March 24, 2009
In the four years before Haley Barbour became Governor:
- Mississippi suffered a net loss of 38,300 jobs
- Mississippi lost a higher percentage of our manufacturing jobs than any other state in the entire country. Mississippi suffered a net loss of 49,700 of our highest paying jobs – a 22% decline in manufacturing employment.
Why were we hemorrhaging jobs?
- For two straight years, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce ranked Mississippi worst in the nation for lawsuit abuse. Every small business was one lawsuit away from bankruptcy.
- Workforce training was not a state government priority. $43 million of job training money available from the federal government went unspent because the state was not managing the workforce training programs properly. During the Musgrove Administration, the budget for our Community Colleges, which are our principal workforce training institutions, was cut 16%.
- In four years, Mississippi went from the best financial condition in our state’s history to a more than $700 million budget hole. The budget mess left many people saying that there was no alternative but a tax increase.
- A lack of focus on regional economic development and a one-size-fits-all approach in our economic development incentives and programs.
Haley’s Plan: Enact real, comprehensive tort reform
- Haley and the Legislature enacted what the Wall Street Journal called the most comprehensive tort reform legislation in the country.
- After tort reform, liability rates went down, automobile insurance rates went down, homeowner’s and other property insurance rates went down, and more than 50 new insurance programs entered our state. Tort reform created more competition, more affordable insurance, and created jobs by reducing unnecessary costs for small businesses.
Haley’s Plan: Reform our job training systems
- The Legislature approved the Governor’s plan to completely overhaul our state job training system under the reformed Department of Employment Security. We are no longer leaving available federal resources on the table and our job training programs are better aligned with what the private sector needs. In its first year, the number of clients the reorganized department placed in jobs increased by 35% over the previous year.
- The state workforce training budget was doubled over two years and a new, stable funding source was created without raising taxes.
- The Legislature approved the Governor’s proposal to reform the unemployment tax system to provide dedicated funding to workforce training while cutting state payroll taxes by 25%.
Haley’s Plan: Balance the budget without raising taxes
- In 2 ½ years, Mississippi went from a $700 million budget hole to a projected surplus of more than $100 million without raising anybody’s taxes.
- Working together, the Legislature and Governor Barbour got control of state spending by reforming programs such as Medicaid and the prison system. In the current fiscal year (FY 06), state spending will grow by less than 1% while state revenues increase by more than 10%.
- In the upcoming fiscal year (FY 07), Mississippi will begin to rebuild our rainy day fund by setting aside 2% of state revenues for the first time in three years.
- In 2005, for the first time since 1987, our state paid off more debt than was issued, so our bonded indebtedness actually went down. This will provide financial relief to our kids and grandkids.
- State government is running more efficiently. For example, the Mississippi Development Authority is working more prospects than ever even with an 11% smaller workforce.
Haley’s Plan: Realign our Economic Development Programs
- Haley formed Momentum Mississippi, a group of business, education, and government leaders from every area of the state dedicated to planning for long-term economic development.
- In a Special Session, the Legislature approved Momentum Mississippi’s first set of recommendations, which realigned our economic development incentives to match the growth sectors of the economy and to provide incentives for higher paying jobs.
The Results of Haley’s Plan?
More people are working in higher paying jobs.
- Despite enduring the worst natural disaster in American history, nearly 20,000 more Mississippians are working today than when Haley began his term, and employment is higher than pre-Katrina levels.
- The free-fall loss of manufacturing jobs has been stopped and manufacturing employment has remained steady for the last 2 ½ years.
- For the first time in 75 years, Mississippi is not last in the country in per capita personal income.
- In 2004, personal income grew at the fastest rate since 1998 and it grew by another 4% in 2005.
