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State Rep. Holland (D) calls HB 943...

State Rep. Holland (D) calls HB 943 “vicious attack on public education” by Republicans in op-ed

By: Magnolia Tribune - February 23, 2016

Letters to the Editor: Feb. 23, 2016

Contact all legislators in support of public schools

The Republican-controlled Legislature has put forward a vicious attack on public education in the form of HB 943. This bill came out of the House Education Committee with virtually unanimous support from the GOP supermajority. The issue at stake is the survival of our public school system. HB 943 is a full frontal assault against fully funding our schools. Initiative 42 was defeated last year. MAEP has only been funded twice in almost 20 years. Local taxes on your homes, vehicles and businesses increase when the state doesn’t fulfill its commitment. Ad valorem tax-rich places like Tupelo and DeSoto County, among others, fare better but still struggle. But, in places like my alma mater, Nettleton and most other Northeast Mississippi school districts that simply don’t have the financial basis as the wealthier districts to levy funds for public schools, it is overtly unfair and detrimental.

Our schools are non-partisan. This is a matter of the life and death of our public school systems.

Rep. Steve Holland, D-Plantersville

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Magnolia Tribune

This article was produced by Magnolia Tribune staff.