Government

PARCA Tackling Research on Alabama’s Prison Problems as Legislature Begins to Meet

The Alabama Legislature will face tough choices this year on solving problems of the state’s crowded, obsolete and under-funded prison system, and the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama is preparing a series of briefings to address “a system in crisis.” PARCA, a non-profit organization that does nonpartisan research on issues facing state and local governments in Alabama, outlined problems that it said could lead to a federal takeover of the prisons system if they are not solved. Gov. Kay Ivey has proposed the construction of three new men’s prisons at a cost of $950 million as one step toward dealing with the issues of crowding, health care and crumbling facilities. Read more.

by Glenn Stephens

Hoover, Pelham Strike Deal for Hoover to Handle Vehicle Maintenance, May Look for Other Chances to Share the Load

Gary Waters remembers joking with Hoover Administrator Allan Rice about possibly annexing Pelham, the city of which Waters is mayor. “We were just joking around and I said, ‘Would you annex Pelham? It would make my life a lot easier,” Waters recounted. “He laughed and I said, ‘How about our fleet maintenance?’” That, Waters learned, Hoover could do. Wednesday, Waters, Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato, the city councils of both cities and other officials were on hand as the cities announced that Hoover will performance maintenance on the vehicles of both cities. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Gas Tax Got First Vote Thursday

By Mary Sell and Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News The gas tax was passed by a House committee Thursday and is now heading to the full House for debate. MONTGOMERY — The proposed 10-cent-a-gallon gas tax increase to fund infrastructure improvements is expected to get its first vote in committee Thursday morning. A new version of Gov. Kay Ivey’s priority bill was filed Wednesday afternoon in the special session dedicated to the issue. The tax is expected to generate more than $300 million a year. House Bill 2 increases the allocation for improvements at the Port of Mobile from the originally proposed $10.2 million a year to $11.7 million. Some critics have raised strong objections to redirecting gas tax revenues toward the port. Expanding the port to take on greater capacity is a priority for U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, who last year secured federal matching dollars to deepen and widen the Mobile Bay shipping channel. Several north Alabama lawmakers said they supported sending money to the port to improve and expand it. “I am in favor of it, because it is critical to the entire state,” said Rep. Parker Moore, R-Decatur. Read more.

by Mary Sell and Caroline Beck, Alabama Daily News

Gas Tax Proposal Punishes Clean-Fuel Vehicles, Ties Alabama For Nation’s Highest Fees, Groups Say

Environmental groups are alarmed that the gas tax bill filed in the Legislature today would make owners of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles pay more to the state than owners of gas-fueled vehicles. A summary version of the special session bill makes it less onerous than an earlier version but still is causing concern that the EV and plug-in hybrid owners would be penalized for using technology that pollutes less or not at all, conservation advocates say. After the concessions, Alabama’s fee would be tied with Georgia for the highest in the nation. The gas tax would fund the Gov. Kay Ivey-backed infrastructure bill, called the Rebuild Alabama Act, and is estimated to cost the average driver an additional $55 a year in gasoline tax, according to authors of the legislation. But EV owners would pay a $200 annual license and registration fee; plug-in hybrid vehicle owners would pay $100. There would be no fee for conventional hybrid vehicles. That’s down from the original bill’s $250 for EVs and $150 for hybrids. Read more.

by Hank Black

MLB Youth Foundation Reassessing Plans for Youth Academy at George Ward Park

“It’s truly a sad day for Birmingham,” Birmingham City Councilor William Parker said Tuesday after revealing that Major League Baseball Youth Foundation was “reassessing” its plans to build a youth academy at the city’s George Ward Park. The announcement preceded a long series of monologues from councilors, Mayor Randall Woodfin and members of the public, all of whom had differing opinions on what had scuttled the deal. Some councilors attributed the MLBYF’s decision to a racially charged campaign by residents who opposed the academy. But others, including Council President Valerie Abbott and several members of the public who spoke at the meeting, pinned the plan’s apparent failure on a lack of communication between the council and neighborhood associations. Eventually, the council opted to set a public meeting with residents to clarify details about the project — which councilors said they hoped would save the deal with the MLBYF. The Major League Baseball Youth Foundation had planned to construct a $10 million youth academy in the 120-acre George Ward Park, located in the city’s Glen Iris neighborhood. The academy, which would take up about 20 acres, would serve as a free, year-round training center — for baseball, softball, and “life skills,” according to the MLBYF’s proposed contract with the city — for the city’s youth. There are 11 such academies throughout the country; it would be the first for Alabama. Read more.

