May 23, 2013 Group Watch: News & Views from the State House
The Alabama Legislature convened on Monday, for the 30th and final day of the regular session. They addressed a number of issues, some more controversial than others, and by the midnight adjournment, both sides had triumphs they touted. The House gave final approval to bills to expand the ability of people to legally carry or store a pistol in a vehicle, to make other changes to gun laws and to propose a constitutional amendment for a $50 million bond issue for plans, construction and renovation of National Guard armories. The Senate passed a number of local bills and a general bill to repeal the requirement for “mini-trials” for those who plead guilty to capital offenses and are not facing the death penalty; to license and regulate barbers; to authorize a bond issue of up to $30 million to repair tornado-damaged schools; to allow local school systems to use local money to hire school resource officers who would carry firearms; to revise the state’s campaign finance laws allowing for greater corporate giving to candidates; to specify the authority of the State Board of Education to intervene with local school systems; to allow the Children Advocacy Centers in Alabama to participate in the state employees insurance plan; and to limit the liability of engineers who are performing construction management services to contracting authorities. The House voted to override the governor’s effort to delay implementation of the private school tax credit in the Alabama Accountability Act.