Mississippi Today
The 2024 legislative session begins today. Here’s what to expect.
The new term of the Mississippi Legislature convenes at noon today, with the first order of business being putting in place the mechanisms and leadership to govern for the next four years.
The first day will be dominated by the election of a House speaker by the newly elected 122 House members. Rep. Jason White, a Republican from West who has served during the past four-year term as speaker pro tempore, was selected as the next speaker in a closed-door December meeting by House Republicans, who have a two-thirds majority in the chamber.
The election of White as speaker on Tuesday is expected to be a formality. Every House Republican is expected to support White and no other House member has publicly announced plans to challenge him for the speakership.
White will succeed Philip Gunn, who opted to step down and not pursue a fourth term as speaker. The House Republicans in December also selected Republican Rep. Manly Barton of Moss Point to replace White as pro tempore.
In the Senate, Dean Kirby, R-Pearl, is expected to be reelected by the members as Senate pro tempore, meaning in general terms he will be the second-in-command to Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, who also will be entering his second term in the statewide post.
Then, over the coming days, other statewide officials will be sworn into office. None of the eight statewide officials will be new to their jobs as all of the eight are incumbents.
After the pomp and circumstances of this week, lawmakers will begin work on what could be a pivotal 2024 session.
Some of the key issues that could be debated and considered include:
Tax cuts
Gov. Tate Reeves, who was reelected this past November by the narrowest margin in a gubernatorial election since 1999, still wants to eliminate the state's personal income tax. White and other expected House leaders also have expressed support for eliminating the personal income tax, which accounts for nearly one-third of state general fund revenue. Senate leaders have said they will consider tax reductions in 2024, but perhaps not the complete elimination of the income tax.
School vouchers
Reeves has been a big supporter of providing public funds to students to attend private schools, though he did not campaign on the issue. As a matter of fact, few candidates elected in 2023 campaigned on the issue, though, it could be a big one during the 2024 session.
Restoring the ballot initiative
For the third year in a row, lawmakers plan to introduce legislation to restore the ballot initiative, the way for citizens to place issues directly on a statewide ballot. The Mississippi Supreme Court ruled in 2021 that the prior initiative process was invalid. During the last two years, the House and Senate failed to reach an agreement over how the process should be replaced.
Addressing Mississippi's health care crisis
Scores of rural hospitals across the state are on the verge of closing or significantly cutting back health services, and numerous Mississippians do not have health insurance. One potential solution that legislative leaders might consider is the expansion of Medicaid coverage to more people under the Affordable Care Act, as 40 other states have done. White, the likely new speaker, has previously said he is open to at least considering the expansion pf Medicaid and studying health care issues closely during the session. Hosemann also has voiced support for at least the consideration of Medicaid expansion. Reeves has been a staunch opponent of Medicaid expansion.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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Mississippi Today
Renada Stovall, chemist and entrepreneur
Renada Stovall sat on the back deck of her rural Arkansas home one evening, contemplating life when she had a life-altering epiphany…
“I gotta get out of these woods.”
She heard it as clear as lips to her ear and as deep as the trees surrounding her property. Stovall's job as a chemist had taken her all over the country. In addition to Arkansas, there were stints in Atlanta, Dallas and Reno. But she was missing home, her parents and friends. She also knew, she needed something else to do.
“I thought, what kind of business can I start for myself,” said Stovall, as she watered herbs growing in a garden behind her south Jackson home. Some of those herbs are used in her all-natural products. “I know when I lived in Reno, Nevada, where it's very hot and very dry, there really weren't products available that worked for me, my hair, and my skin suffered. I've got a chemistry degree from Spelman College. I took the plunge and decided to create products for myself.”
In 2018, Stovall's venture led to the creation of shea butter moisturizers and natural soaps. But she didn't stop there, and in December 2022, she moved home to Mississippi and got to work, expanding her product line to include body balms and butters, and shampoos infused with avocado and palm, mango butter, coconut and olive oils.
Nadabutter, which incorporates Renada's name, came to fruition.
Stovall sells her balms and moisturizers at what she calls, “pop-up markets,” across the state during the summer. She's available via social media and also creates products depending on what of her ingredients a customer chooses. “My turmeric and honey is really popular,” Stovall added.
“The all-natural ingredients I use are great for conditioning the skin and hair. All of my products make you feel soft and luscious. The shea butter I use comes from West Africa. It's my way of networking and supporting other women. And it's my wish that other women can be inspired to be self-sufficient in starting their own businesses.”
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
On this day in 1954
MAY 17, 1954
In Brown v. Board of Education and Bolling v. Sharpe, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the “separate but equal” doctrine in Plessy v. Ferguson was unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment, which guaranteed equal treatment under the law.
The historic decision brought an end to federal tolerance of racial segregation, ruling in the case of student Linda Brown, who was denied admission to her local elementary school in Topeka, Kansas, because of the color of her skin.
In Mississippi, segregationist leaders called the day “Black Monday” and took up the charge of the just-created white Citizens' Council to preserve racial segregation at all costs.
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
Mississippi Today
Every university but Delta State to increase tuition this year
Every university in Mississippi is increasing tuition in the fall except for Delta State University.
The new rates were approved by the governing board of the eight universities, the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees, at its regular meeting Thursday.
The average cost of tuition in Mississippi is now $8,833 a year, a roughly 3% increase from last year. Students can expect to pay tuition ranging from $7,942 a year at Mississippi Valley State University to $10,052 a year at Mississippi State University.
In recent years, universities have cited inflation and rising insurance costs as reasons for the tuition increases. At Thursday's meeting, the board heard a presentation on how property insurance is becoming more expensive for the eight universities as Mississippi sees more tornadoes and storms with severe wind and hail.
READ MORE: Tuition increases yet again at most public universities
But it's an ongoing trend. Mississippi's public universities have steadily increased tuition since 2000, putting the cost of college increasingly out of reach for the average Mississippi family. More than half of Mississippi college students graduated with an average of $29,714 in student debt in 2020, according to the Institution for College Access and Success.
At Delta State University, the president, Daniel Ennis, announced that he will attempt to avoid tuition increases as the regional college in the Mississippi Delta undergoes drastic budget cuts in an effort to become more financially sustainable.
“We will resist tuition increases so that our most economically vulnerable students can continue to have access to the opportunities that a college degree can provide,” he wrote in a memo to faculty and staff on Monday. “We will move beyond basic survival and into a place where we have the capacity to take better advantage of our undeniable strengths.”
Delta State didn't increase tuition last year, either. Officials have been concerned the university is becoming too pricey for the students it serves.
Tuition for the 2024-25 academic year, by school:
- Alcorn State University: $8,105
- Delta State University: $8,435
- Jackson State University: $8,690
- Mississippi State University: $10,052
- Mississippi University for Women: $8,392
- Mississippi Valley State University: $7,492
- University of Mississippi: $9,612
- University of Southern Mississippi: $9,888
This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
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