MISSISSIPPI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WEEKLY SUMMARY REPORT FOR WEEK ENDING MARCH 30, 2001

JACKSON, Miss. – The 2001 Regular Session of the Mississippi Legislature adjourned sine die March 30 on the heels of the lawmakers’ resounding override of more than forty gubernatorial vetoes. A $3.5 billion general fund budget is in place for fiscal year 2002, which begins July 1, 2001. Dozens of other new and revised bills also will take effect between July 1 of this year and January 1, 2002, as many general bills were hammered out into final form in conference committee meetings between members of the House and the Senate during the session’s final week.

More than 3,000 bills and resolutions were introduced by the end of the 90-day 2001 session that began on January 2. Of these bills, only about 500 of them actually became law, including bills which merely continued existing laws passed in earlier sessions.

Governor Ronnie Musgrove (D—Batesville) chose to veto more than three dozen appropriations measures, contending that the Legislature had erred in basing the upcoming 2002 budget upon projections for a 3.7% growth in state revenues, when actual revenues for the current (FY 2001) fiscal year are only 2.0% through the month of February. Legislative leaders countered with the argument that an adjustment in revenue projections would be premature and inappropriate at this time, and that the governor himself will be empowered to make any actual cuts in expenditures as may be required later in the year if revenues in fact lag behind budget estimates. Some lawmakers also complained about the governor’s attempted “intrusion” into the budget-writing process – historically a prerogative of the Legislature alone. In the end, the face-off was no contest at all, as both the House and Senate easily overrode all of the Musgrove appropriations vetoes.

Although the regular session is over, the Legislature will convene in a special session later in the year for the purpose of redistricting the state's congressional seats, as Mississippi necessarily will adjust from five current members serving in the U.S. House of Representatives to a new number of only four Congressmen in Washington. Mississippi is losing a seat because its rate of population growth has been surpassed by other states.

As customary late in each regular session, the Legislature honored various outstanding Mississippians for their achievements. This week the House honored Delta State University's football team for winning the NCAA Division 2 National Championship. House members also honored a group of outstanding students from Water Valley for their numerous civic service projects, including helping veterans of World War II who gave up their chance to finish high school because of military service.

Mississippi got some good news from the federal courts at week’s end. The court issued an order citing the Legislature and some other elected officials for their good work toward reducing the number of state inmates being held in county jails. The court also returned $1.3 million to the state in fines paid earlier for being out of compliance with an order to reduce prison overcrowding. The court said the Legislature had done good work this session by passing several measures that may tend to alleviate future prison overcrowding. Ironically, the state currently has a surplus of prison beds, and is straining to meet contractual commitments made to the operators of the several private penitentiaries in Mississippi.

General bills passed by the Legislature during the final week and sent on to the governor for his approval covered a wide range of subject areas. The bills had been introduced in either the House or Senate, gone through committee scrutiny in both chambers, considered again in debate on the floor of both chambers, possibly changed in either chamber and then taken up in conference committee sessions between the House and Senate. The governor then gave final consideration to the bills, most of which (unlike the appropriations bills) he will sign into law.

Examples of some of the bills passed in the final week and sent to the governor for his consideration were: HB 444 to strengthen the Children's Health Insurance Program and add dental coverage to the plan; HB 396 to award honorary diplomas to WWII and Korean War veterans who may have missed a chance to complete high school; HB 667 to require some health insurance policies to offer mental health coverage; HB 797 to create a commission to study women's issues; HB 986 to authorize attending physicians to provide parents of newborns information about additional medical tests for their child; HB 1448 to promote expansion of the Junior ROTC program in state public schools; SB 2501 to enhance penalties and require criminal background checks for employees of certain care facilities; and SB 2511 to designate a portion of Highway 25 as Purple Heart Memorial Drive to honor Mississippians wounded in battle. Also during the final week, Mississippi and Louisiana agreed to end a game and fish "license and fee war" that had gone on for about a year. Both states agreed to lower license fees for certain types of outdoors activities.

Of particular significance to the citizens of east Mississippi, Governor Musgrove on March 26 signed SB 2666, which designates Meridian’s Bonita Lakes as the site for the new Southern Arts and Entertainment Center. Attending the brief bill signing ceremony in the Governor’s office at the Capitol were Representatives Horne, Young, Robinson, Snowden and Nicholson, and Senators Carmichael, Burton, and Jackson. Although this year’s legislation contains no funding, the designation of Meridian as the site for the Center is a milestone in the Lauderdale County legislative delegation’s efforts to bring this exciting project to the Meridian area. Legislative efforts to secure appropriate funding will begin in earnest starting next session.

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