JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – All bills in conference were supposed to be filed by Saturday evening, and any bills not filed by the deadline have died.
Mississippi Senate lawmakers showed up to the State Capitol on March 29 to make sure conference reports were filed. They said House lawmakers did not show up, and they needed them at the State Capitol.
“We’ll have a special session, and tens of thousands of dollars will be spent because they took the weekend off,” said Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann (R-Miss.).
The other option would be to file a suspension resolution, which some senators said they don’t support. Senate Appropriations Chairman Briggs Hopson III (R-District 23) said additional work couldn’t be done because the House docket room is closed. They have to file appropriation bills in both the House and Senate docket rooms.
“Unfortunately, we just ran into a roadblock yesterday (Friday). The House was going home, and we couldn’t get conference reports filed. And so, that’s where we are right now,” Hopson stated.
After the Senate convened on the floor Saturday morning, Hopson met with some senators to discuss conference reports on Senate-originated bills. He said they’re more than 100 bills that have to be handled, including bills that will impact the state’s budget for 2026.
“That process normally starts about five or six days before we conclude. And this year, the House was unwilling to meet with us until Thursday. So, it just didn’t leave us enough time to get all the appropriations bills finished,” said Hopson.
There are other issued that couldn’t be addressed without participation from the House.
“Child Protective Services didn’t get there. Their deficit appropriation, the contracts for education teachers are trying to be signed now. We can’t sign up teachers for next year because they don’t know how much they’re going to get paid,” said Hosemann.
WJTV 12 News reached out to House Speaker Jason White’s (R-Miss.) office for a comment.
He said in part, “In January 2025, I communicated the House position concerning an orderly and transparent appropriations process… The House will reconvene on Monday at 1:00 p.m. If the Senate wishes to engage in an open and transparent process, the House stands ready work and there is plenty of time to conclude our business.”