MS Legislature

Yesterday, the Mississippi Department of Education presented its budget request for next year to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC). Members of the committee had a number of questions and comments for MDE. Some JLBC members expended a lot of energy criticizing schools; none was spent on the fact that the Legislature has withheld $1.5-billion from schools in the […]

On Tuesday, September 30, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee (JLBC) will begin a four-day series of meetings that will set in motion the state budgeting process. School funding through the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP) is likely to be hotly debated, and our kids’ futures are hanging in the balance.  Legislators are already hearing from special interests that want access

Initiative 42 is an effort to amend the Mississippi Constitution to require that public schools be adequately funded. The proposal calls for gradual increases in K-12 funding, whenever revenue grows, until full funding is reached. Opponents of adequate public school funding are attempting to defeat Initiative 42 by falsely claiming that passage of the initiative would result in tax increases or budget cuts.

The House and Senate have passed a K-12 funding bill that is simply indefensible. Though revenue is at an all-time high, legislators chose to shortchange the Mississippi Adequate Education Program (MAEP) by $255-million, providing only a $10-million increase in the MAEP. Instead of investing in our children’s future, they socked millions of our tax dollars away in the Rainy Day Fund.  This

The K-12 funding bill conference report has passed the House and Senate. It underfunds the Mississippi Adequate Education Program by $255-million. The bill provides: $10-million increase in MAEP – MAEP will be underfunded by $255-million $60-million for a teacher pay raise Full funding of the Chickasaw Cession Interest Payment Full funding of the National Board

The conference report for HB 765 was filed today. Click here to read the analysis. The report, a final agreement between three Senate conferees and three House conferees who were assigned to negotiate on the bill, corrects none of the problems that were present in the most recent version of HB 765. Legislators should vote “nay” on HB 765 CR. Click here to read

Here’s the latest news from the capitol as of 7:00 p.m. on Saturday… Voucher BillThe voucher bill conference report has been filed, and it’s pretty much the same as the Senate version – bad. It does nothing to serve the interests of children with special needs. It’s still just a bill to privatize and “profitize” public education – will your

Mississippi’s budget is funded by two types of state revenue: recurring and non-recurring. Non-recurring revenue, often referred to by legislators as one-time money, is revenue the state receives in one year that will not recur in the future, such as court settlements. Non-recurring revenue comprises a very small portion of the total state budget. Recurring revenue, on