Thread by @Kamolika_Das

We all need to be paying attention to Mississippi right now. Last week #MSHouseofRep overwhelmingly passed (w/o any debate!) an outrageously irresponsible bill that'll kill the state budget by >$1.5B, raise taxes on the poorest residents and create a windfall for the richest 1/8

The House/@PhilipGunnMS’s main argument is that MS can afford it due to the budget surplus. But MS is 100% offsetting the costs of the cuts in the first 2 years w/ the surplus. What happens in the out-years? The surplus is due to federal aid which is TEMPORARY

@PhilipGunnMS As ID Rep @IlanaRubel eloquently said: “I get frustrated by the use of the word [surplus]... If you haven’t paid your mortgage and haven’t paid your bills, it might look like you have a lot of money in the checking account. But it’s false to characterize it as a surplus"

@PhilipGunnMS @IlanaRubel This is especially true in MS where per-pupil funding has lagged other states. How can a state that resorts to privatizing state parks and has a huge backlog of autopsies piling up, in good conscience, spend down a 1-time surplus by locking in long-term tax cuts for the rich?

@PhilipGunnMS @IlanaRubel Many people are applauding the @MSHouseOfRep bill to increase teacher pay. Of course MS teachers need a pay raise (they STILL don’t have the right to legally strike). But what good’s a pay raise when state tax cuts will force school closures & layoffs??

@PhilipGunnMS @IlanaRubel @MSHouseOfRep Not only does MS #HB531 bill cut income taxes, it also ups sales taxes to 8.5%, reduces the tax on car tags & cuts the grocery tax to 4%. Sure, I also support cutting grocery taxes but the idea that low-income residents & seniors come out on top after all the changes is laughable

@PhilipGunnMS @IlanaRubel @MSHouseOfRep MS HB531’s called the ‘MS Tax Freedom Act’. It begs the question – freedom for whom and from what? Nearly HALF of the net $1.5 billion tax change goes to top 5% of earners. This isn’t freedom – this is further cementing economic & racial injustice @PhilipGunnMS

#MLK said “I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice” I want to have faith but #MSHouseofRep is taking us further away from this vision

Read this statement by @OneVoiceMS to learn more, especially about how the proposal provides a major benefit for the state’s wealthiest, primarily white taxpayers onevoicems.org/one-voices-sta…