The Mississippi Legislature has approved House Bill 1649, allowing for the creation of a river district that will take the taxes collected from each side of the Leaf and Bouie rivers and reinvest them back into those areas.
The district – tentatively known as the Leaf and Bouie Redevelopment District – would stretch east and west of the rivers and is aimed at promoting infrastructure, recreation and economic vitality in that area with the help of existing taxes from three entities, including Forrest County and the cities of Hattiesburg and Petal.
“Especially in a session where it was very disjointed (because of COVID-19) and it was so unpredictable given the pace of things and how deadlines moved, to get that bill through is very rewarding,” Hattiesburg Mayor Toby Barker said. “The next step obviously is to figure out how much the county and both cities will designate as a percentage of ad valorem from that area to go back into that area.”
Endeavors in the new district would be funded by a percentage of the ad valorem taxes already collected by the two cities and the county.
For the two municipalities, officials also could consider pledging a portion of the sales tax collected in that area.
“It could be as much as 100 percent for us, which would be around $70,000 or $80,000, or it could be half that,” Barker said. “And both the county and the City of Petal will determine theirs as well. It is a promising development toward regional cooperation.”
Officials from Hattiesburg, Petal and Forrest County have agreed to give at least 15 percent of collected taxes to the areas, although they could choose a higher amount in each year’s budget.
The proposed district encompasses areas as far north as Glendale Avenue, as far south as East Laurel Avenue, as far east as Carterville Road and as far west as Lakeview Road near Greens Creek.
The river district was first proposed by Barker in February during a Hattiesburg City Council meeting and was approved by the cities and the county shortly after.
“Obviously, every city is now going to start its budget, so what (Barker) suggested was that as we start our budget talks with the board, that we decide what amount of money we want to pledge to the district,” Petal Mayor Hal Marx said. “We have a floor of money that we’re bound to give, but we could also give more.
“I anticipate that this first year, it’s going to be probably very close to the floor, just because we are still in a tight budget.”
