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The state Senate on Friday with no debate unanimously passed a $210-million teacher pay raise, but the entire Black Caucus did not vote because its members walked out in protest of a critical race theory bill passed earlier.

Senate Bill 2444 would provide an average teacher salary increase of $4,700 over two years and restructure the way teachers are paid to provide higher salaries in the long term.

With the state budget flush largely from federal government pandemic spending, the state Senate and House now have competing teacher pay raise bills. Either would be one of the largest teacher pay raises in state history, with the House proposal at $219 million, providing raises of $4,000 to $6,000 a year.

“This will hopefully incentivize people to go into the teaching field and incentivize those already teaching to stay and to stay in Mississippi,” said Senate Education Chairman Dennis DeBar, R-Leakesville. He said teachers and experts have called for lawmakers to “remove some of the stagnation” in teacher salaries. The House plan would provide sizeable pay increases for teachers at five-year intervals.

After DeBar introduced the bill on Friday, Sen. Philip Moran, R-Kiln, successfully offered a motion to prohibit debate and vote immediately. Senate Bill 2444 then passed unanimously, 35-0, but with 14 members of the Senate’s Black Caucus having left before the bill was taken up.

Mississippi’s teacher pay by several metrics is the lowest in the nation and the state has been grappling with a teacher shortage. Nationally, nearly 50% of new teachers leave the profession within their first five years, according to the National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future.

Both legislative proposals aim to increase starting teachers’ salaries, and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, House Speaker Philip Gunn and Gov. Tate Reeves have all promised “significant” teacher raises. Reeves proposed a smaller, $3,300 increase over two years.

On Friday, Hosemann in a statement said: “Teachers open the gates of the minds of our future. I am thankful for the work of Chairman DeBar in listening to teachers to devise a pay system that begins the long necessary journey to monetarily rewarding their efforts.”

The Senate plan would bring the starting salary for teachers up to $40,000 and includes raises of $1,325 to $1,624 at five-year intervals as teachers gain more experience. The House plan includes a starting salary of $43,000 and a $2,000 raise for teacher assistants. The House plan would boost starting teacher pay above the Southeastern and national averages.

Each chamber has passed its own measure, sending it to the other. Most likely, a combination of the two will ultimately pass in the 2022 legislative session.

After the vote on Friday, House Minority Leader Derrick Simmons issued a statement about the Black Caucus walkout and the subsequent vote on teacher pay.

“Senate Democrats have always led the charge on teacher pay raises and have championed establishment of fair career plans that show our appreciation for the job our teachers do,” Simmons said. “However, the roll call vote today to pass Senate Bill 2444 – our teacher pay plan – was quickly called up and passed without discussion immediately after members of our caucus walked out in protest of a vague bill that would ban ‘critical race theory’ in Mississippi’s public schools and universities without creating boundaries. We felt it was unfair to have such a bill introduced or passed as it really demeans a large segment of our population. Though our votes were not counted because of the chain of events, Senate Democrats stand in support of raises for our educators.”

Use the calculator below to determine your pay raise under this new legislation:

READ MORE: ‘I was not expecting anything close to this:’ Teachers react to pay raise proposals

The post Senate passes teacher pay raise appeared first on Mississippi Today.

Walmart is opening its third distribution warehouse in Mississippi this spring, which the mega chain says is part of its plan to grow its supply chain in the South and stay on pace with the online shopping boom. 

Walmart is spending about $90 million on the new 1-million-square-foot Olive Branch warehouse. Walmart says the new warehouse will bring 250 new jobs to DeSoto County. The new complex will house millions of items, according to Walmart, and ship them directly to shoppers. 

“Northwest Mississippi is an ideal location for companies with extensive shipping needs, like Walmart,” said Laura Hipp, Mississippi Development Authority interim director. “The region offers an abundance of transportation options as well as a dedicated workforce.”

The warehouse is still under construction. DeSoto County and Olive Branch have offered partial property tax exemptions to Walmart. DeSoto County says Walmart has yet to put in an application to cash in on that incentive. 

