{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.cochran.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ContentRecord_id=173b8362-ce17-47f1-ba17-ecc255bee331", "SENATE OKAYS JUDICIAL DIVISION REALIGNMENT FOR SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF MISSISSIPPI", "2013-12-11", "2013", "2013-12", "Republican", "House", "MS", "Thad Cochran", "C000567", "www.cochran.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senators Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) on Tuesday supported Senate passage of legislation to realign the federal judicial divisions for the Southern District of Mississippi.\r\nCochran and Wicker recently requested prompt consideration of HR.2871, which was approved by unanimous consent in the Senate on Tuesday evening.\u00a0 The measure consolidates the existing five judicial divisions into four, following realignment recommendations of the federal judges serving in the Southern District of Mississippi.\u00a0\r\n\u201cThe federal judiciary in the Southern District of Mississippi recognizes the budgetary constraints on the courts, as well as the opportunity to improve the efficiency of court operations,\u201d Cochran said.\u00a0 \u201cI am pleased the Senate has approved this legislation and look forward to its implementation.\u201d\r\n\u201cUpdating these boundaries is a practical step that will serve people in South Mississippi well,\u201d Wicker said. \u201cThis realignment will allow the Southern District to utilize resources more capably and organize in a more efficient and effective manner.\u201d\r\nWith Senate passage, HR.2871 will be sent to the White House to be signed into law.\u00a0 Representatives Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), Gregg Harper (R-Miss.) and Steven Palazzo (R-Miss.) cosponsored the measure, which was approved 401-0 by the House on Nov. 12.\u00a0 The divisional realignment will take effective on the date of enactment.\u00a0\r\nThe legislation, which is expected to result in approximately $135,000 in first-year cost savings for the judiciary and U.S. Marshals Service, redraws the division boundaries for the Southern District of Mississippi by eliminating the Eastern Division that has been served by the federal courthouse in Meridian.  \u00a0   HR.2871 defines the four reconfigured divisions for the Southern District of Mississippi as:  1.\u00a0\u00a0 Northern Division:\u00a0 Copiah, Hinds, Holmes, Issaquena, Kemper, Lauderdale, Leake, Madison, Neshoba, Newton, Noxubee, Rankin, Scott, Simpson, Sharkey, Smith, Warren and Yazoo counties.\u00a0 Court for the Northern Division will be in Jackson.  2.\u00a0\u00a0 Southern Division:\u00a0 George, Greene, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Pearl River and Stone counties.\u00a0 Court will be held in Gulfport.  3.\u00a0\u00a0 Eastern Division:\u00a0 Clarke, Covington, Forrest, Jasper, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lamar, Lawrence, Marion, Perry, Wayne and Walthall counties. Court will be held in Hattiesburg.  4.\u00a0\u00a0 Western Division:\u00a0 Adams, Amite, Claiborne, Franklin, Jefferson, Lincoln, Pike and Wilkinson counties.\u00a0 Court will be held in Natchez.\r\nThe realignment is supported by judges in the Southern District, the Fifth Judicial Circuit, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, Office of the Public Defender for the Southern District of Mississippi, and the legal community.\r\nIn September 2012, Congress completed work on similar legislation to realign the federal judicial boundaries for the Northern District of Mississippi, condensing four divisions into three. (http://1.usa.gov/UypenR)\r\nLINKS:  *\u00a0 Map of Existing Divisions: See file below  *\u00a0 Map of Proposed Divisions: See file below  *\u00a0 U.S. District Court Southern District of Mississippi: http://1.usa.gov/1847Gc0", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.cochran.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news-releases?ContentRecord_id=173b8362-ce17-47f1-ba17-ecc255bee331"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.140574924647808, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}