Desoto County, Miss. (DeSoto News) – The Mississippi Manufacturers Association Political Action Committee (MMA PAC), which represents manufacturers across the state, endorsed Delbert Hosemann in his bid for re-election for Lt. Governor today. MMA President and Chief Executive Officer John McKay said Hosemann’s record on workforce development and his advocacy for pro-business legislation earned their continued support.

“As Secretary of State, Delbert Hosemann was a champion for industry, spotlighting the challenges the state faces in growing a skilled workforce and increasing our labor force participation rate,” McKay said. “When he became Lt. Governor, Delbert immediately went to work implementing his plans to address these issues while engaging with business, economic development, and community leaders every step of the way.”

Under Hosemann’s leadership, the Mississippi Senate consolidated workforce development efforts under one agency—Accelerate Mississippi. Since then, with the Legislature’s support, Accelerate has refocused resources on training for high-demand, high-wage jobs in the State and implemented a career coaching program in K-12 schools.

“The MMA has been at the forefront of reshaping our workforce development efforts. This has resulted in equipping more Mississippians with the critical skills they need to find a meaningful job and provide for their families,” Hosemann said. “We are grateful for MMA’s continued support and look forward to even more progress in the next term.”

In his first term as Lt. Governor, Hosemann also oversaw the:

• Creation of MFlex, a performance-based, easy-to-calculate economic development tax incentive for new or expanding industry;
• Reduction of the personal income tax to a flat 4% rate, one of the most competitive in the country, without raising taxes; and
• Restructuring of tax deductions to allow businesses to take an immediate and full deduction for equipment the year it is put into service, rather than requiring deductions based on depreciation over time.

Elected as Lt. Governor in 2019 with more than 60 percent of the vote. Hosemann’s platform centers on securing Mississippi’s elections, cutting taxes on working people, addressing crime in our communities, investing in our roads and bridges, growing our economy, improving educational opportunities, and running state government as efficiently as possible.

The Primary Election is on Aug. 8 followed by the General Election on Nov. 7.

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Hattiesburg, Miss. (WDAM) – Dozens of students from William Carey University are the nation’s newest physicians this weekend.

“It was really fun to see everyone again and see all my professors who helped make it happen and helped through all the low times and the high times,” said Danielle Ginsburg, a graduate from Reno, Nev.

Eighty-seven students graduated Saturday morning from the WCU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine.

“It’s jubilation, it’s relief, it’s the culmination of four years all coming together in one fantastic moment,” said Dr. Matthew Snell, a graduate from Petal.

The featured speaker for commencement was Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann.

Saturday marked the university’s 10th medical school graduation ceremony.

“I feel like William Carey was very supportive as a school and I just learned a lot, honestly, and I made some really good friends and it’s just really nice to see everyone graduate,” said Dr. Aashna Chaudhry, a graduate from Dallas, Texas.

Most of the graduates now will move on to do their residencies in Mississippi or around the nation.

“When you pursue a path of medicine, you’re always learning. so, I feel like I’ll be learning until I retire, said Chadwick Hickman, a graduate from Columbus, Miss.

The College of Osteopathic Medicine held its first classes in 2010.

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Washington County, Ark. (WAPT) – WASHINGTON COUNTY, Ark. — A former Mississippi state senator was killed in an Arkansas plane crash.

The Washington County, Arkansas sheriff’s office, the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are investigating a Wednesday’s crash that claimed the life of former state Sen. John Morgan.

Morgan, who reportedly served as a state senator from 1981-1991, was allegedly flying a Beechcraft King Air 90 when he allegedly crashed Wednesday evening after departing from the Oxford Univeristy Airport, according to the FAA.

Deputies confirmed Morgan, 76, was the only person on board the plane at the time of the crash.

Several Mississippi lawmakers confirmed the identity of Morgan, saying Morgan was a well-known businessman.

Gov. Tate Reeves posted a photo of Morgan on his Twitter page, calling Morgan a “fiercely loyal person.”

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Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann also remembered Morgan, writing on Facebook, “legions of friends have lost laughter, a warm smile, a brilliant businessman, and a community and political leader.”

