MISSISSIPPI FARM BUREAU® FEDERATION
CAPITOL
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The Voice of Agriculture®
March 10, 2017
THIS WEEK AT THE CAPITOL
Spring is becoming more apparent in the halls of the Mississippi
Capitol, and the Legislature can see the light at the end of the tunnel, or the Sine Die
of the 2017 Legislative Session. For Farm Bureau, the major points of the week were
bills being sent to the Governor, a new infrastructure bill passing the Mississippi
House, and House Bill 1340 moving forward.
The Mississippi Senate passed HB 1340, the ad valorem tax bill dealing with
agricultural land, before this past Wednesday’s deadline, but with an amendment.
The Senate approved a change that added a reverse repealer to the bill. A reverse repealer means the bill would not go into effect. It appears the Senate added this language to allow the bill to go to conference. If the House and Senate pass similar bills
with a small change, then they “conference.” This means that a conference committee
meets to work out differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.
On Thursday, March 9, the Mississippi House of Representatives passed Senate Bill 2939. The House version of this bill includes: $50 million in bonds ($25 to
counties and $25 to cities for bridge repair); more funds from a use tax, with 50%
going to MDOT only if they change their budget to put $25 million more to bridge
and road repair, and 50% to cities and counties; collection of an internet sales tax if
federal law changes; and future allocation of general revenue growth towards roads
and bridges.
Week 10
Meet your
Legislator
THE HONORABLE
SCOTT BOUNDS
Representative Scott
Bounds represents District
44 (Leake and Neshoba
counties) in the Mississippi House of Representatives. He chairs the Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks
Committee and serves on
Appropriations.
He has been in the Mississippi Legislature for 14
years.
Chairman Bounds
is a member of Neshoba
County Farm Bureau,
Neshoba County Forestry
Association, and he is Vice
President of the Board for
the Neshoba County Fair.
He graduated from
Mississippi State University and is married to the
former Jennifer
Cheatham. Chairman
Bounds serves as a friend
of Farm Bureau.
March 10, 2017
CAPITOL
Week 10
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Several bills that Mississippi Farm Bureau tracked have gone on to the Governor’s desk and are awaiting his signature. House Bill 528, which changes the annual reporting requirements of commercial fertilizer distributors from quarterly
to annually was sent to the Governor on March 7. Senate Bill 2359 allows the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and
Commerce to lease naming rights for buildings at the Agriculture Museum and Fairgrounds for a term of 20 years. It
passed the House and Senate and is about to be sent to the Governor for his signature.
The remainder of the session will consist of compromising on different versions of bills, and the all-important appropriations process. Mississippi Farm Bureau will be monitoring funds for Mississippi State, Mississippi Department of
Environmental Quality, the Forestry Commission, Mississippi State’s Extension Service, as well as other entities that support rural Mississippi and producers throughout the State.
Mississippi Farm Bureau® Federation Women’s Leadership Committee will have their Day
at the Capitol on March 21st, 2016. They plan to provide breakfast for legislators, tour the
Capitol, and meet with leadership of the Agriculture Committees.
Deadlines
 Tuesday, March 14, 2017—Deadline for original floor action on appropriations and revenue bills originating in the other house
 Wednesday, March 15, 2017—Deadline for reconsideration/passage of appropriations and revenue bills
originating in other house
 Thursday, March 16, 2017—Deadline to dispose of motions to reconsider appropriations and revenue
bills originating in other house
 Friday, March 17, 2017—Deadline to concur or not concur on amendments from other house to appropriations and revenue bills, and introduction of local and private bills that are revenue bills.
Bills of Interest
HB 1340—reduces volatility in producer and county budgets by cutting down on the capitalization rate of the ag land formula 10% to 2%; passed the House and was assigned to the Senate
Finance Committee.
SB 2939—Funding mechanism for improving Mississippi’s infrastructure problems
Mississippi Farm Bureau® Federation
Post Office Box 1972
Jackson, Mississippi 39215-1972
www.msfb.org
D. Lee Thorne
Deputy General Counsel
Public Policy
Coordinator
[email protected]
601.977.4228