Legislative Update #53

June 05, 2009

Dear Friends,

At midnight Thursday morning, House and Senate members filed out of their respective chambers. It was the deadline for the Regular Session and no budget agreement had been reached. The frustration was palpable.

In a legislative body success isn’t measured by individual accomplishment, it’s assessed by what we achieve as a group. By failing to finalize a budget on time, the Mississippi legislature failed. Like you, I have been frustrated by this process and disappointed to see politics prevail over sound policy.

If you’ve had a hard time following the action, you’re not alone. Despite a steady stream of articles, editorials, and press releases, specifics have been hard to come by. I hope the following facts and figures will provide some clarity.

The Positions

On Wednesday, House and Senate conferees published their budget proposals alongside the latest proposal from the Governor’s office. I won’t bore you with the specific figures (e-mail me if you want them) but I will try to hit the high points:

  • The budgets provided by the House, Senate and Governor each use $95 million in “Rainy Day Funds”;
  • The budgets provided by the House and Senate tax hospitals at $57 million annually. The Governor’s budget calls for a $90 million tax on hospitals;
  • The House budget prohibits additional cuts to Medicaid providers. The budgets offered by the Senate and Governor allow unlimited cuts to Medicaid providers;
  • The House budget does not move Federal Stimulus dollars forward to later fiscal years. The Senate budget moves $60 million in Federal Stimulus funds into the 2011 fiscal year. The Governor’s budget moves $90 million in Federal Stimulus funds into the 2011 fiscal year;
  • The House budget fully funds National Board Certified Teachers, the Gifted Studies Program, and Special Education teachers. It reduces expansion of the high school redesign program. The Senate budget fully funds National Board Certified Teachers. It does not fully fund the Gifted Studies Program, Special Education teachers and reduces expansion of the high school redesign program. The Governor’s budget does not fully fund National Board Certified Teachers, the Gifted Studies Program, Special Education teachers and reduces expansion of the high school redesign program;
  • The House budget fully funds Medicaid. The budgets provided by the Senate and Governor do not fully fund Medicaid;
  • The House and Senate budgets fund the $20 million additional appropriation to the State Wind Pool program. The Governor’s budget does not fund the $20 million additional appropriation to the State Wind Pool program;
  • The Governor’s plan does not fund the car tag credit for 2010.

Regular Session v. Special Session

At the urging of hundreds of teachers, hospital workers, and public employees who were roaming throughout the Capitol on Wednesday, the House tried three times to extend the Regular Session. The resolution would have allowed conferees to continue the negotiation process and avoid another costly special session. As many of you will remember from last year, special sessions cost substantially more per day than regular sessions. These types of resolutions require a 2/3rds vote for passage. A bipartisan group of 72 Republicans and Democrats voted to extend the Regular Session and against a Special Session but fell short of victory by 4 votes.

I voted against the Special Session for 4 simple reasons: 1) The same people who are in disagreement now will still have to reach an agreement in a Special Session; 2) There is nothing about a Special Session that compels legislators to agree (in fact, last year, quite the opposite happened); 3) In a budget year like this one, we should take the cheapest route to a solution; and 4) The Governor has repeatedly failed to include the Wind Pool increase in his budget figures.

The Road Ahead

As disheartening as this process has been, this is no time to throw in the towel. The upcoming Special Session will require an extra measure of hard work and cooperation. As we move forward I will continue to fight for lower insurance rates, lower hospital taxes, and protection for our teachers, healthcare providers and law enforcement officials. While doing so, I will also actively seek out common ground with the Governor and my friends in the legislature.

As always, I invite you to call me on my cell phone at 228-326-7649 or e-mail me at bjones@house.ms.gov. Please feel free to forward this report to folks in our district and let me know if I need to add someone to my list.

I will also be posting my updates and House related news on my campaign website at www.electbrandonjones.com.

Thank you for the opportunity to serve.

Brandon