According to reports from the Daily Journal, Morgan co-founded the Morgan White Group in 1987. The group and its subsidiaries operate several businesses in the insurance and payroll industries.

The cause of the plane crash is under investigation.

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Ridgeland, Miss. (Madison County Journal) – Memorial Day observances are set in Ridgeland and Flora.

Ridgeland will observe Memorial Day early with a Remember and Honor ceremony at the Veteran’s Memory Park in front of City Hall on Thursday, May 25 at 10 a.m., where Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann will be the keynote speaker.

Memorial Day is Monday, May 29.

Kim Cooper, director of public relations for the city of Ridgeland, said the majority of ceremony participants and speakers are veterans.

“This ceremony will consist of the tolling of the bell, and the Ridgeland High School ROTC will be there for the presentation of the colors,” Cooper said. “A soloist will sing the Star Spangled Banner, and Mike McCollum will play bagpipes as people come in, and will also welcome everyone.”

Mayor Gene F. McGee will introduce Hosemann.

McCollum, chairman of the Veteran’s Memory Park Committee, said everyone is invited to the ceremony.

“We invite everyone to come out to Ridgeland’s Veterans Memory Park to honor our heroes who lost their lives in battle and sacrificed on the altar of freedom,” McCollum said.

Veterans Memory Park is located at 100 W. School Street. For more information about the ceremony, call the city of Ridgeland at (601) 856-7113.

Flora Mayor Leslie Childress said although the city does not have any official Memorial Day events planned, he and first responders, along with veterans, are meeting on Friday, May 26 at 7:30 a.m. at the town cemetery to place flags by the graves of the ones who served.

“Everyone is invited to come join us and volunteer, whether they have or haven’t served,” Childress said.

The Flora Cemetery is located at 291 1st Street.

The cities of Madison, Canton and Gluckstadt do not have any official Memorial Day events planned at this time, officials said.

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Magee, Miss. (Magee News) – Lynn Hosemann, wife of Lt Governor Delbert Hosemann, is a lady with a mission. She is a feisty, intelligent, and goal orientated lady!

Lynn’s passion is all Mississippi! But, her “heart” passion is children with disabilities. As Lynn explains in her video, “I am somewhat selfish with my awareness of children with disabilities.” Lynn is grandmother to 8 grandchildren. One of her grands has non verbal autism and another with down syndrome. Quickly, Lynn was thrown into an unknown world. Being the type person she is, Lynn tackled head on the needs of the disabled. Lynn serves on the board for Canopy Children’s Solutions (a comprehensive non profit provider of children’s behavioral heath education and social service solutions.

Delbert got a good one with Lynn! The couple have been married for 52 years. They have 3 children and 8 grandchildren. The couple attends St. Richard Catholic Church.

Of course, Lynn didn’t miss a beat in promoting her husband in the upcoming election for another term as Lt. Governor! (I would like to think someone like Lynn would be on my campaign team!). Lynn is proud of her husband and all he has accomplished.

Following our interview, Lynn visited citizens in Magee.

I hope you enjoy the video!

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Jackson, Miss. (Mississippi Today) – Once a vocal champion of campaign finance transparency and reform, lieutenant governor candidate Chris McDaniel has again filed an incomplete and incoherent report of the amounts and sources of funding for his campaign.

This comes after McDaniel’s campaign last month said he was returning legally questionable large donations from a Virginia dark-money nonprofit, and shutting down his PAC through which the donations flowed to his campaign.

Incumbent Republican Delbert Hosemann, who faces McDaniel in the Aug. 8 Republican primary, on Wednesday reported raising nearly $193,000 from January through April, and having $3.4 million cash on hand as the primary race enters the final stretch. His largest single donation was $25,000 from Barry Wax, owner of Wax Seed Co. in Amory and a longtime large contributor to Mississippi Republican campaigns.

McDaniel, a four-term state senator who has twice run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate, filed only a cover sheet for his campaign finance report, failing to itemize donations or spending over $200 as required by state law. His filing on Wednesday’s deadline was listed as the “Committee to Elect Chris McDaniel,” not under his name as his past reports have been filed, and McDaniel failed to register such a committee with the secretary of state’s office.

