A chapter of the Move Weight Foundation
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-61-1 et seq.

File a public records request

We file it as the Move Weight Foundation, so your name never appears on it. The custodian has seven working days to answer. If they refuse, the appeal is free. Whatever comes back gets published here.

Your request

Not sure? Choose the City Clerk. They are the City's records custodian and will route it.
Specific beats broad. “Everything about xAI” invites a refusal for being overly broad; a document type plus a date range is hard to refuse.
You are not required to state a purpose, and we do not send this to the custodian. It appears on the public queue so others can follow the thread.
Leave it blank to stay completely anonymous. We never give it to the custodian, and we never store your IP address with your request.

How this works in Mississippi

Step 1 — the clock starts

Miss. Code Ann. § 25-61-5 gives the custodian seven working days from receipt to produce the records or state a reason. That is faster than Texas (10 business days) and among the shorter windows in the country. If a body needs longer it must say so in writing, and it cannot exceed fourteen working days.

Step 2 — if they say no, appeal for free

This is Mississippi's real advantage. Under § 25-61-13 the Mississippi Ethics Commission hears public-records complaints at no cost to you. No lawyer, no filing fee, no lawsuit.

The Commission can order the records released and can impose a civil penalty on an official who wrongfully denied them. Texas and Oklahoma have no equivalent free administrative appeal — there, you sue. Here, you file a form.

Step 3 — tell the State Auditor

The Mississippi State Auditor's office takes citizen complaints about how public money is handled. Attach whatever you received — or the letter refusing you. A documented complaint gets assigned; an angry one gets filed.

Step 4 — get it into the minutes

Speak at a Board of Aldermen or Board of Supervisors meeting. What you say becomes part of the official record that auditors and reporters later read. A question asked on the record is much harder to leave unanswered than one asked in a hallway.

Two things worth knowing

You do not have to live in Mississippi. The Public Records Act imposes no residency requirement, which is why an Oklahoma foundation can file these at all.

You do not have to say why. A custodian may not condition production on your explaining your purpose.

Ready-to-send letter templates

Five requests drafted for this specific project, covering the environmental, financial and political record. Download, add your name, and send — or use the form above and we will send it for you. Each letter stands alone and goes to a different office.

Letter 1 MDEQ — air permits at 2875 Stanton Road S 2 pp

Permit applications, exemption claims for stationary combustion turbines, correspondence with the company and its consultants, inspection and violation records, and aqueous ammonia / SCR records. Written to settle one question: are the turbines running with air permits or without them?

Letter 2 City of Southaven — board minutes and resolutions 2 pp

Agendas, minutes, resolutions and vote tallies for all four instruments; executive-session certifications; records of receipt and expenditure of the $3.46M, $1.85M and $1,380,900; and legal advice on whether the City could accept a grant carrying a confidentiality clause.

Letter 3 Mississippi Development Authority — certification & compliance 2 pp

The full data-centre certification application under § 57-113-21, the job and wage thresholds MDA applied, every compliance report and clawback analysis, and the Certificate of Final Approval. This is where a job commitment would be, if one exists.

Letter 4 Campaign finance — Circuit Clerk, City Clerk, Secretary of State 2 pp

2024–2026 disclosure reports with itemised contribution schedules for the officials who signed or voted on these agreements. Includes companion paragraphs for the City Clerk (municipal filings) and the Secretary of State (statewide committees).

Letter 5 DeSoto County Tax Assessor & Collector — the FIL arithmetic 2 pp

Personal property renditions, valuations and depreciation schedules, and every annual written statement of the Fee-in-Lieu Amount required by Exhibit B § 2(a) — with the underlying calculation and the “Taxes Otherwise Payable” figure. This is the request that would finally show what the abatement costs.

Filing notes

The City of Southaven uses its own Public Record Request form — you may attach Letter 2 to it. MDEQ takes both an online portal and mail; sending both is fastest. Municipal officials file campaign finance with the City Clerk, county officials with the Circuit Clerk, statewide committees with the Secretary of State. None of this is legal advice; these are records requests any citizen may file.

Records custodian directory

Who holds what, and how each office accepts a request.

OfficeAddressPhoneAccepts
City Clerk — City of Southaven
Board minutes, resolutions, contracts, payments
8710 Northwest Drive
Southaven, MS 38671
662-393-5900 City form
DeSoto County Chancery Clerk
Board of Supervisors minutes, land records
365 Losher Street
Hernando, MS 38632
662-469-8000 Mail
DeSoto County Tax Assessor / Collector
Renditions, valuations, annual FIL statements
365 Losher Street, Suites 100 & 110
Hernando, MS 38632
662-469-8000 Mail
DeSoto County Circuit Clerk
County campaign finance filings
DeSoto County Courthouse
2535 Highway 51 South
Hernando, MS 38632
662-469-8365 Mail
Mississippi Dept. of Environmental Quality
Air permits, water withdrawal, inspections
P.O. Box 2261
Jackson, MS 39225
601-961-5171 Portal Mail
Mississippi Development Authority
Certification, incentives, Certificate of Final Approval
501 North West Street
P.O. Box 849
Jackson, MS 39205-0849
601-359-3449 Mail
MS Secretary of State — Elections
Statewide committee filings
P.O. Box 136
Jackson, MS 39205
601-359-1350 Mail

Contact details are transcribed from each body's published pages and from the request package prepared for this project. If any is wrong, tell us and we will correct it.

Public request queue

Every request filed through this site that the requester chose to publish.

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