Bradley Byrne votes to protect access to retirement advice for American families
The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives voted along party lines, 234-183, Thursday to repeal a new Department of Labor rule the Obama administration introduced in April that would redefine the definition of “retirement advice” for pension and retirement plans. Democrats said the fiduciary rule would protect families from paying higher fee, meanwhile Republicans warn the rule will impose new standards and regulations on financial advisors while also expanding the definition of who is required to comply. Studies have found the increased compliance costs could be over $2 billion. The added costs will be passed on to the consumer in the form of higher costs and fees. Republican Congressman Bradley Byrne (AL-01), a member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee, joined his Party and voted for H.J. Res. 88 to block the rule warning the it would be especially hard on low- and middle-income families who will no longer be able to afford retirement advice, and that it may also restrict small businesses’ ability to offer retirement options to their employees. “I am pleased the House acted today to stop the Obama Administration’s ill-conceived ‘fiduciary’ rule,” said Byrne in a statement after his vote. “Republicans and Democrats agree that financial advisors should act in the best interest of the consumer, but there is a far better way to ensure the bad actors are punished than hurting everyone else in the process.” Byrne continued, “No one would be hurt more by this rule than low- and middle-income families who arguably need this financial advice the most. I hope the Senate will act soon on our legislation to ensure each and every American has access to retirement advice.” Byrne was joined by his Alabama Republican colleagues, Reps. Martha Roby (AL-02), Mike Rogers (AL-03), Robert Aderholt (AL-04), Mo Brooks (AL-06) and Gary Palmer (AL-06) in voting to block the rule. Rep. Terri Sewell, the delegation’s lone Democrat, voted against the resolution that blocks the new. Following the vote, President Barack Obama has threatened to veto the measure.
Appointments, appointments galore for Robert Bentley
Alabama Today is doing a twofer today. We’ve gotten a little behind on Gov. Robert Bentley‘s gubernatorial appointments, so below are the appointments from February 24-today. From Feb. 24-March 24, 39 appointments were made to 21 boards and commissions. From March 24-today, 25 appointments were made to 13 boards and commissions. You can find more information here. February 24, 2016- March 23, 2016 McClellan Developmental Authority Pokey Brimer State Workforce Development Board Ken Tucker Board of Registration for Foresters Tim Albritton Sylacauga Civil Service Board Bob Green Battleship Commission Bill Tunnell Polygraph Examiners Board Herbert McCants, Jr. State Independent Living Council Dan Kessler Jack Franklin Alabama Indian Affairs Commission Morgan Silvers Small Business Commission Advisory Committee Paulette Risher Nichelle Nix State Rehabilitation Council Patrick Robinson Energy and Residential Code Board Bill Deloney Landon Smith Sam Davis Glenn Nuby Scott Pilgreen Jerry Russell Coosa County Probate Judge Rick Dean Lauderdale County Circuit Judge Ben Graves Limestone County District Judge Doug Patterson State Personnel Board Clinton Carter Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners William Bledsoe Every Student Succeeds Act Implementation Committee Jeana Ross Christian Becraft Nichelle Nix Walker County Civil Service Board Linda Gail Ensor Selective Service Board Robert R. Crane Matthew Sharp Roy Colson, III Tony Slay Wallieshia D. Austin Eugene P Robichoux Richard Yeary State Child Death Review Team Jannah M. Bailey Melanie R. Bridgeforth Mary L. Murphy Michael Taylor Winston County Sheriff Tommy Moore March 24, 2016- April 26, 2016 Alabama State University Board of Trustees Larry Means Board of Polygraph Examiners Herbert McCants, Jr. Alabama Plumbers & Gas Fitters Examining Board Charles Owenby Janice Warren E. Pilgreen Henry McCoy, Jr. Bobby Bulloch John Bimbo Bryan Shuford Alabama Real Estate Commission Reid Cummings A. Watts III Carole J. Harrison Board of Heating, Air Conditioning, & Refrigeration Contractors Barrett S. Richard Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Tom Jernigan John Sherman John Ronney Watson Edgar Weldon Board of Cosmetology and Barbering Shirlie Phan Shelby County Circuit Judge Lara McCauley Alvis Alabama Securities Commission Marlene McCain Austin Huffaker Board of Public Accountancy Terry Comer Alabama Historic Ironworks Commission Jerry Tingle University of Montevallo Board of Trustees Rodger Smitherman Selective Service System Eric D. Alford
