Below, we've listed job descriptions and salaries (if available) for offices included in our forum.  
Please note that our volunteers have collected the information below from respected sources (and linked to those sources) as a community service, but Serve Hancock is not responsible for accuracy of information.  If you find an inaccuracy, please email the webmaster here.

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Mississippi State Representative

The Mississippi House of Representatives is the lower house of the Mississippi Legislature, the lawmaking body of the US state of Mississippi.   122 members serve in the House and are elected to four-year terms every four odd-numbered years. Each member represents an average of 24,322 residents, as of the 2010 Census.

To qualify as a member of the house candidates must be at least 21 years old, a resident of Mississippi for at least four years, and a resident in the district in which he or she is running for at least two years.

Major issues in the 2015 legislative session included education funding, tax relief and contract reform.

The governor has the power to veto legislation, but legislators can override the veto with a two-thirds decision.

Salary:  $10,000 per year, plus a per diem of $123/day (2014).

 - Sources:  Wikipedia, & Ballotpedia & National Conference of State Legislators

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County Supervisors

This board is the chief policy making and administrative body or unit of the county. For the purpose of selecting a board of supervisors, each county is divided into five districts, commonly referred to as "beats." Each district elects a supervisor who serves a four-year term.

While each supervisor may handle some administrative duties in his or her district, together the members set policy. While each supervisor represents his or her district, all of the members are expected to look after the good of the county as a whole.

Many people think that road construction and maintenance are the only things supervisors do... The board can also set traffic regulations for the county roads. But the board must look after many things in addition to roads.

The power to tax and the power to appropriate and budget funds are the two most significant powers the board exercises. With these powers, the board decides which part of county government gets the largest slice of the "budget pie."

The board can borrow money for the county. It must comply with various purchasing and administrative laws designed for economical and efficient government. It approves the county bills before they are paid.

Board meetings are held at least once a month and in most counties, twice a month. Meetings are open to the public. The board serves a unique role in Mississippi counties - it is the one body which supervises almost everything that goes on in county government.

 - Source: Madison County, MS website

Salary:  $44,700.       

  Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-13  (2014)  (f) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Three Hundred Million Dollars ($ 300,000,000.00), but less than One Billion Dollars ($ 1,000,000,000.00), a salary of Forty-four Thousand Seven Hundred Dollars ($ 44,700.00);
 
- Source, Hancock County Administration, Mississippi Code

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Chancery Clerk

Statutory duties of the Chancery Clerk:
     1.  Clerk of the Board of Supervisors
     2.  County Treasurer
     3.  County Auditor
     4.  Recorder of real property
     5.  Clerk of land redemption
     6.  Clerk of Chancery Court

Duties and Responsibilities:      
 The Chancery Clerk occupies perhaps the most unique and diverse office in all of Mississippi government.  The various duties given the Chancery Clerk by statute, or assumed voluntarily by the individual Clerk, cover a wide range of vitally important functions.  The duties and functions of the Chancery Clerk are governed by an elaborate assortment of statutes and court rules, along with procedures established either by the State Department of Audit or the Department of Finance and Administration.

As the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, he records the official minutes. As Treasurer, the Clerk prepares the claims docket and payrolls for all departments of the County, and after Board approval, he writes and signs checks for payments.  As public recorder, the Clerk handles the recording and storage of several types of documents and maintains various indexes which aid people in researching these records.

The primary records are deeds and mortgages relating to real property, but the Clerk also records construction and condominium liens, federal tax liens, lis pendens (notices of pending lawsuits) and military discharges. The Clerk is in charge of the storage and authorized disposal of older land rolls, tax receipts and many other County records after their active use lifespan.  As Clerk of the Chancery Court, the Clerk handles a multitude of tasks such as matters of estates, guardianships, conservatorships, divorces, child custody, adoption, property disputes and other matters of equity.

 - Source:  Harrison County, MS website

Salary:  Circuit and chancery clerks’ salary are governed by [MS state] statute. Section 9-1-43 sets a cap on the clerks’ salaries at ninety-thousand dollars ($90,000). Any work done outside the scope of the statutory duties required of the clerk is eligible for additional compensation outside the cap. 

The compensation is composed of two parts. First, the clerk is paid a salary from the board of supervisors. Second, the clerks are entitled to certain fees. Both the salary from the board and fees collected cannot total more than the $90,000 cap. 

The clerks also qualify to enroll in the Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS). The board of supervisors contributes the employer portion of the contribution to PERS and can contribute the employee portion, if they so choose.

Source - Mississippi office of the State Auditor

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Justice Court Judges

Justice Courts have jurisdiction over small claims civil cases involving amounts of $3,500 or less, misdemeanor criminal cases and any traffic offense that occurs outside a municipality. Justice Court judges may conduct bond hearings and preliminary hearings in felony criminal cases and may issue search warrants.

There are 82 Justice Courts with 197 judges. Justice Court judges are the only Mississippi judges elected in partisan races. They serve four-year terms.  

- Source: State of Mississippi Judiciary website

Salary - (2) From and after October 1, 2008, every justice court judge shall receive as full compensation for his or her services, and in lieu of any and all other fees, costs or compensation heretofore authorized for such justice court judge, an annual salary in an amount that is the greater of the following:

   (a) The amount paid to a member of the board of supervisors in the same county in which the justice court judge presides; or

   (b) One hundred three percent (103%) of the salary authorized under this section as of September 30, 2008, for a justice court judge in that county.

The Supervisors' salary is set by the state and is $44,700 annually.*

Source:  Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-36  (2014)

*Supervisors' Salaries -
Miss. Code Ann. § 25-3-13  (2014)  (f) For counties having a total assessed valuation of at least Three Hundred Million Dollars ($ 300,000,000.00), but less than One Billion Dollars ($ 1,000,000,000.00), a salary of Forty-four Thousand Seven Hundred Dollars ($ 44,700.00);