JACKSON, Miss. — Democrat Billy McCoy survived the biggest political challenge of his career last year when Republicans and some conservative members of his own party tried to oust him as speaker of the Mississippi House.

The blunt-spoken farmer from Rienzi said partisanship still creates rifts at the Capitol but he plans to work with all 121 House colleagues as the 2009 session begins on Jan. 6.

During a pre-session interview with The Associated Press, McCoy said legislators will work within a tight budget because of the lagging economy.

AP: The rainy day fund provides a financial cushion for the state budget when tax collections are lagging. Gov. (Haley) Barbour says he doesn’t want to use more than one-fourth of the rainy day fund balance in the coming year. What do you think?

McCoy: “My offhand response to that is: I tend to agree with him. Plus or minus, I don’t know. But it’s quite apparent we are in a rainy day and some of it should be used - else not, we just need to do away with the fund and quit making out like we’ve got one. That’s what it’s for. But it most definitely shouldn’t all be used at one time.”

AP: Is it going to be difficult to persuade legislators not to use a large portion of the rainy day fund, or all of it?

McCoy: “I don’t think so. We’ve been through this before and we feel blessed that we have this particular safeguard. I don’t think anybody wants to use it all at one time. That would not be prudent.

AP: Gov. Haley Barbour has said he wants to increase the cigarette excise tax from the current 18 cents a pack. He proposes adding 24 cents a pack for premium cigarettes and 43 cents a pack on cigarettes produced by companies that didn’t participate in the state’s 1997 settlement with the tobacco industry. Some health advocates and House members say they want taxes to be $1 a pack. How much do you think a cigarette tax increase should be?

McCoy: “I’m going to take my time and talk to the (House) chairmen…. We’ll talk to them and get opinions from other members.”

AP: Should the cigarette tax revenue be put into the general fund or dedicated to a certain purpose?

McCoy: “I like set revenues for set purposes, on the one hand. I’ve been very guilty of that over the years … But on the other hand … it makes it mighty difficult on the chairman and the committee when we deal with new revenue, or any revenue, and then pigeonhole it for a certain item … I would hope that we would at least give a broad designation of a lot of the tobacco money to health care, one way or another.”