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Faith Leaders, Black Caucus Members Talk Education, Infrastructure, Health Care
Members of several Mississippi Baptist conventions along with members of the Legislative Black Caucus hosted a public hearing at the Capitol on Nov. 17 to discuss education, infrastructure and health …
Tackling ‘Corrupting Effects’ of Election Laws
The Mississippi Legislature, at least so far, is showing more willingness to regulate campaign and election practices than at anytime in its history.
After ICE Raid, Immigration Limbo in Mississippi for a Jackson Family
Daniela Vargas was asleep early on Feb. 15 when she felt her father kiss her goodbye, as he did every morning. It was around 6:30 or 7 a.m., a seemingly …
Cruel & Unusual? The Death Penalty’s Trials in Mississippi
The State of Mississippi is litigating legal challenges to the state's lethal-injection law directly. Mississippi last executed a prisoner in June 2012, Mississippi Department of Corrections records posted online show.
Jackson School Board Off to Slow Start on Supe Search, Seeks Public Input
With Dr. Cedrick Gray leaving the top position early last November, Jackson Public Schools needs a new superintendent and invited public comment regarding the search at its Jan. 3 work …
AG Hood: State Must Fund Mental Health Care, Not Ignore Lawsuit
Attorney General Jim Hood is calling on the Legislature to increase funding for the Mississippi Department of Mental Health as a part of his legislative priorities this session.
Governor Vetoes Opioid, Crime Reforms After Signing Reentry Law
Gov. Phil Bryant has blocked an effort to help wean those addicted to opioids off the drugs with medication, as well as assisted indigent prisoners.
The Pros and Cons of a State Lottery
On a map of states that have no lottery, the hold-outs stand strong in pairs: Alaska and Hawaii, Nevada and Utah, and Mississippi and Alabama.The Pros and Cons of a …
Due to HB 1523, Plaintiffs, Kaplan Seek to Reopen Same-Sex Marriage Lawsuit
The Campaign for Southern Equality and Roberta Kaplan, the New York-based attorney who won same-sex marriage and adoption cases in Mississippi, have filed a motion to reopen the Campaign for …
Democrats, Republicans Honor Robert Clark's 'Striving and Working' Legacy
In the midst of Mississippi's turbulent reckoning with the Civil Rights Movement, Holmes County residents elected Robert G. Clark to the Mississippi House of Representatives in 1967. He was the …
Davis IB Program Helps Kindergartners Shine on Exam
Principal Kathleen Grigsby has a reason to be proud: Kindergarteners at Davis IB Elementary in downtown Jackson scored in the top 10 of all schools in the state on the …
Jacksonians Protest Medicaid Cuts in Congress, March on Senators' Offices
Melissa Cooper, seated in her wheelchair, held a pink sign this morning that read "Healthcare is a Human Right."
'Total Infringement': Governor Signs HB 1523 Over Protests of Business Leaders, Citizens
Gov. Phil Bryant signed House Bill 1523 into law today, which will allow businesses, circuit clerks and medical professionals to recuse themselves from offering services based on a religious belief …
Next Steps for JPS Takeover: Governor in No 'Rush'
Jackson Public Schools started the week of Sept. 11 facing a possible takeover and ended with its fate in Gov. Phil Bryant's hands.
Cristen Hemmins: Education, Equal Pay and Taking On Tollison
Jackson native Cristen Hemmins decided to run for the District 9 Senate seat (which includes Oxford and most of Lafayette County) when her opponent, Gray Tollison, introduced Initiative 42A to …
Takeover or Not: Jackson Schools in Limbo
The afternoon of Thursday, Sept. 14, seemed to creep by slowly as Mississippi Board of Education members deliberated the future of Jackson Public Schools behind closed doors.
Where Mississippi's U.S. Lawmakers Stand on Gun Laws, Rights
In the wake of the Las Vegas massacre, the Jackson Free Press assembled details on the gun-related legislation that Mississippi lawmakers in Washington have supported or co-sponsored, as well as …
Making Ends Meet: Lawmakers Wrestle with Education, Infrastructure and Shrinking Revenue
Education funding dominated headlines throughout 2016, as lawmakers worked to level-fund and not cut the amount of funding that went to the Mississippi Adequate Education Program in previous budget years, …
House Again Tries to Curb Dem Attorney General's Powers
The Mississippi attorney general, who is elected, could be subject to oversight from the governor, lieutenant governor and the secretary of state if Rep. Mark Baker, R-Brandon, gets his way.
Rural Hospitals in Financial Crunch
Work can get personal for State Auditor Stacey Pickering. With the release of a new study of the state's 19 public rural hospitals, Pickering reflected on almost losing his father …