Mississippi Office of Apprenticeship Act

State Bills: Mississippi

Published April 1st, 2026

Detected April 2nd, 2026

Summary

Mississippi enacted HB1696 creating the Mississippi Office of Apprenticeship under the State Workforce Investment Board. The Act establishes the Mississippi Apprenticeship Council as an advisory body and authorizes the Office to promulgate necessary rules. Critically, the law explicitly provides that apprenticeship programs and sponsors are not required to register with the new Office.

View original document View source feed page

What changed

The Mississippi Office of Apprenticeship Act establishes a new state administrative office and accompanying advisory council within the Mississippi State Workforce Investment Board structure. The Act defines key terms, states the purposes of the Office, and grants the Office authority to promulgate implementing rules. The bill passed both chambers with strong bipartisan support (House 114-4, Senate 51-0, Conference Report 120-0 and 52-0).

The most significant practical implication is that while this Act creates a new state office, apprenticeship programs and sponsors face no new mandatory obligations—the Act expressly provides that registration with the Office is not required. Existing apprenticeship programs may continue operating independently. The Office of Apprenticeship will need to develop and publish rules for implementation, but regulated entities have no immediate compliance action required.

Source document (simplified)

ChangeBridge / Mississippi / HB1696 Signed by Governor HB1696 House Bill Signed by Governor 2026-04-01

MS Office of Apprenticeship; create under State Workforce Investment Board.

An Act To Create The Mississippi Office Of Apprenticeship Act; To Define Certain Terms; To Create The Mississippi Office Of Apprenticeship Under The Mississippi State Workforce Investment Board; To State The Purposes Of The Office; To Require The Office Of Apprenticeship To Promulgate Rules Necessary For The Implementation Of This Act; To Prescribe The Duties Of The Office Of Apprenticeship; To Create The Mississippi Apprenticeship Council As An Advisory Council To The Office; To Provide That Apprenticeship Programs And Sponsors Are Not Required To Register With The Office Of Apprenticeship; And For Related Purposes.

Bill Details

State Mississippi

Session 2026 Regular Session

Chamber House

Official Source billstatus.ls.state.ms.us/2026/pdf/history...

LegiScan View on LegiScan

Action History

2026-04-01 H Enrolled Bill Signed 2026-03-30 S Conference Report Adopted 2026-03-30 H Conference Report Adopted 2026-03-29 H Conference Report Filed 2026-03-29 S Conference Report Filed 2026-03-18 S Conferees Named Sparks,Suber,Berry 2026-03-12 H Conferees Named Bell (21st),Lott,Arnold 2026-03-11 H Decline to Concur/Invite Conf 2026-03-05 S Returned For Concurrence 2026-03-04 S Passed As Amended 2026-03-04 S Amended 2026-03-03 S Title Suff Do Pass As Amended 2026-02-19 S Referred To Economic and Workforce Development 2026-02-11 H Transmitted To Senate 2026-02-09 H Passed As Amended 2026-02-09 H Amended 2026-02-09 H Committee Substitute Adopted 2026-02-03 H Title Suff Do Pass Comm Sub 2026-02-03 H DR - TSDPCS: AP To WD 2026-01-29 H DR - TSDPCS: WD To AP 2026-01-19 H Referred To Workforce Development;Appropriations A

Votes

2026-02-09 House Passed As Amended Yea: 114 Nay: 4 2026-03-04 Senate Passed As Amended Yea: 51 Nay: 0 2026-03-30 House Conference Report Adopted Yea: 120 Nay: 0 2026-03-30 Senate Conference Report Adopted Yea: 52 Nay: 0