Blackout tag funds continue to help families of first responders
MISSISSIPPI (WCBI) – It has been two years since the Mississippi Legislature and the governor signed the law creating the blackout tag.
The blackout tag was established to create a death benefit fund for first responders and their families.
Each time a blackout tag is purchased a customer pays an extra fee of roughly forty dollars.
That fee goes into a fund for families who lost a loved one in the line of duty.
As the blackout tag gained popularity, the legislature changed the law providing more money to the families who lost so much.
“This has been here two years and right now it’s a little over $7 million. And anything over $4 million since the fund was really established where we sold like 143,000 car tags. The blackout tags have been a big hit. I have one in my family and you see them all over the road now. So you can get them personalized or you can just get a standard. This year the governor changed so that we can just get a standard blackout tag,” said Rep. Bill Adam Calvert, District 83.
This fund also gives families an immediate $15,000 to help pay for funeral costs.
