College merger bill misses deadline

JACKSON — There will be no vote in the Mississippi Legislature this year on merging three of the state’s universities.

The proposal is among those dying as Mississippi legislators faced their first major deadline of the 2010 session.

Tuesday was the final day for committees to act on bills filed in each chamber. The surviving bills move to the full House or Senate for more debate.

Senate Universities Committee chairman Doug Davis says legislators weren’t convinced that combining universities is a good idea now.

Gov. Haley Barbour had proposed merging Mississippi University for Women into Mississippi State University and merging the three historically black universities into one, with Alcorn State University and Mississippi Valley State University becoming part of Jackson State University.