April 5, 2021 Group Watch: House Passes Bill to Curb Teen Vaping & Regulate Industry

The Alabama House of Representatives passed a bill designed to reduce the use of vapes and e-cigarettes among young people. The bill provides for numerous regulations of the vaping and e-cigarette industry in Alabama. It would prevent vape manufacturers and retailers from using advertising techniques designed to appeal to young people, such as incorporating characters from comic books in ad campaigns. It would also prevent makers of vape pods and cartridges from claiming the taste of their product resembled “candies, cakes, or other sugary treats.” The bill would require the Alabama Department of Revenue to build and maintain a directory of businesses that sell and manufacture vape cartridges, e-liquids and any alternative nicotine product in Alabama. It would require the relevant businesses to pay for certification in the directory. Each business entity that deals with vaping would have to pay the state an initial $3,000 certification fee, and each subsequent year would have to pay a $500 renewal for continued certification. Funds from the fees would go to implementing and maintaining the directory.

April 5, 2021 Group Watch: New Classrooms Funded by Pre-K

Governor Kay Ivey and the Alabama Department of Early Childhood Education announced that 34 new classrooms will be funded through the Pre-K through 3^rd Grade Integrated Approach to Early Learning (P-3). This will bring the number of classrooms impacted by P-3 to 208, covering 21 counties. The new program sites are located in Cullman, Montgomery, St. Clair, Dallas, Tuscaloosa, Walker and Winston counties. Currently 3,022 children are impacted by the P-3 program. With the addition of 34 new classrooms, more than 3,600 students will be participating in the program in the upcoming 2021-2022 school year.

April 5, 2021 Group Watch: Senate Committee Deadlocks on Lifting K-12 Yoga Ban

The Senate Judiciary Committee deadlocked on legislation that would lift the 1993 prohibition on yoga in schools after testimony from Christian conservatives who claim it would lead to proselytizing in public schools by followers of Hinduism. The House-passed bill would give Alabama public schools the option of offering yoga as an elective. The legislation would limit any yoga practice to exercises; requires activities to have English names; and bans “chanting, mantras, mudras, use of mandalas, and namaste greetings.” Just weeks ago the House passed the bill 73 to 25. A procedural vote by the committee allows for the bill to be considered at a future meeting for a vote. Two senators who supported the bill were absent.

April 5, 2021 Group Watch: Senate Approves Lifetime Concealed Carry Permits

On Thursday, the Senate voted 25-6 to approve a bill by Senator Randy Price (R, Opelika) that will allow people getting their permits for concealed carry of firearms the option of doing it only once. If they make that choice, they’ll have a lifetime concealed carry permit. The bill also includes the creation of a statewide database that will include everyone in Alabama who is prohibited from carrying firearms.

