JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A first-term Republican state lawmaker is set to start his 2019 campaign for Mississippi governor, although he says he hasn’t started raising money. Rep. Robert Foster of Hernando is making an announcement Tuesday evening in DeSoto County. Foster told The Associated Press on Monday that he feels a “calling” to run for governor, and it’s “not based on the promises of any campaign contribution or endorsement.” Republican Gov. Phil Bryant cannot run again because of term limits. Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves is expected to run for governor. His campaign has more than $5 million. Another Republican, Petal Mayor Hal Marx, has announced for governor. Democrats already in the governor’s race are Attorney General Jim Hood and retired Jackson State University employee Velesha P. Williams. Party primaries are in August.

OLIVE BRANCH, Miss. (AP) — A company that makes powerline connectors and tools is opening a 125-employee factory and distribution center in northwest Mississippi. DMC Power of Carson, California, announced Tuesday that it is investing $8 million in Olive Branch and will hire the workers over five years. Mississippi Development Authority spokeswoman Tammy Craft says the state is giving $1.3 million for equipment relocation and building improvements, plus $100,000 for worker training. Olive Branch and DeSoto County will abate property taxes worth a projected $1.2 million over 10 years. The company says proximity to customer Tennessee Valley Authority helped attract it. Craft says the jobs qualify for incentives rebating some worker income taxes to the company. That requires DMC Power pay workers at least $37,380 annually. DMC Power could get $1.87 million over 10 years.

JONESTOWN, Miss. (AP) — A small-town mayor in the Mississippi Delta is accused of stealing money that residents paid for their water bills and water line repairs. The state attorney general’s office says in a news release Tuesday that Jonestown Mayor Kenneth Lester has been released from jail without having to post bond. Lester was arrested Sunday after a grand jury indicted him on five counts of felony embezzlement. Four counts are tied to accusations that he took water payments for his own use between July 2017 and August 2018. One count accuses him of taking a city-owned handgun and pawning it for cash. Conviction on each charge carries up to 20 years in prison. It was not immediately clear whether he has an attorney. Jonestown has a population of about 1,300.

On Friday, December 7, 2018, the student led Christmas in the Park project announced a new way for individuals to give right from the convenience of their mobile phone. Today, the Christmas in the Park project kicks off its $1 Weekend campaign asking everyone to simply give $1 through Cash App. Organizers say it's free, easy, quick, and safe to give. Their goal is to at least raise $1,000 this weekend. To give using 'Cash App', on the app use cash tag: $HattiesburgChristmas or if you don't have Cash App you can simply give online by going to:  https://cash.me/$HattiesburgChristmas  . The Christmas in the Park project also has partnered with Hattiesburg Management Group to assist in coordinating the project. Hattiesburg Management Group has coordinated several major projects including the "Summer Job Fair" hosted by Hattiesburg City Council in June 2018. Once they raise enough funds, college students who attend local colleges in Hattiesburg such as William Carey University and the University of Southern Mississippi, will coordinate with Hattiesburg Management Group to buy clothes, shoes, and toys for helpless kids in the Pine Belt at the Christmas in the Park event. The Christmas in the Park event is scheduled Thursday evening, December 20, 2018 at Town Square Park. To give on behalf of a business/organization or simply for more information, you may call 601.861.5800 or email: ChristmasinthePark2018@yahoo.com.

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A federal appeals court is not reviving a lawsuit that tried to block a Mississippi city from flying the state flag that includes the Confederate battle emblem. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals this week affirmed a district judge’s decision that dismissed the lawsuit against Ocean Springs. The lawsuit called the flag “racially demeaning and hostile” and claimed the city violated the federal Fair Housing Act by flying the flag and sending the message that black people are unwelcome. U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola Jr. ruled in June that plaintiffs didn’t prove they suffered unequal treatment by the Ocean Springs government. A panel of three appeals court judges agreed Monday. “The only act they allege is the City’s resolution requiring the Mississippi state flag to be flown over public buildings,” the appeals court judges wrote. “That is not a ‘discriminatory housing practice’ as required by the FHA, and plaintiffs are therefore not ‘aggrieved persons’ under the statute.” Ocean Springs didn’t fly the Mississippi flag for several years under a previous mayor. After a new mayor took office in July 2017, city officials returned the flag to some municipal buildings. The lawsuit was filed in April by a nonprofit group called the Mississippi Rising Coalition and by three local residents. About 10 percent of Ocean Springs’ nearly 17,700 residents are black, according to the Census Bureau. That compares to about 38 percent of Mississippi’s nearly 3 million residents. Mississippi has used the same flag since 1894, with the Confederate battle emblem in the upper left corner. People who voted in a statewide election in 2001 chose to keep the flag. However, several Mississippi cities and counties and all of the state’s public universities have stopped flying it in recent years amid criticism that the Confederate emblem is a racist reminder of slavery and segregation. Supporters of the flag say it represents history. Confederate symbols have been the subject of widespread debate across the South, particularly since the 2015 killing of nine worshippers at a church in Charleston, South Carolina, and violence in August 2017 when a white nationalist rally took place in Charlottesville, Virginia. Written by Emily Pettus

