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JACKSON, Miss. – Today State Auditor Shad White announced his legislative priorities for the 2025 session.
“In my time as State Auditor, my team and I have successfully asked lawmakers to pass tougher laws on those who previously stole taxpayer money and to allow our office to audit Medicaid tax returns so we can see how many people lie to get on the program,” said State Auditor Shad White. “This year we’re proposing new reforms that will cut the fat from state government with a chainsaw.”
Auditor White’s legislative agenda for this year includes:
- A proposal to send less money to K-12 administration and more money to teachers and classrooms. There are multiple options for achieving this, like statutory language that requires 50% of all new education funds go towards teacher salaries (similar to a Texas bill from 2023) or a law that caps the amount of money districts can spend on administration. Mississippi spends a higher percentage of its K-12 funds on administration than every other state in the South despite also having some of the lowest paid teachers in the country.
- A ban on spending taxpayer money on DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) programs. This bill would ban all taxpayer funding for DEI programs that occur in any state-funded institution. A similar bill failed last year in the State Senate. Mississippi spent over $11 million in taxpayer funds on DEI from 2019-2023.
- A bill to cut fat from state agencies. The Office of the State Auditor just finished the largest audit (Project Momentum) of government waste in decades. Project Momentum identified over $335 million in government waste. There will be several bills to implement the recommendations of Project Momentum.
“All of these proposals are common sense reforms the state needs,” said Auditor White. “Cutting government waste, banning wasteful spending on DEI, and ensuring more money goes to teachers are all proposals I believe everyone can get behind.”
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