It’s now or never, friend! It’s time for moms, dads, and educators to stand up, speak out, and let our legislators know that we will not stand by while they devastate our public schools.
HB 957, the bill that changes the school funding law to slash funding by $292-million or more, passed out of the education committee today and is headed to the Senate floor. See what HB 957 would cost your district.
The claim that HB 957 provides more funding to schools is patently false. The truth? Even an UNDERfunded MAEP is better than the funding in HB 957. Just let that sink in. Legislators are proposing to worsen – not improve – the already dismal state of school funding in Mississippi.
Will your senator vote to take funding away from the students in your schools?
Ask your senator to vote NO on HB 957!
Find contact information for senators.
Capitol Switchboard: 601.359.3770
Share the same message with Lt. Governor Reeves. Capitol: 601.359.3200
HB 957 would starve public schools and facilitate vouchers.
Claims that school districts would see funding gains with HB 957 are based on a false comparison. They are comparing 2025 full funding of HB 957 to 2018 underfunding of current law. When 2025 MAEP funding is compared to 2025 HB 957 funding, schools statewide are shorted by $292-million or more. Every school district loses. See your school district’s loss.
The funding in HB 957 is even less than what schools would receive if the Legislature continued underfunding school districts at the same rate that it has for the last six years.
HB 957 puts at risk an additional $97-million in Career-Tech funding, which is omitted from the Senate list of items to be funded outside of the formula, and about which the leadership has been unable to give a straight answer.
The “student-based formula” in HB 957 would make it easier to convert public school funding into vouchers for private school tuition.
This morning, House Education Chairman Richard Bennett said that, if the bill passes the Senate, it will likely be rushed through to the governor’s desk, with the House concurring with Senate amendments to bypass the conference process. This could be your senator’s last opportunity to stand up for public schools this session.
How many people can you get to call your senator? Ask your friends and family to call or text (we’re told emails are ineffective), share our Facebook posts, and retweet our tweets. If you’ve already called, call again. Already posted on social media? Post again.
