Last year, Mississippi Republicans won an overwhelming majority.  Could 2024 be the year when they use that majority to deliver the kind of big, strategic change our state desperately needs? 
 
Here are a number of reforms that Mississippi conservatives have it in their gift to implement, which would transform the long term prospects of our state for the better.

1. Education Freedom: 

2024 could be the year that we give every family in the state control over their child’s share of education tax dollars, through an Education Freedom Account.  Arkansas passed legislation to do precisely that last year.  Tennessee and Louisiana are poised to do something similar.  Rather than trailing behind, Mississippi lawmakers should take the lead, delivering big, strategic change to improve education in this state, too.   

The Mississippi Center for Public Policy recently held a public rally for education freedom, with Corey DeAngelis and local educators, helping mainstream the idea.  Recent polls now show overwhelming public support.  

• Affordable healthcare: 

Too many families in Mississippi cannot get health coverage.  Rather than hosing federal dollars at the problem, we need to look at what states like Florida are doing to innovate, with alternatives to insurance-based healthcare.  This means ending the restrictive Certificate of Need laws that prevent new low cost health care providers from operating.  It also means allowing nurse practitioners more autonomy.  The Mississippi Center for Public Policy will soon publish a roadmap on how to go about removing CON laws.   

• Tax cuts: 

In 2023 Mississippi had a large state budget surplus.  Rather than wait for politicians to think up new ways to spend that surplus, we need to see tax cuts in 2024.  One option would be a further reduction in the state income tax.  

Our neighboring states are reducing the tax burden on families and businesses.  If we want to reverse the population decline in our state, we need to do so too.

• Abolish DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion): 

In recent months we have seem appalling behaviour by ‘woke’ academics at several leading universities.  It is now clear that DEI is destroying American academia.  So why are public universities in Mississippi still running DEI programs?  The Governor of Oklahoma recently issued an order terminating funding for DEI programs in public universities in that state.  Mississippi needs to stop the rot in public universities and end DEI programs in 2024.

While those are our top four priorities for 2024, here are some other things we would like to see our law makers deliver:

• Women’s Bill of Rights / Parents Bill of Rights:  Early last year, we invited Riley Gaines to speak in Jackson as part of our campaign to mainstream the idea of protecting women’s rights.  We are thrilled to see so many people come out in support of the idea of building on the safeguards already contained within the Mississippi Fairness Act. 

• PERS reform:  The laws of math make the current public employee retirement scheme (PERS) unsustainable.  Mississippi needs reforms so that young people starting work in the public sector have defined contribution, rather than defined benefit, pensions.  Unless we make this change now, our grandchildren will end up with a massive tax bill.  2024 is the year when we need to see sensible changes made to PERS.

• Ballot initiative:  Citizens in our state used to have a right of ballot initiative.  Over a thirty year period, almost 70 initiative attempts to change the state constitution were made, with only three being successful.  A failure to update the rules for triggering such initiatives means that we no longer have this right in practice.  MCPP would like to see the right of ballot initiative restored, allowing citizens to change state law.  

• Young Enterprise Act:  Mississippi ought to do more to encourage young people to become entrepreneurs.  One way to do this could be to exempt minors from having to obtain costly permits and licenses, or collect and remit sales taxes, when they want to run a small business.   A few years ago, such a proposal was considered in the state legislature.  We would love to see it revived. 

If Mississippi conservatives passed these eight or so laws, they would transform our state for the better.  No longer would we be considered a laggard by some, but as a leader.  

Green energy – folly or the future?

Former White House energy adviser, Mark Mills, addressed at a packed lunch meeting in Jackson, Mississippi, at an event attended by key state policy makers and members of the public.

Mills, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, talked about some of the implications of the rush to renewable energy.  In order to meet net zero carbon dioxide emissions targets, Mark Mills outlined the scale of infrastructure construction that would be required.

“Mark Mills has an encyclopaedic knowledge about energy policy.  He laid out some of the hard facts about what it would take to ditch our dependence on oil and gas.” said Douglas Carswell of the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.   

“Mark Mills warned about making the same mistake that Germany has made.  Over there, politicians rushed into renewable energy, and in doing so pushed up the cost of energy.  This has now priced German industry out of the world market” Carswell added.

“If Mississippi wants to keep on attracting more industry, we need to ensure that we continue to have a plentiful supply of affordable energy”. 

“Transitioning to renewables might sound like a bright idea in Washington DC” Carswell added.  “Mark Mills showed that unless the federal government can change the laws of physics it is just not realistic.  America would need to install thousands of new giant wind turbines each week, cover a vast area in solar panels and build dozens of new nuclear plants each year.”

“Politicians might talk glibly about moving to electric vehicles” he added.  “Mark Mills pointed out that we would need hundreds of new charging stations, each one requiring the same amount of electricity as a steel mill.  The capacity and infrastructure simply won’t be there to achieve this rush to renewables”.