McDaniel and campaign staff did not respond to a request for comment about the filing.

Hosemann in a statement Thursday said: “At this point, there appear to be multiple campaign finance violations stemming from multiple committees. Standing for election integrity includes following campaign finance laws, which require basic reporting of contributions, expenditures, and cash on hand. We are asking for enforcement of these laws. If Chris McDaniel can’t get this simple paperwork done, he won’t be able to manage a $7 billion budget.”

McDaniel’s campaign and PAC reports to date make it impossible to know for sure exactly how much money he has raised, has on hand or from whence it came. In his filing in January that was supposed to cover 2022 collections, he reported collections from this year. In the cover sheet totals he filed Wednesday, it would appear he is re-reporting money he already reported in January. Given this, it would appear his campaign raised about $87,000 this year through April. His cover sheet claims he has about $336,000 cash on hand.

McDaniel had also created the Hold the Line PAC. Its public filings and subsequent explanations and amended reports from McDaniel and others have been confounding. Hold the Line initially failed to list the source of hundreds of thousands of dollars it claimed to have collected, and its reports have had amounts and dates that don’t add up. For instance, Hold the Line reported having raised hundreds of thousands of dollars the year before McDaniel legally registered it with the secretary of state’s office, and failed to list the source of that money as required by law.

Mississippi Today first reported about issues with McDaniel’s PAC and campaign finance reports in early February. In mid-April, after Hosemann filed a complaint that the secretary of state’s office forwarded to the attorney general, McDaniel’s campaign said it was returning donations from the PAC, and the PAC in turn was returning donations to a dark-money nonprofit corporation that Hosemann’s camp claimed violated state law.

A spokeswoman for McDaniel’s campaign last month said McDaniel was confident he would prevail in court on any challenge to his finances, but was returning $460,000 to the American Exceptionalism Institute “to avoid a protracted legal fight with the establishment.”

Attorney General Lynn Fitch’s only response to date about Hosemann’s complaint has been, “We are reviewing it.” Secretary of State Michael Watson’s office cited its lack of investigative and prosecutorial authority when it forwarded Hosemann’s complaint to Fitch.

An intentional violation of Mississippi’s campaign disclosure law is a misdemeanor with a maximum penalty of a $3,000 fine, six months imprisonment, or both. But in Mississippi campaign finance laws are seldom enforced, and alleged violations seldom investigated or prosecuted.

In response to questions from Mississippi Today on Wednesday, Watson’s office said McDaniel’s cover letter was all he filed for his report, and that, “We have not received a Statement of Organization from the Committee to Elect Chris McDaniel.” The statement said that candidates must file a statement of organization within 48 hours of receiving or spending $200. Failure to do so can eventually result in administrative penalties from the state Ethics Commission, which will eventually turn the case over to the AG’s office if a candidate continues to fail to file.

Hattiesburg, Miss. (Hattiesburg American) – William Carey University’s College of Osteopathic Medicine was awarded a $20 million infrastructure grant last week to further expand its offerings in medical education and workforce development.

The infrastructure grant, announced Friday, was given through AccelerateMS to create an Institute of Primary Care.

“We are extremely grateful for this impactful grant. The institute will be a beacon to transform and improve health care for all of our Mississippi communities,” said Dr. Italo Subbarao, dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine.

The Institute of Primary Care will enhance the college’s mission to increase the number of primary care physicians in rural and underserved areas in Mississippi and the Gulf South.

The institute will train student doctors and primary care resident physicians, help community physicians and other healthcare providers advance their training and certifications, and provide a medical education space for advancements related to primary care.

“William Carey University has focused on workforce areas in our state which need the most attention — the fields of education and healthcare,” Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said in a news release. “Under the leadership of Dr. Ben Burnett, and in partnership with the legislature, this $20 million grant will directly result in an infusion of new doctors, nurses and other healthcare professionals into rural Mississippi.”

The Institute of Primary Care will have a large, state-of-the-art osteopathic manipulative medicine lab and a point-of-care ultrasound skills lab. It will include an innovative skills simulation center and a large conference room for continuing medical education events.

