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What Legislation Is Still Alive; What's Dead at the Capitol

Lawmakers have about a week to pass hundreds of bills out of each chamber, after committee chairmen and women made their first round of cuts to proposed legislation this year.

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An Immigration Fight on Multiple Fronts

The City of Jackson's anti-profiling ordinance will stay on the books, as far as Chokwe A. Lumumba is concerned.

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House Passes Equal Pay Amendment, But Its Future Is Unclear

The Mississippi House of Representatives was expecting a leisurely Friday, but when Rep. Mark Baker, R-Brandon, took up House Bill 1241 this morning, things got interesting.

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Surprise! House Targets Attorney General Jim Hood Again

Rep. Mark Baker, R-Brandon, is consistent at least. His annual trip to the podium to limit Attorney General Jim Hood—the only Democrat in a statewide elected office—went well for him ...

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Funding the ‘School Choice’ Lobby

In just one year, the Mississippi Legislature has gone from slightly tweaking its voucher program for students with dyslexia to a push to allow any public-school student to apply for ...

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Proposed Gun Law Would Allow Lawsuits over Conceal-Carry Laws

Mississippians with enhanced concealed-carry licenses, who are required to take an instructional course on firearms training before they receive their license, could file a lawsuit against public entities, like state ...

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Better Together Commission Hires Contractor for JPS Study

The Better Together Commission, an independent group of community leaders and stakeholders tasked with soliciting input from Jackson Public Schools families, hired Insight Education Group to complete an in-depth study ...

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15-Week Abortion Ban Moves Ahead

Abortion would be illegal after 15 weeks in Mississippi if a bill the House of Representatives passed late Friday becomes law.

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What’s in ‘UPS’ Ed Formula, What’s Not?

The Mississippi House Education Chairman, Rep. Richard Bennett, R-Long Beach, repeatedly told House members that the Mississippi Adequate Education Program is too complicated to understand and not reliable for school ...

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Vouchers Could Extend to Any Public School Student Under New Bill

Just before Gov. Phil Bryant declared Jan. 21-27 "School Choice Week," Sen. Gray Tollison's, R-Oxford, voucher-expansion bill dropped. The legislation would vastly expand the use of vouchers—a way to use ...

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Gang Bill Could Increase Prison Costs, Disparately Affect African Americans

Proposed legislation to crack down on gangs statewide could lead to increased prison costs, a move that would counteract the state's progress in decreasing the number of inmates—and taxpayer dollars ...

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Equal Pay Included in Bill Prohibiting Cities from Raising Minimum Wage

An equal pay amendment is included in a bill the Mississippi House of Representatives passed this morning prohibiting cities from raising the state minimum wage.

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Cops Learn to Help Mentally Ill Mississippians

The celebration was small, but the impact is likely to be large. On Friday, Jan. 26, nine local law enforcement officers who work in Hinds County graduated from week-long mental-health ...

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Re-entry Reform Hits Wall, But Kids No Longer Face Death Penalty

Rep. Joel Bomgar, R-Madison, had a tough time convincing the House Corrections Committee to pass additional re-entry criminal-justice reforms on Wednesday, Jan. 24.

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Ed Department Awards 90 Vouchers in a Lottery After Some Went Unused

The Mississippi Department of Education held a lottery for 90 unused vouchers in the current school year as the Legislature could debate this afternoon whether to expand the program beyond ...

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University Funding Cuts Prompt Talk of Tuition Hikes, Consolidation

Most of the state's public university and college presidents crowded into the Mississippi House of Representatives' appropriations room on Monday with a united message.

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Proposed School Board Election Changes Dead by Bipartisan Vote

In a bipartisan shutdown, Sen. Kevin Blackwell's bill to change school-board elections statewide died in the Mississippi Legislature on Monday.

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Vicksburg, Wingfield, Lanier High Schools Top 'Chronically Absent' List

More than 70,000 students were chronically absent in the 2016-2017 school year, chronic absentee data the Mississippi Department of Education released today show.

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'Brain Drain' Tax Credit Legislation Passes Mississippi House

The Mississippi House of Representatives wants young people to stay in Mississippi. It unanimously passed a measure Wednesday to offer tax breaks to recent college graduates who stay in Mississippi ...

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Medicaid and Guns Bills Live, Vouchers Die

Rep. Jason White, R-West, who is largely responsible for writing the House's Medicaid bill, supported Rep. Cheikh Taylor's amendment to the House Medicaid legislation and asked the House to vote ...

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