A Lottery for Mississippi?State Rep. Alyce Clarke, D-Jackson, has introduced a bill allowing voters to decide whether the Magnolia state will institute a lottery to help pay for college scholarships, reports WAPT. The House Gaming Committee will debate the bill, HR 337, today.
PSC Asked to Remove Attorney in Kemper County Coal Plant CaseThe Mississippi Chapter of the Sierra Club filed a motion Friday (PDF, 70k) to remove a Mississippi Public Service Commission attorney connected with the second-phase hearing on the workability of a proposed coal plant in Kemper County because her father …
Jackson State President: HBCUs' Future At RiskJackson State University President Ronald Mason Jr. predicted hard times for Mississippi's historically black universities if the schools don't work together. "When you confront the kind of problems that we're confronting, and when you take into account that we don't …
Budget Woes Overshadow City's Needs at Low-Turnout ConfabState budget woes cast a pall over the Jackson Convention Center yesterday, when city leaders solicited the support of state lawmakers over lunch. Hosted by the city's state legislative delegation and featuring a presentation by Downtown Jackson Partners President Ben …
House Bill Restricts Sales of Meth IngredientRep. Steve Holland, D-Plantersville, used the memory of his brother, who died from a meth overdose, to beg the Mississippi House of Representatives to pass a bill that will require cold and allergy sufferers to have a doctor's prescription for …
Monday: School District Merger MeetingMonday, Feb. 1, the Commission on Education Structure will hold its second meeting to discuss how best to achieve school district consolidation in Mississippi. The meeting is scheduled for Room 216 in the state capitol building, starting at 1 p.m., …
Money and MarriageThe biggest fight in the Mississippi Legislature still centered on money in week 3 of the 2010 session. The House refused to consider a Senate bill giving Gov. Haley Barbour the power to selectively cut 10 percent of certain state …
Fewer Profs, High TuitionIf current state budget cuts stand, Mississippi's eight public universities will have to shed 1,000 jobs and raise tuition over the next two years.
New Farish Businesses Open by SeptemberThe first block of Jackson's Farish Street Entertainment District will be ready for new occupants by September of this year, Brad "Kamikaze" Franklin announced Tuesday. Franklin, a local musician and investor in Farish Street, also heads the public-relations department of …
Charter Schools Advance In Mississippi SenateThe Senate Education Committee just approved a bill that would allow privately operated charter schools to open in Mississippi starting in 2011. The bill is sponsored by Sen. Michael Watson, R-Pascagoula, and has many Republican co-authors. Opposition came primarily from …
JPD Battles Church BurglariesMajor crimes in Jackson dropped a whopping 9 percent last week, but Jackson Police officers are concerned about a rash of burglaries at churches across the city. Since mid-December, the city has seen 14 church burglaries, most recently on Tuesday …
Dim Prospects for House Plan to Restore CutsThe Mississippi House of Representatives approved a plan yesterday to restore recent state budget cuts, but the proposal is unlikely to gain much traction in the state Senate or the governor's office. The House voted 73 to 47 yesterday to …
A Federal Grant to Save Education?In a year when Mississippi's K-12 educational system faces potentially crippling budget cuts, a federal grant program promising up to $175 million has offered a bit of hope to state education advocates. But the Mississippi Department of Education has frustrated …
House May Tap $100 Million of Reserve FundThe Mississippi House of Representatives is expected to vote today on a plan to use $100 million in reserve funds this year to shore up agency budgets that were slashed in Gov. Haley Barbour's most recent round of budget cuts. …
Board Approves University Tuition HikesThe state College Board approved tuition increases for Mississippi's eight public universities at a meeting this morning. The increases, which will take place over two years, are necessary to offset current and anticipated budget cuts, state Higher Education Commissioner Hank …
Convention Center a Boon for JacksonNearly a year after opening, the Jackson Convention Complex has brought in more than $21 million and stimulated the city's economy by providing jobs and tax revenue, according to a report issued by the Capital City Convention Center Commission this …
Barbour Vows More Cuts, Private PrisonsUnhappy that the Mississippi House of Representatives turned back his move for more budget power, Gov. Haley Barbour today promised to slash most of the state budgets more than 8 percent. The House refused to follow the Senate's lead and …
Rep. Adrienne WootenRep. Adrienne Wooten, D-Jackson, is a woman of convictions, and she has no problem letting those convictions loose on the House floor. Wooten, 35, prevented the passage of a House bill yesterday that would allow persons convicted for the first …
Reservoir District Bill Back Door to Flood Control?Control of the Ross Barnett Reservoir is at stake in a bill proposed this week by Sen. Lee Yancey, R-Brandon, that is raising questions over what it really aims to do -- and whether it could be a back-door way …
Bounds Predicts Job Losses, Tuition HikesState higher education commissioner Hank Bounds said today that Mississippi's public university system will likely shed 1,000 jobs over the next two years due to budget cuts. Speaking today to the state Institutitions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees, Bounds …
Compromise Sex-Ed Bill Moves AheadSchool districts would have to choose between implementing an abstinence-only or an abstinence-plus sex education curriculum by June 2011 under a bill the House Education Committee passed Wednesday.
[Stauffer] Facts, Damn Facts and OpinionsThe Jackson Free Press publisher explains why the newspaper does not support Two Lakes or the 1996 Levee Plan. Instead, we need to put politics aside and seek a basin-wide solution.
Where's the MoneyThe state Legislature is still rumbling over money issues and executive power this week. The Senate passed Senate Bill 2495 last Wednesday, a bill that would grant Gov. Haley Barbour the selective power to cut the budget of some state …
Flaggs Backs Down on MergersRep. George Flaggs, D-Vicksburg, has changed his tune somewhat regarding Gov. Haley Barbour's budget recommendation for merging Mississippi's historically black colleges and universities.
Levee De-certification Not a Corps DecisionU.S. Army Corps of Engineers spokesman Kavanaugh Breazeale said yesterday that the Corps will not make the decision to either certify or de-certify local levees that protect the city of Jackson from a Pearl River flood.
Barbour Disavows House Effort to Limit His PowerGov. Haley Barbour is speaking out against a bill the Mississippi House of Representatives passed yesterday, which exempts budgets of certain state agencies from reduction when state revenues fall below revenue estimates. HB 392 also restricts cuts to agencies beyond …
Undisclosed Funders Pay for Consolidation StudyGov. Haley Barbour's Commission on Education Structure will use funds from an undisclosed private source to pay for a study of school consolidation. At its first meeting yesterday, the Commission agreed to pay a Denver-based consulting firm $72,000 to deliver …
Bad News and Hard Cuts Embody State of StateMississippi Gov. Haley Barbour's 2010 State of the State address on Monday fell short on good news. The state is facing a revenue shortfall of more than $350 million, and Barbour has recommended cutting 10 percent of the state's budget …
