Enabling statute

Mississippi

Mississippi Code Title 17 (Local Government; Provisions Common to Counties and Municipalities), Chapter 1 — Zoning, Planning and Subdivision Regulation

Verified against the sourceAll states →

Summary

Mississippi delegates zoning authority to local governments through Title 17, Chapter 1 of the Mississippi Code of 1972, a Standard State Zoning Enabling Act-derived statute. The operative grant in § 17-1-3 empowers the governing authority of any municipality to zone within its corporate limits and the governing authority of any county to zone the unincorporated portion of the county, exercising the classic police-power purposes of promoting health, safety, morals, and the general welfare. Section 17-1-7 authorizes division of the jurisdiction into zones (with uniformity within each zone), and § 17-1-9 requires that regulations be made in accordance with a comprehensive plan. A statutory exemption removes most agricultural and forestry land and farm/forestry buildings outside municipal limits from permit requirements. There is no state-level zoning board; authority rests with local boards (city councils/boards of aldermen and county boards of supervisors).

The delegation

§ 17-1-3 (Grant of power). "[T]he governing authority of any municipality, and, with respect to the unincorporated part of any county, the governing authority of any county, in its discretion, are empowered to regulate the height, number of stories and size of building and other structures, the percentage of lot that may be occupied, the size of the yards, courts and other open spaces, the density of population, and the location and use of buildings, structures and land for trade, industry, residence or other purposes, but no permits shall be required with reference to land used for agricultural purposes, including forestry activities as defined in Section 95-3-29(2)(b), or for the erection, maintenance, repair or extension of farm buildings or farm structures, including forestry buildings and structures, outside the corporate limits of municipalities." § 17-1-7 (Zones). "[F]or the purposes set forth in Section 17-1-3, the governing authority of each municipality and county may divide the municipality or county into zones of such number, shape and area as may be deemed best suited to carry out the purposes of Sections 17-1-1 through 17-1-27, inclusive. Within the zones created, the governing authority of each municipality and county may, subject to the restrictions with respect to agricultural lands and farm buildings or structures as set out in Section 17-1-3, regulate and restrict the erection, construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair or use of buildings, structures or land. All regulations shall be uniform for each class or kind of buildings throughout each zone, but regulations in one zone may differ from those in other zones." § 17-1-9 (Purposes in view). "Zoning regulations shall be made in accordance with a comprehensive plan, and designed to lessen congestion in the streets; to secure safety from fire, panic and other dangers; to provide adequate light and air; to prevent the overcrowding of land; to avoid undue concentration of population; to facilitate the adequate provision of transportation, water, sewerage, schools, parks and other public requirements. Such regulations shall be made with reasonable consideration, among other things, to the character of the district and its peculiar suitability for particular uses, and with a view to conserving the value of buildings, and encouraging the most appropriate use of land throughout such municipality."

Verification

Read the verification audit

Verified against the current Mississippi Code 1972 (2024 edition via Justia search snippets and the unicourt.github.io official-code mirror, r74). (a) Real, current statute: Miss. Code Ann. Title 17 (Local Government; Provisions Common to Counties and Municipalities), Chapter 1 (Zoning, Planning and Subdivision Regulation), General Provisions §§ 17-1-1 to 17-1-27, with the full chapter running §§ 17-1-1 to 17-1-75. Confirmed present and current in the 2024 code. Title/chapter caption in the claim is exact. (b) Genuinely the zoning enabling authority: Confirmed. This is a Standard State Zoning Enabling Act-derived statute. - § 17-1-3 (General powers): empowers the governing authority of a municipality and the governing authority of a county (over the unincorporated part) to regulate height, stories, size of buildings, lot coverage, yards, density, and location/use of buildings and land, "for the purpose of promoting health, safety, morals, or the general welfare of the community." Includes the agricultural/forestry exemption: "no permits shall be required with reference to land used for agricultural purposes, including forestry activities, or for the erection, maintenance, repair or extension of farm buildings or farm structures, including forestry buildings." - § 17-1-7: authorizes division of the municipality or county into zones of such number, shape and area as deemed best, with uniformity within each zone ("All regulations shall be uniform for each class or kind of buildings throughout each zone, but regulations in one zone may differ from those in other zones."). - § 17-1-9: requires that "Zoning regulations shall be made in accordance with a comprehensive plan" and lists the classic SSZEA purposes (lessen congestion, secure safety from fire/panic, etc.). (c) authority_model = county_and_municipal: Confirmed accurate. § 17-1-3 grants power to both municipalities (within corporate limits) and counties (unincorporated areas); § 17-1-7 likewise refers to "each municipality and county." There is no state-level zoning board; authority rests with local governing bodies (boards of aldermen/city councils and county boards of supervisors). The summary's statements about the police-power purposes, district division/uniformity, comprehensive-plan requirement, and agricultural/forestry exemption are all corroborated. Note: WebFetch was blocked (HTTP 403) by Justia/FindLaw, so section text was confirmed via Justia search-result snippets and the unicourt.github.io official Mississippi code mirror (r74, current). No discrepancies found; nothing repealed or misattributed.