The Mississippi Senate has passed a bill that gives the public and media more access to incident reports filed by law enforcement agencies.

Senator Terry Burton, R-Newton, said the bill defines an incident report and an investigative report, which current law does not do.

Incident reports would be public record under the bill passed Thursday. The reports would provide basic information, such as the alleged offense, including the time, date, location and the names of investigating officers.

An investigative report would contain more information. It could include the identity of informants or witnesses and anything that might impede a probe of the alleged incident. Law enforcement agencies and others would decide whether to make public such reports.

A similar bill has passed the House.

The bill is Senate Bill 2728.