JACKSON, Miss. (WJTV) – Governor Tate Reeves has until Monday, March 31 to sign or veto House Bill 1. While the governor has said he would sign the bill, lawmakers are waiting to see what action he will take.

House Speaker Jason White (R-Miss.) believes Reeves will sign the bill into law as early as Thursday, March 27.

House Bill 1 passed earlier this session with the major goal being the elimination of the state income tax. The bill does not include everything the House wanted, but it retains the elimination of the state income tax as a non-negotiable element.

The House recently agreed to changes made by the Mississippi Senate, but a typo in the trigger language of the bill could accelerate the state’s shift into tax cut mode. House Minority Leader Robert Johnson III (D-District 94) said the language error will push the state income tax elimination into action faster than initially planned.

“The trigger is actually no longer a trigger because at the 80/500 of a percent, we essentially are in tax cut mode right now,” Johnson said.

The bill also reduces the grocery tax from 7% to 5% and raises the gas tax by a total of $0.09 over three years.

“Regardless of the other features or how you feel about other aspects of the bill, there’s no denying it eliminates the income tax in as soon as 14 years. While that’s not fast enough for some, the House plan was a little faster than that—11 years,” said White.

Democratic lawmakers in both the House and Senate have voice strong opposition to the bill, particularly because of its impact on the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS). Starting in 2026, new state employees would see their retirement contributions split between a traditional pension and a 401(k)-style plan. State Senator David Blount (D-District 29) argued that this change will hurt Mississippi’s public employees.

“This bill is wrong for the retirement system, and it’s going to make it harder for school districts, for first responders, firefighters, law enforcement to be retained to do those vital jobs when their retirement benefits are not nearly what they are now,” Blount stated.

According to White, the Senate invited conference on Senate Bill 3095 last week. He is willing to negotiate about a trigger, but they want it to be reasonable.