District Four Supervisor Doug Moak is serving as chairman of the Mississippi Association of Supervisors' Legislative Committee, helping the statewide organization of 410 county supervisors transmit their needs and concerns to legislators and make sure local voices are heard when laws are molded beginning in January. Moak and his contemporaries began the dialogue Tuesday during a meeting with Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant and Speaker of the House Billy McCoy.

"We had a meeting to let them know where we stand before the session starts," Moak said. "There's going to be some issues come up next year, and we just wanted to let them know we'd like to have a voice at the table."

Moak said the primary issue for MAS heading into 2010 would adjustments to homestead exemptions, a popular motion in 2009 that generated several bills in the House and Senate.

Although none of the bills passed during the session, such adjustments would impact county revenues, and Moak said supervisors had no input into the legislative process. He said supervisors were particularly concerned with Senate Bill 2300, which would have raised the exemption for citizens disabled or 65 and older from $75,000 to $100,000.

"It would have been pretty tough on county budgets, especially small counties," Moak said. "There are 10 or 12 counties that experience 10 percent growth, and it wouldn't hurt them that bad, but there are several counties that have experienced losses in appraised value, and it would hurt them.

"And, indirectly, it would make it harder on senior adults because we would have to probably adjust a little bit if our ad valorem taxes," he continued. "There's really no such thing as a tax exemption, there's just a tax shift."

Legislative committee members also lobbied the lieutenant governor and speaker of the House for counties' Local System Bridge Program funding - a primary source of money allotted annually to counties for repairs - to be maintained, and discussed methods for acquiring fire trucks for volunteer fire departments.

One item not yet suggested by MAS but is basically an annual point of interest, Moak said, is a local option sales tax.

It would allow counties to collect a percentage of sales taxes like municipalities do. A sales tax for counties would give supervisors the option of lowering ad valorem levies.

"It's really the most fair tax, because everyone pays it equally," he said about sales tax. "Most of the time it's tied in with some kind of tourism or indirect business development."

Moak said MAS representatives suggest the option almost every year, but it is usually "shot down in the Legislature." Even if the Legislature approved it, county voters would have the final say on its implementation, he said.

Moak said concrete policies would begin developing at MAS' fall workshop in October.

"Our committee is proactive, and (Tuesday) we just kind of let them know we have some thoughts and we'd like a voice," Moak said. "Things will start heating up once the session starts."