Jackson Free Press

[verbatim] Governor Haley Barbour is bringing together state agency heads, legislators and local government officials as well as inviting the public to participate in a Mississippi Stimulus Summit on April 16.

The summit is scheduled from 2 p.m.-4 p.m. at the Jackson Convention Complex following the annual meeting of the Mississippi Economic Council; no reservations are necessary.

"Over the past few weeks, some information has been made available from Washington on how state agencies should prepare to deal with their portions of funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act," Governor Barbour said. "I hope by mid-April the federal government will have provided enough specific guidance so final plans can be made to maximize the use of these one-time funds."

At the summit, participants are expected to detail steps that are either already being taken or planned by many state agencies, including the Mississippi Development Authority, the State Department of Education, Department of Environmental Quality, Department of Human Services, Department of Public Safety, Department of Employment Security, Department of Transportation, and others.

Governor Barbour has asked each agency's senior managers to present an overview of its intentions and be prepared to respond to questions from the audience. In addition, inquiries may be e-mailed to a special address set up for that purpose, [e-mail missing]. And, the Governor's office has set up a website dedicated to providing information, http://stimulus.ms.gov

The economic stimulus bill provides supplemental federal appropriations for infrastructure investment, education, energy efficiency and science, assistance to unemployed workers, state and local fiscal stabilization, and other purposes.

Previous Comments

ID

145453

Comment

There's an interesting move.

Author

Ironghost

Date

2009-04-02T11:33:41-06:00

ID

145463

Comment

Indeed! Barbour providing transparency. I'm wondering what the catch might be.

Author

Ronni_Mott

Date

2009-04-02T12:04:00-06:00

ID

145469

Comment

I wonder why he bothering. He will do whatever he wants to do anyway.

Author

jacksonmissmom

Date

2009-04-02T13:25:12-06:00

ID

145479

Comment

Well, Barbour isn't foolish. He may be looking at ways to steer the money into projects that won't require cutbacks a couple of years from now. It could be an effort to remind Agency Heads who runs the Government, as well.

Author

Ironghost

Date

2009-04-02T15:13:42-06:00