Morning Brief: Sep 14 · Data Center Rules Land in Jackson as Regulators, Counties Meet
Mississippi's data center oversight debate moves to Jackson Tuesday, with the PSC, MDEQ and county leaders on one agenda while a Ridgeland developer's 350-megawatt plant still waits on a ruling.
Data center oversight convenes in Jackson
The officials who actually regulate Mississippi data centers gather Tuesday at a Mississippi Association of Supervisors and Municipalities convening in Jackson, and the tentative agenda is unusually blunt about the stakes. Central District PSC Commissioner DeKeither Stamps speaks at 9:45 a.m. on state regulatory policy, followed by the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality on environmental concerns and MSU's Center for Government Technology on land use. Madison County Supervisor Karl Banks and County Administrator Greg Higginbotham take the 1:30 p.m. panel on community concerns. The two-day session runs through Wednesday, when Amazon and Madison County EDA's Joey Deason discuss partnership possibilities. The backdrop: PSC Docket 2026-AD-10, a Ridgeland developer's request to build a 350-megawatt gas plant for an on-site data center without a certificate of public convenience.
Council agenda shows $1M network deal, settlement
The Jackson City Council's most recent regular agenda, posted for its Sept. 8 meeting, lists an order ratifying a reduced C Spire Business bid of $1,001,962.88 for IT infrastructure and network modernization, plus an order authorizing full and final settlement of Walton v. City of Jackson in federal court. The same agenda carries a supplemental agreement with EJES Inc. for Phase 2 neighborhood street resurfacing tied to Special Sales Tax Commission funding, and an emergency procurement from Southern Electric Corporation to restore power at the Hood Administration Building. The council's next regular meeting is Sept. 22, with a special-called session possible sooner. Residents can read the full packet at jacksonms.gov.
Fortune case returns to council agenda
Councilman Kenneth Stokes has placed an update on Tasia Fortune's death on the council's discussion list, the same week Jackson police announced an arrest. Chief RaShall Brackney said Friday that Jarques Ratliff, 51, faces a murder charge after the medical examiner ruled Fortune's death a homicide on Thursday, roughly a month after her autopsy was completed. Fortune, 29, a mother of four, was found hanging from a tree behind a vacant west Jackson home on Aug. 3. Brackney said the arrest is not closure and that additional arrests are pending. The council agenda also lists a separate Stokes discussion item on school-age children not attending school.
Stokes warns on business closures
Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes is again raising alarms about businesses leaving Jackson, telling WJTV that each departure erodes the city's sales tax base. He pointed to a Family Dollar closing at the Medical Mall, a property the city has been working to stabilize, and said a long-standing business near a closed bridge could be next if the span stays shut. Stokes credited the new mayor with slowing the losses but said the trend is not reversed. The comments land as the city's own budget, approved Sept. 11, leans on reserves. A Redfin reading shows Jackson home prices down 13.2 percent year over year over the three months ending August, with a median sale price near $140,000.
Airport terminal rebuild advances
The Jackson Municipal Airport Authority is moving on a terminal enhancement program at Jackson-Medgar Wiley Evers International, with a competitive design-build process underway and submissions from qualified entities due Sept. 28. The council's Sept. 8 agenda also carried a resolution authorizing JMAA to accept Airport Improvement Grant Offer No. 3-28-0037-080-2026 from the U.S. Department of Transportation and Mississippi DOT for airport improvements. The work comes as the airport remains the subject of a state fight over control, with funding caught in a governor's veto earlier this year. For travelers, the practical question is timing: how much of the terminal work lands before the next holiday travel crunch.