Senate Bill 3164 would eliminate several taxes in Mississippi, including the state’s 4% tax bracket, state car tag fees, and reduce the grocery tax. Speaker of the House Phillip Gunn says this plan is insufficient to do what the state needs to attract new residents and businesses. But Senator Josh Harkins who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, says the plan would allow the state more options to grow or cut spending in the future.
“Everybody wants roads, everybody wants education, expects you to have Department of Public Safety, Corrections,” says Senator Harkins. “All of these things that are core functions of government. I think what Mississippians should be in favor of is a responsible approach to do those things, and let any of the excesses that’s there because of growth or whatever reason, let’s put it back in the hands of the taxpayers.”
But some lawmakers disagree on how the reduction in revenue could affect the state. While experts say the state’s economy is in one of the best positions it has been in for years, the state is also using billions of federal dollars to fund infrastructure and pandemic relief projects. Kyra Roby, Policy Analyst with advocacy group One Voice, says now is not the time to eliminate these taxes, and doing so could undercut the state’s spending in future years.
Roby says “We’re still having a revenue discussion in the state of Mississippi, a priority discussion in terms of what is the state’s budget, and is the state’s budget adequate funding the services and programs that Mississippians want and that they need to survive, and their communities need to thrive.”
The Senate tax bill is expected to be taken up in the chamber today.