The event was hosted jointly by Bigger Pie Forum and the Mississippi Center for Public Policy.  Several members of the state legislature and Public Service Commissioners attended and asked questions.

To watch Mark Mills, talk online, click here:

Mississippi’s top 50 public officials now cost the taxpayer over $10 million a year for the first time.  The state’s top 50 highest paid officials saw their salaries increase 5 percent from an average of $193,678 last year to $205,000 this year.

According to the 2023 Mississippi Fat Cat report, published by the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, Mississippi now has some of the highest paid public officials in America.

Mississippi’s State Superintendent for Public Education has made over $300,000 per year for a number of years now.  Mississippi also now has two local school superintendents each earning about a quarter of a million dollars a year.

Forty percent of those on the Fat Cat list are school superintendents, who enjoyed bumper pay rises.  Those school superintendents on the Fat Cat list received an average 14% pay increase, taking them to over $200,000 a year. 

The $10.3 million cost salary of Mississippi’s 50 highest-paid public officials would be enough to pay the salaries of:

• 189 nurses (at $54,284 per year) 
• 178 State Troopers (at $57,680 per year) 
• 191 teachers (at $53,699 per year)
• 227 Mississippians receiving the median income ($45,180 per year) 

Mississippi’s 50 Fat Cats are paid more than America’s 50 state governors.  While the 50 Mississippi Fat Cats receive a combined total of $10.3 million a year, the combined salary of America’s 50 state governors is a mere $7.4 million.

The Humphreys County Superintendent, for example, with a mere 1,257 students, is paid more than the governor of Texas, with a population of 30 million.

The Jackson Public Schools Superintendent, who oversees a district with approximately 20,000 students, makes more than the Governor of Florida, which has a population of more than 21 million.

Fat Cat pay does not necessarily reflect public service performance.  Some of the highest-paid public officials preside over some of the worst education outcomes. 

The Fat Cat report acknowledges that some highly paid officials provide good value for money for the taxpayer, and that high salaries in the public sector are not necessarily a bad thing. 

However, the report also recommends changes to ensure that there is accountability when it comes to top public sector pay.  Suggestions include:

• Requiring a greater degree of oversight by the legislature when it comes to significant salary increases.

• Using a state-mandated formula to calculate the maximum allowable salary for school superintendents.

• Restricting the amount of education funding that can be spent on administration.

• Potentially amending Section 25-3-39 of the Mississippi code to remove many of the exemptions to restrictions on unapproved limits.

A link to the report can be found here.

Income tax elimination is top of the political agenda in Mississippi, and it is potentially the most exciting economic reform in our state in a generation.

Under the Mississippi Tax Freedom Act, approved by the House of Representatives by a massive majority, no one earning less than $40,000 a year would pay any state income tax at all. 

The House plan is prudent, too. In order to ensure that we can afford to scrap state income tax, the plan commits to further eliminate the income tax as other sources of tax revenue grow. There is nothing rash or risky about this approach. What the House plan would do is make our state competitive. At the moment we are surrounded by states that do not have any state income tax – states like Tennessee, Texas and Florida. 

In order to be able to grow our state, we need this plan to pass. That is why it is so disappointing to see the Senate offer an alternative plan which would not eliminate the income tax at all. 

The Senate plan proposes eliminating the 4% income tax rate. Sounds great, no? 

In reality, so few pay much tax at that rate anyhow, it would mean that the average Mississippi worker was only about $200 a year better off. That would not be enough to by a Subway sandwich each week. 

The Senate plan cannot credibly be called a tax elimination plan. I am not certain that it does much to reduce the amount of tax people pay at all. 

The Senate plan implies a significant reduction in the amount of tax we pay when we get a new car tag. But this is disingenuous. Since most of the car tag tax is local, the state reduction that the Senate implies would mean a reduction in your car tag tax of no more than $5.

The House plan is the only plan under consideration that would give back to Mississippi taxpayers much of the billion dollar surplus in the state budget. The Senate plan, however, leaves politicians free to spend that money instead. Perhaps that is the intention?
  
Taking into account all of the changes proposed, including changes to the sales tax rate, the House plan would leave almost every Mississippian, under pretty much every scenario, better off. It is difficult to see how anyone would be made significantly better off under the Senate plan. I fear that the tax plan that the Senate has proposed risks undermining the credibility of those calling for tax breaks altogether. We are all familiar with politicians who run campaigns against “the swamp” but then disappear to DC to enjoy lunch with lobbyists. How do you imagine voters would react when they discover that the car tag tax reduction they are being sold as part of the Senate plan will only reduce their car tag by $5? 

