The fourth week of the 2024 Legislative Session brought more organizational committee meetings, the introduction and referral of bills, the start of floor debates, and a second special session. With the deadline to request bills still over two weeks away, the House of Representatives and the Senate have begun dropping and referring bills to committees. As committees meet to organize, they are preparing to begin the process of going through legislation and deciding what will be considered.
This week, several committees held informational briefings dealing with issues ranging from public health to transportation. On Wednesday, a joint committee meeting was held by the chairmen of both the House and Senate Public Health and Welfare Committees. Senator Hob Bryan (D-Amory) and Representative Sam Creekmore (R-New Albany) hosted a robust discussion centered around the adverse impact of individuals who are detained for extensive periods of time in jail, but conversely, not yet charged with a crime. The Department of Mental Health’s Executive Director, Wendy Bailey, presented to the committees and emphasized that this issue must be addressed this legislative session by working with local and county officials. Several legislators indicated they would work with the department and officials to find a solution.
Also on Wednesday, the Senate Transportation Committee received updates from the MS Department of Transportation, the Office of State Aid Road Construction, and the MS Economic Council about ongoing efforts to address road, bridge, and capacity projects around the state. They discussed the incredible strides that have been made since 2018 when the Legislature began committing significant resources from multiple funding sources to address safety, maintenance, capacity, and multimodal projects.
The Committee of Economic and Workforce Development, chaired by Sen. Daniel Sparks (R-Belmont), featured an update from State Economist Corey Miller and the team at AccelerateMS. The presentation by the State Economist expanded on his recent reporting of the state’s low labor force participation rates. In his report, he highlighted that since the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics began compiling annual data on labor force rates in 1976, the state of Mississippi’s rank has never been higher than 43rd among all states. In 2022, Mississippi’s labor participation rate was 54.9%, which compares to the 62.2% rate for the United States. Chairman Sparks and multiple other senators sought clarity as to how these figures are calculated and how to potentially move forward to improve these numbers.
AccelerateMS Executive Director, Ryan Miller, gave an excellent update on the progress and status of the latest efforts of the state’s Office of Workforce Development. In their presentation, the team outlined their historical progress and program successes such as the Career Coaches program that has placed coaches in school districts across the entire state. In addition to giving a review of financial resources and funding, the AccelerateMS team highlighted their legislative agenda. Their agenda called for sustained commitment to their New Workforce Framework, support for increased accountability and tracking infrastructure, an increase in support for key programming, and continued gap resources for system partners. With the announcement of multiple, massive economic projects across the state, committed support from the Legislature to grow the Office of Workforce Development is expected to continue.
On January 24th, Governor Tate Reeves announced the second special session in eight days. This second economic development package will be the largest capital investment in state history at a record-breaking $10 billion. On Thursday, the Legislature gaveled in for an extraordinary session to approve a package for “Project Atlas” that will bring 1,000 jobs to Madison County and invest over $200 million in public infrastructure and $32 million in workforce training programs in the Jackson Metro area. Project Atlas will be comprised of hyperscale data center complexes in two Madison County industrial parks, plus other sites across the state that are to be determined. Project Atlas will also bring massive investment from Entergy Mississippi, as these data centers will require one gigawatt of power to operate. For reference, the entire state currently only uses about three gigawatts of power.
In a press conference following the close of the special session, Gov. Reeves, along with Lieutenant Governor Delbert Hosemann and Speaker Jason White, addressed a crowd in the Capitol rotunda. In his remarks, Gov. Reeves spoke of the generational benefit this project would bring to not only the Jackson Metro area, but to the entire state. The jobs and investment from this project show that Mississippi is looking to the future. He also emphasized to anyone watching across the country or the globe, that Mississippi is open for business and ready to compete.
In addition to the special session debate, the House also spent several hours on Wednesday debating House Concurrent Resolution 11 which would reinstate the ballot initiative process in Mississippi. The resolution would institute a process for the citizens of Mississippi to amend state statute as opposed to the state constitution. It would also set up a 12-month signature process that would require signatures from eight percent of registered voters, around 130,000 signatures, at the time of the last gubernatorial election. That signature threshold is slightly higher than the previous ballot initiative process. Several policy items were specifically excluded from the initiative process including changes to the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS), any appropriations to the State Treasury, and any changes to abortion laws.