Does Mississippi regulate live auctions on Whatnot, and what counts as selling on a recurring basis?

Plain-English summary

The Mississippi Auctioneer Commission asked whether Whatnot, a platform hosting live streamed bidding, or sellers who use it were subject to the commission’s authority. The request described sales where buyers bid in real time and the seller accepts the highest bid, alongside some fixed price purchases. It also asked what “recurring basis” means in the state’s auction law.

The AG did not decide whether the platform or any seller was covered. The opinion quoted the statutory definition of an auction, which involves exchanges of offers between an auctioneer and an audience ending with acceptance of the highest or most favorable offer. Whether particular Whatnot activity met the statutory requirements was a factual decision for the commission. The opinion supplied no blanket exemption or blanket jurisdiction ruling for online platforms.

On the second question, the statute did not define “recurring basis.” The AG said the commission could use the phrase’s ordinary meaning, drawing on dictionary definitions: a fixed pattern or system that occurs repeatedly or multiple times. The opinion did not set a numerical threshold or decide how many sales by a particular seller would satisfy it.

What this means for you

Sellers using live auction platforms

The opinion did not classify all Whatnot sellers as auctioneers. It left coverage of individual sellers to the commission’s factual determination under the statute. Its definition of “recurring basis” described repeated activity in a fixed pattern, without a specific count.

Online auction platforms

The AG did not rule that Whatnot itself was within or outside the commission’s jurisdiction. The opinion described its live bidding and fixed price functions, then left jurisdiction to the commission on the facts.

Auctioneer Commission

The opinion assigned the coverage question to the commission and said it could interpret the undefined phrase “recurring basis” according to ordinary meaning. The AG described the commission’s interpretive authority as bounded by the state constitution and laws.

Common questions

Did Mississippi decide that every Whatnot seller needs an auctioneer license? No. The AG did not decide whether the platform or specific sellers fell under the commission’s authority. The commission must decide coverage on the relevant facts.

Does live online bidding count as an auction?
The opinion quoted a definition based on exchanges of offers and acceptance of the highest or most favorable bid, but it did not apply that definition to reach a final answer about Whatnot activity.

How many sales count as a “recurring basis”?
The AG gave no number. It said the commission could use the ordinary meaning: a fixed pattern or system that happens repeatedly or multiple times.

Are fixed price sales treated the same as live bids?
The request said Whatnot hosted both. The opinion did not separately classify fixed price transactions or decide their effect on a seller’s status.

Background and statutory framework

The opinion quoted Section 73-4-3(a)’s auction definition and discussed the undefined phrase “recurring basis” in Section 73-4-5(d). It invoked Section 1-3-65’s rule that statutory words and phrases take their common and ordinary meaning. The AG cited King for an agency’s responsibility to interpret statutes absent a controlling judicial declaration and Buffington for ordinary meaning where the statute supplies no definition.

Citations

• Section 73-4-3(a), definition of auction
• Section 73-4-5(d), use of “recurring basis”
• Section 1-3-65, ordinary meaning of statutory language
• King v. Miss. Military Dep’t, 245 So. 3d 404, 408 (Miss. 2018)
• Buffington v. Miss. State Tax Comm’n, 43 So. 3d 450, 455 (Miss. 2010)

Source

• Landing page: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/divisions/opinions-and-policy/recent-opinions/
• Original PDF: https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/C.-Armstrong-III-October-1-2026-Mississippi-Auctioneer-Commissions-Authority-Over-Certain-Online-Auction-Platforms.pdf

Original opinion text

October 1, 2026
C. Jack Armstrong III
Chairman, Mississippi Auctioneer Commission
Post Office Box 50
Morton, Mississippi 39117
Re:

Mississippi Auctioneer Commission’s Authority Over Certain Online Auction Platforms

Dear Chairman Armstrong:
The Office of the Attorney General has received your request for an official opinion. Background According to your request, the Mississippi Auctioneer Commission (“Commission”) has become aware of an online platform identified as “Whatnot,” which allows sellers to conduct live-streamed sales events in which buyers bid competitively in real time. While the platform allows some purchases to be made at fixed prices, it hosts live auction events in which the final sale price is determined by written and oral exchanges culminating in the acceptance of the highest bid. Questions Presented

