JACKSON — When a lawmaker dies, a district loses more than an elected official. It loses an advocate who understood its communities, built relationships with over years of public service and often became the driving force behind issues that mattered to the people they represented. 

After the deaths of Reps. William “Bo” Brown and Price Wallace last month, fellow legislators say they plan to keep alive the causes each man championed — from criminal justice reform to restoring Mississippi’s ballot initiative process. Because every bill in the Mississippi Legislature must be reintroduced each session, proposals survive only if a lawmaker chooses to sponsor them. Colleagues of Brown and Wallace say they intend to do just that when they return in 2027. 

Carrying on unfinished work 

Although Brown and Wallace focused on different issues, colleagues say they plan to carry forward each man’s legislative priorities. 

Rep. Earle Banks, D-Jackson, said he plans to reintroduce criminal justice legislation Brown helped champion, including expanding parole eligibility for some incarcerated people. During the 2020 legislative session, Brown and Banks co-sponsored House Bill 361, which sought to broaden parole eligibility for people convicted of certain capital offenses. The bill died in committee. 

Banks said Brown viewed the proposal as one step toward addressing disparities in Mississippi’s criminal justice system. 

“There are too many people — Bo felt, and I feel also — who are incarcerated, who are of no threat to society,” Banks said. 

On the Gulf Coast, Sen. Jeremy England, R-Ocean Springs, said he plans to revive Wallace’s effort to restore Mississippi’s ballot initiative process. 

The process allowed citizens to place proposed constitutional amendments on the ballot after gathering enough signatures. In 2021, the Mississippi Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutionalbecause the state Constitution still referenced five congressional districts even though Mississippi has had four since 2001. 

Wallace sponsored legislation during the 2025 session to restore the process with additional restrictions. The bill passed the House but died before reaching the Senate floor. 

England said he expects to introduce similar legislation during the 2027 session, although he has acknowledged it still faces significant political hurdles. 

“Until we see someone else take that issue up and move it forward. I don’t know what that’s going to look like coming out of the house,” England said. “But with enough people asking for it, somebody’s going to look at it.” 

Different approaches, shared purpose 

While their priorities differed, colleagues said both elected leaders were driven more by conviction than recognition. 

Banks said Brown, as a representative and former city councilman for Jackson, devoted much of his legislative work to expanding economic opportunities for Black Mississippians while addressing inequities in the criminal justice system. 

“Most of the economic development (in the state) does not happen west of Interstate 55,” Banks said. “We need more economic development in Jackson and Hinds County and in the Second Congressional District so you have better jobs for people.” 

Banks said Brown rarely backed away from a debate and remained engaged throughout his last session. “He believed in what he believed in, and you weren’t going to convince him otherwise,” Banks said. “Once he would get something in his mind, that was what he was going to do.” 

During debate over an education bill in April — Brown’s last appearance in the House — he repeatedly stood to question the legislation despite worsening health. 

“His heart was still there, and his strength was still there to say, ‘hey, I’m challenging this. I have questions about this and I’m not going to just sit here just arbitrarily vote for something,’” Banks said. 

England described Wallace as a straightforward lawmaker whose expertise made him one of the Legislature’s leading voices on agriculture. 

A poultry farmer, Wallace was the member colleagues turned to whenever legislation farming came before the House. 

“Price knew that business from the top to the bottom,” England said. Anytime those issues came up, he was ready to fight for the farmer in Mississippi. ”England said Wallace also approached legislation collaboratively, often putting policy ahead of personal recognition. 

“He talked to me about his bill on the House side and the work that he had put in, and basically just offered to work with me,” England said. “Price was the kind of guy that it didn’t seem to matter whose name was on the bill. He just wanted to see something get done.” 

Whether either proposal becomes law remains uncertain.

England said restoring the ballot initiative process will likely require additional negotiations before it can gain enough legislative support. Banks said he expects to reintroduce Brown’s criminal justice proposals alongside other legislators who shared Brown’s commitment to the issue.