Here’s a quick look at proposals as governor says, “I have taxes to raise”
Alabama Today is hearing the Special Session could be called for the week of Aug. 17. The goal is to pass the general revenue portion of the state operating budget. Gov. Robert Bentley doubled down on his goal for the Session on Wednesday when talking about the reasons he took down the Confederate flag saying, “I have taxes to raise; we have work to do.” Among the tax increases Alabama Today is hearing batted around for the upcoming Special Session are: Taxing streaming videos; Taxing beverages (not just sodas but juices, teas and anything that’s not milk or alcohol): There’s a strong coalition of consumers and businesses opposed to that. You can check out their website here; Eliminating the state’s deduction for federal taxes: A proposal Bentley discussed before. Speaker Hubbard is on record opposing it, saying, “I am opposed to removing the federal income tax deduction because it would basically require individuals to pay state taxes on their federal taxes which is money they never even received,” Hubbard said in an email to AL.Com; Taxing pornography through a change in statute specific to adult purchases and content; and Combined reporting for businesses is back on the table. We will follow these proposals and continue to report on additional proposals as they come in.
GOP-led Congress prepared to let Export-Import Bank expire
Congressional Republicans are poised to deal a sharp blow to their traditional allies in the business community by allowing the federal Export-Import Bank to go out of business at the end of the month. But it may only be temporary. The 81-year-old bank is a little-known federal agency created during the Depression that makes and guarantees loans to help overseas buyers purchase U.S. products, from airplanes to bridges to baby clothes. Over the past year it’s also become a surprising test of GOP purity, as Tea Party-backed lawmakers and outside conservative groups have denounced the bank as crony capitalism and vowed to get rid of it, pressuring fellow Republicans to go along. “It is the purest form of corporate welfare, where you have a government agency that basically exists to subsidize Boeing airplanes and GE engines and Caterpillar tractors,” said Dan Holler of Heritage Action for America, one of the conservative groups pushing congressional Republicans to stand against the bank. Supporters at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups disagree, arguing that the agency helps many smaller companies and is necessary to keep U.S. businesses competitive, especially because key foreign competitors such as China have generous export credit agencies helping their homegrown industries. “The fact that all the major exporting countries have export credit agencies means American exporters would be competitively disadvantaged if the bank goes away,” said Boeing spokesman Tim Neale. “The opposition has thrown a lot of stuff out there that’s frankly pretty misleading.” The Export-Import Bank, which says it supported $27 billion in U.S. exports last year, still counts supporters in both parties on Capitol Hill. But a number of high-profile Republicans including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., have abandoned past support for the bank under pressure from the party’s conservative wing. Most of the party’s leading presidential candidates have also lined up against reauthorizing the bank. “The Export-Import Bank is essentially welfare for big corporations, both foreign and domestic,” Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, one of the GOP hopefuls, said in a Wednesday speech at the Heritage Foundation. “Do nothing, let it expire, and end the gravy train for Washington lobbyists on the Export-Import Bank.” Republican House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, a longtime business booster, has pushed his Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, to come up with a plan to reform the bank or wind it down. Hensarling has responded, instead, by pushing for the bank’s charter to expire without a vote June 30. With Congress heading out on recess next week and no prospect of action on the Export-Import Bank before then, Hensarling and fellow tea party conservatives will get their wish. But their victory may be short-lived. Lawmakers of both parties on Capitol Hill expect a reauthorization of the bank could move in the Senate in July. If attached to must-pass legislation extending the federal highway trust fund, it could make it through the House as well. The fate of the Export-Import Bank has become enmeshed in Congress’ contentious debate over trade after Washington Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell withheld her support on a key trade vote last month until she said she got a commitment from McConnell to allow a vote on the bank. What exactly was agreed to is now a matter of dispute on Capitol Hill, and McConnell says he’s already fulfilled his commitment by allowing a symbolic vote on the Export-Import Bank earlier this month that allowed supporters to demonstrate they command at least 65 votes in favor. Still, McConnell and other GOP leaders sound open to adding a reauthorization of the bank to the highway bill next month. “The highway bill, of course, will be open for amendment, and it’s pretty obvious that that would be a place for this vote to occur,” McConnell said Tuesday. Asked about the issue Wednesday, Boehner said: “I think some expectation has been that it’ll come over here on some must-pass bill. The only commitment I’ve made is that if it does, it would be considered under an open process.” Some supporters seem resigned to a brief lapse in the bank’s charter. But some Democrats say even a temporary standstill will jeopardize projects and U.S. jobs. They also question whether Congress has abandoned its habit of solving problems only when a deadline looms – in favor of solving them only after the deadline has come and gone. “There’s a whole lot of people who think that it doesn’t matter; it does matter. It matters to the jobs that are out there. We have $11 billion in credit in the pipeline at the Ex-Im Bank. That $11 billion is now going to be stalled out,” said Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D. “I hope that the message this place gets is do things on time, don’t wait.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
