Parents in Ruleville gathered this week to protest regarding decisions they believe the Sunflower County School District's board has gotten wrong. Leaders of the demonstration say the problems have been long term ones and their concerns have been neglected, pointing to accusations of inactivity on claims of violence made by Bianca Keys prior to her death last year. Another point of contention was said to be the scheduled board meetings which they argued weren't accessible to working parents, and organizers say they may look into organizing a petition drive that would allow Governor Barbour to remove current Superintendent Pierce McIntosh.

With the construction of the Hwy 82 bypass, Leonard Williams, planning director for Washington County, said his office and the Greenville Planning Commission are working together on a project to revitalize the look of Hwy 82. The project will be similar to Jackson’s revitalization project for the Hwy 80 area, which suffered losses in patronage due to Interstate bypasses. Williams plans on seeing if the Jackson model works, then adding some of the commission’s own ideas to find a niche. With the U.S. 82 bypass expected to be completed sometime in the summer, Williams said they want to give people a reason to drive down U.S. 82 instead of taking the bypass.

Postmaster General John E. Potter outlined a number of measures that could save around $123 billion for the Postal Service. This comes as response to the expectations of a snowballing loss of $238 billion by 2020, but an estimated $115 billion shortfall will still remain despite these efforts. Potter concluded, "If given the flexibility to respond to an evolving marketplace, the postal service will continue to be an integral part of the fabric of American life."

Plans for voters to decide the fate of Voter ID legislation during next year's elections are apparently official, as Secretary of State Delber Hoseman says his office received well over the necessary amount of signatures collected during a petition drive. Over 131-thousand signatures were confirmed by the office, above the required 89-thousand, and the verification process reportedly took several weeks to complete. The vote centers on a possible change to the state constitution that would require the presentation of a photo-ID, like a drivers license or similar card, at a polling place, prior to receiving a ballot.