Leland tourism tax resolution dies on in State Legislature
By Guest Columnist Alderwoman Nancy Jo King
Just four weeks after Jacob Venuti addressed the Leland Board of Alderpersons with advice to vote against the Tourism Tax Resolution, it ultimately died in the Mississippi House of Representatives.
Venuti, a strong community activist, gave the Board a clear warning four weeks ago, when he told the Mayor and other Aldermen not to adopt the measure, because there was no clear funding plan behind it, and almost every business in town had openly opposed any increase in taxes.
One of the many jobs Jacob takes seriously is being the Advisor to Alderwoman Nancy Jo King of Ward 5. The two of them had already discussed the possible issues of bringing a new tax into Leland on top of the existing tourism taxes they pay already.
On March 3, 2026, Alderpersons Nancy King and Michael Street both opposed the Tourism Tax Resolution, while Alderpersons Barbara Brooks and Johnny Jones voted in favor of it, Alderman Deon Morris skipped the meeting but ultimately, Mayor John Lee broke the tie in the affirmative and moved the Tourism Tax Resolution forward to the Mississippi Legislature. Before the Board took their vote, Jacob Venuti went to the podium in strong opposition to the proposed Resolution; he even directly told the Mayor and the Board that “moving this resolution forward without any future funding plans for projects would be premature and fundamentally flawed.”
Venuti said that when Mayor John Lee broke the tie, he was not shocked at all.
“It is well within the Mayor’s rights to break the tie; after all, that is a key aspect of the job.” Venuti said. When asked what would be the future of the Leland Tourism Tax Resolution, Jacob paused for a moment and then stated, “All he did was move the game to a different playing field, it has gone from city government, to state government and that is perfectly fine with me.”
We do know that the resolution went to the House of Representatives’ Local and Private committee and that this district’s State Representative, John Hines Sr., serves as Vice Chair of that committee. Venuti said that he knew the resolution was headed to the committee, but still had zero concerns about it actually being considered by the state. Ultimately, the Leland Tourism Tax Resolution never even came up for a vote by the committee, Venuti said that the resolution “sat.” The resolution officially died when the Mississippi House of Representatives adjourned “sine die,” an indication that the year’s legislative session came to an end.
