Chairman of Finance, Senator Josh Harkins, sat down to discuss the reasons behind why the Senate did not move forward with HB 1439, the Mississippi Tax Freedom Act.
The deadline for original floor action on bills coming from the opposite chamber was Tuesday. That means, the Mississippi Tax Freedom Act had to be taken up on the Senate floor before adjournment. However, the bill was still in committee.
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Senator Harkins said early in the day that the bill would not be coming up. While he commended the House for addressing the issue, he cited concerns over the speed in which the bill was presented and sent to the Senate for consideration as well as the overall policy.
Harkins plans to present a resolution in the Senate on Wednesday that will allow for a study committee to commence during the summer of 2021 to further look into the idea of phasing out the full income tax.
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However, members of the House including Speaker Gunn and Representative Trey Lamar said this language needs to push through this year and that Mississippians shouldn’t have to wait.
The House is attempting to revive the language by amending a bond bill, SB 2971, with the original language of the proposal. They did however take out the sales tax increase on farmers, loggers and manufacturers.
