There has been no shortage of coverage when it comes to the state of roads and bridges across Mississippi.
Rural counties like Sunflower find themselves in the middle of a political battle waged between leadership in state government and a large bureaucratic agency in the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
We are the victims in this bloodbath that is costing Mississippi more road miles and bridges each day.
There are currently 22 bridges that have been closed by the state in Sunflower County alone, and while the county has a plan for some of these bridges, many will remain closed, and others are in danger of being shuttered at future dates.
The Enterprise-Tocsin reached out to Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves’ office about this issue last week and received this response from Reeves spokeswoman Laura Hipp.
“Since 2011, the Legislature has appropriated more than $7 billion for Mississippi roads and bridges. Lt. Gov. Reeves believes we should direct more money to maintenance and repairs, and he believes we can do so without raising the gas tax and without implementing an illegal tax on Internet sales. One initial step is the state must do a better job prioritizing current spending while targeting inefficiencies in what has become a large bureaucracy.”
We do not challenge Reeves on the monetary figure nor on his assertion that the Mississippi Department of Transportation could be better stewards of the taxpayers’ money.
What we do find issue with is this response offers no clear solution to a problem that is affecting both the large agricultural business of places like Sunflower County as well as the citizens who have come to expect road and bridge maintenance as basic services from the government.
It is widely believed that Reeves intends to run for governor after current Gov. Phil Bryant’s, term is complete.
If this indeed is Reeves’ intended goal, he would be wise to consider resolving this issue prior to ramping up the campaign.
It may be true the “no new taxes” platform will appeal to most Mississippi voters, but those same voters would likely remember the extra miles they had to travel to get from point A to point B a lot longer than they would remember a few cents added to a gallon of gas when they fill up their tanks.
For those who have to navigate the rural roads of Mississippi, a closed bridge can seem a bit more unsightly than paying a few more cents at the pump.
Reeves knows Mississippi voters do not like taxes, and he may be able to shout from the highest hill in the Delta that he didn’t raise a single tax for Mississippians at the state level, but he will likely conveniently leave out the fact that the bridges that are slowly being repaired at the local level are being done so through raised property taxes.
Reeves has positioned himself as a master of gridlock at the legislative level, but if he wants to govern a state, he is going to have to learn how to solve problems and work with people on both sides of these issues.
“It’s all MDOT’s fault” might work well in Jackson, but the folks at the county level are not buying it.
MDOT and its bloated budget will keep trucking along no matter who is governor.
Failure to resolve this discord will only result in more bridges being closed, and for Reeves, a bridge closed should be a bridge burned with Mississippi taxpayers.
