Glenn Stephens

Coronavirus Could Impact State Legislature, Budgets

State lawmakers are expecting the coronavirus, and attempts to stop its spread, to affect Alabama’s tax revenues and the 2021 budgets they’re drafting. “I think it could have a dramatic impact,” Rep. Steve Clouse, R-Ozark, said Monday afternoon. He’s chairman of the House General Fund budget committee. He said it could be several weeks to a month before the financial toll of closures and social distancing are known. State and federal officials have said states will be reacting to the coronavirus for at least six to eight weeks. “I think we’d need to wait as late as possible on the budgets to see how everything develops,” Clouse said.  Read more.

Avoid These Myths About the Coronavirus

Desperate times call for desperate measures, the director of UAB’s Infectious Diseases said Monday in response to a question about various rumored remedies and treatments for the coronavirus that are being bandied about. Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo said she has heard about supposed remedies ranging from gargling with Listerine to taking plant-based medicines. She warned that suggested ways to avoid or treat the virus that don’t come from the medical world “are probably not credible.” And there are many myths out there, such as statements that "everyone with COVID-19 dies." That's not true -- or even close to being true. Read more.

What’s the Name of the Virus Causing this Pandemic?

by Virginia MacDonald

What’s the Name of the Virus Causing this Pandemic

So, what is causing this pandemic? Coronavirus? COVID-19 or SARS-CoV-2? Same virus, different names. The formal name is SARS-COV2, but COVID-19 can be used, as can coronavirus. Read more.

Jefferson County and Birmingham Under Emergency Declarations for Coronavirus

The Jefferson County Commission and Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin declared states of emergency for the county and  city Monday in an attempt to stem the spread of the coronavirus. The County Commission approved an emergency declaration and voted to close county facilities, effective at the end of business on Monday, until April 6.  The commission will reevaluate the situation then. Woodfin, in declaring the state of emergency for the city, suggested that events be limited to attendance of 25 people or less. Read more.

Voters Reject Amendment, Keep Elected School Board

Alabamians on Tuesday said they want to keep their ability to vote for the state’s K-12 leaders. Amendment One was defeated soundly, with more than 1.1 million votes cast. About 75% were “no” votes, according to unofficial results from the Alabama Secretary of State. The amendment would have done away with the current elected Alabama State Board of Education that oversees K-12 education, replacing it with a governor-appointed commission. “I’m proud of the people of the state,” current board member Jeff Newman, a Republican who represents the Shoals and a portion of the Tennessee Valley, said Tuesday night. “I like to work for the people, the schools belong to the people.”  “… There’s no doubt we have work to do in education, we do; but we need the means to do it.”  Read more.

Shaw Wins Re-election to Supreme Court

MONTGOMERY -- Sitting Supreme Court Justice Greg Shaw fended off a challenge from state Sen. Cam Ward Tuesday in the Republican primary for his Place 1 seat on the high court.  Shaw received 341,442 votes, earning 58.43%, while Ward received 242,913 votes, 41.57%, according to the latest unofficial tally from the Alabama Secretary of State’s Office. With no Democrat signed up to run, Shaw will be uncontested in the general election on Nov. 3.  Read more.

Fridy, Windom Win Appellate Court Races; Kellum and Smith Head to Runoff

MONTGOMERY -- Alabama voters on Tuesday gave clear-cut victories in two races for appellate judgeships, while sending a third to a runoff.  For Place 1 on the Court of Civil Appeals, State Rep. Matt Fridy, R-Montevallo, defeated Pelham attorney Phillip Bahakel by 66% to 34%. There is no Democrat running in the November general election. For Place 1 on the Court of Criminal Appeals, incumbent Mary Windom defeated Cullman attorney Melvin Hasting by 70% to 30%. With no Democratic primary opponent, Windom will be uncontested in the general election. For Place 2 on the Court of Criminal Appeals, incumbent Beth Kellum will face former Lauderdale County Commissioner Will Smith in a runoff on March 31. There is no Democrat running in the November general election.  Read more.

Jeffco Commission to Vote on Expanded Use of Mass Notification System

Jefferson County Commission members will vote Thursday on a policy governing non-emergency commission use of the Everbridge mass notification system. With Commissioner Steve Ammons absent on county business, commissioners voted 3-1 on Tuesday to move the proposal to their meeting agenda. Commissioner Lashunda Scales voted no. The matter came up when Commissioner Sheila Tyson suggested using the system to inform county residents about details of the 2020 census. Commission President Jimmie Stephens said a resolution needed to be submitted for the system – often associated with weather warnings – to be utilized. Read more.

Statewide 5G Infrastructure Bill Passes First Vote But Cities Still Concerned

MONTGOMERY -- A bill that would set a statewide standard for deploying 5G cellular infrastructure, including how much money cities can charge providers for access to existing utility structures, has support from multiple lawmakers, but municipal leaders say the bill takes away too much local control. Senate Bill 172 would mandate a request process for cities to follow when approached by wireless providers such as AT&T and Verizon and sets a cap on the fees municipalities can charge companies for the use of city-owned rights-of-ways. It passed out of the Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development committee last week with no opposition. Read more.

In the Weeds: A Career of Fighting Has Led Byrne to Senate Showdown

MONTGOMERY -- Bradley Byrne is a fighter. That’s what Alabama’s 1st District Congressman says differentiates him from the field of other candidates in the race for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, and there’s plenty of evidence that his previous experience backs that up. Over a political career that has taken him from the state school board and the state Senate to the Alabama Community College System chancellor’s office and the U.S. House of Representatives, Byrne’s fights have been famous. Perhaps the most successful was Byrne’s bout with the state’s two-year college system, which had been mired in a patronage scandal until he, a reform-minded governor and federal prosecutors came in to clean it up. Perhaps the least successful was a run for governor in 2010 that saw him on a quixotic quest to take on the then-all-powerful state teachers’ association, only for that group to marshal untold resources to defeat him in the end. Now Byrne finds himself in the middle of another high-profile fight as he seeks to win a U.S. Senate seat by first outmatching two better-known Republican rivals in former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and former Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville. The winner of the Republican primary — or runoff, if needed — will face incumbent Democratic Sen. Doug Jones in November. Read more.