JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – The future of a lawsuit alleging the state intentionally deprived Jackson of millions of dollars in federal infrastructure funds to repair its crumbling water system could be decided next month.
A hearing is slated for May 14 before U.S. District Judge Henry Wingate in the suit filed Jackson Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) alleging a state grant program set up using federal funds was discriminatory against Jackson’s majority-Black population.
The hearing comes months after Treasurer David McRae, Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality Executive Director Chris Wells, and Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration Executive Director Liz Welch filed motions to dismiss.
According to the complaint, three state agencies enacted policies that prevented Jackson from receiving millions of dollars in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds designed to help cities address critical infrastructure needs at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic…