Author: Virginia Martin
Ride Free on the Birmingham Bus Rapid Transit System! (At Least for Now)
The Birmingham Bus Rapid Transit system, also known as Birmingham Xpress, will be free for riders for at least the next few months — though exactly how long remains up in the air. A $300,000 payment approved Tuesday by the Birmingham City Council will cover the cost of eliminating BRT fares while the Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority develops a new mobile payment application to encompass all of its services. Read more.
Use of Espionage Act vs. Trump isn’t dubious. Here’s a case that is.
Donald Trump on Saturday mocked the Espionage Act of 1917, the law by which he faces criminal charges for absconding with classified government documents. “They want to use something called the Espionage Act,” he said at a convention in Georgia. “Doesn’t that sound terrible?”
He should be familiar with it, actually. His administration used it as the basis for a terrible criminal case against the founder of the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks.
The act, passed to try to stifle dissent about U.S. involvement in World War I, has generated much debate over the years about what it should be used for. Read more.
Supreme Court Ruling Means Special Session on New Map, Potential Race Shake-Ups in 2024
Residents Complain About Predatory Towing Downtown, Say It Will Stall Economic Development if Not Fixed
Matt Lyons said he’s not in favor of putting towing companies out of business.
“When your car’s broken down on the side of the road,” he said, “the tow company is your best friend. That being said, what I’m against is predatory towing, which takes advantage of the citizens of Birmingham only to enrich the owners of companies like Parking Enforcement Systems.”
Lyons was among a number of people who paraded to a podium Wednesday night at Boutwell Auditorium to talk about predatory towing practices in Birmingham. He recounted having paid for 3-hour parking as he attended a meeting, returning 30 minutes late to find that his car had been towed away.
“I think it’s very bad for the image of Birmingham,” he said.
City officials attended the meeting and told the crowd there are several measures are being considered to mitigate the towing issue. One calls for a 15-minute grace period before a car could be towed, Julie Barnard of the city attorney’s office said. Others included adding warnings on parking apps to check that entered information was entered correctly, and requiring towing companies to release towed vehicles to owners who have proof they paid for parking. Read more.
Special Election to Fill Empty Commission District Seat to be Held July 18; No Write-Ins Allowed in Nonpartisan Vote
Probate Judge James Naftel joked that he would scratch someone from his Christmas card list after a question rose during the Jefferson County Election Commission meeting.
The panel had just OK’d the schedule for the election to replace Steve Ammons as District 5 commissioner to the Jefferson County Commission when Naftel was asked about write-in votes.
As it turned out, there will be no place on that ballot for write-ins. “For commission seats, because of the unique way it’s done, you don’t qualify with parties,” Naftel said. Read more.
JeffCo Commission to Consider Ambulance Funding Thursday
The Jefferson County Commission moved matters to the agenda of Thursday’s meeting that addressed an original mission of county government.
But County Manager Cal Markert acknowledged that the fulfilment of a later mission is on the horizon.
Markert presented resolutions using American Rescue Plan Act funds to purchase upgrades to emergency management systems in four fire departments in unincorporated Jefferson County. Read more.
Birmingham to Air Proposal on Predatory Towing During Wednesday Public Hearing
The Birmingham City Council will hold a public hearing Wednesday to discuss predatory towing practices in the city.
For more than a decade, Parking Enforcement Systems, a private towing company operating in downtown Birmingham, has been the subject of numerous complaints over its practice of removing cars from downtown lots. In May 2013, the council approved an ordinance capping towing fees at $160 per vehicle — PES had been charging more than $280 — but complaints that the company has aggressive practices have continued. In one instance in September, a 29-year-old Birmingham resident was shot and killed on a Parking Systems Enforcement lot after an argument with a PES employee over a towed vehicle escalated into violence. Read more.
Major Bills Cross the Finish Line With One Day Left in Legislative Session
Gov. Kay Ivey signed both budgets and supplemental spending packages Thursday. A plan to reduce the state sales tax on food is on the way to her desk as well. Read more.
PARCA Releases Report on Population Trends in Alabama
The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama has released a report on population trends in Alabama based on recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
Birmingham followed a national trend of declining population in the city and its close-in suburbs as people moved farther from the city center into newer housing farther out.
The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Statistical Area still ruled the state, though, coming in with more than twice the population of the second largest MSA, Huntsville. Read more.
A water leak led to a $20K bill for an Alabama couple. A smart meter could have saved them.
When smart water meters work, they can detect expensive leaks early. But the tech’s costly to do right — and even more so when it’s done wrong. Read more.
