This Information Pertains To The 2024 Alabama Legislative Session
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WEEK 4 (Feb. 27-29)
Universal School Choice Passed House
ALL Democrats + 6 Republicans Voted "NO"
HB129 (Rep. Garrett) The CHOOSE Act (Educational Savings Accounts).
DESCRIPTION: The CHOOSE Act establishes a refundable income tax credit to offset the cost of qualifying educational expenses. Parents could apply for a $2000 or $7000 tax credit that would go into an Educational Saving Account for their child. Those funds could be used to pay for qualified educational expenses. The program would be administered through the Dept of Revenue. See bill fact sheet here.
STATUS: It passed the House (69-35). All Democrats voted “NO” along with six Republicans:
- Alan Baker
- Tracy Estes
- Chris Sells
- Randall Shedd
- David Standridge
- Tim Wadsworth
The CHOOSE Act is expected to be in the Senate Ways and Means Education Committee on Wednesday.
Confusion In The Senate On Gambling
DESCRIPTION: Gambling expansion in AL is only allowed by a vote of the people. HB151 would allow the people to vote in November. HB152 is the “enabling legislation”, and it stipulates that these 3 types of gambling would be established:
- 10 Class III Vegas Style Casinos across the state
- Online sports betting
- A state lottery
STATUS: HB151/HB152 passed the House on Feb. 15th. There were not enough votes to pass the House bills in the Senate, so it was rumored that some members were working on a watered down, or more palatable version (i.e. one that would have enough votes to pass). That version was never made public and set aside. So they have attention back to the House bills. Some believe there is still another substitute bill in the works. On Wednesday, the Senate Tourism Committee held a public hearing. The frustration and confusion expressed by committee members was palpable during the meeting. Watch here. In the end, Chairman Price carried over both bills. Another meeting was scheduled for the next day at 10:00 but was canceled.
ACTION: Please contact your Senator by using the Smartlink button below. This allows us to follow up with your senator showing him/her proof that you want ta “NO” vote on gambling expansion. So far, over 900 emails have been sent. Next week we will share this info with all Senators. We have now added a phone call feature.
You Don't Clean Up Illegal Gambling by Legalizing It
Amending the existing criminal statutes is the answer to cleaning up illegal gambling in Alabama!
Section 13A-12-30 (the forfeiture of gambling devices and proceeds) should be amended to provide for law enforcement manpower to physically take control of the gambling devices.
Five statutes require simple amendments to remove the penalty of misdemeanors and replace them with a first offense Class D Felony (366 days to 5 years in prison) to a Class B Felony (10 years to life) for second and subsequent offenses. These are:
- Section 13A-12-22 Promoting gambling)
- Section 13A-12-23 (conspiracy to promote gambling)
- Section 13-A-12-24 (possession of gambling records in the first degree)
- Section 13-A-25 (possession of gambling records in the second degree)
- Section 13-A-27 (possession of a gambling device)
In Vitro Fertilization
WHY LEGISLATION WAS NEEDED: IVF clinics want immunity. Last week, some IVF clinics, including UAB’s closed their doors. The clinics’ knee-jerk reactions stems from a recent AL Supreme Court ruling that frozen embryos created during IVF are “human beings”. The ruling pertains to a Wrongful Death of A Minor lawsuit that was filed by 3 couples whose embryos were destroyed. In 2020 at a hospital in Mobile, a patient made his way into a part of the hospital where frozen embryos were stored. He opened the storage unit, removed a container filled with embryos and dropped it on the floor. All the embryos were killed, and the parents sued the hospital for negligence. In light of the Supreme Court ruling and opinions, some clinics reacted by shutting their doors.
We issued a public statement last week urging the clinics to reopen as this court ruling did not prohibit the practice, nor even regulate it. It just affirmed that once an egg is fertilized inside OR outside the womb, it is a human being. And that a law protecting children from harm applied to all children, including embryos conceived via IVF. There was no reason for the clinics to deny services to their patients, many of whom are in the middle of the IVF process.
STATUS: Thursday, the House and Senate each passed an IVF bill that would give hospitals immunity from a similar situation happening at their clinics. The bills will now move to the opposite chamber and will be discussed in committee on Tuesday. We expect a vote on the floor of both chambers on Wednesday, then the Governor will sign. These hopeful parents can resume treatment. However, this case brought to the forefront the serious ethical issues surrounding the IVF and the unborn. We urge the legislature to set up a study committee with members from the IVF community, pro-life community, religious community, doctors, lawyers, and others to study laws in other states and nations which have safeguards in place to protect the unborn. These good policy ideas should be included in legislation for the next session.
OTHER BILLS THIS WEEK
Sex Education
HB195 Rep. DuBose
DESCRIPTION: Under existing law, public K-12 sex ed programs must emphasize abstinence as the only effective protection against unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease. Yet this law is not being followed. Some schools may be teaching explicit “comprehensive sex ed”. See the difference here-be sure to view p. 2! Is this what you want your kids learning? This bill would require that any sex education or human reproductive curriculum or program in a public K-12 school to exclusively teach sexual risk avoidance and encourage the avoidance of any nonmarital sexual activity. Read HB195 fact sheet here.
STATUS: The House Education Policy Committee will hold a public hearing on Wednesday at 1:30 in room 206. The opposition forces including the Alabama Campaign For Adolescent Sexual Health (ACASH), Planned Parenthood, Human Rights Campaign and the LGBTQ community will be opposing this bill.
No Lab Grown Meat
SB23 (Sen. Williams) A public hearing was held on Wednesday. The committee will vote next week. We support this bill that would prohibit the creation, distribution and sale of food products made from cultured animal cells i.e. lab-grown meat in Alabama. It passed the Senate 32-0.
Bill Defining "Male" and "Female"
HB111 (Rep. DuBose) It passed out of House Judiciary Committee and will be ready for debate on the House floor. We support this simple bill that clearly defines these sex-based words based on biology.
Age Verification For Porn
HB164 (Rep. Robbins) This bill would require commercial distributors of sexual material harmful to minors to utilize age-verification software or programs but was watered down significantly by amendments in House Judiciary.
