Mississippi is one of several states this year to curtail access to abortion, which could set up a challenge to Roe V. Wade
2019 Legislative Session
Gerrymandering lawsuit over Senate District 22 headed back to court as governor challenges order to redraw map
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After the Legislature adopted a plan to increase the black voting age population in district, Bryant and Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann ask full appeals court to hear the case. Arguments set for June.
2019 Legislative Session
County officials’ pay hike trimmed after outcry over amount given to teachers, state employees
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Legislation to provide an increase to county officials stalled but an agreement was reached in the final days of the session.
2019 Legislative Session
Legislators give up effort to block funds sneaked in budget for private school program
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Some say the questions about the misnaming of the program and about whether the spending authority exists, highlight problems with how the legislation passed in the 11th hour of the session
2019 Legislative Session
Voting rights restoration for 16 former felons clears Legislature after two lawmakers push to find common ground
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Most suffrage bills in 15 years make their way to the governor’s desk after a push by Angela Turner-Ford in the Senate and Angela Cockerham in the House.
2019 Legislative Session
Voucher funding mislabeled as non-existent ‘savings’ program; AG asked to weigh in
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Language slipped into appropriations bill says $2 million should go to the Education Savings Account instead of Education Scholarship Account. Backers say it’s “much ado about nothing.”
2019 Legislative Session
Marshall Ramsey: Legislative Recap
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Mississippi’s 2019 Legislative Session through the cartoons of editorial cartoonist Marshall Ramsey
2019 Legislative Session
With teacher shortage at all-time high, Legislature passes no bills to address issue plaguing districts
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Some of the 19 bills introduced didn’t pass because the money wasn’t there to implement them, lawmaker says and advocates say pay raise that was passed not enough to recruit in critical teacher shortage areas like the Delta.
2019 Legislative Session
Despite opposition, Legislature wraps up session by approving $2 million in voucher funding
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Despite their opposition, many lawmakers worried that killing funding for the scholarships would kill the bill, while others said it was matter of trust.
2019 Legislative Session
Election year budget will see a $190 million jump in funding after years of cuts or little growth
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Legislative leaders say conservative planning helped make the increased spending possible but Democrats say years of tax cuts hampered efforts to fund state government and pay state workers.
Education
‘Who would have thought?’: Senate leaders slip funding for private school scholarships into unrelated spending bill
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The bill passed both chambers before many members knew about the language that increased funding for the program from $3 million to $5 million. What happens now is unclear.
2019 Legislative Session
$1,500 teacher pay raise approved but educators underwhelmed: ‘Another election-year-timed symbolic gesture’
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The legislation, now headed for Gov. Phil Bryant’s desk, also includes assistant teachers.
2019 Legislative Session
Mississippi sued over abortion law for the second time in a year
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Challenge to state’s “heartbeat law” was expected and will likely be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
2019 Legislative Session
Criminal justice reform progress applauded but advocates say it’s a step, not ‘the leap’ Mississippi needs
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While some note that the current legislation is strong, they also say that it doesn’t address state’s high incarceration rate.
2019 Legislative Session
$1,000 for teachers, pay raises for many state employees included in tentative budget agreement
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“This is a good budget”: With revenue estimates up, speaker and lieutenant governor say lawmakers could vote on spending plan later this week.
2019 Legislative Session
Effort to protect identity of nonprofit donors passes amid charges it opens door to ‘dark money’ in state politics
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Backers say bill does not change Mississippi’s campaign finance laws but others say it opens disclosure loopholes