Bounds touched on rural broadband efforts during his speech.
State Representative Scott Bounds, who also serves on the board of the Neshoba County Fair, spent his time at the podium focusing on broadband efforts in light of the pandemic and addressing continued infrastructure issues in Mississippi.
Bounds noted the Legislature’s move to expand broadband service to more rural areas during the 2021 Legislative session. Federal dollars made that effort possible in 2020, and it was continued by the state in 2021.
“We are going to continue working on that broadband effort,” said Bounds.
He also commented on the federal government’s push to eliminate Voter ID. Mississippi has practiced fair and secure Voter ID voting since 2012, and Bounds saw no reason for that to change now.
“Ladies and gentleman I’m telling you we can’t do that. Mississippi has a fair Voter ID. Our citizens are use to it. For the sake of election integrity and the sake of election honesty there is nothing wrong with using an ID to vote,” said Bounds.
The state representative said the things that the state is required to monitor coming down from Washington are surprising and could cause many potential issues in the state.
Bounds also touched on a bill that he authored, HB 1231 the Outdoor Stewardship Trust Fund, which would have diverted sales tax dollars on sporting goods to a conservation fund for Mississippi’s state parks and wildlife areas.
The bill was ultimately killed in the Senate. However, Bounds said he plans to bring it back in 2022.
Sarah Ulmer
