There was a large, federally subsidized post-war investment in infrastructure across the country. A lot of that infrastructure is more expensive to maintain than the local tax base can fully afford. Federal help is not forthcoming. Hence…
The state government of Mississippi, probably one of the worst in the developed world, has been known to impede Jackson from receiving block grants it is eligible for. A massive scandal is coming to a head where a whistleblower allegedly discovered that 70 million dollars of federal welfare funds where diverted to the ex-governors slush fund which he used to enrich allies such as Brett Favre. In a state that consistently finishes last along any dimension important to measure.