Sylvia Swayne, Alabama House District 55 Sylvia Swayne Age: 26 Residence: Birmingham Occupation: Quality assurance manager, Shipt Education: B.A., English, University of Alabama, 2019. Party: Democratic Previous political experience/campaign: Elected member of the Jefferson County Democratic Executive Committee, 2023-present.
Brad Cox, Republican candidate for House District 16 Residence: Fayette Occupation: Banker at Alabama ONE Credit Union. Before, Cox was a high school teacher. Education: B.S., Agricultural Education, Auburn University, 2012; M.A., Agricultural Education, Auburn University, 2013. Party: Republican Previous political experience/campaign: Fayette County Commissioner, District 1, 2021-present.
The two Republicans facing off in the Oct. 24 GOP runoff for House District 16 are both conservative.
But Brad Cox and Bryan Brinyark would bring vastly different experiences to Goat Hill. Read more.
The Republican-led states that have refused to expand Medicaid are trying a variety of strategies to save struggling hospitals and cover more people without full expansion, which was one of the key provisions of the Affordable Care Act. In Alabama, a single parent with two children can’t qualify for Medicaid if he or she makes more than $4,476 per year. Read more.
Birmingham Parking Authority celebrated the opening of its first electric vehicle charging station Wednesday at its Avondale Village parking lot. “This charging station is an important milestone not only for the Birmingham Parking Authority but for the city of Birmingham as well,” said Andre Davis, executive director and CEO of the BPA. “This is the first EV charging station in any BPA parking facility, and it's the first EV charging station in the city funded in partnership with the Alabama Clean Fuels Coalition.” The Level 2 EV charging station at 109 41st Street South can charge as many as four vehicles at one time. Read more.
Mayor Randall Woodfin said Tuesday that Birmingham schools have unusually large numbers of truant students and, if he has to, he’ll push for parents to be held legally accountable for allowing their children to stay home from school. Ten weeks into the school year, well more than half of third graders are considered truants, which means they have seven or more unexcused absences, Woodfin said. “It’s unacceptable,” the mayor said. “Teachers cannot teach your child if they are not in class.” Read more.
With social media showing so much ghastly video from the Hamas terrorism in Israel in the past week, the news media certainly don’t serve as the gatekeeper for what the public can see. But news organizations still reach a lot of people who won’t go hunting for content on social media, so their decisions of how graphically to depict awful events still matter. What I’ve seen lately are news media that believe the realities in Israel and in the Gaza Strip demand pushing, but still not ripping, the envelope of traditional bounds. Read more.
Vasilisa Strelnikova fled to Birmingham following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year. When she arrived, baking became a refuge. But she also wanted to use baking to show her love of Birmingham and her love for her friends. Read more.
The Jefferson County Commission on Thursday amended its zoning ordinance to increase the penalty for violations. As a result of recent state legislation, the commission was able to make violating the county’s zoning ordinance a Class B misdemeanor. Such violations are now punishable by as much as 180 days in jail and a fine of as much as $3,000. Previously, the penalty was a $100 fine and no more than 10 days in jail. Read more.
Rep. John Rogers, D-Birmingham, pleaded not guilty Thursday to two counts of obstruction of justice on Thursday at the Hugo L. Black Federal Courthouse in Birmingham. Rogers was released after being processed by the U.S. Marshals on a $5,000 bond. Prosecutors allege that Rogers diverted public money from a youth baseball league to an assistant. Read more.