Walmart will also likely receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash rebates back from the state through Advantage Jobs Rebate Program over the next decade. The program allows companies to get back part of their investment in exchange for job creation. Walmart agreed to create a minimum of 202 jobs with annual salaries of at least $39,659 as part of the program. 

“Hundreds of employees from our area teaming with Walmart to successfully operate this new fulfillment center speaks volumes about Olive Branch’s workforce potential and amenities,” said Ken Adams, the city’s mayor.

Walmart operates 86 retail stores and more than 25,000 workers in Mississippi. The company is hiring for salaried positions now at the new warehouse, according to its website. 

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“If history and science have taught us anything, it is that passion and desire are not the same as truth.” E. O. WILSON

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The Mississippi House with an overwhelming, bipartisan vote and little debate on Thursday passed an equal pay bill, which would provide state legal recourse for employees paid less for the same work based on sex.

House Bill 770 passed 111-5 and now heads to the Senate, where a similar measure, Senate Bill 2451, is also pending. Both bills would create a state “actionable right” for any employee paid less for equal work based on sex. Federal law already provides such a right, but taking an employer to task in federal court is a more difficult, and often more costly task for aggrieved employees.

Mississippi is the last state in the nation without an equal pay provision in state law. Bipartisan support has been growing for such a law, but past efforts failed. Opponents’ stated rationale has been that there are already federal equal pay laws, and that they don’t want to put undue regulations on businesses or cause unwarranted lawsuits.

During brief floor debate on Thursday, Rep. Dana Criswell, R-Olive Branch, asked Judiciary A Chairwoman Angela Cockerham, author of the bill, “Do you know how many women have had to use the federal law in the last year?”

“Sometimes we pass laws just for the sake of passing laws,” Criswell said. “We are passing a law now and we don’t even know if it’s going to help.”

Cockerham, an Independent from Magnolia, responded: “If it’s one woman, gentleman, it’s one too many.” She asked male lawmakers to think about their daughters, if they came home from their first job and told them they were making less money than a coworker with the same experience doing the same work.

Rep. Dan Eubanks, R-Walls, asked Cockerham if the bill takes into account “maternity leave … differential costs for the employer for maternity leave” and whether the measure would result in men requesting maternity leave for parity.

“Men can already get maternity leave now,” Cockerham responded. “… This bill does apply to men, too. If they are doing the same work and not being paid as much, it would apply.”

U.S. Census data shows women make up 51.5% of the population in Mississippi and more than half of its workforce. They are the primary breadwinners for a majority — 53.5% — of families in this state, which is the highest rate in the nation.

READ MORE: Equal pay for women: Is this the year Mississippi will join rest of the nation?

But women working full time in Mississippi earn 27% less than men, far greater than the 19% gap nationwide. That gap grows worse for Black and Latina women in Mississippi, who are paid just 54 cents for every dollar paid to white men.

Women make up nearly 60% of those in Mississippi’s workforce living below the poverty line. The state has continually ranked worst or near-worst in most every ranking for working women.

Those voting no on the House bill Thursday were: Criswell and Reps. Joel Bomgar, R-Madison, Chris Brown, R-Nettleton, Steve Hopkins, R-Southaven, and Brady Williamson, R-Oxford.

Rep. Carolyn Crawford, R-Pass Christian voted present. Reps. Eubanks, Tracy Arnold, R-Booneville and Steve Horne, R-Meridian, did not vote. Reps. Larry Byrd, R-Petal and Robin Robinson, R-Laurel, were absent.

The post House passes equal pay with bipartisan vote appeared first on Mississippi Today.

BILOXI – The state’s largest regional tourism bureau has chosen a new director from Texas to take over after the abrupt and controversial exit of its previous leader three months ago. 

Judy Young, who most recently worked marketing a city outside San Antonio, will begin her new role as Coastal Mississippi’s executive director on Feb. 1. Young has been working in the tourism industry for the last two decades. 

“I was looking for a dynamic destination and it’s an exciting opportunity,” Young told Mississippi Today. “I was always a big travel person. I love travel and tourism. It’s the greatest education there is out there. It feeds the soul.”

