into Effect Until 30 Days After Written Notice Is Provided To The Governor And Legislature; To Provide That Any Settlement Agreement That Is Subject To The Provisions Of This Section But Fails To Provide Written Notice To The Governor And Legislature Is Void; To Allow The Notice Required By This Section To Be Exempt From The Mississippi Public Records Act Of 1983; To Amend Section 7-7-211, Mississippi Code Of 1972, To Require The Office Of The State Auditor To Audit Nonprofit Organizations Who Receive Ten Million Dollars Or More In State Or General Funds; To Authorize The Audit Of Nonprofit Organizations Who Receive Less Than Ten Million Dollars In State Or Federal Funds; To Remove The Authority And Duty Of The State Auditor To Institute Suit Against A Person Or Persons Who Refuse, Neglect Or Otherwise Fail To Pay Amounts Demanded And The Interest Due Thereon; To Require That Audits Outsourced By The Office Of The State Auditor Are Financial Statement Audits; To Define The Term “financial Affairs” Within The Article Providing For The Department Of Audit; And For Related Purposes.