Glenn Stephens

Alabama’s New COVID Case Averages Drop to Levels Not Seen Since June

As Alabama’s mandate on wearing face masks comes to a close, the numbers for new COVID cases and deaths continue to fall, with new-case averages now below those last reported in June of last year. In Birmingham Watch’s periodic analysis of COVID data, the 7-day average of new cases reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health is now at 382.43 per day, a drop of more than 100 over the past seven days. It’s the first time that average has dropped below 400 since June 9, 2020. The longer-term 14-day average, which is less susceptible to fluctuations from data spikes, is now at 436.94 new cases per day. The last time this average was that low was on June 11. The average is down by 85 cases per day over the past week, or 16.3%. Read more.

by Robert Carter

Open Records Bill Clears Committee, Lawmakers Want More Work on It

Legislation to strengthen Alabama’s open records law and create penalties for government agencies that don’t comply in a timely manner cleared a Senate committee on Wednesday. But Republicans, Democrats and bill sponsor Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, said more work is needed before the legislation gets a full Senate vote. “We’re 51st in the country on this issue … we can do better,” Orr told his colleagues about the current law that does not specify a response timeline or set fees for records requests filed by citizens and members of the media. After a public hearing Tuesday morning, Orr said he’d continue to work with groups that expressed opposition to his bill, including the Association of County Commissions of Alabama. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Legislature’s Differences on Election Legislation Reflect a National Divide

MONTGOMERY --  In the wake of the 2020 elections, measures to change voting procedures and regulations have been introduced at the federal and state levels, revealing a deep partisan divide over how voting should work. While Democrats in Congress are pushing legislation that would limit states' ability to enact strict voting requirements, Republicans in state legislatures are considering bills to tighten voting regulations in the name of securing voter integrity. Alabama has followed suit, as a number of election-centered bills have been introduced during the ongoing 2021 regular session. Around 32 bills from both Democrats and Republicans introduced this year have dealt with Alabama election law. Some of the conservative measures have drawn sharp concern from Democrats saying the bills promote voter suppression and are in reaction to President Donald Trump’s false accusations of widespread voter fraud during the 2020 election. Read more. More from the Legislature: Bills Would Limit Cities’ Gas Tax Spending Senator Looking for Fix on Tax-Filing Interest Issue

by Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News

One Home, Many Generations: States Addressing COVID Risk Among Families

COVID-19 poses an increased threat to the 18% of Americans who live in multigenerational households, according to an analysis by the Center for Public Integrity. The analysis of every county in the United States shows that people of color, who are at greater risk from the virus for a variety of factrors, a far more likelky to be living in the same home as older relatives. A handful of states have reconized the threat to multigenerational households and have prioritized the distribution of vaccines according. The state of Washington was the first to put such households near the top of its COVID-19 vaccine priority list. Read more.

by April Simpson, Susan Ferriss, Taylor Johnston, Pratheek Rebala, Center for Public Integrity

Daily Averages, Positivity Rates for COVID-19 Continue to Improve

There were 442 new cases of COVID-19 in Alabama in Friday's update by the state Department of Public Health, dropping the daily average for the past week to 429. That was the lowest seven-day average since a count of 425 cases a day last June 8. The figure has dropped from a high of 4,280 cases a day on Jan. 10. The state has recorded 513,580 cases since the pandemic began last March. ADPH listed 19 deaths in the 24-hour update, bringing the total to 10,523 over the course of the pandemic. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Tuberville Opposes Many Biden Proposals but Says He’s Not an Obstructionist

Sen. Tommy Tuberville rode into Washington as a ride-or-die Trump supporter, campaigning as being more of a Trump booster than Trump’s own former attorney general, then making headlines by saying he would challenge the counting of some electoral votes even before he was sworn into office. With that drama behind him and a whopping three months on the job under his belt, Tuberville seems to be less of a bomb-throwing gadfly and more of a regular working politician, albeit an extremely conservative one. He voted against President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-relief bill, saying it cost too much and didn’t do enough to fight COVID; opposed the president's nominee for secretary of health and human services; called Democrats' election reforms a "power grab;" and continues to push for a border security. But he voted for Biden’s nominee for secretary of labor, former Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, and says he will work with the administration on issues such as job creation. He said he does not want to be obstructive. Read more.

by Brett Davis

COVID-19 Numbers Continue to Drop in Alabama

The positive trend for COVID-19 in Alabama continued Thursday, with the state Department of Public Health reporting 427 new cases over the past 24 hours. There have been 513,138 cases of the coronavirus since the pandemic began a year ago. The state has averaged 441 cases a day over the past week, less than half the average of 964 one month earlier. The number of people being treated for COVID-19 in 111 Alabama hospitals stood at 397 on Wednesday. That is down from 422 a week ago and 776 on the same date in February. Read more.

by BirminghamWatch

Averages of New COVID-19 Cases, Deaths Fall to Lowest Levels Since June

Alabama’s COVID-19 numbers continue to improve, dropping to levels not seen since last summer. In Birmingham Watch’s periodic analysis of COVID data, the 7-day average of new cases reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health is down to 490.86 per day. That’s the lowest average seen since June 10 of last year, and a fall of better than 88% since the peak level on Jan. 10. The longer-term 14-day average is slightly higher at 521.86 new cases per day. Similarly, the death toll is also seeing a decline, with both the 7-day and 14-day moving averages dropping below 20 for the first time since last November. The 7-day mark stands at 17.71, its lowest since early December and down 88% from the record high set on Jan. 26. The 14-day average of 18.93 is off by about the same percentage from the peak in early February. Read more.

by Robert Carter

Bills Would Limit Cities’ Gas Tax Spending

MONTGOMERY -- Legislation in the State House would prevent local municipalities and counties from spending local gas tax revenue on anything other than roads and bridges. Alabama law says revenue from gasoline and other motor fuel taxes levied by the state can be used only for infrastructure and similar uses, but there are no such restrictions on the local gas taxes collected by hundreds of governments. House Bill 556 by Rep. Chris Sells, R-Greenville, and Senate Bill 281 by Sen. Shay Shelnutt, R-Trussville, says that all taxes on motor fuels, “whether called an excise tax, license tax, or otherwise, levied by a municipality or county or by local law may be used only for road and bridge construction and maintenance.” href="https://birminghamwatch.org/bills-would-limit-cities-gas-tax-spending/ "> Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Vaccine Eligibility Expands Today; National Guard Clinics Start Tuesday

Eligibility for COVID-19 vaccines expands this week in Alabama to include people 55 and over, people 16 and older with high-risk medical conditions, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and more critical workers. The qualifying medical conditions include cancer, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, smoking, obesity, sickle cell disease and heart conditions. “We have been concerned that many people at high risk and others engaged in close contact work have not been eligible to receive the vaccine yet, but with the additional vaccine supply we are better able to meet the needs of Alabama residents,” Gov. Kay Ivey said in a written statement. “Starting March 22, individuals can be assured of receiving the shots they have been patiently waiting to get.” Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News