Faced with one crisis after another, Mississippi’s Governor and Legislature rise to the challenge with one consistent solution – cut budgets to cut taxes.
Where to start?
The antique condition of so many municipal and rural water systems, the federal court takeover of our mental health system, the continuing crisis in our prisons, child welfare litigation, the neverending story of our crumbling road and bridge infrastructure, our struggling healthcare systems, small business closures from the COVID-19 pandemic, the growing PERS unfunded retirement liability, inadequate flood control systems, the list goes and on and on.
Consider the first three.
The winter storm again highlighted problems with municipal and rural water systems. As this was written last week some areas remained without water or under boil water notices. Underlying conditions don’t look to improve soon.
“Much of the state’s current drinking water infrastructure is beyond or nearing the end of its design life, with older systems losing as much as 30-50% of their treated water to leaks and breaks,” states the latest report on Mississippi drinking water issued by the American Society of Civil Engineers. The report estimated it would take nearly $5 billion over 20 years to fix antiquated systems.
Current funding systems used by Mississippi – federal matching funds, federal regional commission grants and loans, and disaster loans and grants – fall far short of the amount needed. Plus, the Legislature has a spotty record of providing the matching funds needed to maximize federal funding. Unsurprisingly, the Department of Health, which manages federally funded revolving loans and grants to municipal and rural water systems faces a budget cut.
In 2019 Federal Judge Carlton Reeves found Mississippi’s mental health system in violation of the American with Disabilities Act and ordered substantial changes in the way services are delivered. News reports say the state is nearing a settlement. How much implementation of the settlement and required programs may cost is unknown. But, already depleted by multiple budget cuts, the Department of Mental Health faces another budget cut of $4.5 million. The Department of Finance and Administration, which may have to hire staff to oversee settlement implementation, faces a cut of $450,000.
Pending criminal justice reforms may ease prison crowding over time, but will not remedy facility defects and inadequate staffing. “State leaders and lawmakers oversaw the gutting of the Mississippi Department of Corrections’ budget by $215 million over the past six years.” the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting revealed a year ago. The pending budget for the department is down another $9.1 million.
Nearly every agency budget pending before the Legislature received a cut by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee so they would fit within the revenue projection. That projection was set low due to feared impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The good news is actual revenue collections, so far, are coming above projections.
The unsettling news is state leaders’ fervor to use these extra funds for tax cuts rather than restoring excessive budget cuts and targeting funds to address the crises debilitating our state. As Proverbs 22:3 warns us, “A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions; the simpleton goes blindly on and suffers the consequences.”
Crawford is a syndicated columnist from Jackson
10 comments:
Tate! Stop the brain drain! Our young people are never going to come back unless you fix this issue!
Let's face it -- Mississippi's Legislature is filled with too many wannabes who couldn't run a two-car funeral. We have very little real leadership. And we are seeing an increased number of agency corruption scandals. Tax cuts are wonderful, but a tax cut at the expense of providing essential government services is a disaster. There are plenty of places to cut in various agencies that provide less than essential services. But government must filter out the noise and focus on those essentials.
The sales tax and other user-tax hikes are a step back and just one example of why we need reform. I am not sure there is an answer in tour two-party system,, but the republicans ae playing it disaster if they don't get Gunn under control.
According to the Gulf Coast Business Council and the Coast Tourism Partnership 2020 was the best year ever. #1 in the country. That equates to over $100B in revenue if we did better than FL, CA, TX and others. With all of that revenue our problems should be solved. The article is on WLOX.com.
Way too many pet agencies and brother-in-law appointments in the hierarchy of all agencies. When the conversation turns to cutting non-essential services and duplication, all they think about is reducing the number of pin numbers at the entry level.
Start at the top, for once. Multiple directors, assistant directors, deputy directors, department heads, assistant department heads, administrative assistants, specialists.
Here's the starting point: Give me a list of your staffing pattern, by name and job title pay grade and pay level as well as a list of non-status appointments and contract workers by pay grade, position and whether or not retired from a state agency.
Tate! Stop the brain drain! Our young people are never going to come back unless you fix this issue!
What is the issue?
< I am not sure there is an answer in tour two-party system,, but the republicans ae playing it disaster if they don't get Gunn under control.
Gunn is out of control? You're not credible.
Ok @ 6:07.. MS has no S&P 500 companies...none .. zero.. thanks Tate.
12:44 - The coast took in 100B in revenues? How so?
“While COVID-19 hit our tourism industry hard, the downturn has not been as severe as expected. Coast tourism is performing among the best in the nation.
That’s according to the latest tourism research released Thursday morning by Coastal Mississippi CEO Milton Segarra at a meeting with the Gulf Coast Business Council.
Segarra says South Mississippi tourism has seen success and growth in the past year, thanks in part to the the $3.4 million the Coast was awarded from the Tourism Recovery Fund.
Mississippi was the top travel spending market in the U.S. last year, with the Gulf Coast accounting for one-third of all the activity regarding tourism.”
This is a transformational and resilient ranking to be in the highest in the US.
Ok @ 6:07.. MS has no S&P 500 companies...none .. zero.. thanks Tate.
Another non-credible opinion.
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