Mr. Perry Bailey (R-Calhoun City) became the newest member of the Mississippi House of Representatives on Tuesday, when he was sworn in to represent House District 23. The district is comprised of Grenada, Calhoun, and Lafayette Counties. Representative Bailey replaces former Rep. Jim Beckett, who resigned from the House to become the new director of the Public Utilities Staff. House Speaker Philip Gunn (R-Clinton) is expected to formally assign Rep. Bailey to committees in the coming weeks.
This week, we began to see action on the Fiscal Year 2024 budget. Both the House and Senate passed bills that structurally allow for them to access all available funds (transfer bills Senate Bills 2446, 2664/House Bills 1088, 1089, 603), bills that provide additional appropriations to the last fiscal year (deficit bills SB 2962/HB 1644), and appropriations bills that fund next year at the Legislative Budget Recommendation (LBR) level. As a reminder, the LBR that was approved in December is here.
Of all the appropriations bills that both chambers moved this week, the deficit bills caused the most consternation with the members. Among the deficits funded, line items for the Department of Corrections, the City of Jackson, and ARPA Relief Programs drew the most questions. These debates were previews of the funding issues that will generate the most conversation over the coming weeks. The House has 204 appropriations bills that are alive in the process and the Senate has 164 live appropriations bills.
Two bills that would impact hospitals in Mississippi passed out of the House Appropriations Committee on Thursday. HB 271, authored by House Public Health Committee Chairman Sam Mims (R-McComb), seeks to create the Health Care Impact Grant Program and provide $80 million in funding for Fiscal Year 2024. Currently, language in HB 273 requires that the amount of grant funding be determined by the number of licensed beds in hospitals and long-term care facilities. Additionally, another legislative bill by Rep. Mims, HB 272, proposes $25 million for the Mississippi Department of Health’s Local Provider Innovation Grant Program which includes $750,000 for administrative expenses.
On Thursday, Governor Tate Reeves announced his plan that calls for nearly $1.3 billion in investment in infrastructure and site development projects across the Magnolia State. The proposed infrastructure investments portion of the plan would be dedicated to transportation capacity project funding. Projects listed are approved by the Mississippi Department of Transportation and ready to begin construction upon receiving funding from the Legislature. $100 million of the plan would be dedicated toward additional funding to the Emergency Road and Bridge Fund, created by the Legislature in 2018. Gov. Reeves touted the success of the program in providing funding for local counties and municipalities throughout the state.
The second portion of the plan includes $57 million of prior authorized funding in grants to develop project-ready sites across Mississippi. Gov. Reeves highlighted the importance of helping local communities develop industrial sites to help them compete in attracting large businesses. All site development projects are already approved and will begin work immediately.
Gov. Reeves touted Mississippi’s economic success as one of the major reasons that the state could provide funding for this large of a plan. All the funding called for in this plan would be taken from existing funds from revenues received over the past three to four years. Gov. Reeves urged the Legislature to think big and stated he looks forward to working with the House and Senate as the budget process moves forward throughout this legislative session. A full listing of his proposed projects can be found here.