Government

JeffCo Commissioner Applauds Employees for Actions During COVID War

Jefferson County Commission President Jimmie Stephens closed today’s commission meeting with gratitude for county employees and staff who fought their way through the “wartime” environment of the pandemic. “It was a wartime atmosphere,” Stephens said. “We were at war with this virus. It actually changed our day-to-day lives and how we conducted business. I wanted to commend and thank our county commission and our county staff for being able to stay on top of this wartime environment and to be able to win as many battles as we have. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Will Alabama and Mississippi Expand Medicaid to Low-Income Adults This Time Around?

WBHM After a fire destroyed their last apartment in 2019, Kenneth Tyrone King and his family recently saved up enough money to rent a new place in Birmingham. But the relief was short-lived. Bills, mostly medical, quickly began piling up at the new address. For King, 57, this was just the latest development in a cycle of debt. He has not had health insurance for years. He lost his most-recent job at a temp agency after having emergency open heart surgery in December. He barely has enough money for the two prescriptions that he needs each month. “I can afford one of them, but one of them, it’s like a $60 medication,” King said. “Those types of challenges, if I had affordable health care, or a health care plan, it would have at least covered some of it.” King falls in the coverage gap. He does not qualify for Medicaid and he cannot afford to buy a private insurance plan. If Alabama expanded Medicaid, that would mean opening up eligibility to people like him and other low-income adults who make up to 138% of the federal poverty level, which equates to less than $18,000 a year for a single adult. Read more.

by Mary Scott Hodgin, WBHM

Senator Looking for Fix on Tax-Filing Interest Issue

Earlier this month, the U.S. Treasury Department and IRS extended the filing and payment date for individual 2020 income taxes from the traditional April 15 to May 17. Alabama automatically extends its state income tax filing deadline when there is an extension on the federal level. But the fine print on the Alabama Department of Revenue’s guidance on the topic said that, while it can waive late penalties for payments made by May 17, it is “not authorized to waive interest, and any interest accruing from April 15, 2021, through the actual payment date will be due.” It would take a change to state law to waive the interest payments required of taxpayers who don’t file and pay by April 15. Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, told Alabama Daily News he plans to file a bill to address this “wrinkle” in the state tax code when lawmakers return next week to Montgomery. Read more.

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

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

JeffCo Commission Moves Toward Buying Land Next to Shady Grove Fire Station, Selling Old West End Health Center

The Shady Grove Fire Department will benefit from a “fire sale” transaction between the state of Alabama and Jefferson County. During their committee meeting today, commissioners moved a resolution to the agenda of Thursday’s commission meeting to buy property from the state that is adjacent to the fire department and plan to offer $100. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Bill Would Cut Pensions for Future Birmingham Employees, Raise Employee Contributions

Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin is supporting a bill in the Legislature that would both compel the city to fully fund its pension obligation and increase employee contributions to the pension fund by half a percent. The bill would be Woodfin’s latest step toward correcting the city’s longtime underfunding of the city’s pension plan, which he warned could cause a future financial crisis for the city. HB510 is sponsored by Rep. Allen Treadaway, R-Morris, who was the Woodfin-appointed assistant chief of the Birmingham Police Department from 2018 until his retirement in October. Read more.

by Sam Prickett

Mo Brooks Sets Up U.S. Senate Campaign Committee, Announces Run

U.S. Rep. Mo Brooks of Huntsville filed notice with the Federal Election Commission on Sunday that he will be a candidate for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate seat of retiring Sen. Richard Shelby. He announced his candidacy Monday at a rally at the Bullet and Barrel indoor shooting range in Huntsville, where he was joined by Stephen Miller, controversial former senior adviser and speechwriter for former President Donald Trump. In a filing with the FEC dated Sunday, the north Alabama congressman set up the Mo Brooks for Senate committee. Read more.

by Glenn Stephens

$7.6B Education Budget Moves to House

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama Senate on Thursday unanimously approved a record-setting $7.6 billion education budget for 2022. The proposal includes a 2% across-the-board cost of living pay increase for K-12 and community college employees and two other more targeted pay increases for teachers. The bill now goes to the House of Representatives. The Senate also approved Senate Bill 327 to create a program to offer increased pay to middle and high school math and science teachers who meet certain qualifications. Additional money would also be available to those teachers who work in hard-to-staff schools. Read more. Read complete legislative coverage

by Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Alabama House Passes Controversial Bills During Contentious Day of Debate

MONTGOMERY — A day full of contentious bills in the House of Representatives Thursday was paired with multiple motions to cut off debate, which many Democratic members said were “unjust.” Rep. Mary Moore, D-Birmingham, said at one point during the debate that the cloture motions were taking away her right to debate on legislation. “You’ve taken all my voice away when you give up that cloture,” Moore said. House Majority Leader Nathaniel Ledbetter said the motions were necessary to keep Democrats from dragging out debate in an effort to delay or kill legislation. Read more.

by Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News

Absentee Voting Bills Pass First Vote

MONTGOMERY — Legislation dealing with absentee voting in Alabama overcame the first legislative hurdle Wednesday as the bills passed through the House Constitution, Campaigns and Elections Committee. A bill that would allow for more sites to be opened in a county to accept in-person absentee ballots was debated and approved, as was a bill to require absentee applications be submitted earlier. Read more. More from the Legislature: Committee-Approved $7.6B Education Budget Includes Multiple Pay Raises Riot, Voter Bill Taken Up in Legislature Read complete legislative coverage

by Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News