Stimulus could boost Mississippi funding
| Author/Source: | The Commercial Appeal |
|---|---|
| Published: | Mar 06, 2009 |
| Link: | View the article |
JACKSON -- Mississippi's $2.3 billion share of federal stimulus money includes $829 million of flexible funds that could be used to supplant existing state funding, according to the Council of State Governments.
Representatives of the CSG's Southern Legislative Conference outlined for House members Thursday what the state can expect from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Most of the money, about $1.47 billion, will supplement state transportation and education spending in programs that have to follow federal rules, according to a presentation prepared for members of the House Appropriations and Ways and Means committees.
"The current economic outlook in the United States is grim," CSG fiscal analyst Sujit CanagaRetna told legislators.
He noted that the current economic recession, which has lasted for 16 months with no end in sight, is the longest since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Sixteen-month economic recessions occurred from November 1973 to March 1975 and from July 1981 through November 1982.
The federal stimulus money for individuals and states aims to put more money in taxpayer pockets and more people back to work, many on highway and bridge projects.
The state could qualify for $54 million if it changes its unemployment eligibility requirements, something Gov. Haley Barbour opposes.
Barbour has said he will accept $8 million in unemployment money, but he will not seek the extra $54 million that would require changes in Mississippi like paying unemployment benefits to part-time workers.
Barbour has said that would leave the state's employers, who pay into the unemployment fund, with a tax increase once the federal money runs out in 27 months.
The state also could receive about $35 million in energy efficiency grants should it adopt a utility rate system that encourages energy conservation and energy efficiency standards in building codes.
More than $100 billion in competitive grant money will be available for states. Guidelines for those grants will be posted on a government Web site, grants.gov.
House members voted Wednesday to accept any available stimulus money should Barber turn it down.
The Senate has not considered the legislation.