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Senator Smith was
appointed by both Governor Mabus & Governor
Fordice to
serve on the Executive Board of 16 Southern States
Regional Education Board in
Atlanta, Georgia, & served on the Board of
Public Education Forum. He served as
"Room Dad" for
his daughters at Richland Middle School.
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Senator Rob Smith
has written & directed to passage a 16-state
regional resolution
& a national policy resolution on music & art
education, & he passed a joint
resolution declaring 1994 as "The Year of Music
& Art in Education" in Mississippi.
He created the position for a statewide Arts
Curriculum Coordinator for arts
education in Mississippi schools.
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He supported the
Education Reform Act of 1982, which reformed
public education
& began kindergarten in Mississippi. He has been
the sponsor & co-author of
numerous pieces of education legislation. He
strongly supported the historic
Adequate Education Act.
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Rob passed a long
range of plan to fight crime. Corrections
Chairman Senator
Smith said no more parole for violent criminals;
he wrote the law requiring
violent criminals to serve longer sentences. He
expanded the community work
centers and passed new drug and alcohol
programs.
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He authored the
nationally recognized "Mississippi Farm Reform
Act" which helped
Mississippi farm families during a critical farm
crisis in the mid 1980's. The law
created financial programs for rural
development. Governor Fordice called a Special
Session of the Legislature to request an
additional $39,000,000 appropriation to be
added to Rob Smith's bill
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While serving as
Vice Chairman of Senate Appropriations Committee
& Chairman
of the Institutions for Higher Learning Budget
Committee, Senator Smith Guided the
appropriation process to give Mississippi's
largest increased funding for higher
education in the southern states region.
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Senator Smith has
written several regionally & nationally
published articles on rural
economic needs & rural needs on health,
education & job creation. He wrote the
Adoption Law Reform and Senate Welfare Reform
Bill.
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Senator Smith has
consistently pushed ideas for constructions of
parks, highways,
& Agricultural processing plants. Senator Smith
co-sponsored the $5,000,000
legislation for renovating the Jackson Zoo & he
traveled to Washington D.C. to
promote the 4,000 job Defense Center for
Mississippi. He wrote legislation for the
Veterans Retirement Home in Jackson & passed the
"Veterans One-stop Center"
land transfer located next to the Veterans
Hospital, a $1,300,000 land transfer.
Rob supported the Veterans Monument Commission &
Vietnam Veterans
Memorial. He wrote the Purple Heart Tag
Amendment.
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Rob Smith has
written preventions legislation such as the
Mississippi Child Abuse
Prevention legislation; the Children's Trust
Fund-which financially supports women
& child abuse centers; the stalking legislation;
the Foster Parent Training Program;
the children compendium legislation; the
Mississippi Childhood Immunization
Program, the first of its kind in the nation; &
the blending funding formula that pools
financial resources for services to children.
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He has sponsored
Easter egg hunts for children with disabilities;
in which over 100
participated in hiding and searching for 300
Easter eggs, & provided a 30 minute
rock-n-roll/country music concert. Senator Smith
has sponsored a New Year's Eve
Dance & fireworks display for physically &
emotionally impaired children.
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Senator Smith
helped initiate the $12,000,000 Fairground
Renovation Act for
Mississippi agriculture. He authored &
co-sponsored research & development
legislation to reorganize the Department of
Economic & Community Development
& the Mississippi Research & Development Center.
He helped write the
Mississippi Business Development Act.
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