Tag: Alabama Legislature
Ban on Curbside Voting Passes, Special Session Bill Dies
MONTGOMERY — The Alabama Legislature continued its 2021 Regular Session Wednesday, when most of the work was in committee. Here’s the latest notable legislative activity from the State House.
Paying Voters
A bill that would prohibit people from being paid for voting after an election passed a House committee vote on Wednesday. Read more.
Monuments Bill Killed; Lawmaker Calls Members Racist
MONTGOMERY — An Alabama legislative committee on Wednesday voted down a proposal that would have given counties and municipalities more flexibility in removing historical monuments, including Confederate statues. Afterward, the Democratic sponsor of the bill accused Republicans who voted against it of being racist.
Rep. Juandalynn Givan, D-Birmingham, sponsored the bill that would have amended the 2017 Monument Preservation Act. It was voted down by the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.
“Many of those individuals who voted against this bill are members of the Republican Party, they are ‘Trumplicans’, and they have their beliefs because they are in power and they actually exude white supremacy here in the state of Alabama, especially in the House of Representatives so it doesn’t surprise me that they voted against the bill,” Givan told reporters. Read more.
Bill to Delay Rules That Would Fail Third Graders Who Don’t Read Well Enough Advances
A bill that would delay by three years a provision to require holding back third graders who don’t read at a sufficient level received unanimous support in the Senate Education Policy Committee on Wednesday.
The provision is in the Alabama Literacy Act, which was approved by lawmakers in 2019. It aims to increase reading skills in young students. The act currently requires that, starting at the end of the 2021-2022 school year, third grade students demonstrate specific reading skills before being promoted to fourth grade. Smitherman’s bill delays that retention requirement until the 2024-2025 school year.
He said the delay is needed because the COVID-19 pandemic led to remote learning for many students, and they’re not getting the educational support they need. He also said teachers haven’t been able to get the training they need. Read more.
More from the Legislature This Week:
Bill to Close ABC Stores Gets Committee Approval
Concealed Carry, Law Enforcement Checks, Jail Issues Taken Up Thursday by Legislature
Ban on Curbside Voting Passes, Special Session Bill Dies
Monuments Bill Killed; Lawmaker Calls Members Racist
Special Session, Oversight Bills Advance
MONTGOMERY — A bill to allow the Legislature to call itself into a special session was approved Tuesday in the Senate Government Affairs Committee. The House version of the bill is in committee Wednesday. Read more.
House Passes Business-Friendly State Emergency Bill
The Alabama House passed a bill Tuesday that would ensure some businesses can’t be closed during states of emergency while their competitors remain open.
House Bill 103 by Rep. Jamie Kiel, R-Russellville, would allow businesses and places of worship to remain open as long as they comply with any emergency order, rules or regulations issued by the governor and state or local agencies.
“This bill does away with the connotation of essential and non-essential businesses existing in the state,” Kiel said on the House floor.
Kiel previously told Alabama Daily News that last year in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he saw local clothing stores and boutiques and sporting goods stores forced to close while other larger stores remained open selling the same products.
“If you’re gonna allow a business that sells T-shirts to stay open, then all businesses that sell T-shirts should be able to stay open,” Kiel previously said. “If one business is allowed to open under certain conditions, then all businesses can be open under those same conditions.” Read more.
More from the Legislature: Special Session, Oversight Bills Advance
Bill Would Allow Law Enforcement to Take Those in Mental Health Crisis Into Protective Custody
A bill working its way through the Legislature would allow law enforcement officers from designated agencies around the state to take people into protective custody if there is “reasonable cause to believe that the individual has a mental illness and is an immediate danger to himself or herself or others.”
The individual doesn’t have to be charged with a crime and the detainment is not an arrest. The hold can last up to 72 hours if not extended by a probate judge.
“This is for those acute cases, to get those individuals stabilized in a hospital setting and hopefully get them care,” sponsor Rep. Wes Allen, R-Troy, told the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. Read more.
Senate Approves School Board Bill, Other Legislative Briefs
A bill that would create more enforcement mechanisms for local school board members to ensure state requirements are being followed passed the Senate on Thursday.
The Senate approved several amendments to Sen. Vivian Figure’s Senate Bill 170, including a change from Sen. Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, to give more weight to recommendations of penalties by a peer review panel created in the bill and removes the State Superintendent from the disciplinary decision process.
“I am all about due process and making sure everyone is treated fairly at every level,” Figures, D-Mobile, said about the amendment.
Read more.
Medical Marijuana Bill Gains Senate Approval
Bill Would Allow No-Excuse Absentee Voting
A bill that would allow no-excuse absentee voting in Alabama has support from the secretary of state, but it faced some pushback during a public hearing on Wednesday.
House Bill 396 from Rep. Laura Hall, D-Huntsville, removes the excuse provision for absentee voting and allows absentee election managers to appoint additional assistants.
Current law allows absentee voting only for a few reasons, including expecting to be out of the country, having a job that requires working a 10-hour shift that coincides with polling hours or having a homebound family member. Voters must check a box next to the reason that applies to them. Falsifying the application is a Class C felony, according to state law.
Read more.
House Passes Bill Requiring Pre-K and Community Corrections, Aniah’s Law and Others
Here’s a rundown of legislative action in the Alabama House of Representatives Tuesday. Read more.
