Mississippi is rolling out AI-powered traffic enforcement tools, raising questions about who issues tickets. On Thursday, June 18, the Department of Information Technology Services board approved the Department of Public Safety entering a $2 million, three-year contract with Acusensus Inc., fully funded with federal grants. Matthew Livingston, an ITS employee, said the technology will provide DPS a "real-time data feed of traffic violations that pertain to seat belt offenses, unsafe mobile phone usage" and vehicle service information. Maj. Scott Henley, Deputy Director of Commercial Transportation Enforcement, said the technology would be deployed in high-crash areas like construction zones. However, Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said Monday, June 22, that DPS "has not and will not enter into any such contract" to ticket drivers, stating the state plans to use tech to identify high-crash areas and will not use it to issue citations. Henley told the ITS board that the AI will capture driving behaviors and send them to an officer, who will determine if it is a real violation and, if necessary, stop the car and issue a citation in real time. Acusensus, an Australian company, focuses on "emphasizing and enhancing real-time policing" for issues like distracted driving and seatbelt compliance. Henley said the technology has been applied in five other states, with areas of North Carolina reducing crash rates to zero.