On March 8, the Mississippi Senate passed HC 39, the constitutional amendment to restore the statewide initiative process. However, the Senate amended the bill, so now it must return to the House for concurrence. The Senate vote was unanimous.

Mississippi had the initiative until last year, when the State Supreme Court ruled that it was fundamentally flawed and could not be used until it was fixed. The old law, part of the State Constitution, said signatures are needed from all five U.S. House districts, but Mississippi doesn’t have five districts any more. It only has four.

If the bill passes, then the voters will vote on it in November 2022.