Google to make $600M investment in Widows Creek steam plant
Gov. Robert Bentley joined other state officials, local officials from the Jackson County community and officials from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to announce that Google will make an initial $600 million investment to create a data center on the grounds of TVA’s Widows Creek Steam Plant in north Jackson County. On its website Google noted that the location would be its 14th. Recent additions include data centers in Iowa, Georgia, Singapore and Belgium. In a prepared statement Google said, “This time, we’re doing something we’ve never done before: We’ll be building on the grounds of the Widows Creek coal power plant in Jackson County, which has been scheduled for shutdown. Data centers need a lot of infrastructure to run 24/7, and there’s a lot of potential in redeveloping large industrial sites like former coal power plants. Decades of investment shouldn’t go to waste just because a site has closed; we can repurpose existing electric and other infrastructure to make sure our data centers are reliably serving our users around the world.” They went on to describe, “Of course, the cleanest energy is the energy you don’t use. Our Alabama data center will incorporate our state-of-the-art energy efficiency technologies. We’ve built our own super-efficient servers, invented more efficient ways to cool our data centers, and even used advanced machine learning to squeeze more out of every watt of power we consume. Compared to five years ago, we now get 3.5 times the computing power out of the same amount of energy.” In a prepared statement released Wednesday afternoon, Governor Bentley said, “Google is one of the world’s most innovative companies that just about every Alabamian interacts with daily. Google’s decision to expand its data center network to Alabama is the start of a long-lasting state partnership that will provide a significant boost to our state’s high-tech sector, provide good jobs for our citizens and position the state for additional growth in this important industry.” Bentley welcomed the media giant to the state saying, “I appreciate Google’s significant investment in Alabama, and I am pleased to welcome them to Sweet Home Alabama.” U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby also issued a prepared statement saying, “Google’s announcement that it will open a data center in Jackson County is positive news for Alabama and proves that our state is a great place for companies of all sizes to do business. I am delighted that Google has chosen Alabama as the home to this investment, and I look forward to the jobs and economic growth that it will bring.” Bill Johnson the President and CEO of the Tennessee Valley Authority said, “Economic development is a vital part of TVA’s mission to serve the people of the Tennessee Valley. TVA is committed to a diverse energy portfolio and providing reliable, low-cost and ever-cleaner energy to attract new companies and investments to the region.” “Google could have located their next data center anywhere in the world, but they chose a soon-to-be retired coal plant site with the right infrastructure in rural Alabama,” Johnson said. “What began as a power generation facility will now become a data center harnessing the power of the Internet to connect people all over the world.” According to the governor’s office projections, Google will make an estimated $600 million initial investment, with opportunities for expansion. The initial project is expected to create 75 to 100 jobs. Last year, Google passed over Alabama for one of its high-speed fiber-optic network cities.
New York Jets owner Woody Johnson tapped as Jeb Bush campaign finance chair
Jeb Bush tapped two major Republican fundraisers to lead his national finance team: billionaire New York Jets owner Woody Johnson as chairman, with Jack Oliver as co-chairman. Johnson has been spending much time helping out the former Florida governor in the lead up to his presidential campaign, reports the Miami Herald, such as lending his private jet for Bush’s recent European trip. Johnson also appeared with Bush Tuesday at a Greenwich, Conn., fundraiser. The Wall Street Journal first broke the news of Johnson’s selection as chair. Bush will spend the second week of his official presidential campaign on the road, with fundraising trips to Miami, Tampa, Jacksonville, Orlando, New York, Chicago, Houston, Dallas and Tulsa, Okla. In a prepared statement to reporters, Bush spokeswoman Sally Bradshaw pointed to Johnson’s “longstanding commitment to public service and strong track record of working with people of different backgrounds to accomplish big goals represent the values and priorities of Jeb’s campaign.” “Under the leadership of Woody, Jack Oliver, Heather Larrison and so many others,” Bradshaw said, “I’m confident Jeb will have the resources needed to share his message of expanding economic opportunity for all Americans to voters across the nation.” Johnson responded to his new role, calling Bush “a bold and thoughtful leader with the vision and experience to ensure our nation’s greatest days remain ahead. “As governor, he was able to unite Floridians around the shared goals of opportunity, growth, prosperity and freedom, achieving tremendous results for his state.”
