Alabama Legislature
Bentley’s “Great State” Plan Lacks Funding Details
The Alabama Legislature is back to work and Governor Robert Bentley announced his Great State 2019 Plan at his State of the State address last night. AL.com’s Kyle Whitmire discusses where funding for this plan is going to come from.
Many Alabama Legislators Use Private Email, Limiting Public Access
The controversy continues over Hillary Clinton’s use of personal emails during her tenure as secretary of state, and it’s raising broader questions about how public officials should communicate electronically. In one survey, 33 percent of government workers said they use personal email for government business at least sometimes. The issue? Private emails are nearly impossible for the public to access. If you thought AOL and Hotmail were dead, just scroll down the list of Alabama lawmakers and check out their contact info. State senators and Representatives also list plenty of Gmail, Yahoo and emails tied to their personal websites. In Alabama, more than half the state’s House members and almost a third of senators use an email other than the state-issued .gov email address.
Legislator or Lobbyist
State lawmakers wrapped up a second special session Wednesday night, one that resolves a more than $200 million shortfall in the general fund budget. Despite the extra meeting time Alabama does have a part-time legislature and sometimes a lawmaker’s professional life conflicts with his or her public service. Governing bodies draft rules to mitigate those conflicts. But Alabama Media Group columnist John Archibald says the way the state is apply some of those rules makes for open season on the very idea of ethics.
Education Budget Cuts, Cigarette Tax, and Winners and Losers
The second special session of the Alabama Legislature could soon be in the books with a combination of cuts to the education budget and a cigarette tax. That combination avoids some funding cuts to state agencies — Medicaid, corrections, mental health, human resources and the court system are all expected to be level funded. But […]
Second Legislative Special Session Starts Tuesday
State lawmakers have hit crunch time. The next fiscal year starts October 1st and the state still does not have a General Fund budget. Lawmakers and Governor Robert Bentley remain at odds over what to do about a more than $200 million budget shortfall. Two legislative sessions have come and gone with without a resolution. So the governor has called another special session to start Tuesday.
Lawmakers Appear Headed to Another Special Session
Time is running out for Alabama lawmakers to come up with a solution to the state's general fund budget shortfall. The general fund faces at least a $200 million gap and state legislators are meeting in a special session to figure out what to do about it. But with plenty of disagreement among legislators that's fueling talk of another special session. We talk about it with Alabama Media Group columnist John Archibald.
Repairing Interstate 20/59
Interstate 20/59 through downtown Birmingham is aging and something needs to be done about it. Most people can agree on that. The Alabama Department of Transportation has a plan they could start implementing this fall, but there are opponents who say that plan is shortsighted and should be scrapped. We talk about it in this week’s Magic City Marketplace.
Governor and Lawmakers Still Split over Budget Crisis
This week, Governor Robert Bentley defended his agency heads from accusations they’re using scare tactics in describing the effects of possible budget cuts to the state’s general fund. To fill us in on this and other activity in Montgomery this week is Don Dailey. He’s the host of Capitol Journal on Alabama Public Television.
Supreme Court Decision Causes Concern
Though the Alabama Legislature was on Spring Break this week a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court has state lawmakers concerned. On Wednesday a divided Supreme Court said a lower court must review whether Alabama's Republican-led legislature relied too heavily on race when it redrew the state's voting districts in 2012.
Kyle Whitmire: Leadership in the Legislature and at UAB
The Alabama Legislature met for their organizational session this week, and much of their key leadership will remain the same. What does this mean for this year's legislative session? Kyle Whitmire from AL.com and The Birmingham News joins us to discuss this, along with the potential no confidence vote for UAB President Dr. Ray Watts.
