State Rep. Gary Chism, R-Columbus, joined other area lawmakers this week in filing a state funding request for the construction of a Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District-Mississippi State University partnership school, but the District 37 representative’s bill could, if approved, delay the build by a year.
Chism confirmed Thursday he dropped a bill asking the Legislature to fund $10 million toward a partnership school. Similar bills were filed this week by District 38 Rep. Tyrone Ellis, D-Starkville, and District 43 Rep. Rob Roberson, R-Starkville.
The difference between Chism’s bill and the others is that Chism asks the state to give two yearly $5 million allocations for construction efforts, while Ellis’ and Roberson’s legislation both ask for a single $30 million give from the state.
The final state request is expected to be about $10 million, not the full $30 million, as a local reverse referendum and MSU contributions are expected to total a combined $20 million.
Chism said his proposal is more likely to find traction in the House and Senate since the state is dealing with revenue shortfalls. Spreading the total contribution across two years is a more palatable scenario to lawmakers, he said, but could delay construction efforts as the partnership awaits its full funding.
“I’ve talked to chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee (state Rep. Jeff Smith, R-Columbus), and he is all for the $5 million over two years,” he said.
House lawmakers are expected to easily pass the bill, but the legislation could face trouble in the Senate, where many finance decisions are made by Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, he said.
Ellis had similar reservations with a $6 million bond bill that would construct a new Mississippi Highway Patrol Troop G station in Starkville. He said the House was likely to pass the measure, but the bill could hit a stumbling block in the Senate.
“The question is: Where on the pecking order (of Senate priorities) does this school come in? A $5 million ask might make it more doable than to swallow $10 million in one bite,” Chism said.
Chism’s bill was not yet published on the Mississippi Legislature’s website as of Thursday afternoon, and it was not known if it had a first read or committee referral at that time.
Ellis’ HB 984 and Roberson’s HB 993 both call for the creation of a grades 6-7 model school to open for the 2017-2018 school year.
Roberson previously told The Dispatch his $30 million price tag was simply a placeholder for future discussions, and the amount could easily be changed as local revenue sources are determined.
District 9 Sen. Gray Tollison, R-Oxford, who also chairs the Senate Education Committee, also filed a bill this week — SB 2392 — amending a previous law dealing with local consolidation.
Tollison’s bill does not specifically map out funding the demonstration school’s construction, but it does empower SOCSD and MSU to “transfer funds to the other and expend such funds on mutually agreeable terms and conditions” for its construction, maintenance and operation.
His bill was sent to the Senate Education Committee Monday.
Chism: School board shakeup bill unlikely to pass
Roberson also filed HB 981 this week, which puts into action a plan expanding the SOCSD Board of Trustees from five to seven members and forces existing members from their seats in favor of five candidates chosen in November’s presidential election.
The five elected seats would come from territories mirroring the five districts comprising the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors. Election winners would serve four-year terms.
The remaining two seats would be at-large appointments made by supervisors and the Starkville Board of Aldermen.
While the House is expected to approve a Senate bill calling for statewide school districts to appoint, not elect, school superintendents, Chism said traction might not form this session for a specific change to SOCSD’s board after lawmakers changed the composition before state-mandated consolidation took effect.
“Is the House Education Chairman (Rep. John L. Moore, R-Brandon) supportive of elected boards? Yes. Will there be a push this year? I don’t think so,” he said. “Right now, a lot of school boards are on staggered terms. It’s really unfair to those candidates not to let them serve out their terms. If we can figure out how to solve that issue, maybe we’ll take a look at it.”
Chism did signal his future support of legislation calling for elected school boards statewide. Elections, he said, make school board members accountable for their actions.
“The problem is when municipal boards appoint school board members, you don’t really have a person that gets out there and tells folks they’re not going to raise taxes, that they’re going to be conservative and that they’re going to do better than current board members. Once aldermen place them on a board, there’s nothing they can really do about them. When they bring a budget for the city to fund, it’s done,” he said. “If you have the power to raise taxes, then by golly you should be elected.”
Carl Smith covers Starkville and Oktibbeha County for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter @StarkDispatch
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