Candidate for municipal offices were able to make their campaigns official starting this past Thursday with the qualifying period opening on Jan. 2. Over the next few months, residents will be courted by those seeking to become mayor or council member, and it is important to distinguish between those with plans and those with promises.

 

In Meridian, the Mayor has the authority to handle day-to-day functions of the city government, while the City Council controls the purse strings. This separation of powers is a critical distinction that can benefit both parties when they work together or lead to chaos and dysfunction when they don’t.

 

Under the current system, a mayoral candidate can promise to raise pay for police officers and spend more to combat crime, but that promise can only be delivered on if the City Council agrees to appropriate the funding to do so.

 

Likewise, a candidate for a City Council seat can promise to pave every road in their ward and, if elected and with the help of two other council members, allocate the money to do so. The candidate, however, cannot order city workers to carry out the actual paving work. That power rests with the mayor.

 

Meridian is in the early stages of a 20-year, $150 million or more federally mandated overhaul of its wastewater system, rebuilding its police department and paying for decades of deferred maintenance on its infrastructure. At the same time, the city is experiencing a period of rapid revitalization and growth in the downtown area, welcoming new businesses and industries and quickly making a name for itself as a destination for arts, culture, music and more.

 

Outside factors will also impact the city in the next four years. The state retirement system, PERS, is woefully underfunded to the tune of about $25 billion, and while the state Legislature shot down an effort to raise employer contributions to 22.5% over five years, currently at 17.5%, the city, along with other municipal, county, public school and state government systems will still see its share of the costs go up.

 

Efforts to overhaul Mississippi’s tax system also pose a potential threat to the city’s finances. State Legislators are set to begin the 2025 legislative session on Jan. 7 where, among other things, they are expected to look at reducing or eliminating the state’s grocery tax.

 

Meridian, like other municipalities, receives 18.5% of that grocery tax to go into its general fund, and reducing it will have an immediate impact on the city’s cash flow.

 

Setting the city up to flourish while staying on top of its needs, and doing both without bankrupting taxpayers, is not a job for the faint of heart, and residents should require those running to represent them have not only a clear vision for where they want the city to be but also a plan to get them there.