Mississippi Senate to consider more restrictive ballot initiative bill. See details

The Mississippi Senate Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committee has pushed forward legislation to amend the state's constitution and bring regulatory changes to the state's stonewalled ballot initiative process.

On Thursday, AET Chair Sen. David Parker, R-Olive Branch, presented the committee with Senate Bill 2770 and Senate Concurrent Resolution 527, which would establish stricter requirements for those seeking to start ballot initiatives in Mississippi, as well as change the constitution to account for the state's four congressional districts.

In the early 2000s, Mississippi's districts went from five to four after a United States Census accounted for a declined state population.

Requirements listed out in the bill include a threshold of double the number of qualified voters in the state to sign petitions to put the initiative on the state's next general election, or about 200,000 people. SB 2770 also bans voters from attempting to use the ballot to amend the state constitution, the Public Employment Retirement System of Mississippi, any abortion laws passed by the Legislature and only one subject can go on any one ballot. It would also require a voting majority of 60% or more to be passed into law.

The legislation mirrors House Concurrent Resolution 11, which passed through the House by only a handful of votes earlier this year. However, Parker told fellow lawmakers that he took out a provision that would have allowed the Legislature to offer an alternative piece of legislation to any ballot initiative proposed by the voters.

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"The changes the House made are very limited in the statutory changes," Parker said. "We're taking out that alternative measure section. That, in my mind was somewhat complicated. It made it very difficult for some of us in this room to explain what was going on the ballot initiatives."

Up until 2020, the state had a ballot initiative process. That changed when a group led by long-time Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins-Butler sought to challenge Initiative 65, which legalized medical cannabis, and the entire initiative process in court. The law, they argued, was outdated because it required signatures to come in equal proportion from the state's "five" congressional districts.

In May 2021, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled on Hawkins-Butler’s side, putting the state's marijuana ambitions in what would ultimately be a temporary pause, but the ballot initiative process into a more lasting limbo. Since then, the court has asked the Legislature to change only the constitution to account for the district change.

Parker's bill also requires that any groups starting the ballot process must report where any money funding the process comes from, and they must disclose if any out-of-state groups are the primary funding source. The person responsible for circulating petitions for signatures must also register with the Mississippi Secretary of State's office and be a Mississippi resident.

The Mississippi Attorney General's office will also need to ensure that the initiative focuses on only one issue before it can go onto the ballot. Once the sitting AG signs off, they will submit a report summarizing the initiative with recommended changes to the state board of election commissioners. 

Once the board reviews the ballot initiative, it will be sent to the Secretary of State's office for final approval before going onto a ballot for a vote.

Parker said he added several financial reporting requirements because he does not want any out-of-state groups to have sway in the state's laws via a ballot initiative. Members of House leadership have also voiced the same concern.

"When this was first brought to me, I felt strongly that anything we do on this and anything that is initiated should be the will of the people of Mississippi," Parker said. "I've tried to make provisions in here to make sure that's going to be the case, because, quite frankly, I don't really care what people from other states think we are doing or want us to do."

Sen. David Blount, D-Jackson, challenged the bills, asking why voters would be required to reach a 60% threshold when most bills in the Legislature and regular elections require a simply concrete majority. He also challenged Parker's policies within the bill to try and regulate out-of-state groups to either fund or participate in a ballot initiative in Mississippi and the 200,000-signature threshold.

"The theory that citizens are not going to know what they are doing and are going to be manipulated by outside interests and big-money campaigns, that's a theory, but I would say we 30 years of evidence to show how the people of Mississippi did with the initiative process, and they voted for good things and against bad things," Blount said. "So, I think that fear us misplaced."

Blount also expressed concern over the legislation restricting what Mississippi voters can choose to begin a ballot initiative, referring to the restrictions on PERS, abortion laws and the constitution.

Parker, while not defending his bill's restrictions on those items, did say the 200,000-signature threshold is a more modern requirement as technology has increased voter access to petitions.

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"I think now the ability to reach people is greater, so I think you can and you should achieve a higher number," Parker said.

The two pieces of legislation will now be considered by the full Senate for a vote on the floor, and they will require a two-thirds majority.

Grant McLaughlin covers state government for the Clarion Ledger. He can be reached at gmclaughlin@gannett.com or 972-571-2335.