To address the continuing threat of terrorism and to work with the federal Department of Homeland Security (created in 2002 following the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001), homeland security in Mississippi in 2003 operated under the authority of the governor; the emergency management director was designated as the state homeland security advisor.
The Mississippi Ethics Commission, established by the state legislature in 1979, is composed of eight members who administer a code of ethics requiring all state officials and elected local officials to file statements of sources of income.
The Mississippi Department of Education is primarily a planning and service organization whose role is to assist local schools from kindergarten through junior college and adult education. A separate Board of Trustees of Institutions of Higher Learning administers Mississippi's public college and university system. The Department of Health administers a statewide system of public health services, but other bodies, including the Department of Mental Health, also have important functions in this field. The Department of Public Welfare provides welfare services in the areas of assistance payments, child support, food stamp distribution, and such social services as foster home care.
Public protection is afforded by the Office of the Attorney General, Civil Defense Council, Military Department, Bureau of Narcotics, Department of Public Safety (including the Highway Safety Patrol), and Department of Corrections.