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That force is Republican Gov. Haley Barbour.
It was evident last year when the Legislature battled until literally the final day of the fiscal year to pass a budget for the new year.
At one point last year, House and Senate leaders assigned by the speaker and lieutenant governor announced they had reached agreement on the size of a hospital tax increase, which was key to a budget compromise.
When Barbour said the increase was not big enough, Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant sided with Barbour, and negotiators were forced to start again.
Barbour’s influence on the current negotiations over restoring a portion of the $458.65 million that he cut from the budget this fiscal year is another example of his enormous influence.
Barbour vetoed one proposal to spend $79 million from the state’s more than $500 million in reserve funds to offset some of the cuts.
The governor gave essentially two reasons for vetoing the legislation.
The first reason is that it spent too much of the state’s reserves and would “virtually guarantee higher taxes within a few years.”
Sen. Alan Nunnelee, Senate Appropriations Chair, and Bryant echoed his comments as they worked to uphold the governor’s veto by a surprisingly narrow margin.
Nunnelee and Bryant went further and said they believe the strategy of those opposing the governor’s veto was to deplete the state’s reserve funds and force a tax increase in coming years.
Yet, in negotiations, Nunnelee and the other Senate leaders, with the blessing of Barbour and Bryant, advocate spending $3 million more than the amount in the legislation vetoed by Barbour and sustained in the Senate.
The difference, they would argue, is that $14 million they want to spend comes from the federal government for a Medicaid overpayment and not from the state’s established reserve funds, such as the rainy day fund.
But that $14 million could be socked away and used as a reserve fund to help avoid the tax increase that Barbour and his Senate allies are predicting might occur if a bill spending $79 million were to become law.
Instead, they are advocating spending $82 million.
The second reason the governor gave for vetoing the legislation is that it does not spend enough on prisons.
He wants $16 million of the $29 million he cut from prisons restored by the Legislature.
The bill he vetoed restored $1 million. When the House and Senate were offered amendments restoring $16 million, they were rejected.
In the Senate, even Nunnelee, who offered the proposal, voted against it.
Yet, in negotiations, Nunnelee insists that the governor get his full $16 million for prisons.
The House negotiators, led by Appropriations Chair Johnny Stringer, D-Montrose, have agreed to restore $10 million for Corrections.
Stringer said a portion of the funds cut from the community colleges and mental health also should be restored. Nunnelee’s proposal does not provide those entities any funding.
“It’s not that they don’t have needs,” Nunnelee said. “We want to make sure Corrections has the money it needs to house prisoners.”
Stringer countered, “The House is upset I have agreed to $10 million. I don’t know if I can pass it.”
Stringer pointed out that negotiations between House and Senate leaders normally revolve around what has been passed by the two chambers.
The most the House has passed for prisons is $1 million, he said, and the most the Senate has passed is $16 million.
Yet, Stringer said he has agreed to $10 million against both chambers’ wishes. Nunnelee countered that the negotiators had to take into account not only both chambers, but also the governor’s wishes.
Therein lies the power and influence of the governor. If Nunnelee and Bryant are unwilling to buck the governor on budget issues, legislators will not be able to override his veto. Thus, it makes no sense for the two leaders to agree to a position Barbour opposes.
Yet if, for instance, had Nunnelee and Bryant thrown their considerable weight in the Senate behind overriding the governor’s veto of the first budget restoration bill, the outcome might have been different.
After all, the Senate already was within four votes of the override even with Nunnelee and Bryant supporting the governor.
It is hard to imagine the Senate overriding the governor on budget issues as long as he has the backing of Nunnelee and Bryant.
That is why the governor’s influence is so great. It also is why it is not a sure thing that a compromise will emerge on a new budget restoration plan.
Contact Bobby Harrison at (601) 353-3119 or bobby.harrison@djournal.com.
The brilliant Haley presides over a "kingdom" or should I say a "Haleydom" with the one of the highest taxes on groceries and still one of the lowest taxes on tobacco in the country.
His supporters have helped him protect his own "revenue stream" from his buddies in the tobacco industry that he represented for years.
Bryant and Nunnelee both are Haley lapdogs and neither will ever receive a vote from me. I actually attended a Bryant fundraiser when he was running for Lt. Gov and I left that fundraiser feeling as if I'd just met a sleazy used car salesman.
As for Nunnelee, I don't know him personally, but his actions in his current seat speak volumes about his lack of any thoughts/ideas of his own as he always does whatever Haley says.
So, I'll vote for the lady who thinks that an endorsement from Judge Joe Brown is important before I vote Nunnelee. :)
And I sincerely hope that Haley runs for president in 2012. That way some enterprising Bloomberg reporter will reopen his investigation into all of Haley's shady dealings and he'll be exposed for what he really is, a crook.
BTW, I don't know how many people actually noticed the story the other day about the state troopers' allowable mileage being cut from 5,000 miles/month to 2,500. Do you realize that is really like taking half of the state troopers off the highway? Not a good scenario if you ask me.
So, yaaay Haley! Your huge ego wins again!! But at what cost to the citizens of Mississippi?
Folks, they are talking about furloughs or pay cuts for teachers, highway patrolmen, state prosecutors and others. If TODAY is not a rainy day, we will never see one. We can't function without some of these vital services. What kind of game are Haley and Nunnelee playing?
I hope the voters of North Mississippi all remember that Nunnelee is partially to blame for this when they vote for their congressman soon.
Haley for President??? I hope that if we have somebody from Mississippi run for President, that we can find some person that is not fat, talks like he has a mouth full of @#$% and is BOGUS like Boss hog.
If Nunnelee and Bryant had any spine at all, this argument would be over and they could all move on to do other things as stupidly and inefficiently as possible.
At the end of the day, the legislature continues to let Haley be the bully that he is instead of dealing with the bully by punching him in the mouth (metaphorically speaking, of course) as they should. Until they do, Mississippi will continue to be run as a dictatorship by Haley.