JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – On Monday, Hinds County Chancellor Judge Tiffany Grove entered an order in the case of House Speaker Philip Gunn versus Governor Tate Reeves. The judge ruled Reeves’ partial veto of a bill spending federal COVID-19 relief funds was unconstitutional.
Accordingly, House Bill 1782 became law in its entirety as passed by the Mississippi Legislature.
The lawsuit against Reeves was filed by House Speaker Philip Gunn and Speaker Pro Tempore Jason White in August 2020.
The law makes an appropriation from the budget contingency fund to the Mississippi Development Authority, the State Department of Health, the State Department of Mental Health and the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher learning for the purposes of addressing or related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The governor’s office released a statement about the ruling.
This is not a surprise—the Governor has always publicly said that this case will end up before the state Supreme Court. One Hinds County judge was never going to decide this. The Supreme Court will have to decide the central question of whether spending millions on pet projects is an appropriation or a ‘condition’ on an appropriation.
The constitution provides a check on their ability to dole out money to special projects. We hope the Supreme Court will recognize that check is necessary, guaranteed by the constitution, and should not be eliminated. We continue to maintain that someone has to hold the Speaker and his crew accountable if they attempt to wrongly funnel money to favored entities.
Parker Briden, Deputy Chief Of Staff for Gov. Tate Reeve
The Office of the Attorney General, representing Gov. Tate Reeves, filed an Emergency Motion for Stay Pending Appeal before the Mississippi Supreme Court. Click here to read the motion.
LATEST STORIES:
