Mississippi
This week in politics: Reeves uses budget meeting to urge on tax reform
Updates on Medicaid policy, former Medicaid director and US Sen. Roger Wicker
State leaders are again looking toward the 2025 Mississippi Legislative Session now that most elections are over and the money they will have to set the new state budget.
Members of the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, consisting of Republicans Gov. Tate Reeves; Speaker of the House Jason White of West; and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann and others, agreed Thursday to set the state’s Fiscal Year 2026 revenue estimate at $7.62 billion.
In the spring, they will vote to set a more concrete estimate, which is used to determine the actual state budget.
The current figure is less than $30 million above what was estimated for Fiscal Year 2025, which began in July.
During the meeting, Reeves said about $600 million of unspent tax dollars remains in this year’s budget and suggested the committee members, made up of House and Senate lawmakers, to give that money “back to the taxpayers.”
Both Hosemann and White are eyeing major tax cuts in the 2025 Session. Hosemann has publicly advocated for a cut of the state’s 7% grocery tax, while White is looking to take an axe to the state’s personal income tax.
Reeves has been on record for years saying the income tax should be cut, which is currently being phased down to 4% by FY 2026.
“There are lots of crosshairs on that $600 million that you speak of,” White said, jokingly, in response to Reeves’ suggestion.
State Economist Corey Miller told the committee sales tax revenues are growing at a slower pace than in the previous three years, while income tax revenues despite the phasedown, are up.
Former Medicaid director is now leading up a healthcare lobbying group
Former Mississippi Division of Medicaid Executive Director Drew Snyder appears to have found a new job, albeit not very far from his last one.
On Tuesday, Capitol Resources, a powerful lobbying group in Mississippi and beyond, announced Snyder will lead Health Resources LLC, its latest division aimed at healthcare policy.
“Health Resources is a health policy consulting and strategic advisory firm whose primary focus is advancing sound healthcare policy and providing impactful solutions for clients in the healthcare sector,” a press release states.
When asking if Snyder would be in violation of any state ethics guidelines by working in the same sector as his previous vocation, the Clarion Ledger was provided an ethics opinion on the Mississippi Ethics Commission website. Ethics commission questions are posted with those who asked for the opinion listed anonymously.
The commission ruled if a former state agency head does not work directly with their new company’s clients that do work with that state agency, there shouldn’t be an issue.
“I could not be more excited to be part of Health Resources and contribute to a mission that aligns with my passion to enhance operational efficiency and deliver cost-efficient, high-quality care,” Snyder said in the press release.
Gov. Reeves ‘open to discussions’ about Medicaid
Speaking of Medicaid. Reeves said he is hoping that Trump will allocate Medicaid funding in a block grant to the state rather than the current funding model.
Each year, Mississippi currently receives approximately $6.5 billion federal funds for Medicaid. Reeves said during a meeting Wednesday he thinks that money has too many federal restrictions.
Reeves has for years been an opponent of Medicaid expansion. During the 2024 Session, the Clarion Ledger reported his unwavering opposition to Medicaid expansion at every juncture.
Medicaid expansion was considered for the first time in a decade in the Legislature this year, but Senate and House lawmakers could not come to an agreement on expansion specifics by a legislative deadline to do so.
Both Hosemann and White have vowed to return Medicaid expansion to the forefront of state politics in 2025.
With US Senate GOP majority, Wicker now reps Mississippi in a powerful position
As Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker makes his way back to Washington, D.C., for the next four years, he will be walking into a position of high regard.
As the most senior member of the now-majority party on the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee, Wicker is tapped as its chairman, sources close to the senator confirmed and according to Senate procedure.
With Wicker in the driver’s seat of the committee, he will have serious sway on any conflict-related policy and spending. It will certainly be interesting to see how he moves on policy in the near future.
Grant McLaughlin covers the Legislature and state government for the Clarion Ledger. He can be reached at gmclaughlin@gannett.com or 972-571-2335.
Mississippi
Mississippi lawmakers face pressure to counter looming federal cuts to health care after punting this session
Wicker: Mississippi powered Artemis II
Published 4:00 pm Monday, April 20, 2026
For nine days this month, space travel captivated the world. Families gathered around their screens as four astronauts strapped into the Integrity spacecraft docked at the Kennedy Space Center. As the launch countdown ended, four Mississippi-tested RS-45 engines ignited, and the ground shook. Seven seconds later, the Integrity had liftoff. For six intense minutes, the RS-45 engines rocketed the crew into high Earth orbit, sending them on their historic lunar flyby mission.
Mississippi should take a bow. The four RS-45 engines were tested at our very own Stennis Space Center, where Mississippians have been ensuring the quality of rocket engines since the Apollo program. For eight years, engineers, safety managers, and logistics specialists from the state have tested the engines that powered the Integrity and will power future Artemis launches. Their work paid off, and the launch was a marvel of engineering. NASA leadership made special mention of the rocket engine burn, calling it “flawless.”
One Mississippian in particular helped make the mission a success. Hernando native Matthew Ramsey handled a great deal of responsibility as the mission manager for Artemis II. The Mississippi State University graduate helped set the focus for the mission and equip the astronauts and staff for the job. Matthew also served as the deputy of the Mission Management Team, the group of NASA staff that comes together just days before a launch. The team assumes the risks of the mission ahead, and they make tough calls during flight if challenges arise.
As the Artemis II journey progressed, the world could not stop watching. Our social media feeds were full of photos and videos beamed down from the heavens. They captured humorous situations, such as the astronauts adjusting to life without gravity or testing their plumbing skills.
We also witnessed moments of majesty. On the fifth day, the Integrity began using the Moon’s gravity to slingshot our astronauts back home. That trajectory led the crew around the Moon, farther from Earth than any humans have ever gone. As the explorers looked upon outer space, they captured stunning images. Among the most remarkable is Earthset, in which Commander Reid Wiseman photographed Earth as it appeared to fall below the horizon of the moon.
When their spacecraft returned to Earth’s atmosphere, the crew was traveling nearly 35 times faster than the speed of sound. Ten minutes later, a series of parachutes began opening. Eventually, the spacecraft’s speed fell to 20 miles per hour, and the crew splashed down into the Pacific Ocean.
Mississippi was once again there to assist. The astronauts were greeted by the USS John P. Murtha, a U.S. military vessel built in the Huntington Ingalls shipyard in Pascagoula. The ship’s amphibious design was suited to welcome the space travelers home—equipped with a helicopter pad, medical facilities, and the communications system needed to locate and recover the astronauts safely. Crucially, the USS Murtha was built with a well deck, a sea-based garage that stored the Integrity on the journey to shore.
Artemis II was a resounding success, paving the way for planned future flights. When the Artemis program returns humans to the moon, Mississippi will be there every step of the way.
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