Archive for March 2022
Mississippi legislature: Week 11 recap
The House and Senate wrapped up another week and will be in town for just two more weeks. The biggest story of the week was each chamber working to keep income tax relief alive. Under the proposal adopted by the House, Senate Bill 3164 has been amended to include an income tax phase-out without a…
Read MoreIndiana drops income tax to under 3%
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb has signed legislation that will drop Indiana’s flat income tax to under 3 percent. The state’s current 3.23 percent rate will gradually drop to 2.9 percent over a period of seven years. Indiana already had one of the lowest income tax rates in the country. They will soon have the lowest…
Read More“There’s so much more to our students than just a test”
Khrysten Glass always knew she wanted to return to her hometown of Canton to give back to her community. Today, she walks the halls of her school worried. She’s worried about her students, not about their test scores, but worried about their safety, worried about their future, worried about their home life, worried about…
Read MoreLegislature considering Reentry Courts: What are they?
The Mississippi legislature is currently considering a measure that would allow the creation of Reentry Courts in Mississippi. The bill, SB 2584, is titled the Reentry Court Act of 2022 and would allow for the creation of pilot projects throughout the state. What Are Reentry Courts? Many people are familiar with Drug Courts, a concept…
Read MoreMajor changes to tax plans in both chambers
Both the House and Senate were busy advancing heavily amended tax relief proposals in advance of yesterday’s deadline for action. Both chambers voluntarily moved closer to each other, though the chasm between the two is still wide with only a few weeks left in session. On Monday, the House took Senate Bill 3164 and inserted…
Read MoreHouse and Senate keep income tax relief alive
Both the House and Senate advanced amended tax relief proposals this week, keeping the issue alive as lawmakers near the end of the session. “To the credit of both the House and Senate, each side moved closer to the other,” Russ Latino, president of Empower Mississippi said. “They could have easily inserted their original language…
Read MoreSenate advances gas tax moratorium
As gas prices reach record levels in Mississippi, and across the nation, the Senate has advanced a six-month moratorium on the state’s tax on gas purchases. According to AAA, as of today, the national average for regular unleaded is $4.31. In Mississippi, it’s $3.99. A year ago, the average price was $2.55 in Mississippi and…
Read MoreHouse and Senate keep income tax relief alive
Today, both the House and Senate amended income tax proposals, keeping them alive as the session continues. In the House of Representatives, the House Ways & Means Committee amended Senate Bill 3164 to include an income tax phase-out without a sales tax offset. In exchange for not including an offset in sales tax, the amount…
Read MoreWhere does income tax repeal stand?
The legislature now has 3 weeks left on the calendar, with a considerable amount of work left before Sine Die. No bill is bigger – or more significant and impactful – than efforts to repeal the income tax. Here is where things stand. Back in early January, the House passed out a plan to immediately…
Read MoreMississippi legislature: Week 10 recap
Another week, another deadline for the state legislature. Wednesday was the deadline for general bills that passed out of one chamber to clear off the floor in the other chamber. At this point, those bills passed the second chamber without an amendment and are headed to the governor, or they are being returned to the…
Read MoreBusiness leaders call for income tax repeal
A large group of business leaders sent a letter to Gov. Tate Reeves, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, and Speaker Philip Gunn calling for income tax repeal yesterday. “As business leaders, we recognize the economic challenges facing our state, many of which have persisted for generations. To leap forward, we need a bold paradigm shift—one that…
Read MoreWhen the love and joy of learning is sucked out of the classroom
Education is Mississippi has become prescribed. That’s how Donna Akers a 30-year veteran teacher describes the public education system. Donna “accidentally” found herself in education as she was faced with the decision of declaring a major at Ole Miss. “I had to pick something, and I chose education because I thought it would be the…
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