Robert Bentley issues executive order calling for child sex abuse prevention plan
The last month or so has been quite a rough patch for Gov. Robert Bentley. His administration is fighting for its life as Bentley publicly fends off allegations of personal and official misconduct both in the media and among his fellow Republicans in Montgomery. But even an embattled governor scores a victory every now and then using the highest office in state governmentc, and it appears Bentley was aiming for one on Thursday. Bentley issued an executive order authorizing county Policy Councils designed to fight child sex abuse to work with local Child Advocacy Centers to develop a statewide abuse prevention plan based on local needs. The order, Executive Order 20, also requires the coordinating councils to submit a report on their plan to the governor by July 1, 2017. The order is in furtherance of an earlier initiative which created a task force on child sexual abuse prevention under a 2015 state law called “Erin’s Law,” which toughened penalties for abusers and called for the creation of comprehensive prevention standards. “Children are our state’s most precious resource, and protecting Alabama’s children from abuse is critical,” said Bentley in a statement. “With this executive order, child sexual abuse prevention plans will be created based on the needs at the local county level.” “The Alabama Children’s Policy Council, county children’s policy councils and Child Advocacy Centers work together and are a strong voice for protecting children from sexual abuse. I appreciate each group’s dedication to fighting for children,” added Bentley.
How popular are Alabama’s senators?
It’s no surprise, Congress’ public approval rating is abysmal — a vast majority of Americans continue to disapprove of the job they’re doing. According to Gallup polling the rating has been stuck in the mid-teens for over year, and has not exceeded 20 percent since October of 2012. Nevertheless some Americans actually really like particular members of Congress. A new survey by Morning Consult polled 62,000 registered voters in all 50 states as to what they thought about the job their senators are doing. The results: despite the overall Congressional approval rating, some senators rate highly in their home states among constituents. The top five most popular senators in America: Bernie Sanders (I-VT) Susan Collins (R-ME) John Hoeven (R-ND) Angus King (I-ME) Patrick Leahy (D-VT) The five least popular senators in America: Mitch McConnell (R-KY) Pat Roberts (R-KS) John McCain (R-AZ) Orrin Hatch (R-UT) Harry Reid (D-NV) As for Alabama’s senators, long-time Republican Senator Richard Shelby ranks as the 16th most liked senator with a 59% approval rating. Perhaps more surprisingly is that Tea Party darling Sen. Jeff Sessions is solidly in the middle of the pack ranked 33rd overall with a 54% approval rating.
Kay Ivey: Alabama’s longstanding partnership with Israel
Alabama has a long history of strong support for the State of Israel. Alabama lead the nation as the first state to officially call for the establishment of the Jewish state and homeland. At a time in the midst of World War II, when war was waging between America and Nazi Germany, but also systematic extermination and mass murders of the Jews in Europe was occurring, the Alabama Legislature made a pledge to stand with Israel. In 1943, a Joint Resolution was unanimously adopted. For more than 70 years, the State of Alabama has repeatedly demonstrated its pledge to stand with Israel. In 1981, Governor Fob James hosted a celebration of the 33rd Anniversary of Israel’s rebirth as a nation at the Governor’s mansion. In 1997, Alabama and Israel entered in a State-to-State Trade Agreement, signed by Governor James, to promote the exchange of manufacturing goods. In 2012, Israel ranked as Alabama’s ninth leading trade partner. Trade continues today as Alabama has exported $37 million of goods to Israel in 2015. In the wake of the September 2001 terrorist attacks, the Alabama Legislature passed another Joint Resolution to express support for Israel and for all the people suffering at the hands of terrorism. Governor Bob Riley declared August 14, 2006, “Stand with Israel Day” in Alabama. In 2012, Governor Robert Bentley and other state leaders publicly supported Israel to defend itself against years of deadly rockets fired from the Palestinian-controlled Gaza Strip. In 2013, by way of a Proclamation by the Governor, Alabama once again expressed its steadfast support of the State of Israel. On April 7, 2016, the Alabama Legislature invited Deputy Speaker of the Israeli Knesset, Hilik Bar, to address a Joint Session