MS Attorney General working with 28% budget cut

HATTIESBURG, MS. - The House and Senate signed off on budgets for the Attorney General's office, Department of Transportation, and funds for state aid roads late Monday night.

Lawmakers were unable to reach an agreement on the budgets during the regular session, and had to approve them before the new budget year starting July 1.

Attorney General Jim Hood said he was surprised when he found out his budget was on the agenda for the special called session by Governor Phil Bryant.

According to Hood the Legislature cut his department's budget by 28%.

“And unfortunately just because of the leadership, now there are a lot of Republicans, in the Legislature that were not for all this" said Hood.

He continued, "But the leadership was for cutting our office for more than 28% and that’s more than any agency that I am aware of.”

Hood said he shrank his executive office and moved leadership roles around due to to the budget cut. He said he will continue to fight white-collar crimes and cyber-stalking.

"It is just going to cut back on the number, but we trained a lot of law enforcement officers to enforce a lot of the child pornography, those types of cases. They work very closely with us" said Hood.

“We have a lot of work to do with issues" he said. "We are facing cyber crime, hacking, data breaches, ransom we are going to see those hitting in Mississippi businesses, we’re trying to stay prepared for it."

"But it’s going to affect, how much money is available for victims, and law enforcement officers that are disabled in the line of duty. Those kinds of things, are serious cuts at least the Legislature has chosen to make.”