Authority and Purpose

Authority and Purpose. In 1983, the Mississippi Legislature passed the Mississippi Public Records Act (“the Act”), Miss. Code Ann. §§ 25-61-1 through 25-61-19 (Rev. 2010). The purpose of the Act is to provide the public full access to public records concerning the government’s conduct. This document sets forth the rules and procedures that the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality (“MDEQ”), the Mississippi Commission on Environmental Quality (“Commission”), and the Mississippi Environmental Quality Permit Board (“Permit Board”) follow in order to provide full access to public records. These rules provide information to people wishing to request access to public records of MDEQ and establish processes for both requestors and MDEQ Staff that are designed to best assist members of the public in obtaining such access. The Act and these rules will be interpreted in favor of disclosure. In carrying out its responsibilities of the Act, MDEQ will be guided by the provisions of the Act describing its purposes and interpretation.