Our children and teachers need your help today!
Legislators have said for years that Mississippi does not have enough money to adequately fund public schools or pay teachers at the Southeastern average. Now those same legislators are considering reducing state revenue by hundreds of millions of dollars – while STILL underfunding our children’s schools and paying teachers well below the Southeastern average.
The bottom line is this…
Income tax cuts mean reduced state revenue. Reduced state revenue threatens school budgets and teacher pay.
The Senate leadership has announced a tax cut proposal that would strip $317-million from the state’s annual budget. It is critical that our senators understand that we want our public schools fully funded and our teachers paid well, NOT an income tax cut!
Please ask your senator to VOTE NO on any plan to cut income taxes.
Capitol Switchboard: 601.359.3770
Find additional contact information for legislators
And please tell Lt. Gov. Hosemann that you oppose any income tax cuts.
Lt. Gov. Hosemann: 601.359.3200
Mississippi’s business leaders are urging the Legislature to invest in workforce development and K-12 education. They are not asking for income tax cuts. In 51 meetings the Mississippi Economic Council (MEC) held across the state to assess the priorities of Main Street businesses and large employers, cutting income taxes was barely mentioned.
And a just-issued analysis by state economists Corey Miller and Sondra Collins predicts that the House income tax cut plan would result in:
- large revenue shortfalls (cuts to state services)
- a decline in jobs
- a net decrease in population
- an overall loss in personal income
What could possibly be more irresponsible?
Mississippi has an opportunity to turn a corner, to reverse the callous inequities that have long dimmed the life-chances of our state’s most vulnerable children and made Mississippi a frequent target of criticism:
- underfunded public schools
- teacher shortages
- uneven access to high-quality pre-k
- decrepit school buildings
- underfunded life-saving mental health and child protective services
Income tax cuts will further entrench our state’s status quo as the most dangerous state for children.
Your lawmakers’ votes on these tax cut bills will have consequences far beyond this year or next year or even the next. A vote for an income tax cut is a vote to disregard the needs of children and teachers who rely on our state to treat them fairly. It is a vote NOT to invest in our children and teachers at the level that even Arkansas and Alabama invest in theirs.
Please call your senator and Lt. Gov. Hosemann today. Urge them to choose our children and teachers over income tax cuts. Ask your family and friends to call, too. Our children and teachers deserve a fair shot at a bright future, and your call could make the difference. Together, we’ve got this!
