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This Is the City With the Richest Middle Class in Mississippi | Mississippi

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www.thecentersquare.com – Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. via The Center Square – 2023-04-12 08:18:48

The American middle class has been hollowed out for decades. Factors such as the decline of major industries like manufacturing, alongside stagnating wages and the rising cost of living, have reduced the ranks of the American middle class since the 1970s and exacerbated income inequality.

Not only impacting millions of American families, the decline of the middle class, as the economic backbone of the United States, is also a cause for concern among policy makers. A strong middle class is considered a pillar of economic stability and a key driver of economic growth. Middle-class households provide the labor market with workers and are themselves a steady market for goods and services. Middle-class households are also an engine of entrepreneurship and innovation, and their tax dollars help sustain investment in quality public services.

Despite the challenges of the middle class nationwide, there are still cities in the United States where middle-class incomes remain relatively high. Due to both economic and demographic circumstances, the middle class in these places have bucked many of the longer-term trends that are all too evident in other parts of the country.

Of the three metro areas in Mississippi, Gulfport-Biloxi ranks as having the wealthiest middle class. The middle 20% of households by earnings in the area make between $42,951 and $69,812 annually, which is still below what the middle 20% of earners across the state as a whole earn, between $52,295 and $82,996.

Unlike in decades past, where someone could get a well-paying job with just a high school diploma, today, the vast majority of high-paying positions require a college education. In Gulfport-Biloxi, 26.8% of adults have a bachelor’s degree or higher, compared to 24.8% of adults across all of Mississippi.

All data in this story is from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey. For each of the 384 U.S. metro areas with available data, we reviewed the income range of the middle 20% earners at the household level. In each state, the metro area with the highest floor for the middle quintile of earners ranks as having the wealthiest middle class.

 

State Metro area with the wealtiest middle class Lower income limit of middle class households in metro area ($) Upper income limit of middle class households in metro area ($) Lower income limit of middle class households in state ($) Upper income limit of middle class households in state ($) Total metro areas in state
Alabama Huntsville 59,275 95,386 51,964 81,812 12
Alaska Anchorage 69,309 104,406 56,320 89,984 2
Arizona Phoenix 60,980 92,683 69,215 113,568 7
Arkansas Fayetteville 58,347 85,134 51,469 81,356 6
California San Jose 107,949 176,806 63,308 101,711 26
Colorado Denver 72,213 111,148 71,175 111,220 7
Connecticut Bridgeport 75,514 127,824 46,623 73,356 4
Delaware Dover 52,778 79,512 56,948 94,304 1
Florida Naples 61,008 93,239 50,200 78,317 22
Georgia Atlanta 61,941 95,704 50,200 78,317 14
Hawaii Urban Honolulu 73,035 110,664 69,215 113,568 2
Idaho Boise City 60,209 88,755 66,612 105,995 6
Illinois Chicago 61,683 97,911 52,379 83,764 10
Indiana Columbus 60,201 88,113 51,980 80,331 12
Iowa Des Moines 60,185 91,157 65,032 96,596 8
Kansas Wichita 49,763 73,976 49,218 77,486 4
Kentucky Lexington 50,700 78,104 50,200 78,317 5
Louisiana Houma 45,606 75,633 48,732 77,231 9
Maine Portland 62,119 94,293 53,713 85,848 3
Maryland California 89,350 126,751 39,906 65,189 5
Massachusetts Boston 77,961 125,760 66,612 105,995 5
Michigan Ann Arbor 60,480 97,679 48,732 77,231 14
Minnesota Minneapolis 69,840 106,711 66,612 105,995 5
Mississippi Gulfport 42,951 69,812 52,295 82,996 3
Missouri Kansas City 59,319 90,657 49,218 77,486 8
Montana Billings 56,458 83,949 50,618 77,150 3
Nebraska Omaha 58,797 91,491 65,335 104,919 3
Nevada Reno 61,956 95,089 52,379 83,764 3
New Hampshire Manchester 73,687 108,394 50,618 77,150 1
New Jersey Trenton 68,864 108,749 56,295 88,426 4
New Mexico Santa Fe 53,897 84,031 69,921 112,054 4
New York Poughkeepsie 69,276 109,645 49,218 77,486 13
North Carolina Raleigh 67,045 104,142 44,235 69,505 15
North Dakota Bismarck 54,197 85,621 51,156 79,317 3
Ohio Columbus 57,296 89,383 50,618 77,150 11
Oklahoma Enid 50,742 72,058 51,964 81,812 4
Oregon Portland 67,202 102,601 66,612 105,995 8
Pennsylvania Lancaster 62,449 89,527 66,612 105,995 18
Rhode Island Providence 57,443 93,753 50,200 78,317 1
South Carolina Charleston 58,474 89,582 54,292 81,556 8
South Dakota Sioux Falls 62,200 89,212 52,379 83,764 2
Tennessee Nashville 58,925 90,095 66,612 105,995 10
Texas Austin 68,737 105,556 51,964 81,812 25
Utah Provo 71,963 104,267 69,215 113,568 5
Vermont Burlington 65,505 98,761 50,618 77,150 1
Virginia Charlottesville 63,159 97,426 54,429 84,652 9
Washington Seattle 80,316 124,685 62,433 95,630 11
West Virginia Morgantown 43,940 71,959 52,379 83,764 7
Wisconsin Appleton 61,672 90,064 54,429 84,652 12
Wyoming Casper 51,001 75,905 52,295 82,996 2