Young was the vice president of the visitor’s bureau in New Braunfels, Texas. In her new job, she will be marketing a region rather than one city. Coastal Mississippi covers three counties in a partnership between Hancock, Jackson and Harrison counties on the Gulf Coast. 

“Judy is an incredibly accomplished tourism leader and will bring a wealth of industry experience and knowledge to the organization,” Coastal Mississippi commission board president Brooke Shoultz said in a statement. “At this pivotal time for the tourism industry, Judy’s leadership will undoubtedly prove invaluable to the continued growth and prosperity of our destination.”

The Gulf Coast bureau’s previous director Milton Segarra announced his abrupt resignation in September 2021 following criticisms that his annual salary of $225,000 was too high. 

With Young’s appointment, commissioners decided to scale back the executive director salary to $175,000 per year.  

READ MORE: Mississippi’s largest tourism board is on the brink of collapse

Segarra also had a prior rift with the board that governs the tourism bureau when they voted not to act on a complaint he filed regarding a remark made by one of its members. 

On the heels of Segarra’s resignation, Harrison County leaders were at the center of more disconnect and in-fighting among board members and local leadership. The flare-up threatened the three-county bureau’s future enough that 11 casino executives wrote a joint letter to the group begging them to find a path forward. 

In the fall, Shoultz released a statement saying the commissioners resolved all misunderstandings and were committed to the regional tourism model. 

“They regret not meeting sooner during the many months of misinformation and rumors that caused tension and divide,” Shoultz said in October.  

Coastal Mississippi is funded by a 2-3% tax on hotel stays across Harrison, Jackson and Hancock counties. In a budget report to Harrison County made late last year, Coastal Mississippi said it had about $5.2 million in its budget from the taxes. 

The bulk of that tax revenue — about 80% of Coastal Mississippi’s funding — comes from Harrison County’s casino resorts and hotels. As a result, Harrison County has the largest voting bloc within the board of commissioners that approves Coastal Mississippi’s spending. 

Young told Mississippi Today she is used to navigating multiple public bodies while leading a tourism bureau. She has also been impressed with the passion from local leaders and business owners. 

“I’m excited there’s so much engagement,” Young said. “It’s always a heavy challenge if there’s no passion from stakeholders about their destination.” 

Young said she and her husband — a Mississippi native — were house hunting and exploring “all 62 miles” of the Coast for the next few days. 

“There is a great balance of generational investments and new economic development here,” Young said, “and amazing special events.”

The post After rocky period, Mississippi’s largest tourism bureau hires new director appeared first on Mississippi Today.

A proposal that would provide teachers an average salary increase of $4,700 over two years passed both the Senate Education and Appropriations committees Thursday and could be considered by the full Senate as early as Friday morning.

The House already has passed its teacher pay proposal and sent it to the Senate. The leadership of both chambers have said providing a substantial pay raise for teachers is one of their top priorities during the 2022 session. Either plan, if passed, would represent one of the largest pay raises for teachers in history.

More than likely, a combination of the two plans will ultimately pass during the 2022 session and be sent to Gov. Tate Reeves, who has said he supports a teacher pay raise, though his plan is for a smaller increase than what is being proposed by legislators.

The plan passed out of the Education Committee Thursday was first proposed by the chamber’s presiding officer, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, and Sen. Dennis DeBar, R-Leakesville, chair of the Education Committee.

The plan is estimated to cost $210 million over two years. The money spent in the first year – $166 million – would adjust the salary ladder to provide a “significant” raise for teachers, DeBar said. The money in the second year would be to provide a $1,000 across-the-board raise for teachers.

The ladder, which is written in state law, determines the state compensation each year for teachers based on years of experience and education level. Each year, with no action from the Legislatures, teachers get a small increase – around $500 — as they garner another year of experience. Teachers also receive more pay based on their academic degrees. Currently teachers in their first three years of service do not receive an automatic increase. Under the Senate plan, they would.

The plan also would provide significantly larger raises for each five-year increment —  $1,325 for a teacher with a bachelor’s degree, $1,425 for a master’s, $1,525 for a specialist and $1,624 for a doctorate. The teachers would automatically get the larger step increases every five years and, importantly, the larger incremental increases would become part of their regular pay. Under existing law, teachers receive an additional $2,000 annually in their pay when they reach 25 years of service.

“We are giving teachers incentives to go into the profession and to stay in the profession,” DeBar said.

The House plan, which would be enacted in one year instead of the two years in the Senate bill, has an estimated costs of $219 million.

The plan would increase the starting pay for teachers from $37,000 to $43,124 annually compared to $39,897 for the region and $41,163 for the nation, according to information provided by the House leadership.

The bill also provides a $2,000 salary hike for teacher assistants. The Senate plan at this point does not provide a pay increase for teacher assistants.

Pay for Mississippi teachers, based on various metrics, is the lowest in the nation.

The post Senate teacher pay plan passes committees; next stop before full chamber appeared first on Mississippi Today.

The Senate Education Committee passed legislation Thursday banning the teaching of critical race theory in K-12 public schools and in the state’s public universities and community colleges. If made into law, opponents say the bill is likely unconstitutional. 

SB 2113 is among a litany of bills filed during the 2022 session that seek to ban the controversial subject. Both House Speaker Philip Gunn and Gov. Tate Reeves have spoken forcefully against critical race theory. They have vowed to ban the theory, which they say seeks to divide people by race, from being taught in schools. Supporters of critical race theory say that it is a misunderstanding of the academic framework, which examines the role racism plays in systems like health care, education, housing. 

The bill states no public school or public college or university “shall make a distinction or classification of students based on account of race” and cites specifically that critical race theory is something the legislation would “prohibit.”

At the K-12 level, the Mississippi state Department of Education has maintained for months that critical race theory is not taught. Rather, it’s a concept primarily discussed at the university-level — and that is where legal experts say the bill potentially violates the state and U.S. constitutions. 

It is unusual for the Legislature to specify the curriculum of public schools, especially public universities. Section 213 of the state Constitution mandates that the public universities “shall be under the management and control” of the Board of Trustees for the State Institutions of Higher Learning.

The bill likely infringes on the contractual right that faculty, especially those with tenure, have to academic freedom, said Matthew Steffey, who teaches constitutional law at Mississippi College.  

“Universities are set up with promises of academic freedom as part of their accreditation process,” Steffey said. “It’s extremely problematic for state law to try to infringe on the existing contractual rights and commitment at the individual professor level and at the university level. 

“Imagine a statute that says a biology teacher can’t teach evolution in a university biology class,” Steffey added. “That would severely constrain a university professor’s academic freedom.” 

Jarvis Dortch, the executive director of the ACLU of Mississippi, said K-12 teachers may not be able to challenge the bill if it becomes law, but that it will depend on the rules and regulations to enforce it put in place by MDE. Compared to university faculty, K-12 teachers have a more limited right to free speech in the classroom because they teach curriculum that is set by the state. 

“I think we expect much more debate and dialogue in a college setting than we do in K-12,” Dortch said. 

READ MORE: Is Mississippi really removing civil rights history from its teaching standards?

As written, Dortch said the bill is so vague it’s hard to tell how it might impact students and faculty at the university-level beyond placing limits on speech. He pointed to a line in the bill that would prevent public schools and universities from making “a distinction or classification of students based on account of race.” 

“I’m not sure what that means but I know it can touch on a lot of things from the law school at Ole Miss recognizing the Black Law Students Association or having a diversity program, any type of affirmative action program,” he said. 

The IHL board did not respond to a request for comment from Mississippi Today by press time. 

During Thursday’s committee hearing, Sen. Michael McLendon, R-Hernando, told members of the Senate Education Committee Thursday he had heard from many constituents concerned about the issue in the DeSoto County public schools.

“I have had so many of my constituents ask me if this is going on in our schools? Is there ever a chance of it going on?” said McLendon, who is the primary author of the bill. 

Senate Education Chair Dennis DeBar, R-Leakesville, asked McLendon if “basically this is a simple bill to ensure everything being taught in our classrooms is color blind, no preference of anything.”

“Absolutely,” McLendon responded.

Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, said, “There is a lot that needs to be said about this retrograde bill, about racism, about race and power in Mississippi.” But Blount said he would withhold those comments since the full Senate was about to convene, cutting short the Education Committee.

