BW Recommends is a rundown of stories you might have missed this week. It offers insight into issues important to our area and sometimes tickles your curiosity.

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Alabama Democrat Hints at 2026 Rematch With Tommy Tuberville: ‘Stay Tuned’ (AL.com)

Former U.S. Sen. Doug Jones spoke during a town hall appearance with Rep. Terri Sewell in Birmingham on Saturday and got the question — “Will you run for governor of Alabama?”

“I guess I kinda walked into that one,” Jones responded before adding, “Stay tuned.”

Jones, a Democrat, served in the U.S. Senate from 2018 to 2021 before being defeated for reelection by Tommy Tuberville, the former Auburn University football coach who now is running as a Republican for governor of Alabama.

Alabama Officials Applaud U.S. Steel’s $75 Million Investment in Alabama Facility: ‘A Huge Win for Our State’ (Yellowhammer)

After months of national expansion announcements, U.S. Steel has confirmed a $75 million investment in its Fairfield Tubular Operations. The operation specializes in producing high-quality steel pipe and tube products serving the energy sector, including oil and gas customers. According to the company, the new facility will strengthen U.S. Steel’s position in the market while supporting local employment.

All the Stars in The Michelin Guide American South 2025 (Michelin Guide)

The Michelin Guide released its first guide to the American South this week. Birmingham still has no restaurants with a Michelin star, but the guide recognized 12 restaurants here. Four were named among the best affordable restaurants, seven made the recommended list and Bottega co-owner Pardis Stitt was given the Outstanding Service Award.

ACA Subsidy Debate Continues as Alabamians Face Rising Insurance Costs (Alabama Political Reporter)

With the start of Affordable Care Act open enrollment on Nov. 1, ACA enrollees across the nation are facing soaring insurance costs. In Alabama, about 430,000 residents receive health insurance with tax credits to reduce premium costs.

An expansion of the credits made during the pandemic are about to expire, and the fight over whether to extend the benefits is the main argument in the budget battle that has shut the government down.

If the credits are not extended, the health care nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation estimates, the average premium payments for Alabamians would increase 93%, from an average of $660 a month to $1,272.

How Alabama Power Kept Bills Up and Opposition Out to Become One of the Most Powerful Utilities in the Country (Inside Climate News)

Inside Climate News examined the 2024 federal filings of 100 of the largest electric utilities in the country. None reported higher total residential electric bills, on average, than Alabama Power. Alabamians with extremely low incomes pay nearly a quarter of their earnings for electricity — the highest percentage in the country.

Asked why prices are so high, experts point to the Alabama Public Service Commission, which is charged with regulating Alabama Power and overseeing any large spending or rate increases proposed by the utility.

States’ Death Penalty Policies Are Heading in Sharply Different Directions (Alabama Reflector)

States are moving in sharply different directions on the death penalty, with some looking to broaden when and how executions occur while others try to scale them back or end them entirely.

Lawmakers in more than half of the states have introduced over 100 bills this year to either expand or limit capital punishment, to alter execution protocols, and to change how death sentences are imposed, according to the Death Penalty Information Center, a nonprofit that studies capital punishment.

Ivey, Local Officials Celebrate Fiber Network Milestone (Alabama Daily News)

The state’s long journey toward connecting rural Alabamians with high-speed broadband internet took a big step this week.

Gov. Kay Ivey traveled to her hometown of Camden on Wednesday to celebrate the completion of the state’s “middle mile” fiber network, a milestone toward rural communities having broadband access. Wednesday marked the Alabama Fiber Network’s crossing of the Alabama River over the J. Lee Long Bridge on U.S. 29, literally bridging the last remaining gap in middle mile connectivity.

Alabama Submits Plan for Rural Health Care to Federal Government (Alabama Reflector)

Gov. Kay Ivey on Thursday said the state had submitted a plan to secure public money to offset projected cuts in Medicaid funding.

The Rural Health Transformation Program, part of the One Big Beautiful Bill, provides $50 billion in grants to the states over five years for rural health care. According to a brief from KFF, a national health policy research organization, the fund could partially offset just more than a third of the estimated federal Medicaid spending cuts in rural areas, which are projected to be $137 billion over 10 years.

Ivey’s office said in a statement that program will have 11 initiatives: Collaborative Electronic Health Record, IT and Cybersecurity; Rural Health; Maternal and Fetal Health; Rural Workforce; Cancer Digital Regionalization; Simulation Training; Statewide EMS Trauma and Stroke; EMS Treat-In-Place; Mental Health; Community Medicine; and Rural Health Practice. The governor’s office did not say how much funding it was requesting. A group of 20 experts and lawmakers will meet on the proposal Wednesday.