 

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Helene: Proposal brings back help accessing federal money | North Carolina

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www.thecentersquare.com – Alan Wooten – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-30 08:01:00

(The Center Square) – Small businesses’ access to federal aid in rebuilding from Hurricane Helene is supported through a North Carolina congressman’s proposal in the House of Representatives.



U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C.




Helene Small Business Recovery Act, authored by Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C., drew the immediate support when filed last week of Democratic Rep. Don Davis and Republican Reps. Virginia Foxx and David Rouzer, all of North Carolina. The 5th Congressional District of Foxx and 11th of Edwards were significantly hit by the storm six months earlier, and the 7th Congressional District of Rouzer and the 1st of Davis are in the southeastern and eastern regions, respectively, of the state and the most often hit places by hurricanes.

The Helene Small Business Recovery Act clarifies that SBA loans and federal grants, like those that will be offered through the CDBG-DR program, are not duplicative,” Edwards said in a release. “Without this clarification, businesses that took an SBA loan to keep themselves afloat would be prohibited from accessing federal grant money when it becomes available.

“Loans and grants are inherently different, and this bill will allow small business owners access to both federal resources so that western North Carolina, and every small business that makes our mountains such a great place to live, has the resources needed to recover.”

CDBG-DR is the acronym for Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery; SBA is an acronym for Small Business Administration.

The Stafford Act doesn’t allow federal agencies to duplicate benefits, and a loan is considered duplicative of a grant. SBA loans must be repaid; CDBG-DR grants are one-time payments to victims that do not have to be repaid.

A sunset passed in 2021 on the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018 that, temporarily, said a loan is not part of a grant, Edwards’ release said.

The American Relief Act aiding in Helene recovery awarded $1.65 billion in disaster block grants to western North Carolina.

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Louisiana voters overwhelmingly reject all four constitutional amendments | Louisiana

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www.thecentersquare.com – By Nolan McKendry | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-29 20:32:00

(The Center Square) — Louisiana voters overwhelmingly rejected four proposed constitutional amendments which aimed to reshape the state’s approach to justice, juvenile crime, taxation, and judicial elections. Each amendment was rejected by more than 60% of voters.

“This was a “primal scream” kind of vote, driven by robust Democratic EV turnout that I’m not seeing being offset by a strong GOP Election Day vote,” John Couvillon, an award-winning pollster, said in a post on X. 

“Although we are disappointed in tonight’s results, we do not see this as a failure. We realize how hard positive change can be to implement in a state that is conditioned for failure,” Gov. Jeff Landry said in a statement. “We will continue working to give our citizens more opportunities to keep more of their hard-earned money and provide a better future for Louisianians. This is not the end for us, and we will continue to fight to make the generational changes for Louisiana to succeed.” 

Amendment 1: Expanded Court Powers and Specialty Courts

Voters rejected a measure expanding the Louisiana Supreme Court’s disciplinary authority over out-of-state attorneys and allowing lawmakers to establish specialized trial courts that cross district lines. The amendment followed controversy over mass hurricane lawsuits filed by an out-of-state law firm and was challenged in court earlier this month. Amendment 1 was rejected by over 170,000 votes.