March 22, 2021 Group Watch: News & Views from the State House

• Tuesday, March 16 (15^th legislative day): The House passed a number of bills of local application only and general bills to: apply certain sentencing provisions to certain defendants who are mandatorily released and placed under the supervision of Pardons and Paroles; provide an exemption of issuance fees under certain conditions for disabled veterans when purchasing motor vehicle license plates; provide final approval to grant tax exempt status to the School of Fine Arts Foundation, High School of Math and Science Foundation and the School of Cyber Technology and Engineering Foundation; and outline that the application of penalties for persons voting more than once includes elections held outside the state. The Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee approved a number of bills to: create the Education Retirees Trust Fund; approve a mental health services coordinator for each school system; provide additional compensation to attract math and science teachers; provide a supplemental appropriation for certain education entities; and provide a cost-of-living increase for public education employees. It also approved the education budget for the fiscal year beginning October 1, 2021. The Senate approved several bills of local application only, and general bills to: provide exemption from sales and use tax for airport authorities; further provide for the authority for local land banks; require the State Department of Education to develop a program to address the mental health of students who are considered at-risk for developing inadequate social-behavioral skills; and further define additional types of foster family homes.
• Wednesday, March 17 (a committee day): The House Ways and Means Education Committee approved bills to: provide for an education assistance program for the children of service persons and to establish the Math and Science Teacher Education Program. The Constitution, Campaigns and Elections Committee approved a Senate-passed bill to further provide for municipal elections. The Senate Children, Youth and Human Services Committee approved a House-passed bill to further define additional types of foster family homes. The Senate Education Policy Committee approved a House-passed bill revising the focus of content, course materials and instructions for sex education in public K-12 schools. The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill to establish the Alabama Court Cost Commission. The Senate Tourism Committee approved five bills relating to creating a state lottery and a Gaming Commission and to prohibit gaming facility operators from making campaign contributions under certain circumstances.
• Thursday, March 18 (16^th legislative day): The House passed several bills of local application only, and general bills to: prohibit K-12 athletic events allowing competition by one biological gender against another unless the event specifically includes both genders; require mental health awareness to be included in the annual training session for employees of each K-12 school; and authorize the Permanent Legislative Committee on Reapportionment to intervene in any legal action that contests the reapportionment plan. The Senate passed several bills of local application only, and general bills to: create the Education Retirees Trust Fund Funding Act; provide a 2-percent cost-of-living increase for public education employees; and the $7.6 billion Education Trust Fund budget.

March 22, 2021 Group Watch: House Approves Ban on Curbside Voting

The House passed a bill to make it illegal to let people vote from their vehicles without going inside the polling place. The House approved the bill 74-25, with Republicans supporting it and Democrats opposed. The Republican majority voted to cut off the debate to force a vote, marking the fourth time that day that they stopped debate to require a vote that Democrats were trying to delay.

March 22, 2021 Group Watch: Tweet of the Week

@JoshuaNJones
March 19
Thanks @yhn @sean_yhn
for the great article!
Excited to be a part of pushing our state’s startup ecosystem to the next level.

We at The Bloom Group would like to say “Congrats!” to our friend, Joshua Jones.

March 22, 2021 Group Watch: AL Company Gets Green Light for PPE Production

HomTex, an Alabama-based textile manufacturer, announced it has received FDA Emergency Use Authorization for its Level 1 Surgical masks, green-lighting its entry into the U.S. governmental and medical personal protective equipment (PPE) markets. HomTex, headquartered in Cullman County, has been family-owned since its founding in 1987. It is a certified minority-owned business. The Alabama company is well-positioned to have the largest capacity in the nation when it comes to producing 100-percent made-in-America masks. HomeTex also has a facility in Mobile, as well as Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina locations.

March 22, 2021 Group Watch: Senate Passes $7.6 Billion Education Trust Fund Budget

The Alabama Senate unanimously approved the 2022 Education Trust Fund budget, sending the $7.6 billion budget to the House. The biggest highlight of the budget is the funding for the Teacher Excellence and Accountability for Mathematics and Science (TEAMS) Salary Schedule Program. This program will significantly increase the pay for middle and high school teachers who teach math and science, and provides a 2-percent increase for all education employees. The budget also increases teacher supply funding, giving each $1,000, compared to $600 last year. The budget provides additional funding for career tech; preschool special education; and the establishment of an HBCU consortium.

March 22, 2021 Group Watch: Lottery Bill Still Alive

Last Wednesday, the Alabama Senate Tourism Committee approved a bill by Senator Jim McClendon that allows voters to decide whether or not to start a state lottery, and Senator Del Marsh, sponsor of an earlier plan that included a lottery, casinos and sports betting, said that his proposal might return. Marsh, chair of the Tourism Committee, urged the committee to pass McClendon’s bill, which it did, as well as legislation tied to Marsh’s plan for a larger expansion of gambling, which fell two votes shy of approval earlier this month. Marsh said he wants to give senators time to reconsider and possibly amend McClendon’s bill to add casinos and sports betting. McClendon’s plan would set up an Alabama lottery and allow people to play multi-state games like Powerball and Mega Millions. People could also play the lottery on their phones. The net revenue would be split evenly between the Education and General Fund budgets.