HB 1441: March 12th Update
TAKE ACTION NOW: Tell conferees to include referendums for ALL areas considered to have “Resort Status” under HB 1441.
Contact immediately all conferees by clicking on each of the conferees’ name below. Then, select the “Contact” tab to communicate with each one via email AND phone
Rep. Percy Watson
Rep. Credell Calhoun
Rep. Bobby Moak
Sen. Dean Kirby
Sen. Sidney Albritton
Sen. Tommy Dickerson
In addition to contacting conferees, contact your Representative AND Senator. Tell them to support HB 1441 only if it grants ALL areas under consideration for “Resort Status” a referendum.
Click this link to contact your legislators via email and phone. You will need to first enter your zip code and then possibly your physical home address to ensure your message gets to your elected official.
Overview and previous activity of HB 1441
3/12/09 Update
HB1441 is now in conference. This means that six people, three people from both the Senate and the House, will be meeting to reword the bill and seek a compromise between both chambers.
The current language of HB 1441 does not give voters in certain areas of Mississippi the RIGHT TO VOTE and decide for themselves if they want to legalize liquor sales.
If legislators do not change the language and give all voters the RIGHT TO VOTE on “Resort Status” in their area, then these areas considered for “Resort Status” where liquor is illegal will be declared legal by legislative authority (and against the collective will of the people) if both the House and Senate pass HB 1441. Legislators must not trample on the rights of the people in these areas.
Mississippi citizens have a very small window of opportunity to express their position on HB1441 to conferees before the bill comes out of conference.
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2/27/09
HB 1441 is a bill that originated in the MS House of Representatives and was sent to the MS
Senate for a vote. While in the Senate two amendments to the bill were made. Both
amendments designated certain dry portion(s) of Rankin, and Pearl River counties to be
wet. The Senate amendments denied the people of these areas a right to vote on this issue.
This is legislative despotism.
HB 1441, with these Senate amendments, was sent back to the House for a vote to concur.
MS House Representatives could either concur and agree with the Senate’s amendments or
invite/send the bill to conference (which is a meeting between six people: three from the
House and three from the Senate where the bill could be reworked to change the language of
the Senate amendments).
The House refused to concur with the Senate and voted to send the bill to conference. The
initial vote was 64 to 49. That is, 64 for sending it to conference and 49 against sending it to
conference not changing the bill at all.
This vote was a tremendous victory for the voters of these counties!
After the initial vote was cast, four House members who voted to refuse MS citizens in
certain areas the right to vote on the issue changed their vote from NO to Yes. They did this
after they knew HB 1441 was being sent to conference. This left the final tally 68 to 45.
Several House Representatives stood up and spoke for protecting and giving people the
right to vote on the issue. They are: Rep. Mark Formby, Rep. Herbert Frierson, Rep. Andy
Gipson, Rep. John Moore, Rep. Deryk Parker, and Rep. Ray Rogers.
House Representatives who stood up and spoke to concur and send the bill to the Governor
for his signature were Rep. Bobby Moak, Rep. Percy Watson, and Rep. W.T. Mayhall.
Click this link to view how your Representative voted on HB 1441
Click this link to view how your Senator voted on HB 1441
It is likely the Christian Action Commission may need to ask you to take action again on this bill if it makes it out of conference. While it is not the intention of the CAC to overwhelm you with calls to action, the CAC does seek to keep you informed on critical legislation as this.
A special and sincere thank you to all of you who responded in significant numbers to your MS Representative. Without the collective and expressive will of you, the people, in opposition to this bill, it’s uncertain what the outcome of today’s vote would have been. Thankfully, this bill was sent to conference and will hopefully be significantly changed where the people of these areas will at least have the right to vote on this issue. Click on the links below to see how your Representative and Senator voted on HB 1441. Please stay tuned to this site as updates will be posted here.