Our City – Jackson People's Assembly

City
Council Notes

Special City Council Meeting – Monday, May 2nd, 1 pm

IN THIS MEETING...

In Attendance

5 City Council Members attended the Meeting. Council Members Physically Present – Ward 2 – Angelique Lee, Ward 6-Aaron Banks; Council Members Virtually Present – Ward 1-Ashby Foote, Ward 5-Vernon Hartley, Ward 7 – Virgi Lindsay (Council President).

Purpose:

The Council had to approve a Claims item for an amount of money that was left off the Claims Docket that was presented and approved at the City Council Meeting on Tuesday, April 26th. The City Council must approve all Claims (bills for services completed, rental agreements, payments by the City for any purchases, etc.) before payments are given.

Claims

VOTE-Passed-5-0- Yes(All Council Members Physically & Virtually Present)The Council approved the Claim Item in the amount of $279,583.79
- The money will pay for the rental of 4 temporary Bypass Pumps the City uses to comply with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Consent Decree (an agreement the City reached with the EPA to begin repairing the City’s aging water system & providing clean & safe water to Jackson residents).

- The Bypass Pumps help drain sewage properly & keep it from backing up and draining into city streets and residents’ yards.

- Questions were raised during the meeting about costs of renting versus buying the pumps.
  - Renting costs $2,000-$3,000 per week, depending on the size.
  - Buying would cost $200,000-$250,000 per pump.
  - The City would need to purchase 5 Bypass Pumps.
  - The City has to keep renting until: 1) The Bypass Pumps the City purchased arrive & can be installed. 2) The Emergency Problem in several areas has been solved.

Jackson State University Drafts

WNBA – Ameshya Williams-Holiday – was the 25th overall pick in the WNBA draft to the Indiana Fever. Ameshya is the 1st JSU Women’s Basketball Player to be drafted by the WNBA.
NFL – James Houston IV – was the 217 overall pick, drafted in the 6th round, to the Detroit Lions. He is the 1st JSU Football Player under Coach Deion Sanders to be drafted by the NFL.

Upcoming Events

- To view upcoming City of Jackson Events go to: https://www.jacksonms.gov/events

Jackson Free Clinic – Block Party May 7th
- Located at 925 Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr.
- Offers general care, dentistry, gynecology, pharmacy, and more.
- Has been operating for 20 years
- Block Party on May 7th, 2pm-6pm, to celebrate 20 years in the community.

Jackson People’s Assembly
- People’s Assembly for Women & Caregivers
  - Thursday, May 26th, 6pm-8pm, Location: Mississippi Museum of Art

Youth People’s Assembly
- Saturday, June 4th, 1pm-3pm, Location:TBA

Things to Know

JATRAN will resume regular service hours starting Monday, May 2nd, including paratransit services.
The mask mandate has ended. Private businesses can still require you to wear masks. The mask mandate has ended for public spaces.
WSBA Accounts can now be linked with Zip Code instead of Social Security Number. https://dss-coj.opower.com/dss/login
Please call 311 for non-emergency issues or Constituent Services: 601-960-2324 or 601-624-0637

City Council Notes Archive

More on the City Council

The Jackson City Council acts as the legislative branch of the city government. Meaning, they have the power to create new laws that apply to just the city of Jackson. For example in 2010, after a series of unjust stops of young black men by JPD and unjust stops of people in the Spanish-speaking immigrant community, the Jackson City Council created a law known as the “Human Rights Ordinance” that bans racial profiling based on race and nationality. The Jackson City Council is also responsible for approving the City Budget. This is one if it’s biggest functions.

Jackson City Council is also your direct representative for your neighborhood, so if you have a problem with something in your neighborhood, your City Councilperson is the government representative that is responsible for helping you to improve that.

Does the Mayor have a say on the Jackson City Council?

Jackson has a Mayor-Council form of government, meaning it’s a check and balance type of system. The Mayor has the power to create laws via executive order, has authority over all city departments, and drafts the City Budget. The City Council also has the power to approve or disapprove of the City Budget. It can also create laws, but the mayor has the power to veto those laws if she/he deems that necessary. For example, in 2019 the Office of the Mayor engaged in Participatory Budgeting process fo include residents in setting the priorities for the City budget. The City Council then voted on the budget, with four of the Council people voting to pass the “People’s Budget” and three of the Council people voting against passage.