THE BILL: The controversial tax bill, HB1439 died on the Senate committee calendar on Monday, but was “miraculously” resurrected in SB 2971, a bond bill which I am assured is not relevant to the tax bill and to which there should have been opposition. This bill has very negative implications for retirees as it raised the sales tax on many of the items, leaving less money for those with fixed incomes.
OF NOTE: This bill was introduced by Speaker of the House Phillip Gunn who is no friend of PERS and is controlled by the national organization, ALEC, whose mission is to do away with public pension plans.
HOW TO HELP: This bill is before the House so call your representatives at (601) 359-3770, the general switchboard number or email them at “first name initial last name@house.ms.gov”. Please do this as soon as possible. Thanks for your help with protecting our PERS benefits.