of the Legislature. Speaker Bar is the highest ranking Israeli official to visit Alabama. On the same day, SB81 by Senator Orr was passed out of the Senate that would require that all government entities must include a provision in certain purchasing contracts assuring that the business providing the good or service is not currently engaged in, and will not engage in, the boycott of an entity doing business with a jurisdiction with which the state can enjoy free trade. SB81 is currently awaiting passage by the House. In a time when the Middle East is threatened by terrorism, Israel’s sovereignty continues to be challenged. Alabama has proved for more than 70 years that our support is unwavering. As the first state in the country to call for the establishment of the State of Israel, Alabama stands committed to the existence and establishment of the democratic state in the Middle East. We will continue to contribute efforts to strengthening our state-to-state relationship. Alabama remains committed to stand with Israel. • • • Kay Ivey is the lieutenant governor of Alabama. Elected in 2010, she was the first Republican woman to hold the office in Alabama’s history.
Obamacare roadshow: Watchdog covers the cost of John Kasich’s Medicaid expansion
Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s poll numbers may not be skyrocketing, but the cost of expanding Medicaid in his state certainly is. For Watchdog readers, neither of these things will come as a surprise. When Kasich announced his bid for the presidency last year, Watchdog’s coverage of his major policy decisions as governor of Ohio had already been nearly a year in the making. Since then, Kasich’s presidential campaign has brought his controversial decision to take advantage of President Obama’s unpopular 2010 healthcare law into the spotlight as Republican primary voters decide whether the Ohio governor’s policies align with their values. Kasich’s Obamacare expansion Watchdog reporter Jason Hart first took up the story in September 2014. Ohio’s Medicaid enrollment under the expansion had just topped 367,000, passing Kasich’s initial projection for enrollment levels at July 2015. In the year and a half since, the governor’s projections for his state have continued to fall far short of the actual tally. Last March was the most expensive month yet for the expanded program, costing taxpayers $411 million as more working-age adults with no kids and no disabilities flocked to the Medicaid rolls. This puts Kasich’s Obamacare expansion on track to cost $28.5 billion by the year 2020 – more than twice as much as his administration projected. This has raised questions from critics who worry that expanding health care for able-bodied adults could be a disincentive to work. How many of the Ohioans who have recently enrolled in Medicaid have jobs? No one knows, not even the Ohio Department of Medicaid. Last Spring, the department told state Senate members that 43 percent of enrollees were employed, but it has no current data on how many of Ohio’s 673,000 Obamacare expansion enrollees are gainfully employed. ODM also doesn’t track how many of these new enrollees had private or employer-sponsored health insurance prior to enrolling in Medicaid – or how many of them are incarcerated. Never mind that Kasich initially estimated 447,000 people would sign up under the expansion by 2020. That means that “if ODM capped Obamacare expansion enrollment at its current level,” wrote Hart, “the two-year-old program would already be 48 percent larger than the Kasich administration said it would be after seven years.” Lest anyone be confused about how Medicaid expansion became part of Ohio law in the first place, Hart has a helpful breakdown of how the policy fight played out in 2013: The Ohio House stripped the Obamacare Medicaid expansion from its version of the 2014-15 budget. The Ohio General Assembly explicitly banned expansion in the final 2014-15 budget sent to Kasich’s desk. Kasich used a line-item veto to strike the legislature’s ban on expansion. The Kasich administration, with approval from the Obama administration, expanded Medicaid to the guidelines set in Obamacare. The Kasich administration asked the Ohio Controlling Board to appropriate funding to pay for the Medicaid expansion. The Ohio Controlling Board approved Kasich’s Obamacare expansion funding request. Six Republican legislators and two Right to Life groups sued over Kasich’s Controlling Board maneuver, but the Ohio Supreme Court ruled in the Kasich administration’s favor. Read the rest of this article here. • • • This article originally appeared at Watchdog.org. Andrew Collins is an author at the Franklin Center for Government and Public Integrity.
