The four candidates vying to represent District 17 in the state senate next year fielded questions on topics ranging from education to industry to gun control during a debate Tuesday at the Mississippi University for Women.
An audience filling roughly half of the 200 seats in Poindexter Hall listened as Bill Canon, Bill Gavin, Bobby Patrick and Chuck Younger presented their platforms and discussed their plans if elected to represent a majority of Lowndes County in the next legislative session.
The special election for the District 17 seat is set for Nov. 4. It was necessitated after Terry Brown, who had held the post since 2003, died of cancer in September. Next year is the last year of the term his death vacated.
Members of the MUW student newspaper The Spectator moderated the debate and asked each candidate to answer eight questions before audience members were given the chance to ask some.
Each candidate was asked what they would do to help attract new industry to the Golden Triangle area. Canon, who had previously held the District 17 seat for more than 20 years until stepping down in 2003, leaned on his previous breadth of experience in laying the foundation that made industry locating here possible, including forging a partnership with the Tennessee Valley Authority and passing funding packages to build bridges on the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway. More business-friendly behavior is needed to continue that momentum, he said.
Gavin, a city councilman and a retired educator at East Mississippi Community College, said he would ask the Mississippi Economic Development for a $3 million grant to go toward building a fire station in West Lowndes County.
“I think that would put us ahead of the game in attracting new industry out there,” Gavin said. “Presently, if there’s a fire in that area in West Lowndes Industrial Park or East Mississippi Community College, the volunteer fire department from Oktibbeha County answers that alarm.”
Patrick noted the more than $3 billion that has been invested in new business for the area since 2003 and the fact that that investment has led to more than 3,700 jobs created during that time. Strong representation in District 17 is needed to continue on that progress, he said. Younger added that, as a member of the volunteer fire department board, more can be done to bring better fire services to West Lowndes County as Gavin mentioned.
Each was asked about priorities in K-12 education in the district. Canon proposed that the state pay for teachers to obtain National Board Certification status.
“If they don’t finish, the state gets the money back,” Canon said. “If they finish, they get the $6,000 a year and that’s for 10 years.”
Younger and Patrick both said education should begin at a younger age.
“We need to get kids started in education just as soon as we possibly can,” Patrick said. “If you take a kid who starts in first grade, he’s way behind someone who’s already been there in kindergarten. We’ve got to do all things necessary because for us to have a better economy, we’ve got to have more highly skilled education.”
Younger added that church programs should help with the learning process.
“I know you don’t want to mix church with government, but I feel like churches can do more in certain areas to get kids to learn how to read and write,” Younger said.
Gavin said there was a need to eliminate waste in how education is funded and provide more financial incentives for teachers.
When asked if they would budget more money for higher education, Patrick said only if there was more money available.
“If we can find a way to increase the budget, I’m all for it, but you’ve got to keep in mind that presently the educational system accounts for about 50 percent almost of the total state budget,” Patrick said.
Younger mentioned that the Mississippi Adequate Education Program, a law that creates a formula for equal distribution of funds for school districts, had only been fully funded twice since it was enacted in 1997.
“If you support (more funding for) higher education, you’re going to take away from the MAEP. You only have so much money to spread around,” Younger said.
Canon said he would do anything under his control to budget more for colleges and universities.
“We should increase the funding and I always voted for it,” Canon said. “You ought to see how this place looks now and the way it looked 20 years ago. Apparently some people appropriated some funds, private funds, to help this university. I certainly support that and I will continue to.”
Gavin referenced budgetary experience as a city councilman for Ward 6 but said more money budgeted for higher education should be devoted to workforce development.
“At East Mississippi Community College right now, they’re having to interview and train 5,000 people that will be acceptable to get 500 workers for that (Yokohama Tire) plant because of the education level of the students,” Gavin said. “It’s hard for us to attract industry and solve the money problems without a good educational background.”
Candidates were asked what they would tell someone who believed jobs were hard to find. Patrick and Younger both said they believed there was apathy among some who are unemployed. Younger suggested going to a job center or enrolling in technical courses at EMCC to develop marketable skills. Gavin and Canon said creating an environment that creates more new jobs is also necessary to reduce unemployment.
Answers to a question about gun violence and whether it is a problem in District 17 drew the most animated response from the audience. All agreed that they were against gun control, but Canon’s way of saying so prompted applause from the audience.
“We probably need more guns,” Canon said. “Safety is one of the priorities of the people of the United States.”
Gavin agreed but said there should be a tighter screening process.
“Violence is inside the person and not the gun,” Gavin said. “Everyone has a right to own a gun and to carry it. I do think we could do a much better job, though, of how we screen the applicants to purchase guns. Guns fall into the wrong hands. They’re falling into the hands of people who have a violent nature.”
Patrick mentioned that he had a concealed carry permit while Younger said he is a due-paying member of the National Rifle Association. Like Gavin, Younger also said more thorough background checks for people who want to buy firearms are needed.
Nathan Gregory covers city and county government for The Dispatch.
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