We’re already one-fifth of the way through the 2026 Legislative Session, and Week 2 was full of important movement! This week we saw the App Store accountability bill pass the House, progress on Trey’s Law to protect abuse survivors, action on organic food standards, and bills on screen-time guidelines for young children advance.
We also tracked concerning legislation like SB71/HB162, which would restrict Alabama’s ability to protect our air and water, and other bills shaping public health and safety. Click below to see all the bills we’re watching and our positions.
App Store Bill
HB161 Rep. Sells
DESCRIPTION: HB161 requires an app store provider to take certain actions regarding age verification, parental notification, and data protection; to prohibit an app store provider or developer from taking certain actions that allow minors to access apps without parental consent.
STATUS: HB161 passed the House chamber 103-0!
OUR POSITION: We support HB161 as it keeps parents in the driver’s seat when it comes to their children downloading apps online and helps protect minors from inappropriate or harmful content.
Trey's Law
SB30 Sen. Woods HB93 Rep. Faulkner
DESCRIPTION: Under existing law, individuals and entities may enter into agreements that prohibit a party from discussing or disclosing certain information. HB93 would render unenforceable any provision of an agreement that prohibits an individual or entity from disclosing acts of sexual abuse or facts related to acts of sexual abuse.
STATUS: HB93 and SB30 both passed their respective chambers and are now headed to committee in the opposite chamber.
OUR POSITION: We support these bills as they ensure victims of sexual abuse are not silenced by nondisclosure agreements and are free to speak about abuse.
Ban Human Cloning
HB111 Rep. Rigsby
Description: HB111 would create the crime of human cloning and provide that a violation constitutes a Class C felony. The bill further clarifies that the prohibitions established do not restrict certain scientific research or assisted reproductive treatments, provided those practices do not involve human cloning.
STATUS: HB111 passed out of House Judiciary Committee and is headed to the house floor.
OUR POSITION: We support this bill.
Require Synthetics Be Added To Organics
HB139 Rep. Crawford
DESCRIPTION (in a nutshell): Last year a law was passed that requires most corn masa food products to be enriched with a minimum amount of synthetic folic acid. HB139 will now require synthetic folic acid to be added to corn masa flour and certified organic corn masa flour . The bill also makes technical updates to existing code language.
STATUS: HB139 passed out of House Health Committee and is headed to the House floor.
OUR POSITION: We do not support the bill as written and have respectfully asked the sponsor to amend the bill and strike certified organic corn flour by removing lines 106-108 from the bill.
Limiting Screen Time For the Littles
HB78 Rep. Ross
DESCRIPTION (in a nutshell): This bill would require the Department of Early Childhood Education to create age-appropriate screen-time guidelines for child-care facilities, prekindergarten, and kindergarten, including limits based on age, standards for quality programming, public access for parents, and training for teachers and staff.
STATUS: This bill passed out of House Education Policy Committee and is headed t the House Floor.
OUR POSITION: We support this bill.
Justify the Emergency
HB136 Rep. Pringle
DESCRIPTION: Under the Alabama Administrative Procedures Act, an agency may adopt an emergency rule if the agency finds that an immediate danger to the public health, safety, or welfare requires the adoption of the emergency rule. This bill would require the Governor to certify the immediate danger to the public health, safety, or welfare justifies the need for the emergency rule before the rule may become effective.
STAUTUS: HB136 passed out of House State Government Committee and is headed to the House floor
OUR POSITION: We support this bill as it will require the Governor to certify the immediate danger to the public and justify the need for the emergency rule before the rule may become effective.
Stronger Penalties for Prostitution and Human Trafficking
HB158 Rep. Bolton
DESCRIPTION (in a nutshell): HB158 increases penalties for prostitution-related offenses by strengthening consequences for those who promote or solicit prostitution, particularly repeat offenders, and by increasing penalties when the offense involves a victim of human trafficking.
STATUS: HB158 passed out of House Judiciary Committee and is headed to the House floor.
OUR POSITION: We support this bill.
Lowering the Cost of Alabama’s Voter Rolls
HB67 Rep. Keil
DESCRIPTION (in a nutshell): HB67 lowers the cost of Alabama’s voter registration lists from approximately $38,000 to $1,000 while maintaining access to key data elements necessary for verifying voter records and assisting election officials in maintaining accurate voter rolls.
STATUS: HB67 was amended in committee to ensure that the voter lists available for purchase will include full birth date and voter registration ID number. It passed out of committee and headed to the house floor.
OUR POSITION: We support the amendments made to HB67 because it dramatically reduces the cost of voter rolls while preserving essential data needed by citizens, watchdog groups, campaigns, and researchers to responsibly verify voter eligibility and promote clean, accurate voter rolls across Alabama. However, we have requested a few additional tweaks to further ensure enough data is given to identify voting trends and to ensure that voter reference organizations are not blocked from providing services to the public.
"Sound Science" Bill
SB71 Sen. Chesteen HB162 Rep. Stubbs
BILL DESCRIPTION SB71 would prohibit state agencies from adopting or amending rules that set environmental protection standards stricter than those required under federal law. In areas where no federal environmental standards exist, SB71would require state agencies to base any new or amended rules on the best available science and the weight of scientific evidence.
BILL STATUS: SB71 passed out of the Senate County and Municipal Government Committee and is headed to the Senate floor. HB162 has not moved yet.
OUR POSITION: We oppose this bill.
BRIEF BACKGROUND
In 2015 EPA published new toxic standards, but the state never updated its thresholds to match. Several times since then environmental groups have petitioned the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) to update standards. But to no avail.
In June 2025, seven Alabama environmental groups were finally victorious when the Alabama Environmental Management Commission (appointed by Gov. Ivey) agreed to update outdated water toxicity standards. The groups had filed a petition asking the state to revise the limits on 12 toxic and potentially carcinogenic pollutants in waterways to reflect current scientific guidance. The commission voted 6-1 in favor of the petition despite objections from ADEM. Once finalized, the updated standards would impose stricter limits on how much of these toxic substances can be legally discharged into rivers and streams, offering greater protection for drinking water and recreational waters.
THE CURRENT SITUATION:
SB71/HB162 is an attempt to thwart what the Alabama Environmental Management Commission agreed ADEM should do which is update the standards on 12 toxic potentially carcinogenic pollutants in our waterways. These identical bills remove Alabama’s power to strengthen our standards on toxic substances. The legislation would require ADEM to rely on federal law which many experts agree are too lax or don’t exist. For example, there are no federal water quality standards for many substances such as arsenic and cyanide. The bill would allow ADEM to go beyond federal standards only if the state can prove that a chemical directly causes bodily harm, a standard that is rarely achievable. State agencies with limited resources would be required to show a “direct causal link” to harm and would be prohibited from setting protections based on an “increased risk of disease.” This approach is out of step with public health science, which is fundamentally based on assessing and reducing risk. This framework would prevent our state government from protecting Alabama’s most vulnerable populations like children, pregnant women, and the elderly.