Drug charges dropped against son of Chief Justice Roy Moore
Drug charges against the son of Alabama’s chief justice have been dropped. AL.com reported Wednesday that court records show the charges were dropped several months ago after Caleb Moore agreed to enter a pre-trial diversion program with the Pike County District Attorney’s Office. Moore is the son of Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore, a conservative Christian who made national headlines last year with his attempts to block gay marriage. Caleb Moore was facing charges of felony possession of the prescription medication alprazolam and misdemeanor marijuana possession. He was arrested in March in Troy. Police responding to a possible break-in said they reported smelling marijuana and finding Xanax. Caleb Moore pleaded guilty in 2013 and 2014 to separate misdemeanor charges of possession of drug paraphernalia. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Republican donors deny Ted Cruz, John Kasich needed funds, data show
It seems like a logical pairing: Republican donors who despise Donald Trump, and two GOP presidential hopefuls sticking it out to keep him from the nomination. Yet such a financial cavalry never arrived for Ted Cruz and John Kasich, ignoring their impassioned pleas for financial help. Donors who gave as much as allowed by law to establishment darlings Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio have mostly disappeared from the political landscape, according to an Associated Press analysis of campaign finance records. Less than 3 percent of the nearly 14,600 donors who gave the $2,700 limit to Bush or Rubio have also ponied up the maximum amount to Kasich or Cruz. By not writing those checks, they’re depriving Cruz and Kasich of as much as $39 million each in their final push to topple Trump, who has formidably deep pockets and has loaned $36 million to his own campaign. Trump trounced his competitors in Tuesday’s elections, putting him in a stronger position to win the nomination outright in the next six weeks of voting. The quest to stop him has grown so dire that Cruz on Wednesday took the unusual step of announcing a running mate, Carly Fiorina. Earlier, he and Kasich agreed to divide up some remaining primary states to improve their chances of beating Trump. But donors’ continued shunning of Cruz and Kasich is one reason they haven’t had more success. “There are a significant number of major fundraisers in the Republican Party whose networks are exhausted and donors who are worn thin emotionally from the effort they made for a candidate who is no longer in the race,” said Wayne Berman, a longtime Republican fundraiser. “That combination has led to many, many people sitting on the sidelines.” He’s speaking from experience. Berman was the national finance chairman for Rubio and chose not to raise money for any other candidate after the Florida senator dropped out March 15. Both Kasich and Cruz have feverishly pitched themselves to donors as the candidate best able to unify the party. It has been a particularly tough fit for Cruz, a first-term Texas senator who has made his name as an unrelenting conservative fighter — even against those in his own party. He’s had a healthy core of his own donors, including roughly 3,900 who have given the maximum amount. In fact, Cruz is the best Republican campaign fundraiser of the 2016 cycle, and started April with $8.8 million cash on hand. Still, this critical stage of the race has called for extra outreach, particularly with expensive contests such as California coming up and Cruz in need of better primary performances to derail Trump. Cruz has stepped up his requests of donors who might not have otherwise considered him. He and his wife, a Goldman Sachs manager on leave, talked to New York financiers last week at the Harvard Club of New York City. They’re seldom responding, AP’s analysis shows. Through the end of March, just 186 Bush-Rubio maxed-out donors gave the maximum to Cruz. Fred Zeidman, a Houston-based fundraiser for Bush’s failed bid, is one of them. He said he felt he “owed” the donation to Cruz because of his strong support of Israel, Zeidman’s top issue. “I wanted to show him my appreciation for that,” Zeidman said. Still, Zeidman said he can understand why lots of former Bush and Rubio donors are reluctant. “At this point, many of them feel like the main objective should be to beat the Democratic nominee, so they’re keeping their powder dry until the general election, in effect just letting the primary system sort itself out,” he said. Kasich, the governor of Ohio, has attracted 174 maxed-out donors who also gave the maximum to Bush and Rubio. He’s won over some of the party’s top female donors, including Anna Mann, Rupert Murdoch’s ex-wife; Lynne Walton, a Wal-Mart heiress; and Helen