Barbour examines how stimulus will benefit Miss.

State News

February 18, 2009

Anonymous Picayune Item Wed Feb 18, 2009, 08:41 AM CST

JACKSON — Republican Gov. Haley Barbour’s office is examining how the newly signed economic stimulus package would benefit Mississippi, including the White House’s estimate that it will create or save about 30,000 jobs in the state.

A spokesman said Tuesday the governor’s staff needed to discuss the package, including job estimates, before commenting.

President Barack Obama signed into law the $787 billion legislation, a mix of tax cuts and spending programs. Preliminary figures from the Federal Funds Information for States showed Mississippi is in line to receive nearly $2.3 billion.

About $415 million would be for infrastructure improvements, and the jobs created or saved were expected to be spread over each of the state’s four congressional districts, according to a state-by-state breakdown released by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Rep. George Flaggs, D-Vicksburg, a member of the state House Appropriations Committee, said the stimulus package will be “a tremendous help” to Mississippi, which has seen state agencies budgets cut twice in less than a year.

“When you look at the amount of money that could be used to offset the cuts in Medicaid, education and public safety ... it couldn’t have come at a better time,” Flaggs said. “It is the best thing that I have been able to witness from the federal government coming down to the state government in my 22 years of service in the Legislature.”

Mississippi’s unemployment rate was 8 percent in December. Lawmakers are expected to work until late March or early April on the state budget for the coming fiscal year.

Barbour cut $158.3 million from the $5 billion state budget last month because tax collections are falling short of expectations. It was the second round of reductions since the current fiscal year started last July 1. Barbour cut $42 million in November.

Jobs will be created in a wide range of industries from clean energy to health care, the White House says. Republican lawmakers have largely criticized the plan as just another huge spending package and it drew no GOP votes in the House and only three in the Senate.

Republicans in Mississippi, including Barbour, also have expressed concern.

In an Associated Press report last month, Barbour said he didn’t have details about conditions that might be attached to the federal money and he didn’t know whether he would take all that’s being designated for Mississippi.

Mississippi House Speaker Billy McCoy encouraged the governor to take full advantage of the federal help.

“I am optimistic that we’ll get the type of incentives that will directly affect our citizens’ future. Therefore, I encourage the governor to accept the benefits over which he will have authority,” McCoy said in a statement. “Our citizens deserve at least their share in this undertaking. Mississippi does not have assets to battle this crisis alone.”

Meanwhile, state Sen. Terry Burton has asked U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., for a spreadsheet on what Mississippi will receive from the stimulus. Burton, R-Newton, said he is hopeful the money will benefit Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program.

“As we see the economy continuing to slide, we’ll see more people on Medicaid,” Burton said.

“I want to know what strings are attached,” he said. “There are going to be some strings attached to federal money.”

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