Sheila Tyson said Thursday that lobbyists for Jefferson County did not alert her and fellow commissioners about legislation she opposes.

Tyson said commissioners were told about House Bill 191 on Tuesday, a day before the matter was considered by a legislative committee. That bill — introduced by Rep. Jim Carns, Vestavia Hills — would allow the governor to appoint a replacement when there is an off-cycle opening on the commission.

That’s how replacements are handled in other counties, but a bill applying just to Jefferson County was passed in 2009 requiring that mid-term replacements on the commission be decided by a vote of the public.

For instance, District 5 Commissioner Mike Bolin was elected in 2023 in a nonpartisan election to replace Steve Ammons, who resigned to become president and CEO of the Birmingham Business Alliance.

Tyson said all of the commissioners should have been notified of an attempt to change the process.

“I don’t like the way this was handled,” Tyson said, suggesting that the new bill was proposed by a member of the commission. “It was just too sneaky for me.”

The bill was approved by the committee and now goes to the House.

Tyson and Lashunda Scales, the two Democrats on the commission, expressed concern that an appointment by the governor could be subject to partisan politics. Each also talked about wanting more frequent communication with the county’s lobbyists.

“I would like to see where our lobbyists that we pay on behalf of stakeholders of Jefferson County, that they begin to meet with us more often than they are currently,” Scales said. “I think the emails are great, but they’re insufficient when you’re trying to make a decision on something that we know that can be detrimental to the county’s makeup.”

County Attorney Theo Lawson said later that the controversy over how Jefferson County fills vacancies in elected positions dates back to when Larry Langford resigned his county commission post to take office as mayor of Birmingham.

Governor Bob Riley appointed George Bowman to the post in November 2007. The Election Commission set a Feb. 5, 2008, special election to fill the seat. Following the special election, the Alabama Supreme Court blocked certification of the results while legal challenges continued. Unofficial returns showed William Bell soundly defeating Bowman and all other challengers for the seat.

A Jefferson County Circuit Court upheld the Election Commission’s decision to hold the February special election, but that decision was overturned by the Alabama Supreme Court, which ruled that Bowman would keep his seat until after the November 2008 general election. Bell was sworn in Nov. 12 of that year.

In 2010, Bowman defeated 13 other candidates to win a special election to fill the District 1 seat left vacant when Bell became Mayor of Birmingham.

“What this bill would do,” Lawson said, “is it would allow the governor to make an appointment to fill any vacancy, similar to what happens with other vacant positions at county government. That’s what it would do rather than follow the current local law that we have to fill vacancies.”

Lawson noted the cost that the county bears in putting on a special election.

Pistol Permit Revenue

Among resolutions passed during today’s commission meeting was one authorizing the commission to accept grant funding from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs on behalf of the Jefferson County Sheriff for pistol permit revenue loss. That revenue source dried up when the state struck down laws requiring permits to carry concealed weapons.

That resolution sparked discussion at Tuesday’s committee meeting as revenue from the sale of pistol permits has been set to address abandoned cemeteries.

Tyson noted having received several calls from constituents about cemeteries that have not been maintained. She said the body that was created to address abandoned cemeteries has been idle.

Lawson cited the state code that established the Jefferson County Cemetery Board. The code says that the county commission “shall have no authority over the board and the county commission shall have no responsibility over a cemetery in the county, as defined by this section, and no county funds shall be expended as a result of the implications or implementation of this section.”

Lawson said, “It’s the same principle that we have with other stuff that you can’t go and use public funds to deal with private property issues.”