We are at a critical moment in the future of our state, and I hope that our lawmakers will do the right thing and seize this chance to make our state properly competitive. Unless our lawmakers find a way of coming together behind a plan that actually lifts the tax burden, our state will continue to lag behind. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

(Jackson, MS): The Mississippi Center for Public Policy continues to push for the elimination of the State Income Tax.

"The House has produced a plan that hands back to taxpayers much of the billion-dollar surplus in the state budget. Unfortunately, the counter-proposal that the Senate has now come up with leaves politicians free to spend that money instead," said President & CEO Douglas Carswell. "The Senate plan cannot credibly be called a tax elimination plan. I am not certain that it does much to reduce the amount of tax people pay at all."

Under the Mississippi House of Representatives tax plan:

• A Mississippian making a gross income of $40,000 a year would get an approximate $1,500 reduction in taxes through eliminating the income tax, according to a summary published by the House. This translates to an approximate net income increase of 3.8%. That would leave Mississippi workers with more money each month to spend on themselves and their families.  It would make our state tax competitive, like Tennessee and Texas, neither of which have a state income tax anymore. 

Underthe Mississippi Senate tax plan:

• A Mississippian making a gross income of $40,000 a year would get an approximate $260 reduction in taxes. This would be a mere 0.65% net income increase.
• In addition, although the Senate plan removes the 4% bracket from the income tax, there is no path in the plan that aims towards the total elimination of the state income tax.

Senior Director of Policy & Communications Hunter Estes said, "Mississippians deserve to keep more of their own money. We’re glad that our legislators are coming together to recognize this. However, one of these proposals is far stronger than the other. Our political leaders ought to stick to the promises made to their constituents and commit to a full repeal of the income tax, as proposed within the House plan."

The Mississippi Center for Public Policy believes the state needs real tax real tax relief, and repealing the income tax would be both a moral and economic good, leading to higher incomes, competitiveness, and prosperity for all Mississippians.

While both the Senate and House plans give commendable tax cut proposals, the House plan carries the most promise as a catalyst for true tax relief and long-term growth. Rather than merely giving Mississippians tax breaks that are well-intentioned but non-transformative, the time has come for state leaders to give the people meaningful tax relief.

For media inquiries, please reach out to Stone Clanton, [email protected].

Tax cuts and reforms can be implemented from several angles. In Mississippi, the most transformative place to start would be by repealing a current tax that taxes people’s livelihoods, commonly known as the income tax. The Mississippi House Representatives and the Senate have presented separate tax cut plans, but not all tax plans are created equal.

Determining the extent of the income tax repeal has been influenced by many factors. However, among the most significant of these factors is determining a balance. The state needs a balance that gives Mississippians impactful tax reform while maintaining a fiscally responsible budget. Without keeping this balance, the tax reform proposal will either focus on the state budget so much that it does not give meaningful tax cuts. Or the tax cuts will go so far that government budgets are jeopardized. This is the paradigm that the House and Senate tax plans should be reviewed through.

Comparing the benefits of each plan for individual Mississippians

In the first place, it is essential to consider how large a tax cut would need to be in order for it even to make a difference in the lives of Mississippians. To quantify the impact that each tax reform package could have, it can be helpful to compare tax cuts against what the private sector defines as a meaningful pay raise.

According to the Conference Board, a world-respected analytics organization that tracks pay raise trends, median salary increases sit at approximately 3.5 percent. In other words, income increases substantially below this amount are below what the private sector might consider to be a meaningful increase in income.

Under the House plan, a Mississippian making a gross income of $40,000 a year would get an approximate $1,500 reduction in taxes through eliminating the income tax, according to a summary published by the House of Representatives. This translates to an approximate net income increase of 3.8 percent. Thus, such an increase would be something Mississippians could genuinely benefit from, just as they might benefit from a similar pay raise at work.

This is contrasted with the Senate plan. Under the Senate plan, a Mississippian making a gross income of $40,000 a year would get an approximate $260 reduction in taxes. This would be a mere 0.65 percent net income increase, which is hardly something that would bring substantial tax relief. In addition, although the Senate plan removes the 4 percent bracket from the income tax, there is no path in the plan that aims towards the total elimination of the state income tax.

 A broad tax cut cannot be called transformative for Mississippi incomes if it is not even the equivalent of a basic pay raise. Thus, when comparing the two plans, the Senate plan is less effective than the House plan when the two plans are measured in light of their positive impact on everyday Mississippians. Tax cuts would be good for Mississippians, even in small amounts. However, a tax reform proposal that does not accomplish its stated goal to give a meaningful reduction in taxes should be revised at a very minimum.

The impact of the tax plans on the state budget and economy

Granted, increases in taxpayers’ take-home income may greatly benefit Mississippi on an individual level, but some would look back to the consideration of the two plans from the state budget angle. In determining how much taxes to cut, a key consideration has been whether such tax cuts would have a negative effect on the state’s budget and fiscal responsibility.   

