Rep. Jack Williams recently relived an important moment in Alabama politics: the one where Senator Jeff Sessions decided to run for state Attorney General. Our own Allen Sanderson was a part of the late-night call that got that ball rolling. Read the whole story here.
During this month when we remember and celebrate our blessings and the things we are thankful for, The Bloom Group would like to pause and say that we are thankful for all our clients and friends. We hope each of you have a wonderful Thanksgiving, full of food, family and fun.
Two insurance giants join forces, while the state’s auto industry celebrates two decades of acceleration.
Big & Bigger: Two of the largest names in the Alabama insurance business are working together. Company officials from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, the major provider of health insurance, and Alfa, the major provider of auto, home and life insurance, announced a new partnership that will allow Alfa agents to sign people up for health and dental policies including those on the federal insurance exchange. Blue Cross is the state’s largest health insurance company. It is also the only company to offer plans on the Alabama health insurance exchange in all 67 counties in the state. At this time, only three counties have a competing company offering individual plans on the exchanges. The health insurance exchanges opened for enrollment on October1 and coverage begins January 1, 2014.
Auto Industry Turns 20: Twenty years ago, Mercedes-Benz announced their intention to build vehicles in Vance, Alabama. That decision changed the business and employment landscape in the state. Since then, photographers and reporters have covered every aspect of Alabama’s automotive manufacturing boom. One reporter recalls following a Mercedes SUV from start to finish over three days at the Vance assembly plant in 2000. He described the experience, saying it was “amazing to watch a vehicle appear before your eyes.” He also pointed to the pride Mercedes employees felt about having someone document their part in building the vehicle. It is a trait that carries through the entire auto industry in Alabama. Workers who build Mercedes, Honda and Hyundai vehicles are proud of what they produce, as they should be. All of the state’s assembly plants have expanded over the years and hired more workers. HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALABAMA AUTO INDUSTRY!
Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox said recently that despite many parts of the federal government shutting down because of the budget impasse in Washington, his city is well shielded financially. Strong reserves will enable the city to handle cash flow in the short term, but in the long-term, projects relating to recovery from the 2011 tornado could be delayed. Tuscaloosa was devastated by the storm that destroyed 12 percent of the city. Maddox attributes the city’s prosperity to healthy financial reserves and long-term planning. While most observers believe the budget impasse will be short lived, if it goes on for months, cities like Tuscaloosa as well as those on the east coast and in the Midwest will experience some effect from congressional inaction.
The results of an October 8 special election leave Charlotte Meadows and Dimitri Polizos competing in a runoff on on November 19. The two Republican candidates are vying for House District 74, which was left vacant when Rep. Jay Love announced he was resigning from the legislature earlier this year. Meadows is the former president of the Montgomery Board of Education. Polizos is a member of the Montgomery County Commission. A second special election was held on October 15 to fill the seat left vacant by Rep. Jim Barton, who stepped down after serving House District 104 for 13 years to take another job. The race drew a Democrat candidate and multiple Republican candidates, so the October election served as a primary for the Republicans. After the votes were tallied, Susan Hightower had the most, but not enough to avoid a runoff with Margie Wilcox. The runoff will be held on December 3, and the winner will face Democrat Stephen Carr in January. Hightower is the wife of state Senator Bill Hightower. Wilcox owns Yellow Cab of Mobile as well as a pair of airport shuttle companies.
This month brings good news for Alabama, including praise for cities across the state:
Alabama’s governor clarified the state’s position on extending federal benefits to same-sex couples in the Alabama National Guard. The governor says that when the National Guard is under his command, they are subject to state law, which does not recognize same-sex unions. He pointed out when they are federalized, they are subject to federal law and regulation. After the United States Supreme Court struck down the Federal Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional, the Department of Defense took steps to make all federal benefits extend to same-sex couples who obtained their marriage licenses in a state where the practice is legal. Those benefits include health insurance, survivors’ payments and housing.
Demetrius Newton, a civil rights attorney who represented icons like Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. before becoming the first black person to serve as speaker pro tem of the Alabama House of Representatives, has died at the age of 85. Newton was a former city attorney for the city of Birmingham and served in the legislature since 1986. In the legislature, he was an outspoken critic of the state’s 1901 Constitution, which he described as too long and out of date. Governor Bentley, who served with Newton in the House, described him as a true gentleman and an effective public servant. Colleagues past and present voiced sadness over his death and praise for his distinguished career. Demetrius Newton will be missed, but we are glad we got to know and work with this fine person.
This month brings another resignation, and as school begins, parents and educators brace for the new list of failing schools.
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange has joined other attorneys general in filing a brief in a New York case asking the U. S. Supreme Court to overturn a lower court ruling that prayer at the beginning of a government assembly violates the Establishment Clause. Strange and 22 other attorneys general filed briefs in the case.
The Supreme Court upheld the practice of opening legislative sessions with prayer in a case 30 years ago. The brief filed by the attorneys general asks the Supreme Court to reaffirm that ruling and to clarify that the Constitution does not require state and local governments to screen prayers for sectarian references. The State of Alabama has a long history of opening legislative sessions with prayer.
