Dear Friends:

I want to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas.  I hope that you will have a great time gathering with your family and friends to celebrate this wonderful time of year.  We all get too busy and too preoccupied at times.  This time of year is for us to reflect on what is truly important, which is our families, community and the birth of Jesus Christ.

Notes

• The legislature convenes on January 3rd.  It is going to be an exciting time in Jackson with a lot of new blood (figuratively and literally!).  The legislature gets sworn in on Jan. 3rd, statewide officials on Jan. 5th and Governor Bryant on Jan. 10th.

• I have gotten the pleasure to meet all of the new Senators and most of the new House members.  Two weeks ago we had New Legislator Orientation in Jackson.  We learned a lot in a short time but it was great.  This was the largest freshman class there has ever been.  I think that says a lot; Mississippians are hungry for us to lead. 

• Over the last month I have been attending legislative briefings locally and in Jackson and meeting with local and state officials on a host of different issues.  I have had the pleasure to tour our local industries during this time as well, including Ingalls, Halter, First Chemical and the new Gulf LNG Plant.  Management and the workers at these businesses are doing a great job.  We are fortunate to have these in our backyard and we will continue to work with them to make this the best place to live in the country.   

• I have also been working on legislation in the areas of crime, campaign finance, insurance and education.  Members of the Senate have not yet been assigned their committees.  I will keep you abreast of the developments in these areas as the session goes on. 

• Our website should be updated by the start of the session.  I am excited as you will be able to follow us through our website and should be able to get real time updates from Jackson through our Facebook and Twitter accounts.  We will also be launching a text service where you can receive text updates free.   Feel free to contact me at brice@bricewiggins.net or on my cell phone at 228-324-3141.

Issues

• The issues are the same as they have been.   The legislature, I believe, will be addressing insurance, jobs and education.  I will update these as the session goes on.

• If you have an issue that you would like to see addressed, please contact me and we will sit down and talk.

Things to Come

• Jan. 3rd-legislative session begins

Special Thoughts

As I said, I was fortunate to tour the new Gulf LNG plant.  Safety is always a priority and this was the result.  A friend used the caption, “I am from the government and I am here to help.”  Needless to say he was joking.