Mississippi’s state budget is in some of the best shape it has ever been in. Some of the funds are due to an influx of federal funds, but the state also has among the highest state tax revenue collections it has ever had. Thus, while some may argue that it is not a good time for a widespread tax cut and removal of the income tax, it is unlikely that a better time will come about in the foreseeable future.

Instead of the state government simply spending the money itself, money is in the best position when it is in the hands of the private sector. According to the Mercatus Center, several studies have suggested that while private sector investment grows the economy, government spending can actually harm the economy in some cases, by pushing out the private sector in favor of government programs.

Additionally, in light of the excess revenues, it is fiscally responsible to put the money back into the hands of the people. In the wake of the economic struggles of the pandemic, along with the challenges of inflation and Bidenomics, the time has come for Mississippians to at least get meaningful tax relief from their own state.

After all, if an elected government has a balanced budget and an excess surplus, what better course of action than to return the money to the taxpayers it came from? The House plan does the best job at accomplishing this.

It's time for real tax relief in Mississippi

Mississippi needs real tax relief. While both the Senate and House plans give commendable tax cut proposals for the state's people, the House plan carries the most promise as a catalyst for true tax relief and long-term growth. Rather than merely giving Mississippians tax breaks that are well-intentioned but non-transformative, the time has come for state leaders to give the people meaningful tax relief.

The average person would agree that incentives affect behavior, though governments seem to never take a hint when it comes to things like stimulus checks and extended unemployment benefits – People will quit working when you give them money to stay home.

A new report by the Foundation for Government Accountability covers Mississippi’s “economic comeback” following the ending of its expanded unemployment benefits.

“In early 2021, Mississippi was facing the worst labor shortage in state history. By May, Mississippi businesses had more than 84,000 open jobs across the state – a record high at the time. In fact, there were more open jobs than people looking for work. Meanwhile, nearly 80,000 Mississippians were still collecting unemployment benefits – more than 10 times as many as were on the program before the pandemic hit.”

Just as any “free money” would, the federal unemployment bonuses incentivized people to stay home, rather than to return to work. Individuals were collecting more in taxpayer-funded benefits than the average Mississippian earned in wages at a full-time job. With unemployment benefits paying people to stay home, unemployment hit a high, therefore employers struggled to fill open positions, resulting in the labor shortage high. Taxpayers were paying, roughly, a terrible $38 million in benefits each week.

On May 10, 2021, Governor Reeves announced that the state was ending the federal unemployment expansions. Following the announcement, work search activities immediately spiked, with Mississippi businesses hiring more than 72,000 workers in the month of June alone. This was the largest hiring spree in its history. One week after the expanded benefits expired, the costs of taxpayer-funded benefits plummeted to just $2.8 million.

“As one of the first states to opt-out of the federal bonus and expansions, Mississippi deserves credit for setting the stage for other states to follow suit, and for Congress to eventually end the expansions nationwide.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The issues of government administrative costs can often get enormously complicated, but in some cases, the issues can be fairly easy to grasp. For example, despite having a lower population than most other states, and a much smaller education budget, Mississippi’s Superintendent of Education receives among the highest salary of any state superintendent in the country.

Representative Nick Bain has introduced a bill to change that. House Bill 415 is a bill to cap the salary of the State Superintendent of Education to no more than 150% of the Governor’s salary. Senators Dennis DeBar, Angela Burkes Hill, and Chris McDaniel have introduced similar legislation in the upper chamber. The bills would save taxpayers money and direct more funding into the classroom. The Governor’s current salary is set at $122,160. The Superintendent’s salary is $300,000. 

In an interview with the Mississippi Center for Public Policy, Representative Bain noted: “For me it is hard to justify her making that much. We have teachers in the classrooms with our children, who work their fingers to the bone, and they barely get by. It’s time we take a hard look at how she gets paid.” Representative Bain’s bill would lower the salary to a maximum of $183,240. This would place the Superintendent’s salary closer in line with the heads of other agencies in the state and the state education superintendents of other states.

Such actions by the legislature are applaudable. In 2021, MCPP released the “Fat Cat Report,” which outlined the top 50 state and local government salaries in Mississippi and found that many administrators within the education system made amongst the highest salaries in the state.

This coincides with an earlier report released by the State Auditor, which found that administrative costs have seen an overall increase. The report concluded that such funds could have been put back into the classroom, to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars. It is also important to note that while the costs of education superintendents and other administrators were included in the increased costs, such cost increases do not include actual teachers, which are categorized as an inside-the-classroom cost.

While government agencies and administrators often insist on the need for increased funding, a good place to start might just be by decreasing the salaries of overpaid administrators. There is no defensible case for Mississippi’s State Superintendent of Education to make far more than the superintendents of other states, particularly when the state has consistently had education budget challenges.