Christian Action Commission

The Wrap

The baseball game is over.  The teams are leaving the field and then the radio announcer says, “In just a moment we will be right back for the wrap up.” Shortly the broadcaster comes back and gives to the listeners a synopsis of the game.  Of course, the comments made are his/her opinions based on the data that is made available to them.  The commentator’s opinions and comments never reveal the whole story because they sit in the broadcasting booth and not down on the field where the action is.  It is the same for the Christian Action Commission (CAC) as I offer a wrap of this year’s legislative session.

The CAC monitors several bills in the Mississippi House of Representatives and Senate each year.  Recently, after miraculously passing a budget, they sounded the gavel and went home.  It is now time for the “wrap up.” Following is a synopsis of a few of the bills that reflect our interests and our opinions.

Pro-life bills did not fare well this year.  HB 656, proposed to make it a felony to transport a minor to another state to have an abortion without parental consent, died in committee.  SB 2036 would have required physicians performing abortions in clinics to be board certified in OB/GYN, but it too died in committee. 

SB 2498, known as the Child Protection Act, would have required mandatory reporting of sexual crimes against minors, retaining the DNA of a fetus for the purpose of documenting the perpetrator of a sex crime against the minor, thus making it easier for prosecution.  This is the third year this bill has failed.  Usually it comes out of the Senate and goes to the House where it is always placed in Judiciary A, chaired by Ed Blackmon of Canton, and there it dies in committee.  This year it died in committee in the Senate.

SB 3032 provided appropriations for Mississippi’s institutes of higher learning.  Representative Andy Gipson and Senator Perry Lee were instrumental in getting an amendment to the bill that stated, “None of the funds appropriated and/or authorized for expenditure under this act shall be used for research in which a human embryo is killed or destroyed.” There was a situation that necessitated this amendment, and the CAC is very appreciative of Rep. Andy Gipson for his diligent work and for Sen. Perry Lee for his efforts in the Senate.

Due to an election year, alcohol bills did not fare very well as most politicians prefer not to go on record voting for such bills and then running for office in the same year.  HB 744 and SB 2064 would have raised the level of alcohol content in beers, but fortunately they died in committee.  This is one dangerous bill and it will be back next year.  Your help will be needed to keep this from happening.

Also dying in committee was SB 2627 that would have allowed advertising of alcohol in areas of our state that have voted to prohibit alcohol sales.  One positive billed passed, HB 504.  This bill makes it unlawful for adults to allow parties at private premises where minors obtain alcohol with the consenting knowledge of adults. 

The Immigration Bill, similar to Arizona’s, died in committee.  Bills SB 2105, 2109, and 2151 were presented to enhance religious liberty in the public arena, especially our public schools.  These were good bills and their authors are to be commended for their efforts.  Hopefully, they will continue to pursue these freedoms.

The one bill that I felt needed a major overhaul was HB 455, commonly known as Pay Day Lending Reform.  It is laughable that some feel this industry was made better for the consumer.  The interest rates were altered only slightly. Rep. George Flaggs and Sen.  Gary Jackson chaired the committees in their respective chambers which did very little to protect the citizens of our state.  Hopefully, next year we can all work together to improve this atrocity.  The CAC thanks those of you who voted against giving this industry another four years to continue its, in my opinion, unethical and immoral practices.

Now we will all wait to see how the Courts draw the redistricting maps and how they will impact the upcoming elections.  It is going to be an exciting seven months.  The CAC will be developing a nonpartisan voter guide to help you in determining the best candidate in our statewide elections.  Stay tuned---there will need to be several more “Wraps” in the coming months.