Amendment 2: Sweeping Fiscal Overhaul

Amendment 2, which would have rewrote Article VII of the Louisiana Constitution, was rejected by over 150,000 votes. The 100+ page overhaul includes capping state spending growth, consolidating reserve funds, shifting nearly $2 billion from education savings accounts to pay down retirement debt, and phasing out business inventory taxes. It has been a cornerstone of Landry’s tax reform agenda. 

Amendment 3: Adult Prosecution for Juveniles

This amendment would allow lawmakers to expand the list of crimes for which minors can be tried as adults without another constitutional vote. Authored by Sen. Heather Cloud, R-Turkey Creek and opposed by youth justice advocates who argue the current list is already broad enough, Amendment 3 saw the most resounding rejection−a margin of over 180,000.

Amendment 4: Judicial Election Timing Fix

A technical amendment to align special judicial election timing with Louisiana’s soon-to-be closed-party primary system was rejected by over 120,000. Supporters say it prevents logistical issues when filling judicial vacancies; opponents said the change was minor and could have been handled by statute. It was the only measure not subject to a legal challenge.

 

 

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Live Nation battles anti-competitive allegations on multiple levels | National

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www.thecentersquare.com – Brett Rowland – (The Center Square – ) 2025-03-29 11:20:00

(The Center Square) – Live Nation Entertainment, the events giant that operates Ticketmaster, is fighting to hold on to practices that states and the federal government allege are anti-competitive and hurt both fans and musicians.

The company recently lost its bid to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice and a coalition of state attorneys general. The lawsuit alleges that Live Nation runs a monopoly that most recently came under fire during Taylor Swift’s Eras tour as fans struggled to get limited tickets to fast-selling shows. 

District Judge Arun Subramanian denied Live Nation’s motion to dismiss the federal action, ruling the DOJ could proceed with its case.

“These allegations aren’t just about a refusal to deal with rival promotors,” Subramanian wrote in his ruling. “They are about the coercion of artists.”

Live Nation is also working on multiple fronts at the state level. More than 25 states and Puerto Rico debated more than 75 bills on ticket sales during 2023 legislative sessions after the fallout from Swift’s mega-tour, according to a report from the National Conference of State Legislatures.

In the wake of the Eras collapse, Arkansas stopped local governments from banning the sale or resale of a ticket at any price; Maine required resellers to refund customers in some circumstances; and Oklahoma prohibited the use of software to bypass controls on a ticket seller’s website, according to the NCL report. In 2016, Congress passed similar legislation banning the use of bots on ticket websites.

In Massachusetts, Live Nation spent $120,000 lobbying lawmakers to pass the Mass Leads Act, a $4 billion economic development measure that ran 319 pages, according to The Verge. Despite opposition from consumer groups, it also allows ticket sellers to restrict the transferability of the tickets they sell, meaning a buyer could be limited to reselling on the seller’s platform. 

The Chamber of Progress, a tech industry trade group, asked the governor to amend the bill, concerned that Live Nation could use ticket terms to force buyers to resell tickets exclusively on their own platform, “further entrenching their monopoly position in the live events ecosystem,” according to a letter from the group.

The Chamber of Progress also opposed a bill in New Mexico to cap resale prices. The group said in a letter that price caps were arbitrary and ineffective.

Diana Moss, of the Progressive Policy Institute, said Live Nation is “pursuing an aggressive state-level campaign to push for laws that effectively regulate the resale market while [the company] continues to operate, unfettered, in the primary market.”

Live Nation has defended its practices. Dan Wall, executive vice president of corporate and regulatory affairs at Live Nation Entertainment, wrote in a blog post that the company isn’t a monopoly and doesn’t reap monopolistic profits.

“The defining feature of a monopolist is monopoly profits derived from monopoly pricing. Live Nation in no way fits the profile,” Wall wrote. “Service charges on Ticketmaster are no higher than on SeatGeek, AXS, or other primary ticketing sites, and are frequently lower. In fact, when Ticketmaster loses a venue to SeatGeek, service charges usually go up substantially. And even accounting for sponsorship, an advertising business that helps keep ticket prices down, Live Nation’s overall net profit margin is at the low end of profitable S&P 500 companies.”

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