March 28, 2022 Group Watch: News & Views from the State House

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Tweet of the Week

@alabamapolicy March 22 Casinos are illegally operating in our state, so let’s reward the operators with a monopoly i.e. SB293/SB294 #alpolitics #stopcasinocorruption #StopTheCartel

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Legislature Day-by-Day, Play-by-Play

• The House State Government Committee approved a bill to prohibit the teaching of certain concepts relating to race, sex or religion in certain training.
• The House passed the General fund budget for most state agencies as well as accompanying appropriations bills to provide for a 4-percent raise for state workers, a one-time bonus for retirees, the Children First Trust Fund and the Coalition Against Domestic Violence.
• The Senate Local Legislation Committee passed a number of bills of local application only.
• The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee approved several bills, including a bill to further provide for the authority of the Attorney General to enter into settlement agreements.
• The Senate debated several bills before carrying them over but voted affirmatively on several bills, including bills to allow the Alabama Athlete Agents Commission to meet virtually under certain conditions; to authorize county tax assessors to defend the state in tax valuation disputes; and to authorize the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency to apply for wiretapping permission in drug kingpin cases.

• The House Ways and Means General Fund Committee approved bills to increase the per-semester loan repayment award for qualified math and science teachers and a Senate-passed bill to phase out the business privilege tax.
• The House State Government Committee approved a bill relating to the Board of Optometric Scholarship Awards to allow the board to conduct meetings remotely and to expand the scholarship program to include loans to further optometric training.
• The House Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee approved a bill to provide prohibitions on the enforcement of certain presidential executive orders that provide certain limitations or restrictions on the ownership, use or possession of firearms and accessories and ammunition.
• The House Economic Development and Tourism Committee approved a bill to establish the Alabama Education Lottery Gambling Commission for the regulation of the Alabama Education Lottery.
• The Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee approved a House-passed bill to phase out the business privilege tax.
• The Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill to limit the amount of money a municipality may retain from fines and penalties generated from traffic tickets.

• The House passed a number of bills of local application only before taking up a three-bill package relating to elections, absentee voting and poll watchers. It also passed general bills to prevent the teaching of divisive concepts; to further provide for the licensing and regulation of cemetery authorities and cemeteries; to further provide for the determination of compensation claims by the Crime Victims Compensation Commission; and to authorize meetings of governmental bodies by virtual means.
• The Senate passed a large number of local bills by lunchtime, took a break, and then returned to pass several general bills, including final passage of House-passed bills to establish consistency in the process of commitment of individuals with mental illnesses and to establish the state Seal of Biliteracy to recognize the proficiency in English and at least one world language, including American sign language. It also approved bills to authorize online public auctions for collection of delinquent property taxes and to further provide for operational and categorical funding of public charter schools.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Senate Approves Increased Tax Credit for Scholarships

The Alabama Senate passed a bill amending the Alabama Accountability Act of 2013 to increase the income tax credit that can be claimed by an Alabama taxpayer. Since the passage of the original legislation in 2013, more than $176 million has been raised from the private sector to provide for educational opportunities for students. The changes are designed to give scholarship granting organizations (SGOs) more consistency in their budgeting and planning in two ways. One, it gives the SGOs more time to spend the scholarship funds: three years in stead of just one. And bill supporters believe that upping the tax credit for donors could lead to more donations. Under current Alabama law, a taxpayer may claim a tax credit amounting to 100 percent of the total contributions the taxpayer made to a scholarship granting organization for educational scholarships during the taxable year for which the credit is claimed, up to 50 percent of the tax liability of the taxpayer, not to exceed $50,000 per taxpayer or a cumulative amount of $30,000,000 annually. This bill bumps the credit up to 100 percent of the individual taxpayer’s liability, in an amount not to exceed $100,000.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Session Is Winding Down But Still Work to Do

There are only seven legislative days left in the 2022 regular session, and with plenty of work to do, both the House and Senate will need every bit of the time left. Two big items still in limbo are both the education and general fund budgets. The gambling bills are not yet dead, but the clock is ticking. And changes to the state’s curriculum are still on hanging out there too. Read more here.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Bella+Canvas Announces Major Investment In Alabama

Bella+Canvas, a fast-growing apparel manufacturer with a “made in the U.S.A.” focus, plans a major investment in Alabama to open an advanced fabric-cutting facility expected to create more than 550 jobs in Wetumpka. The Los Angeles-based company will invest $11.9 million to establish the operation in a portion of an 890,000-square-foot building vacant since 2013, when Russell Brands departed from the Elmore County city. Bella+Canvas produces clothing for the retail and wholesale markets, while also offering clothing design and manufacturing services. The company is known for its domestic manufacturing mission, the development of innovative new fabrics and its sustainability practices. The fabric-cutting facility is expected to create 557 jobs, including spreaders, general cutting laborers, forklift operators, shipping and receiving clerks and administrative staff.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Mercedes-Benz Opens Alabama Battery Plant

Mercedes-Benz has opened its Bibb County electric vehicle battery plant ahead of the automaker’s planned start of production for all-electric SUVs. The company also marked the occasion by announcing another battery plant in the United States and setting an ambitious goal to go all-electric by 2030, as market conditions allow. It is the culmination of a period of rapid expansion for Mercedes in west Alabama, after the automaker committed in 2017 to pump $1 billion into its operations. Mercedes-Benz has invested more than $7 billion in its Alabama operations since the mid-90s and employs around 4,500 people. An estimated 11,000 jobs are also connected through supply chains and service providers. The factory has produced roughly four million vehicles since 1997, with about 260,000 SUVs hitting the roads since last year.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Niagara Bottling Building $112 Million Opelika Production Plant

California-based Niagara Bottling will open a new $112 million production facility in Opelika’s Industrial Park and hire 50 employees. The company offers bottled purified, distilled and spring water; water for infants; sparkling water; flavored vitamin water; and tea, which are sold wholesale and shipped to grocery stores and convenience stores.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Koch Foods Finishes $60 Million Attalla Distribution Center

Koch Foods celebrated the opening of a $60 million distribution center in Attalla that will support poultry farmers in northeast Alabama and the surrounding region. Koch Foods announced the project in November 2019, and it continued despite the pandemic. Company officials said the facility will service 100 railcars every two weeks and produce up to 12,500 tons of finished poultry feed a week. The facility employs about 30 people. The center supports more than 200 poultry farmers across 10 counties but mostly in Marshall, DeKalb, Cherokee and Etowah counties. Koch Foods has four integrated poultry facilities in Alabama, employing about 3,700 people.

March 28, 2022 Group Watch: Gov Awards $80M in COVID-19 Funds To Hospitals & Nursing Homes

Governor Ivey has awarded an additional $80 million in COVID-19 recovery funds to provide reimbursements for Alabama hospitals and nursing homes. The funding for the award comes from the state’s portion of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars appropriated by the legislature in January. According to the governor’s office, the funds will support two grant programs of up to $40 million each and administered by the Alabama Hospital Association and the Alabama Nursing Home Association. Dr. Don Williamson, president and CEO of the Alabama Hospital Association, applauded Ivey and the legislature for their efforts to provide financial support for hospitals.