The Birmingham region’s water utility board voted Friday to terminate all contracts with its one remaining lobbying firm.

Board members who voted in a 4-2-1 decision to terminate the contracts praised Fine Geddie and Associates’ work while saying the choice to terminate was based on Central Alabama Water’s financial situation and the ability to accomplish lobbying-related goals through other means.

“For me, a lobbyist is a want and not a need,” said Jeff Brumlow, the board member who requested an item terminating the lobbying contracts be added to the agenda. “And looking at ways to save expenses, that’s one of the things we’ve looked at, is all these consultant contracts.”

Those who wanted to continue employing a lobbying firm said doing so is necessary for CAW and its ratepayers to have representation in Montgomery when proposed state legislation could affect the utility.

Board Vice Chairman Phillip Wiedmeyer said board members recently received a bulletin from the American Water Works Association flagging five bills introduced during the current Alabama legislative session that could have implications for CAW.

“I’m understanding that staff is reviewing those, but if it was determined that they would have a negative impact, we need to have a voice,” Wiedmeyer said. “We need to have the best voice we can have to help us explain our position.”

Friday’s vote came after CAW’s board of directors decided last year to terminate its agreements with The Jones Group, another lobbying firm. The board ended its relationship with that lobbying firm due to a conflict of interest, Wiedmeyer said. The Jones Group also represented the city of Birmingham, which had filed a federal lawsuit against the board in relation to a state law that restructured the utility and its board and took effect in May.

Relying on Friends and Family

When Wiedmeyer asked Brumlow how the board could make its voice heard without a lobbying firm, Brumlow said he’s friends with several state senators and his son is a policy advisor in the governor’s office.

“I don’t think your son represents this organization,” Wiedmeyer replied.

“I’m just telling you I have contacts down there that I can call and find out who I need to talk to,” Brumlow said. “If I hear something come up … we can start making phone calls ourselves.”

Jarvis Patton Sr., who voted along with Wiedmeyer against ending the lobbyist’s contracts, said many of the board’s seven members have contacts in Montgomery.

“But that’s not where the rubber meets the road,” he said, adding that he worked as a lobbyist himself for a while. “It’s the personal contacts that these lobbyists have with legislators and everybody else across the city, or everybody else across the county, everybody else across the state. I think it’s imperative that we have a lobbyist.”

Bill Morris, a board member who voted in favor of foregoing a lobbying firm, pointed out after the meeting that David Standridge, a board member who abstained from votes related to the lobbying firm, is a state representative.

Morris and Brumlow also said the legislative bulletin Wiedmeyer referenced from the American Water Works Association, of which CAW is a member, is a way the board can stay informed without a lobbying firm.

Wiedmeyer said after the meeting that staying informed is only part of the equation. Others include championing CAW’s point of view and facilitating meetings. He said Fine Geddie set up a meeting earlier in the week with a state senator who plans to introduce dam-safety legislation this session.

“I certainly believe that’s an important issue for this organization,” Wiedmeyer said.

Last month, CAW Chief Executive Jeff Thompson stopped a project to stabilize a high-hazard dam that engineers have said isn’t safe enough.

“We all know what happened last year in the Legislature,” Wiedmeyer continued, referring to the state law that restructured the board, shifting majority representation from the city to suburban areas.

Decision Based on Financial Concerns

Brumlow said he agrees lobbying firms can be helpful in many ways. Then he returned to his want vs. need argument. “I’m trying to sober this sailor up,” he said. “That’s my goal.”

Board Chairman Tommy Hudson also pointed to finances. “We’re looking at our budget right now,” he said.

CAW’s 2026 budget drastically cut spending on capital projects, and Thompson has said managers are further revising it downward. They will present a new version to the board sometime in the first quarter, he said.

Wiedmeyer noted Fine Geddie had agreed to reduce its fee from $15,000 per month to $10,000, for the same work. A one-year contract for that amount was on Friday’s agenda, and the board voted against it, in addition to terminating all current contracts with the firm.

Patton said he’s introduced several other ideas to cut expenses, “including No. 1, to have a legal staff, rather than paying attorneys up to $88,000 a month in legal fees.”

After convening in May, the new board hired three external legal firms that regularly work for the utility. It also employs other firms to work on specific cases. Legal fees in the proposed 2026 budget were 52% higher than those in the 2025 budget.

“If you want to save some money, seemingly people would be doing things that would help more than hurt the ratepayers and the citizens of Birmingham,” Patton said.

Hudson said contracting with a lobbying firm isn’t off the table.

“Just because a contract is canceled today doesn’t mean it cannot be reconsidered at a future date,” he said.