Farmers know how to read the weather. We all know a spring morning with high humidity, a slight breeze, and warmer temperatures than normal means a storm is coming.

During the 2021 Mississippi Legislative Session, the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation took a step back to watch the weather patterns. After four years of pushing major pieces of legislation, like right to farm, property tax relief, liability help for cattle producers, property rights and infrastructure, it felt like it was time to stop and watch the sky for a year.

MFBF focused on building relationships with legislators, educating officials on the importance of agriculture in Mississippi, and ensuring legislation did not have negative impacts on agriculture.

COVID-19

Speaker of the House Philip Gunn, who was in the middle of his third term as Speaker, and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, who was in his second year leading the Senate, were both forced to make difficult decisions the beginning of the session. Because COVID-19 cases were still increasing, there were questions raised about whether legislators should gather in close quarters each week and then return to their communities on the weekend.

Gunn reasoned that if the people of Mississippi were working then the Mississippi Legislature should also work. So, as set by statute, on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in January – January 5, 2021 – the 2021 Mississippi Legislative Session began.

The session looked different, but no different from the rest of the world. Mask wearing under the dome was the norm, many legislators attended committee meetings virtually, and the usual “hob-nob” of legislators, visitors, lobbyists and staff was kept to a minimum. Leadership on both sides of the building asked their membership to limit the amount of legislation filed, and they diligently worked to finish the session in 90 days.

Gov. Tate Reeves, who in a normal year would have a robust legislative agenda, focused his efforts on COVID-19 relief and the February ice storm that impacted almost every Mississippian.

“2020 was a difficult year for Mississippi Farm Bureau members,” Reeves said after his state of the state address in January. “From natural disasters to COVID-19, farmers and ranchers saw constant disasters impact their way of life. I am proud to support Farm Bureau members, especially during these difficult years.”

“This past year, I instructed MEMA to provide new data for the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement for the Yazoo Pumps,” he said. “This data was instrumental in receiving a favorable SEIS and moving us one step closer to installing the pumps. In addition to that, my administration is working with the state legislature, our congressional delegation, and private companies to expand broadband access to rural communities. This upcoming year is an important one for taking the next steps for broadband internet access. I remain committed to investing in new coverage maps to ensure we get maximum federal support in expanding rural internet access.”

“Thank you to all the great members of Mississippi Farm Bureau for the work you do and services you provide to our state,” Reeves said. “You play an integral role in making Mississippi the wonderful state that it is.”

Mississippi Income Tax Freedom Act of 2021

The Mississippi Income Tax Freedom Act of 2021 (HB 1439) was probably the most discussed piece of legislation during this session. Authored by Gunn, Speaker Pro Tempore Jason White, and Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee Rep. Trey Lamar, this legislation would have eliminated the state income tax over the next decade and cut the grocery tax in half, creating a $1.9 Billion dollar hole to fill in Mississippi’s budget.

To make up this loss of revenue, the bill raised sales tax by 2.5% on most consumer goods and on certain other businesses that presently have a reduced rate. One of those increases was on farm equipment, implements, labor, parts and repair, as well as logging equipment and dairy building supplies.

Farm Bureau policy supports the present sales tax rate of 1.5%, and the MFBF Board of Directors unanimously opposed the legislation as it was written, because of the increase in taxes on farmers. The Mississippi House passed this legislation, but it died without coming up for a vote in committee in the Senate. Later, the House passed an amended version of this bill removing the sales tax increase on farmers and loggers.

Mississippi Infrastructure Investment Act of 2021

Senator Jenifer Branning, chair of the Senate Highways and Transportation Committee, filed the Mississippi Infrastructure Investment Act of 2021 (SB 2825) to help agricultural haulers in the state. SB 2825 did the following:

• Moved weight enforcement from MDOT to the Department of Public Safety
• Increased weights on harvest permitted vehicles from 84,000 pounds to 88,000 pounds
• Increased penalties for excessively overweight loads
• Diverted CARES Act money from the Mississippi Department of Transportation to the Emergency Road and Bridge Repair Fund within MDOT

At the date of publication, this act was waiting for Reeves’ signature.

Agriculture Committees

The House and Senate Agriculture Committees, chaired by Rep. Bill Pigott and Senator Chuck Younger, handled legislation to place the Mississippi State Fair Commission under the authority of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, and added a representative from Alcorn State University to the commission.

Rural Broadband

In the last three years, Farm Bureau has placed a great deal of focus on connectivity in rural Mississippi on the state and federal levels. This year, Senator Joel Carter and Rep. Scott Bounds, chairs of the Senate and House Energy and Public Utilities committees, both filed legislation allowing investor owned electric companies to provide broadband service to its energy customers, with the revenue used to reduce energy rates. At the date of publication, this act was waiting for Reeves’ signature.

In addition to these issues, the legislature increased the budgets of Alcorn State University and Mississippi State University’s agriculture units, including Extension, the School of Veterinary Medicine, the experiment stations, and the Forest and Wildlife Research Station. Loggers in Mississippi can now purchase a metal tag harvest permit to travel across state lines.

For more updates on state policy, visit msfb.org/news.

Lee Thorne is the Public Policy Coordinator at the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation.