Inside the Statehouse: Runoffs set for new 2nd District Congressional primary races

  The most interesting and paramount race on the ballot in the March 5th primaries was the one for the new open 2nd Congressional District.

  This new district was created by the federal courts to implement a new Democratic/Black District in the Heart of Dixie. The Democratic nominee will be favored to win this seat in November. When the plaintiffs proposed their new district plan to the court, they attached a chart, which illustrated that had there been a Democratic vs. Republican congressional race on the ballot, the Democrat would have won in 16 of the 17 races. Washington insiders are handicapping this race as a Democratic pickup.

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse - New 2nd Congressional District is the race to watch in 2024

  The most interesting race to watch this year in Alabama will be for the newly drawn Second Congressional District.

  The new seat was drawn by the federal courts to create a second majority-minority district in Alabama. Currently we have six Republicans and one Democrat representing Alabama in Washington. If a Democrat wins the seat, we will have five Republicans and two Democrats on the Potomac in 2025. The new seat includes all of Montgomery and extends through the Black Belt, and gathers most of the black voters in Mobile.

Taylor’s Top Four: Alabama Legislative review for week 11

  The countdown is on! What’s happening as the session winds down? Read below to find out!

1. Gun bills might be finished for this session

  With time quickly winding down in the legislative session, the House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee had a meeting scheduled on Tuesday to consider several things: a bill that raises the age to by an AR-15 from 18 to 21; a bill that would allow judges to take firearms away from individuals who might use them for self-harm or harm to others; and a bill that would ban the sale of AR-15s and other similar guns. The meeting was canceled due to lack of participation—only 4 of the 11 representatives on the committee showed up for the meeting. Additionally, the house, on Tuesday, left without debating Rep. Will Ainsworth’s (R-Guntersville) bill to arm teachers. With the session expected to end this week and with no action on the bills last week, it appears that time has run out for these bills this session. Speaker Mac McCutcheon (R-Monrovia) has said that Ainsworth’s bill will come up again next session, while Ainsworth has called on Governor Ivey to call a special session to consider school safety proposals.

Taylor’s Top 4: Alabama Legislative Review for Week 7

  Didn't last week seem to fly by?

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1. General fund budget for 2019 has passed the Alabama Senate.

  Last week, the senate passed a budget for the 2019 General Fund (GF) by a 26-2 vote. If this budget passes, it will be the biggest GF budget in a decade. This budget includes  $755 for Medicaid and grants an additional $51 million to the Department of Corrections next year. Check out this run-down of funding increases and reactions from lawmakers in this piece by J. Pepper Bryars with Yellowhammer News. During the debate over the budget on the senate floor, Sen. Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro) proposed an amendment that would add money to fund a facility that provides vocational training for inmates, similar to the Alabama Therapeutic Education Facility located in Columbiana. The senate approved that amendment 24-6. Another amendment was offered by Sen. Trip Pittman (R-Montrose), chair of the General Fund budget committee, which increased funding to the Alabama Department of Transportation by $4.5 million. The $2 billion budget passed by a vote of 26-2 and will go to the house.

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse: The countdown to new legislative districts

  The much-anticipated 2018 election contests have been pushed back by about three months due to the unanticipated race for Jeff Sessions’ Senate seat. This ongoing contest will dominate the news through late September.

  It was previously thought that June 6th would be the opening bell since fundraising for next year’s June 5 primary could begin at that time. However, the bell will probably start chiming in full force by Labor Day.

Hank Sanders: Senate Sketches #1559: Bending the arc of the moral universe

  The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. This concept was initiated by Theodore Parker in the 1850s, enlarged by others in subsequent years, and made famous by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in the 1960s. I want to share a recent example of the long arc of the moral universe bending toward justice.

  Last week, Alabama’s newly-ascended Governor Kay Ivey signed a law that ended judicial override in Alabama. I will tell you what judicial override is in a moment. But first I want to share with you how we arrived at this bending toward justice moment.

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse: State lawmakers wield more power than you might think

  In the literary classic, “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire,” the author draws parallels to a nation that was on top of the world and because of perverse, grandiose and pompous behavior that dynasty destroyed itself. It was from reading this documentary that the Russian premier Khrushchev believed that we, the United States, would destroy ourselves, thus causing him to brashly declare, “We will bury you.”

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse: The charter schools trap

  In recent years, the Republican Party has taken control of the legislatures in all of the southern states. Alabama’s legislature is overwhelmingly Republican. The GOP holds a 25 to 9 majority in the Alabama Senate and an equally dominating 72 to 33 majority in the Alabama House of Representatives.

  Our supermajority GOP legislative body appeared to take on every conceivable ultraconservative reactionary issue during their first four year reign from 2011 to 2014. However, they forgot one - charter schools.

Steve Flowers: Inside the Statehouse: Who's who in the Alabama Legislature

  The Alabama Legislature completed their week-long organizational session last month with very little fanfare or controversy. They will get to work on substantive issues beginning with the regular session in March. Their work will be cut out for them since they're facing a General Fund Budget that has at least a $250 million deficit.

  The legislature that organized for the quadrennium is overwhelmingly Republican. The House has 72 Republicans and 33 Democrats. The Alabama Senate is even more dominated by Republicans. Three-fourths of the senators are Republican. The numbers are 26 to 8. This gives the GOP a carte blanche path to pass anything they desire with little or no opposition.