“Our College of Osteopathic Medicine was established with a primary purpose to do just as Christ did, to serve the underserved. That was the main mission of our namesake, William Carey,” WCU President Ben Burnett said. “We’re not just named after Dr. William Carey, we want to continue the ministry that he started more than 200 years ago. Today’s announcement is a culmination of a year and a half of work by Dr. Subbarao and his team. The fruits of their labor will strengthen the mission we created exponentially.”

The $20 million Mississippi Health Sciences Training Infrastructure Grant funds are allocated from the Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund program, which is part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Under 2022 House Bill 1006, AccelerateMS is responsible for the management, oversight, and monitoring of these funds.

“We are honored and privileged to participate in a team that is focused on trying to improve the lives of Mississippians in a very palpable way. I cannot think of a workforce sector more important than supporting people who have a heart for serving those in the most vulnerable positions,” said Ryan Miller, executive director of AccelerateMS.

For more information about the Institute of Primary Care, call 601-318-6235 or email com@wmcarey.edu.

Jackson, Miss. (Magee News) – On March 28, 2023, Governor Tate Reeves signed into law SB 2139, providing for the creation of a non-partisan state commission to develop programs to celebrate the 250th anniversary of America’s independence in 2026.

Working jointly with the America250 Foundation, the multiyear commemoration will be led by First Lady Elee Reeves, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, the House Speaker Philip Gunn, and various state agency appointees and advisory committees.

In attendance at the April 24 signing ceremony were officers and members of the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution, including DAR State Regent Cynthia Frances Mangum, the bill’s principal author, Sen. Lydia Graves Chassaniol, and drafter, SAR Past State President Ben Block Jones.

The Sons of the American Revolution and the Daughters of the American Revolution are social and hereditary organizations which promote the education of its membership and the general public about the American Revolution and its patriots and foster patriotism and an appreciation of American freedoms.

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Hattiesburg, Miss. (WDAM) – Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann paid a visit to the Hub City yesterday to give an update on the aftermath of the 2023 Legislative Session. 

 

Black Hawk, Miss. (Winona Times/Carroll County Conservative) – Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann visited the area on April 20 to discuss what is being done to bring relief to those affected by the March 24 tornado and the access damage.

A Rotarian in Jackson, Hosemann spoke to Winona Rotarians about the strides being made toward recovery from tornadoes that reeked havoc from one side of the state to the other.

The Mississippi Legislature has appropriated funds to help build back communities that have lost churches, schools, homes, and more importantly, lives.

Hosemann said lawmakers initially appropriated $6 million and then, about $12 million more to fund the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) efforts.

“Some of it was for schools. Some of it was for hospitals. Some of it was for general care,” said Hosemann.

He commended the efficiency of MEMA and their responding to the destruction within hours after the storm.

“They are, I guess, fortunately or unfortunately, highly skilled because they’ve had a lot of practice. They do a really good job,” said Hosemann. “I would like that they didn’t have so many opportunities to show how good they were.”

MEMA and the federal government have a number of different programs, including loans, that will help provide for housing.

“Loans are still loans. I mean you owe somebody. It’s not a grant,” said Hosemann. “We want to be more where we’re helpful with money that doesn’t have to be repaid by people who are suffering right now.”

During his visit to the area, Hosemann visited the site of the Black Hawk School, which had been reduced to rubble and boards by the storm.

He listened to concerns of local residents who have lost their homes and now are having difficulties in receiving payment from their insurance companies.

Hosemann encouraged the residents to be patient with the process, and even if they have to temporarily relocate, return to the area.

“Your friends and neighbors just rushed to help you, but now, people are getting slightly relocated, trying to get the feel of what happened; trying to find their family,” said Hosemann. “They go through a natural phase of really being challenged about rebuilding or about coming back to the community about all the things they lost. It’s important, I think, for people like me and your neighbors and your friends to come back the next week and just check on people and talk to people.”

He said MEMA and state officials will continue to work with locals to help rebuild.

“When we come back, we’re going to appropriate the rest of the money as needed,” said Hosemann, of state lawmakers. “When we come back in January, that’s going to be job one – to find out what’s missing.”

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