Legislators discuss issues with supervisors

Two delegates to Jackson reported to the Marshall County Board of Supervisors on initiatives this session.

Sen. Kevin Blackwell and Rep. John Faulkner, along with county consultant Gary Anderson, discussed the session.

Blackwell said discussion on Medicaid this year centered on how to provide more benefits to health care providers to make sure they get paid. And the legislature discussed extending postpartum care for mothers on Medicaid from 60 days to one year.

“Mississippi leads the nation in maternal mortality,” Blackwell said. “In talking with the lieutenant governor and in four days of hearings with 22 providers, all wanted postpartum care for mothers extended.”

Faulkner added that there are 300,000 Mississippians who do not have health care and legislators want it expanded.

Blackwell said there will be hearings about what Medicaid is providing.

Anderson brought up the legislative initiative to eliminate the state income tax.

The bill in the House did not get support from the Senate, he said.

The initiative would have to create a plan to replace the income tax revenue lost with other funding sources, he said.

“The state will lose millions and has no way to recoup it,” Faulkner said.

Revenue from the American Rescue Act for the City of Holly Springs is $1.7 million from the Biden administration, Anderson said.

Blackwell said the county would have to show financing for some of its projects.

Supervisor George Zinn III remarked that the county was funded for the restoration of the Rosenwald School at Isaac Chapel Road, through a grant from Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

District 1 supervisor Charles Terry quipped about the projects that were not funded.

“I know your job is like our job,” he said. “There is more said about what you didn’t get done than what you did get done.”

Faulkner said the pandemic affected the session.

“This session was the best ever,” he said.

“The level of cooperation is the best I’ve seen in my eight years (as representative).” Blackwell mentioned the Medical marijuana initiative that died.

He said the failure of the initiative was due to “politics within the politics.” As far as legislative bond bill funds for Marshall County projects, Blackwell said $2 million will go to the police substation in Chickasaw Trail Industrial Park, $1.2 million for repair of Barringer Road, $600,000 for infrastructure in Holly Springs and $1 million for a bridge on Mills Road.

Faulkner said taking away the state income tax would put the burden on the legislature to make up the revenue lost on sales taxes.

“The sales tax would go up for everything except groceries,” he said.

“We’re taking one-third of state revenue (in state income tax) so where will we get it back?” Blackwell said. “We would raise the sales tax.”

District 3 supervisor Keith Taylor said taxes “went sky high” on Class 1A farmland.

“Everybody would pay more under this reclassification except timber farmers,” said District 5 supervisor Ronnie Joe Bennett.

Tax assessor Juanita Dillard said everything went down slightly on all farmland.

Anderson said the state would implement the reclassification of farmland in the summer.