Sen. David Jordan, D-Greenwood, a veteran of the state’s civil rights struggles, did ask why the legislation is needed.

“This to me is not necessary. It creates more problems than it solves,” Jordan said. “Teach the subject matter…As a retired teacher I think it does more harm than it does good.”

The post Anti-CRT bill passed out of Senate committee likely unconstitutional, opponents say appeared first on Mississippi Today.

The 2022 regular session of the Mississippi Legislature began Jan. 4 and is in full swing.

After the Jan. 17 deadline to file general legislation, the House had 1,035 bills assigned to committee; in the Senate, 887. Spending and revenue bills face later deadlines. The deadline for each chamber to pass its own bills and send them to the other chamber is Feb. 11.

To check the status of a bill in the Mississippi Legislature, click here.

Some bills of interest this year include:

Teacher pay raise

Senate Bill 2444 would increase teacher pay by years of experience and level of certification. It would raise pay an average of $4,700 over two years and restructure the way teachers are paid to provide them higher salaries in the long-term.

READ MORE: Senate leaders unveil historic plan to significantly increase teacher pay

House Bill 530 would increase all teachers’ pay by $4,000 to $6,000 a year and boost starting teachers’ pay from $37,000 a year to $43,125, above both the Southeastern and national averages.

READ MORE: House unveils its own massive teacher pay raise, tops Senate proposal

Medical marijuana

Senate Bill 2095, overwhelmingly passed by the Senate and pending in the House, would allow chronically ill Mississippians to use medical cannabis. It would replace a program approved by voters in 2020, but shot down by the state Supreme Court on a technicality.

READ MORE: Senate overwhelmingly passes Mississippi medical marijuana

Equal pay

Senate Bill 2451 and House Bill 770 would prohibit Mississippi employers from paying people of different sexes different pay for the same work. Mississippi is now the only state in the nation without an equal pay law, after Alabama passed one in 2019. Women working full time in Mississippi earn 27% less than men, far greater than the 19% gap nationwide. That gap grows worse for Black and Latina women in Mississippi, who are paid just 54 cents for every dollar paid to white men.

READ MORE: Will Mississippi continue to short-change women on equal pay?

Education and race

HB437 is among multiple bills filed that would prohibit the teaching of critical race theory in kindergarten through 12th grade schools. Some of the bills, including Senate Bill 2113, also would prohibit the teaching of critical race theory on the university level. State Department of Education officials have said critical race theory, which strives to explore the impact of racial discrimination on various aspects of society, is not being taught in the public schools.

HB750 would require the state Department of Education to develop a curriculum on African American studies and racial equality for the public schools.

College financial aid

SB2695 would require state financial aid to be based primarily on need.

Voting

HC20 is among multiple pieces of legislation that would restore voting rights to people convicted of certain felonies once they complete their sentence.

HC16 would move state elections, such as for governor, county offices and others, to presidential election years.

HB377 would restore voting rights to military veterans who were convicted of certain felonies.

HB893 would prohibit public officials from changing political parties during their term in office.

HC19 would impose term limits on legislators.

HB22 would allow no-excuse early voting.

HB292 would allow online voter registration.

Health care

HB108 would expand Medicaid as is allowed under federal law to provide health care coverage for primarily the working poor.

SB2107 would allow an exemption from vaccinations for children enrolling in the public schools based on parental or religious objections.

SB2726 would prevent entities receiving state funds from imposing a COVID-19 vaccine mandate.

Criminal justice

SB2407 would allow employs of people convicted of crimes to provide reports to probation officers to prevent the need for the employee to leave work to report to a probation officer.

SB2244 would make many people convicted to life in prison when they were under the age of 18 eligible for parole after 20 years.

HB560 would make it easier for people convicted under the age of 21 to earn supervised release.

Early childhood education

HB875 would develop a statewide universal pre-kindergarten program.

Social media

SB2573 would require social media companies to file report with the Secretary of State’s office detailing the reasons for restricting candidates and elected officials from their social media platform.