by Sam Prickett

This Siren Is for You

Joe Knight offered a word of warning after the Jefferson County Commission’s committee meeting today. With a chance of severe weather back in the forecast this weekend, the commissioner urged residents to not ignore a weather warning. “Before, if there was a storm coming through in Hoover, the sirens would go off in Warrior,” he said. “But now we’re on the polygon system. If you hear the siren, that siren is for you. You take cover immediately and go through your plan. Have a plan, go through your plan, go to your safe space. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Jefferson County Commissioners Told Sewer Ratepayer Lawsuit is Effectively Over

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear the appeal of Jefferson County sewer ratepayers from the 11th Circuit Court, effectively ending the county’s bankruptcy proceedings, Jefferson County Commissioners were told today. “It’s been a long time coming,” Commission President Jimmie Stephens said following the commission committee meeting. County attorney Theo Lawson said the ratepayers who sued have 25 days from Monday to take further action. That is unlikely, he said. Read more.

by Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Ivey’s Budget Proposes Shifting Funds, Including Moving CHIP Costs to Education Fund, as Part of Plan to Improve Roads and Bridges

MONTGOMERY – Gov. Kay Ivey is proposing a redistribution of some tax revenue — including more than $30 million from the Education Trust Fund to the General Fund — to help sell her initiative to raise more revenue for building roads and bridges. Read more.

by Todd Stacy and Mary Sell, Alabama Daily News

Congressional Votes for the Week Ending March 1

Bills to expand the list of people who must request federal background checks on individuals before selling guns to them split Alabama’s congressional delegation along the usual party lines last week. Democrat Rep. Terri Sewell of Birmingham voted for that bill while the Republicans voted against it. Alabama’s representatives also split along party lines on other gun-related bills. Read more.

by Voterama in Congress

Gas Tax, Lottery, Teacher Pay Raises Are Issues to Watch in 2019 Legislative Session

MONTGOMERY – Gov. Kay Ivey's first legislative session since winning a term in her own right will feature a laundry list of contentious issues when it begins Tuesday. On the top of that list is Ivey's proposal to raise the state’s gas tax to pay for improving roads and bridges, which could be one of the first votes the GOP-led Alabama Legislature will be asked to take. Ivey's infrastructure plan will be the predominant issue of the 15-week session. Advocates for the first statewide gas tax increase since 1992 say bad roads are dangerous, cause costly congestion and hinder economic development. But passage of the legislation is not a sure thing in the 140-member Legislature where 41 members are new this year. Other potential high-profile bills include a proposal for a statewide lottery, a likely teacher pay raise request and continued attempts to address the state’s understaffed and aging prisons. In a recent interview with Alabama Daily News, Ivey said she knew that confronting difficult issues was going to be necessary when she decided to run. "When I was trying to wrestle with the idea of even making a race for governor, I had to face the fact that our state has some very difficult challenges and needs," Ivey said. "Because they’ve been, with the prisons and the infrastructure, neglected for years and years and decades. I knew if I was successful in running for governor, I was going to have to deal with those. And you don’t look forward to dealing with difficult things, but that was one of the soul-searching questions that I had to answer for myself. Was I willing, if I was going to run for governor, would I be willing to take on the high priority needs that the state has because of neglect by others through the years? "And it was a hard decision for me to make because we have some heavy lifts." Read more.

by Mary Sell and Todd Stacy, Alabama Daily News