1. Does the Whatnot live-stream auction platform and/or the sellers utilizing the platform fall
   within the jurisdictional authority of the Commission pursuant to Mississippi Code Annotated Sections 73-4-3 and 73-4-5?
2. What is the Mississippi Attorney General’s opinion regarding the meaning and interpretation
   of the phrase “recurring basis” as used in Section 73-4-5(d)(2)? Brief Response
3. Whether the Whatnot live-stream auction platform and sellers using the platform fall within
   the Commission’s jurisdictional authority is a factual determination that must be made by the Commission. 550 HIGH STREET • SUITE 1200 • JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39201 POST OFFICE BOX 220 • JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39205 TELEPHONE (601) 359-3680

C. Jack Armstrong III
October 1, 2026
Page 2

2. Under the Mississippi Auctioneers License Act (“Act”), the Commission has the authority to
   interpret the phrase “recurring basis” according to its common and ordinary meaning since the phrase as used in Section 73-4-5(d) is not defined. Applicable Law and Discussion You first ask if the Whatnot live-stream platform and/or the sellers utilizing the platform fall within the jurisdictional authority of the Commission pursuant to Sections 73-4-3 and 73-4-5. Section 73-4-3(a) defines an “auction” thus: a sale transaction conducted by means of oral or written exchanges between an auctioneer and the members of his audience, which exchanges consist of a series of invitations for offers for the purchase of goods made by the auctioneer and offers to purchase made by members of his audience and culminate in the acceptance by the auctioneer of the highest or most favorable offer made by a member of the participating audience. Ultimately, whether the Whatnot live-stream platform and/or its sellers fall under the Commission’s authority is a factual determination that must be made by the Commission. See King v. Miss. Military Dep’t, 245 So. 3d 404, 408 (Miss. 2018); see also MS AG Op., Armstrong at 1 (Sept. 27, 2019) (providing “[t]he Commission has the power to interpret its enabling statutes pursuant to Sections 73-4-7 and 73-4-13 so long as those interpretations are consistent with the Constitution and laws of this state.”). Regarding your second question, the Act does not define the phrase “recurring basis” as used in Section 73-4-5(d). In the absence of a definition of a phrase, Section 1-3-65 provides that “[a]ll words and phrases contained in the statutes are used according to their common and ordinary acceptation and meaning . . . .” See also Buffington v. Miss. State Tax Comm’n, 43 So. 3d 450, 455 (Miss. 2010) (stating that “in the absence of a statutory definition of a phrase, it must be given its common and ordinary meaning”). The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “recurring” as “occurring repeatedly: happening or appearing multiple times.” MERRIAM-WEBSTER.COM, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recurring (last visited Sept. 29, 2026). It defines “basis” in relevant part as “a fixed pattern or system.” MERRIAM-WEBSTER.COM, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/basis (last visited Sept. 29, 2026). Thus, a “recurring basis” would be a fixed pattern or system which occurs repeatedly or multiple times. “Executive-branch agencies must follow statutes and, absent a declaration from the judicial branch regarding an interpretation of a statute, must decide what statutes mean.” King, 245 So. 3d at 408; see also MS AG Op., Armstrong at 1. Under the Act, the Commission has the authority to define the phrase “recurring basis” according to its “common and ordinary meaning” since no Mississippi court has defined the phrase as used in Section 73-4-5(d). See MS AG Op., Strong at 1 (May 10, 1986); MS AG Op., Head at 1 (July 28, 1983). If this office may be of any further assistance to you, please do not hesitate to contact us.

550 HIGH STREET • SUITE 1200 • JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39201
POST OFFICE BOX 220 • JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39205
TELEPHONE (601) 359-3680

C. Jack Armstrong III
October 1, 2026
Page 3
Sincerely,
LYNN FITCH, ATTORNEY GENERAL
By:

/s/ Kristi D. Kennedy
Kristi D. Kennedy
Special Assistant Attorney General

550 HIGH STREET • SUITE 1200 • JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39201
POST OFFICE BOX 220 • JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI 39205
TELEPHONE (601) 359-3680