Former Governor Gives Advice for Budget

Former Governor William Winter

The current recession isn’t the first time Mississippi lawmakers have faced tough economic times. MPB’s Stephen Koranda reports on how state officials tackled another budget downturn in Mississippi’s history.

In the early 1980s one of the worst recessions in recent memory was hitting the nation and Mississippi.

“we were getting it from both sides . We were reducing taxes at the same time that we were seeing serious economic problems.”

Former Mississippi Governor William Winter was in office at the time. A bill passed the year before he took office cut income taxes over three years. Mix that with falling state revenues and it meant he had to make some tough decisions, cutting state spending three years in a row. Winter, known for revamping the education system in Mississippi, has this advice for lawmakers.

“Do not cut appropriations for education and find some additional revenue to provide adequate services in other areas. It’s pretty simple it ought to be pretty obvious.”

Legislators have found a new source of revenue, by increasing the state’s cigarette tax, and the federal stimulus package has helped reduce effects on education. Winter says sparing education from cuts will help get Mississippi ready to bounce back from the recession and can hopefully help the state climb from the bottom of many national rankings for education and economics.

“We talk about how we’re going to achieve some sort of economic parity in Mississippi. We will never achieve it until we achieve educational parity.”

Legislators will return to the capital today to continue working to build a budget. The new fiscal year starts July 1st.