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A first-term Republican state lawmaker in Mississippi says he will announce next week whether he’s running for governor in 2019. Rep. Robert Foster of Hernando posted a Facebook video Saturday saying he’s considering the race. He issued invitations Wednesday for some sort of announcement next Tuesday. The current Republican governor, Phil Bryant, cannot seek a third term. Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves is expected to run for governor and would start with significantly more money than others. Reeves had $5.4 million in his campaign fund at the end of 2017. Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood announced in October that he’s in the governor’s race and said he had about $750,000. Another Democratic gubernatorial candidate is Velesha P. Williams. The retired Jackson State University employee says she has not started fundraising.

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) — Members of a south Mississippi water association have to start over again if they want to remove the group’s board. Southern District Public Service Commissioner Sam Britton tells local news outlets that a previous petition to remove the board of the Arnold Line Water Association didn’t meet some requirements of state law. Some members have been unhappy with how the association operates. Arnold Line serves parts of suburban Hattiesburg in Lamar County. Some members are complaining about having to start over again, saying the Public Service Commission isn’t doing its job. However, the state Legislature has limited the commission’s ability to intervene in the affairs of water associations. Britton asked members to attend a Tuesday meeting to sign a new petition. Five percent of members, or 120, must sign.

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — The second year was a little easier for organizers of a gay pride parade in a Mississippi college town. It took a protracted standoff that included a lawsuit before Starkville’s elected officials permitted a gay pride parade earlier this year. Tuesday, alderman voted 4-3 to approve 2019′s application. The Commercial Dispatch reports three aldermen say they don’t think the city should spend on in-kind services for any parades, also voting Tuesday against a permit for a Martin Luther King Jr. march. Two opponents are African American. Aldermen originally rejected the Starkville Pride permit on a 4-3 vote last year, but Alderman David Little abstained from a second vote, allowing Mayor Lynn Spruill to break the tie in favor of the parade permit. This year, Little voted for the permit. Written by: The Commercial Dispatch

Young people are making a difference all across the Pine Belt. Do you know any outstanding young people who have shined in a special way this year? Young people are our future. They are the leaders of tomorrow. Sometimes, we can see that light in them today. They don't wait to have an impact, they take charge and make impacts today. Help us find them. If there is someone who you think we should consider who is 30 years or less who has made a significant impact in the Pine Belt, email us. Send all nominees to: info@thepinebeltnews.com. Please be sure to include what they have done to be included on our list, what's there current occupation, and as much info about the person as possible.

2018 has been a historical year caused by the actions of the mind. But who are those people and how have they shaped and or redefine 2018? As we try to define influence, think of someone who you can nominate as the most influential person of 2018. What is influence? Dictionary.com defines influence as the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something or the effect itself. Merriam- Webster defines influence as the power or capacity of causing effect in indirect or intangible ways. The Oxford dictionary describes influence as the power to shape policy or ensure favorable treatment from someone, especially through status, contacts, or wealth. Influence is the very essence of power. Influence is the foundation and root of power. That power can be used to cause change. That change can have a direct or indirect effect on someone or something. Help us find them. If there is someone who you think we should consider who has made a huge impact in your city, community, or area email us. Send all nominees to: info@thepinebeltnews.com. Please be sure to include what they have done to be included on our list, what's there current occupation, and as much info about the person as possible.

The world is full of movers and shakers. But who are they here in the Pine Belt? Who are the individuals that are taking the Pine Belt to the next level? Help us find them. If there is someone who you think we should consider who is 40 years or less who has made a significant impact in the Pine Belt, email us. Send all nominees to: info@thepinebeltnews.com. Please be sure to include what they have done to be included on our list, what's there current occupation, and as much info about the person as possible.