Initiative process

SC 521 would restore the initiative process to allow citizens to gather signatures to bypass the Legislature and place issues on the ballot. The proposal would change the language that the Supreme Court ruled this past May invalidated the initiative process. The process also would allow the initiative process to be used to change state law or the Constitution. The old process allowed the initiative to be used only to alter the Constitution.

Social policy

SB2356, dubbed the Real You Act, would prohibit people convicted of crimes from changing their name while incarcerated and would require medical approval or other approval for a minor to legally change his or her sexual identity.

The post Mississippi Legislature 2022: Bills to watch appeared first on Mississippi Today.

The House on Wednesday passed a Senate medical marijuana proposal, but only after changing the bill to lower the amount of cannabis a patient could get.

The amended bill now goes back to the Senate. If the Senate does not approve the House changes to the bill, it will move to conference committee, where leaders from both chambers will negotiate the specifics of a final bill.

The House vote on Wednesday was 104-14 on the amended Senate Bill 2095.

“This bill is about the people who are suffering,” said House Drug Policy Chairman Lee Yancey. “That has gotten lost in this debate … These are debilitating conditions, not something you can fake and go to a doctor and get cannabis.”

READ MORE: Senate vote on Mississippi medical marijuana bill expected Thursday. Here’s a look at the bill.

The House lowered the amount of “flower” a patient could receive from 3.5 ounces a month to 3 ounces a month. The Senate had previously lowered the amount from 4 ounces in its original draft to 3.5 ounces. The lowered amount is likely a nod to Gov. Tate Reeves, who had threatened a veto and said it allowed patients too much marijuana and would be a toehold for recreational use and the black market.

READ MORE: Senate overwhelmingly passes Mississippi medical marijuana

The House also removed the Department of Agriculture from any oversight of the program. State Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson had publicly objected to his office participating in the program.

In addition, the House amended the Senate bill to say that growing operations could be located in areas with local commercial zoning. The original bill said they could locate only in industrial and agricultural zoned areas.

Lawmakers are attempting to reenact a medical marijuana program after voters overwhelmingly passed one — Initiative 65 — in 2020, only to have it shot down on a technicality by the state Supreme Court. But the Legislature in this conservative state has struggled for years with the issue, despite growing voter sentiment that the state join most others in legalizing marijuana for medical use.

READ MORE: How regulated should Mississippi medical marijuana be?

House members unsuccessfully attempted numerous other amendments to the Senate marijuana bill in both committee and on the floor, but they failed. They included measures to provide quicker expungement of criminal convictions to allow people to participate in the program, and to reduce or eliminate taxes on medical marijuana. Similar amendments had been unsuccessfully offered in the Senate when it passed the bill.

The bill allows patients with more than two dozen chronic, debilitating conditions, such as cancer and epilepsy, Alzheimer’s disease and spastic quadriplegia to be certified to purchase and use medical marijuana. Conditions can be added to the list only by the Department of Health. It allows physicians, certified nurse practitioners, physician’s assistants and optometrists to certify patients for cannabis use. A patient has to have an in-person assessment, a “bona fide relationship” with the practitioner and a follow up assessment within six months. Only physicians can certify minors for use. For people aged 18-25 — most susceptible to abuse of the drug, drafters said — a doctor plus another practitioner have to sign off on certification.

The bill applies the state sales tax (currently 7%) to retail sales of cannabis. It also applies a 5% excise for cultivation and creates a tiered system of licenses and fees for growers and processors. Money collected goes into the state general fund.

The Senate bill has a prohibition on lawmakers voting on the measure or their spouses having an interest in a cannabis business for one year. Rep. Dan Eubanks, R-Walls, tried unsuccessfully to make that prohibition permanent and prevent lawmakers from “cashing in” and provide “integrity and transparency.” His amendment failed on a 69-39 vote.

Rep. Omeria Scott, D-Laurel, unsuccessfully offered an amendment to allow outdoor growing to more easily allow Mississippi farmers to participate in the program. Like similar amendments offered in the Senate, it failed. Bill drafters said that indoor growing allows the program to be more easily monitored and regulated and prevent black market and organized crime infiltration of the program.

The post House amends Mississippi medical marijuana bill, sends it back to Senate appeared first on Mississippi Today.

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