Governor Gives State Of The State Address

[syndicaster id=’6191033′]

Columbus, Miss. (WCBI) — Governor Phil Bryant made his first State of the State address in his new term, and his fifth as governor of Mississippi.

In front of the Mississippi legislature, Bryant unveiled his vision of what he would like to see happen in 2017.

Some of the top ideas on Bryant’s list includes an income tax credit for working Mississippians making up to $52,000. Named the Blue Collar Tax Dividend, Bryant said, “…it may not be this year, but when we are having surpluses and full savings accounts, let’s pledge to give the people back a portion of their hard earned tax dollars.”

Bryant also proposed to invest $50 million from the Unemployment Trust Fund towards workforce development programs, saying “it is now time to make the investment in Mississippi’s workforce before it is too late.”

The Governor is also hoping to make changes to the state education system, most notably allowing parents to choose where to send their child to school.

“Just imagine that parents could take their hard-earned tax dollars and send their child to a school of their choice…”, said Bryant.

Bryant also proposed to the election of local school boards, and to have those school boards elect a district superintendent, rather than to appoint them.

The Governor also spoke of the money the state will receive from settlements obtained in the BP oil spill, saying the state coffers will reach $600 million. While the Governor said he will leave the decision of what to do with the allotted money to the legislature, he did say, “…I do feel strongly about the restoration of the Gulf Coast. After all, it was the Gulf Coast that felt the impact of the largest environmental disaster in this nation’s history…”

In the Democrat response, District 7 Senator Hob Bryan said the state needs to focus on funding public education, funding maintenance of roads and highways, and to prevent any more tax cuts for “special interests”.