The Mississippi Legislature overturned its first veto in 18 years in a day-long session Monday, but funded one of Gov. Tate Reeves’ education priorities in the process.
Lawmakers overrode the governor's partial veto on the K-12 education appropriation, HB 1700, and also passed an appropriation for a teacher recognition plan that was the reason why Reeves used his veto pen. They also passed an altered business grant program, Senate Bill 3053, that increased the individual grant from $1,500 to $3,500.
The governor partially vetoed House Bill 1700 because $26 million was cut for a teacher recognition program that paid teachers in schools that are either highly rated in the annual accountability grades or improved a letter grade.
Later in the evening, the Legislature passed HB 1806, which appropriates more than $28 million for the program out of the Capital Expense Fund (not the General Fund) and ensures that 23,157 teachers who qualified for pay increases won’t lose any pay.
Lawmakers passed a similar appropriation to cover the remainder the teacher pay raise that came up short on funds after the Mississippi Department of Education undercounted the number of eligible teachers last year. The appropriation was the first bill passed in this year’s session.
The House voted 109-7 to override Reeves’ veto on the education appropriation, with the Senate voting to approve the override by a 41-1 margin. While the override could be considered a blow to Reeves, the Legislature is ultimately correcting the issue that the governor had with the appropriation bill.
“The governor has been a friend of mine today and will be a friend of mine tomorrow,” said state Rep. Richard Bennett, R-Long Beach, who is the chairman of the House Education Committee. “I have an obligation to put before you what is best for education in Mississippi. We tried to fund education to the best of our ability in hard times. We are here to correct the wrong that was inflicted on educators and students throughout the state.”
Still undone was an appropriation for the Department of Marine Resources, which was left unfunded when legislators couldn’t reach a compromise on an appropriation bill before they adjourned last month.
DMR isn’t the only business remaining for the Legislature, which will reconvene Tuesday.
A lawsuit filed by House Speaker Philip Gunn and Speaker Pro Tempore Jason White was filed in Hinds County Chancery Court last week and is likely headed to the state Supreme Court, which has heard three similar lawsuits over the constitutionality of the governor’s line item veto powers. The lawsuit argues that the governor can’t use his line-item veto power on appropriation bills to determine how funds are spent.
More: Reeves vetoes several bills
Among those line items was $2 million in CARES Act funds earmarked for a hospital in Senatobia — the North Oak Regional Medical Center — that’s been closed for the last two years and $6 million for the MAGnet Community Health Disparity Program, which was intended “address the disproportionate impact on the minority community of coronavirus infections and deaths from COVID-19.”
