http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/ Yall Politics - The Definitive Guide to Politics in Mississippi en staff@yallpolitics.com Copyright 2013 2013-06-18T13:36:59+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/coopwood_to_mbj_gov._bryants_comments_taken_out_of_context/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/coopwood_to_mbj_gov._bryants_comments_taken_out_of_context/#When:12:36:59Z Coopwood to MBJ: Gov. Bryant’s comments taken out of context Let’s take a closer look at Gov. Phil Bryant’s comments he made a couple of weeks ago when he responded to the question, “How did America get so mediocre?” As we all know, Bryant has been demonized by the liberal press for his response… well, the part of his response on which they chose to focus because it served their purpose in being able to define him as “ the type of conservative who boxes women into a corner with mixed messages,” as one Jackson publication put it. Bryant said, “You know, I think both parents started working, and the mom is in the workplace.” That’s the fragment, which was extricated from the remainder of his response and started the firestorm. Bryant continued on with many clarifying statements, saying, “That’s not a bad thing….They’re pursuing their careers. It’s a great American story now, that women are certainly in the workplace.” And, ”I think there was that loving, nurturing opportunity – that both parents had a little more time.” He goes on to describe his own childhood and in an era when Bryant says both parents had more time, and compares that era to today, where he acknowledges, “In today’s society, parents are so challenged. Not just the mom, but the mom and dad. They’re working overtime. They’re trying to balance both of them in the workplace.” Scott Coopwood is owner and publisher of the Delta Business Journal, Delta Magazine, and The Cleveland Current, based in Cleveland, Mississippi. He can be reached at scott@coopwood.net. Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials 2013-06-18T12:36:59+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/state_poised_to_end_year_with_surplus1/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/state_poised_to_end_year_with_surplus1/#When:12:35:36Z State poised to end year with surplus JACKSON – House Appropriations Chair Herb Frierson, R-Poplarville, said the state is poised to end the fiscal year later this month with a “substantial” surplus, based on May tax collections. For May, the state collected $170.9 million, or 44.5 percent, more than the amount the state’s fiscal leaders projected would be collected. Those official projections were used during the 2012 legislative session to fund state government for the current fiscal year. Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal 6/17/13 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-18T12:35:36+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/state_poised_to_end_year_with_surplus/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/state_poised_to_end_year_with_surplus/#When:12:32:05Z State poised to end year with surplus 2013-06-18T12:32:05+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/hosemann_ariz._ruling_has_no_effect_on_ms_voter_id/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/hosemann_ariz._ruling_has_no_effect_on_ms_voter_id/#When:12:31:13Z Hosemann: Ariz. ruling has no effect on MS voter ID Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann’s office on Monday said a U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down an Arizona law is not pertinent to Mississippi’s pending voter ID law. “Mississippi uses the federal form for voter registration developed by the (Election Assistance Commission) which does not require documentary proof of citizenship,” said Hosemann spokeswoman Pamela Weaver. ”The EAC form only requires the applicant state, under penalty of perjury, that he or she is a U.S. Citizen. Therefore, this ruling has no effect on Mississippi.” The high court on Monday issued a ruling against Arizona’s law, passed as a ballot initiative by voters in 2004, would invalidate a federal voter registration form accepted by all states. The form requires those registering to vote swear they are U.S. citizens. The Arizona law required proof, such as a birth certificate or passport. Geoff Pender Clarion Ledger 6/17/13 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-18T12:31:13+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/video_-_palazzo_pushes_for_border_security/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/video_-_palazzo_pushes_for_border_security/#When:12:30:53Z Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-18T12:30:53+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/failure_to_expand_medicaid_would_be_costly_mistake/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/failure_to_expand_medicaid_would_be_costly_mistake/#When:12:27:01Z Failure to expand Medicaid would be costly mistake The opposition to Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act has steadfastly maintained that states cannot afford to expand medical coverage to their uninsured, low-income residents. So it is big news that the RAND Corp. this month released a report finding that not expanding Medicaid will in fact cost states millions more each year. RAND economists analyzed the financial repercussions of 14 states currently resisting Medicaid expansion. One of the 14 is Mississippi, where we await some action on Medicaid before it expires June 30. The RAND report concludes that failing to expand Medicaid will result in more state spending on uncompensated care: about $1 billion more per year for the 14 states. This $1 billion in costs is in addition to the $8.4 billion that the 14 states will lose in federal matching funds to cover 3.6 million of the nation’s uninsured. Lynn Evans is a past Jackson School Board member and a regular contributing columnist. Clarion Ledger 6/16/13 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-18T12:27:01+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/rep._cecil_brown_new_proposal_gives_clear_choice_on_medicaid/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/rep._cecil_brown_new_proposal_gives_clear_choice_on_medicaid/#When:12:26:18Z Rep. Cecil Brown: New proposal gives clear choice on Medicaid Democrats in the legislature recently offered a compromise proposal to end the standoff on Medicaid expansion. Under our proposal, Mississippi would adopt Republican Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney’s idea for a state based health insurance exchange. We will then use the billions of new federal dollars we will receive under the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) to allow the 300,000 working Mississippians who are currently uninsured and whose income is less than 138% of the federal poverty level to purchase individual private sector health insurance policies through the insurance exchange. There