|
The Magnolia Flag 1861-94
"Go, Mississippi"
Official State Song
Words and Music by Houston Davis
Verse:States
may sing their songs of praise
With waving flags and hip-hoo-rays,
Let cymbals crash and let bells ring
Cause here's one song I'm proud to sing.
Choruses:
Go, Mississippi, keep rolling along,
Go, Mississippi, you cannot go wrong,
Go, Mississippi, we're singing your song,
M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I
Go, Mississippi, you're on the right track,
Go, Mississippi, and this is a fact,
Go, Mississippi, you'll never look back,
M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I
Go, Mississippi, straight down the line,
Go, Mississippi, ev'rything's fine,
Go, Mississippi, it's your state and mine,
M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I
Go, Mississippi, continue to roll,
Go, Mississippi, the top is the goal,
Go, Mississippi, you'll have and you'll hold,
M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I
Go, Mississippi, get up and go,
Go, Mississippi, let the world know,
That our Mississippi is leading the show,
M-I-S-S-I-S-S-I-P-P-I
| |
|
MISSISSIPPI HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES
WEEKLY SUMMARY REPORT FOR WEEK
ENDING MARCH 23, 2001
JACKSON, Miss. - Budget negotiators from the House of
Representatives and the Senate moved into high gear during the 12th week
of the 2001 legislative session as they began to establish a final version
of the fiscal year 2002 state budget. Consideration of the $3.6
billion budget for Fiscal Year 2002 - for the 12 months beginning July 1,
2001 - has been a major focus of the 2001 Legislature. Making progress on
the budget worksheet has been more difficult than in recent years due to
the decline in the percentage of state revenue growth.
Through February, 2001, state tax collections and other
revenues are $131.7 million below the most recent official
projections. February's collections were $9 million below the estimate,
but that's actually the closest to the projections the State has seen
since October 2000. Sales taxes and individual and corporate income taxes
- typically the strongest revenue sectors - continue to be in a negative
pattern. The Legislative
leadership in both Houses continues to hope that collections for March and
April will begin to make up a large portion of the shortfall, as
individual income tax collections for the 2000 tax year pour into the
State Tax Commission. House
and Senate budget negotiators at week's end were almost ready to file
appropriations conference reports, which are actually final versions of
bills, with the full membership of both chambers set to vote on the state
agency spending plans.
Monday, March 26 is the deadline for conference reports on
general bills to be filed. Then, the full House and Senate would be voting
on those bills during the final week of the session and the plan is to
adjourn the session late in the week.
Sunday, April 1, is scheduled for sine die (“without
day”) adjournment.
It is certain that the Legislature will return to the Capitol
later this year – probably in July -- to work on congressional and
legislative redistricting. It is not possible to begin serious work on
those tasks until the voting precinct-by-precinct numbers are available
from the U.S. Census Bureau. Some preliminary Census data has already been
received, but this data provided only the population totals in each of the
state's 82 counties, not the precinct-by-precinct numbers.
Mississippi will lose one of its five seats in the U.S. House
of Representatives because the state's population growth has been exceeded
by that of other states. It is the Legislature's duty every 10 years to
re-draw congressional districts after the Census information is submitted
by the federal government. With
the loss of a congressional seat, there are considerable partisan
pressures to re-draw the new district lines in favor of the dominant
party. These partisan pressures will be especially acute now that
the Congress is so closely divided between Republicans and Democrats.
Since both Houses of the Mississippi Legislature are controlled by
Democrats, the speculation is that the new lines will be drawn as
favorably as possible for incumbent Democrat congressmen Thompson (2nd),
Shows (4th), and Taylor (5th), and as unfavorably as
possible toward incumbent Republican congressmen Pickering (3rd)
and Wicker (1st). Many
geographical and demographic factors must be taken into account, however,
and as any plan must be finally approved by the Justice Department, the
eventual outcome is far from clear. The
early speculation (and it is all speculation at this point) is that the
existing Third (Pickering) and Fourth (Shows) district incumbents will
square off against each other in the 2002 General election.
The Legislature complete the task of congressional
redistricting before it tackles an even more difficult challenge -
redrawing the district lines for the 122 state House seats and the 52
state Senate districts. Obviously, when the members of the two bodies are
faced with the prospect of necessary changes in their own district lines,
the level of tension among and between potentially competing incumbents
can be very high. Ultimately,
redistricting will filter down to the local levels as city and county
elected boards will have to re-draw their election district lines as well.
As appropriation and revenue leaders grappled this week with
final budget bills, Gov. Ronnie Musgrove continued signing legislation
that the Legislature had already sent to his desk.
Among the bills he signed into law this week were:
 |
SB 3150 to collect a 3 percent tax on casino winnings. The
state had been relying on out-of-state casino patrons who won money at
casinos to file a return on their prizes. Under the law, the tax will
be collected from the patron's winnings and forwarded to the state.
|
|
HB 622 to issue bonds for the construction of a National
Guard Armory in Oxford.
|
|
HB 1063 to enhance the development of local historic
districts and landmarks. The bill would permit cities and counties,
independently or jointly, to create one or more local historic
preservation commissions to advise on establishing and locating
potential historic districts. The commission will have the power to
survey resources, recommend ordinances designating historic districts
and review applications proposing construction, alteration, demolition
or relocation of any resource or subdivision of tax parcels designated
as landmarks.
|
|
HB 439 to create a capital access program to enhance a
revolving loan fund. Under the program, a financial institution could
make a loan to any qualified borrower and be protected against losses
from such loans. |
These bills are in addition to the dozens of other general
bills that the governor had earlier signed. Governor Musgrove also has
signed appropriation bills for many "special fund" state
agencies that generate their own income through fees charged the industry
or trade they regulate.
Late in the week some legislators discussed strategy to
ensure that no Mississippi military bases are included in the next round
of base closings. President Bush has said he believes there is a surplus
of domestic military bases. Lauderdale
County lawmakers taking part in the strategy discussions included Rep.
Tommy Horne (I—Meridian), Rep. Greg Snowden (R—Meridian), Rep. Eric
Robinson (R—Quitman), Rep. Billy Nicholson (D—Little Rock), and Sen.
Videt Carmichael (D—Meridian).
Also under heavy discussion late in the week was a bill that
would close so-called loopholes some believe exist in the state’s
corporate income tax laws. The bill supposedly would ensure that some
national chain retail firms operating in the state pay their fair share of
appropriate Mississippi taxes.
Morgan Freeman, an internationally acclaimed actor, was
honored in the House and Senate this week with a resolution commending his
film and stage career. Freeman grew up and graduated from high school in
Greenwood. He now lives on a ranch near Charleston in Tallahatchie County
and owns a restaurant in Clarksdale. He is soon to open a blues club
there. Freeman said from the House podium that the Legislature's honor
"cements a thought I've had for years - that the smartest move I ever
made was to come back home." The
House responded with a thunderous ovation to Freeman’s brief comments of
love for his home state.
The
House also honored 57 outstanding community and junior college students
who are members of the Phi Theta Kappa honor society. They make up the
"All-Mississippi Academic Team."
Phi Theta Kappa, a national scholastic honorary, is headquartered
in Jackson.
The text and
history of any bill may be accessed and read online by following the
"Bill Tracking" link at
www.gregsnowden.com.
To contact House members, call the Capitol at 601-359-3770.
State government's Internet address is http://www.ls.state.ms.us
Representative Snowden's cell number (no long distance to Jackson) is
527-5350
Greg Snowden's e-mail address is greg@gregsnowden.com
Visitor: 
|
|