Alabama takes down Confederate flags on Gov. Robert Bentley’s order
Wednesday, the state of Alabama at the request of the governor removed the Confederate battle flags from Capitol grounds. The move comes as backlash over the flag’s symbolism of continues after the horrific shootings in South Carolina and photos emerging of the shooter holding a Confederate flag. When asked whether there was a formal or written request to remove the flags, a spokesman for the governors office told Alabama Today, “The governor gave a verbal directive to remove the flags.” When asked by a reporter whether their removal was in response to the Charleston shootings, AL.Com reports Gov. Robert Bentley said, “Yes, partially this is about that. This is the right thing to do. We are facing some major issues in this state regarding the budget and other matters that we need to deal with. This had the potential to become a major distraction as we go forward. I have taxes to raise, we have work to do. And it was my decision that the flag needed to come down.” Tuesday, State Rep. Alvin Holmes called for the flag to be removed. Holmes told The Associated Press, “I think most people realize it’s divisive. It has no place on a public building.” In a prepared statement issued after the removal, Speaker Mike Hubbard said, “Earlier today I asked the Clerk of the House to remove the Confederate battle flag from the Old House Chamber in the Capitol Building. Given the current environment, it became obvious that the presence of the flag in that historic chamber would become a distraction during the upcoming Special Session, possibly lead to protracted debate, and avert our attention from the Special Session’s main goal. By taking the proactive action of removing the flag, the Legislature can move forward in several different ways.” Alabama U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell said she agreed with the governor’s decision: “The Confederate flag is a part of the South’s past, and that is where it should remain. I applaud Governor Bentley for removing the Confederate flag from the grounds of the state Capitol. His actions demonstrate the need for us to close that chapter of our history.” Sewell continued, “The Confederate flag represents the fight for slavery and is a symbol of hate, not heritage. Our state government should not sanction bigotry but promote unity and respect for the rights of all Alabamians. It is time to leave behind racist vestiges of our past.” South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has called for the flags to be removed in that state. However, the removal of the flag requires a two-thirds supermajority vote in both legislative chambers.
Bobby Jindal poised to announce presidential campaign
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal appears ready to launch a long-shot campaign for the Republican presidential nomination that rests on courtship of evangelical voters and his reputation as a man of ideas. The 44-year-old, two-term governor begins without the national prominence of rivals such as Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who are among a dozen contenders for the nomination in a highly competitive pack. But Jindal, an Oxford-educated son of Indian immigrants, points to a long political career filled with many unexpected achievements. He talked a governor into appointing him health secretary at age 24 with little background in either health management or government, won election to Congress at 32 and became governor four years later. “If I were to become a candidate, I would certainly run to win and I would do it based on presenting detailed ideas about how to move our country forward,” Jindal told reporters recently. His expected campaign launch was scheduled Wednesday afternoon in the New Orleans suburb of Kenner, where Jindal lived as a congressman. Unpopular at home, the Louisiana governor waited until the state legislative session had ended and lawmakers found a way to close a $1.6 billion budget gap before scheduling the announcement. But he has been building his campaign for months with frequent trips to key presidential voting states, particularly Iowa, where he’s focused heavily on Christian conservatives. Raised a Hindu but a convert to Catholicism as a teenager, Jindal has talked of his religious faith in small churches across Louisiana. As he readied his presidential campaign, the governor held a prayer rally in Baton Rouge, met pastors across several states and put out an executive order to grant special “religious freedom” protections to people in Louisiana who oppose same-sex marriage. He’s competing, however, with several contenders trying to appeal to the same pool of evangelical voters, including Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. As he approached his announcement, Jindal also showcased more of the policy wonk reputation that got him elected governor, rather than focusing solely on the culture wars. He’s drawn distinctions from other GOP contenders by noting he’s published “detailed plans” on health care, defense, education and energy policy. He’s suggested governors are better equipped to become president because they’ve run state bureaucracies, balanced budgets and implemented policy. That’s an argument, however, that other White House hopefuls are making or can: Govs. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, Chris Christie of New Jersey and John Kasich of Ohio, as well as Bush. “We need somebody who will go to D.C. and rescue the American Dream from becoming the European nightmare,” Jindal says. All told, a path to victory remains difficult for Jindal. GOP debates begin in August and it’s unclear if he will make the cut if based on standing in national polls. What is certain is that the term-limited governor has worn out his welcome back home as his tenure approaches its end in January. Jindal’s approval ratings in Louisiana have dropped into the low 30s due to repeated budget cuts to public colleges, near-constant state financial problems and a sense that he’s crafted state policy based on his national political ambitions. The governor dismisses the low state poll numbers as a sign he’s tackled difficult problems, with large shifts in education policy, dramatic reductions to the public sector workforce and the right-sizing of government. “Making changes is tough,” he said in a recent interview. “It’s easy to be a popular politician. If you want to be a popular politician, you kiss babies, you cut ribbons, you don’t make tough choices. That’s not what I got elected to do.” Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