are a number of advantages to this proposal. First, it answers the question of what happens if the federal government reneges on its promise to pay 100% of the cost of Medicaid expansion for the first 3 years and as much as 90% in subsequent years. The answer is simple. If that happens, the insurance premiums don’t get paid and the individuals’ coverage ends. There is no ongoing cost to the state. Secondly, the bulk of the administrative cost of the new program is borne by the private insurance companies who write the policies. The law specifically allows the health insurance exchange to charge a fee to cover these costs. Rep. Cecil Brown Guest columnist Clarion Ledger 6/17/13 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-18T12:26:18+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/multiple_mississippi_cities_fail_to_certify_election_results/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/multiple_mississippi_cities_fail_to_certify_election_results/#When:12:29:34Z State law requires cities to submit their certified election results to the Secretary of State’s Office within five (5) days of the 2013 General Election. The deadline for cities to submit their certified results to the Secretary of State’s office was Tuesday, June 11, 2013. As of the time of this release, forty-seven (47) cities have not submitted their certified election results to the Secretary of State’s Office. “To promote open and public transparency, it is imperative cities timely file their certified election results with the Secretary of State’s Office,” says Secretary Hosemann. “The city and the public have a right to know the final election results, and the city should provide it in a timely fashion.” Certifying election results in a municipal election is a duty of the municipal election commission. Mississippi Code Ann. §23-15-611 requires the Secretary of State’s Office to issue a show cause order to cities who fail to timely file their certified results. Once the show cause order has been issued, cities then have five (5) additional working days to submit their results. The Secretary of State’s Office may petition a court to compel the municipal election commissioners to comply. Please click the following link for a copy of the show cause order: http://sos.ms.gov/links/press_releases/Show%20Cause%20Order.pdf The following cities have failed to timely file their 2013 General Election results with the Secretary of State’s office: Abbeville (Lafayette County) Baldwyn (Lee And Prentiss Counties) Belmont (Tishomingo County) Benoit (Bolivar County) Big Creek (Calhoun County) Chunky (Newton County) Cleveland (Bolivar County) Courtland (Panola County) Crenshaw (Panola & Quitman Counties) Crowder (Panola And Quitman Counties) Dumas (Tippah County) Durant (Holmes County) Ecru (Pontotoc County) Eden (Yazoo County) Falcon (Quitman County) Falkner (Tippah County) Gautier (Jackson County) Glen (Alcorn County) Glendora (Tallahatchie County) Hatley (Monroe County) Hazlehurst (Copiah County) Heidelberg (Jasper County) Indianola (Sunflower County) Jonestown (Coahoma County) Jumpertown (Prentiss County) Lexington (Holmes County) Lumberton (Lamar And Pearl River Lyon (Coahoma County) Maben (Oktibbeha And Webster Counties) Mize (Smith County) Montrose (Jasper County) New Houlka (Chickasaw County) Ocean Springs (Jackson County) Olive Branch (Desoto County) Oxford (Lafayette County) Pace (Bolivar County) Schlater (Leflore County) Shubuta (Clarke County) Silver City (Humphreys County) Slate Springs (Calhoun County) Toccopola (Pontotoc County) Tremont (Itawamba County) Vaiden (Carroll County) Vardaman (Calhoun County) Walnut (Tippah County) Waynesboro (Wayne County) Weir (Choctaw County) Secretary of State’s Office Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-17T12:29:34+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/secretary_of_state_partners_with_realtors_in_mississippi/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/secretary_of_state_partners_with_realtors_in_mississippi/#When:12:25:37Z Jackson, Miss.—Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann is partnering with licensed real estate brokers in Mississippi to actively market tax forfeited properties in the State. “If you want property sold in Mississippi, you sell through a licensed realtor,” says Secretary Hosemann. “The growing number of tax forfeited properties in our State is an epidemic, and I can think of no one better than a licensed Mississippi realtor to help us get these properties back into productive use.” Currently, the Secretary of State’s Office holds over $66.2-Million worth of property forfeited to the State for non-payment of ad valorem taxes. To accelerate the sale of these lands back in the hands of taxpayers, any licensed real estate broker in Mississippi may bid on marketing tax forfeited lands in a particular county for an increased commission rate. “Tax forfeited lands are a drain on the community,” adds Secretary Hosemann. “Placing these lands back in private ownership will generate more revenue for our cities and counties, while cleaning up potential eyesores. Realtors will be able to assist our Agency in expediting the process.’ For more information on the tax forfeited listing agreements, visit the Secretary of State’s website: http://www.sos.ms.gov/page.aspx?s=8&s1=1&s2=7. 5/16/13 Metro, Headlines, ElectedOfficials 2013-06-17T12:25:37+00:00 http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/sam_hall_-_reeves_staffer_makes_good_point_about_my_column_on_medicaid_reau/ http://yallpolitics.com/index.php/yp/post/sam_hall_-_reeves_staffer_makes_good_point_about_my_column_on_medicaid_reau/#When:12:23:57Z Sam Hall - Reeves Staffer Makes Good Point About My Column On Medicaid Reauthorization Laura Hipp with Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves’ office emailed me today in relation to my column on Medicaid reauthorization and funding. Specifically, she offered thoughts on this line: “If the GOP leadership — Bryant, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and House Speaker Philip Gunn — really are dedicated to getting Medicaid reauthorized and funded, then they’ll allow debate on the expansion of Medicaid.” Here’s what Laura wrote me in response to it: During the regular session, the Senate had a debate on Medicaid. Senate Bill 2207, which reauthorized the program for one year, was debated in committee. Sen. Horhn offered an amendment to expand Medicaid coverage, and the committee debated the amendment and voted against the it. The bill moved to the Senate floor where SB 2207 passed without expanding Medicaid. The bill was sent to the House where it was referred to the Rules Committee and died. Lt. Gov. Reeves is ready to work in a special session to pass the same bill reauthorizing Medicaid without expansion if Gov. Bryant calls legislators back to Jackson. Sam Hall 6/16/13 Headlines, DC, ElectedOfficials, Legislature 2013-06-17T12:23:57+00:00