DeVos, wife of Amway founder Richard DeVos. But Kasich has been in desperate need of more donors willing to give as much as they can. He started April with just $1.2 million cash on hand. The AP analysis is based on reports of campaign contributions filed with the Federal Election Commission from the beginning of the 2016 presidential election cycle through the end of March. The AP looked at donors who gave the maximum primary amount to Bush or Rubio with those who had given the maximum primary amount to the Democratic and Republican candidates still in the race, comparing each donor’s name, city, state and zip code. Because the analysis excluded donors if any of the information didn’t match, it could result in a slight undercount. The analysis revealed another troubling finding for Cruz and Kasich: Democratic front runner Hillary Clinton attracted about the same number of Bush-Rubio donors as did their campaigns. About a dozen Bush-Rubio donors have also given to Trump. A tiny core of 15 Bush-Rubio donors continued to hedge their bets by maxing out to both Cruz and Kasich — continuing their spread-the-love approach this election cycle. Stanley Hubbard, a billionaire Minnesota broadcast executive, has doled out checks of $2,500 or more to Scott Walker, Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio, Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina, Chris Christie and John Kasich. Of his multi-layered giving, Hubbard told the AP a few months ago that he wanted anyone other than Trump or Cruz at the top of the GOP ticket because he saw either of them as devastating for the party’s down-ballot prospects. Trump’s continued dominance led him to revise that view: He gave Cruz a check of $2,700 on March 31. “He’s not my first choice, no,” Hubbard said last week. He said he has no regrets about his heretofore fruitless campaign gifts. “Not a bit. When you give to politicians, sometimes you lose. That’s the way it works.” Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
Alabama House committee passes weakened payday lending reform
The House Financial Services Committee voted Wednesday to approve a version of the payday lending reform bill already passed by the Alabama Senate, but neither side of the debate is particularly happy with the outcome. Weaker than the original legislation, the substitute bill offered during the committee meeting Wednesday restricts payday lenders to making loans at 15 percent for minimum terms of 28 days, which cuts the APR of such loans significantly, but not as much as reformers had hoped. The move is seen as a compromise, and the original bill’s sponsor Danny Garrett, a Republican of Trussville, said it means “[w]e’re moving to the point where we’ll have reform this year.” Besides the increase in the amount of interest allowed, one of the biggest issues reformers have with the new bill is the maintenance of the inability to pay off the loans in installments, one of the features they say keep low-income borrowers trapped in a cycle of debt. In a public hearing on the previous Wednesday, a member of the payday lending industry said the original bill would be an “extinction event” for the entire sector. Blake calls payday loan bill a “global extinction event” for payday lenders. #alpolitics — Tim Lockette (@TLockette_Star) April 20, 2016 A database created by the Alabama Department of Banking found Alabamians took out 462,209 loans over a 10-week period. A total of $146 million was borrowed, or an average of about $14 million each week. A coalition of activists from across the state have fought for years to bring reform to the table. The Alliance for Responsible Lending in Alabama (ARLA) has members from the Arise Citizens’ Policy Project, Alabama Appleseed, the Alabama State Conference of the NAACP, the Alabama Citizens’ Action Program, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the Federation of Republican Women. While opponents of reform say such loans are sometimes necessary to help low-income families through tough times, ARLA policy analyst Stephen Stetson wrote in an op-ed last month that what can appear to be a helping hand for those in need can be an “anchor” holding them in a cycle of poverty. “We all want a world where people can get the kinds of credit they need. But that requires putting some brakes on a system that all too often acts as an engine for poverty, handing out extremely high-cost loans to desperate folks who may treat them as a lifeline. Too often, those ‘lifelines’ instead end up as anchors, dragging people into financial quicksand.” But regardless of the compromise, the changes made to the bill may mean reform is dead in the water this year, as it will have to be re-passed by the Senate, and this time under the body’s unanimous consent rules, with just a few days left in the Regular Session.
