Week 9

May 2 - May 6


The Alabama State Legislature is now in recess for two weeks in order to hold public hearings around the state for reapportionment. Please see below for the schedule of these public hearings. Given the current state of our state, this recess seems to come at a very opportune time while we all continue to help with relief and recovery from the devastating tornadoes. As we all know, there is a lot of work to be done.

Before recessing for this two week break, the legislature passed a number of bills and resolutions relating to tornado recovery. Senate Bill 271 passed both houses and allows schools to adjust the instructional hours in a school day and also authorizes State Superintendent of Education to excuse days during extraordinary circumstances. The House also passed a resolution that assures schools that the Legislature will cover the costs of rebuilding damaged schools if insurance and federal aid do not cover all of the costs.

On bills not directly related to tornado relief, I have received many calls during this legislative session regarding bills that affect education and teachers. One such bill has been SB 310 dealing with the Teacher Tenure Law. This bill, known as Students First Act was passed shortly before midnight last Thursday in the Alabama Senate. The main functions of the bill are to give local school boards more authority to remove bad teachers and to ensure that teachers convicted of a crime do not continue receiving salary and benefits from the state. This bill passed by a very slim margin of 18-16.

Also on Thursday, Senator Cam Ward was able to pass SB 296 to strengthen the Sex Offender Notification Act. The bill will strengthen current law and remove loopholes that will allow law enforcement officers to crack down on violent sex offenders in our communities. The bill now moves to the House.

Two important bills that have received much attention received official passage last week. The Forever Wild legislation that has received much press and previous space in this update also passed the Senate. Forever Wild is a program established in 1992 to purchase and preserve land for public recreation. The bill as passed by the House will extend the program for another 20 years. The program is currently set to expire in 2012

The Illegal Immigration Reform Package also passed after much debate and collaboration from both sides of the aisle. The bill that has now passed was almost entirely re-written from the original HB 56 that passed the House of Representatives earlier in the session. You can see this article for a description of the revised bill.

Following the current recess, the Alabama State Legislature will reconvene on Tuesday, May 24 in order to finalize redistricting and finish all other business. They are expected to adjourn for the year on Thursday, June 9th.

May 10, 2011 12:00 p.m. Huntsville Von Braun Center
700 Monroe Street

May 10, 2011 6:30 p.m. Birmingham Birmingham Jefferson
Civic Center
2100 Richard
Arrington, Jr. Blvd.

May 11, 2011 6:30 p.m. Mobile Tillman’s Corner
Community Center
5055 Carol Plantation
Road

May 12, 2011 12:00 p.m. Selma St. James Hotel
downtown Selma)
1200 Water Avenue

May 12, 2011 6:30 p.m. Montgomery Alabama State House
11 S. Union Street,
Joint Briefing Room
(807)