{"id":155792,"date":"2026-02-24T08:20:42","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:20:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/?p=155792"},"modified":"2026-02-24T08:20:45","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T14:20:45","slug":"dana-criswell-protecting-independent-work-without-growing-government","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/dana-criswell-protecting-independent-work-without-growing-government\/","title":{"rendered":"Dana Criswell: “Protecting Independent Work Without Growing Government”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Mississippi HB1072<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In Mississippi today, more people than ever are earning a living outside the traditional 9-to-5 job. From electricians and truckers to freelance nurses, software developers, hairstylists, and Uber drivers, independent contracting is no longer a side hustle\u2014it\u2019s a core part of our economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet our laws haven\u2019t kept up. Benefits like health coverage, disability insurance, and retirement savings are still built around the old model of a single employer and a single job. That leaves independent contractors with a harsh choice: either stick with rigid employment structures or forgo the benefits that help families weather hard times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

House Bill 1072, the Voluntary Portable Benefit Plan Act, offers a better path\u2014one that respects freedom, encourages work, and keeps government in its proper lane.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what the bill does, in plain language.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

HB 1072 allows companies that hire independent contractors to voluntarily put money into special \u201cportable benefit\u201d accounts for those workers. These benefits are \u201cportable\u201d because they follow the worker, not the company. If a contractor works for three different hiring parties, each can contribute to the same benefit account.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The contributions are tax-deductible for the business, just like benefit expenses for regular employees. For the independent contractor, that money does not count as taxable income. In other words, both sides get a tax-neutral way to arrange benefits, without creating a new government program or changing anyone\u2019s employment status.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No one is forced to participate. Businesses don\u2019t have to offer contributions. Contractors don\u2019t have to accept them. There are no mandates, no new entitlements, and no bureaucratic benefits scheme run out of Jackson or Washington. HB 1072 simply gets government out of the way so private parties can make voluntary arrangements that fit their needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That matters for liberty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, HB 1072 protects freedom of contract. Right now, many businesses are afraid to help independent contractors with benefits because they worry it will be used against them in court as \u201cproof\u201d the worker is really an employee. This bill gives them a safe, clear path to help without triggering a legal trap. It respects adults\u2019 right to make their own agreements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Second, it avoids the heavy-handed approach we\u2019ve seen in other states, where lawmakers try to \u201csolve\u201d the gig economy by forcing companies to reclassify contractors as employees. Those efforts destroy flexibility, reduce opportunities, and push people into one-size-fits-all arrangements. HB 1072 does the opposite: it preserves choice while expanding options.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Consider a single mom who pieces together income by driving for a rideshare service, delivering groceries, and doing bookkeeping from home. Under HB 1072, each hiring party could voluntarily contribute small amounts to her portable benefit account. Over time, she could build a cushion for health expenses or lost income if she\u2019s hurt and can\u2019t work. No bureaucracy. No mandate. Just people cooperating on mutually beneficial terms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is what limited, constitutional government looks like: setting fair tax rules, protecting rights, and then stepping back so free people and free markets can innovate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mississippi should welcome new ways to work and earn a living without punishing those who don\u2019t fit an old model. HB 1072 keeps benefits decisions where they belong\u2014between individuals and the organizations they choose to work with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lawmakers should pass HB 1072, and citizens who value work, choice, and personal responsibility should urge them to do so. This is a chance to modernize our laws without growing government\u2014and we shouldn\u2019t let it pass us by.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mississippi HB1072 In Mississippi today, more people than ever are earning a living outside the traditional 9-to-5 job.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":124494,"featured_media":155793,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32635],"tags":[32685,5,33713],"class_list":["post-155792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dana-criswell","tag-dana-criswell","tag-mississippi","tag-mississippi-hb1072"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/PortableBenefitsFund.jpg?fit=1100%2C733&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/124494"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=155792"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155792\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":155794,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/155792\/revisions\/155794"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/155793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=155792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=155792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thelocalvoice.net\/oxford\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=155792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}