Kay Ivey signs six bills, ensuring Alabama as pro-military state
Today, Gov. Kay Ivey signed six bills aimed at making Alabama even more military-friendly. Those bills include Senate Bills 28, 99, 116, 119, 141, and 167. These bills were recommended by the Alabama Military Stability Commission, which is chaired by Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth. “Alabama is the most pro-military state in the nation, and I am proud to put my signature on a series of legislation aimed at ensuring that we are even more military-friendly,” stated Ivey. “I commend the work by the Military Stability Commission, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Ainsworth, as well as the members of the Alabama Legislature for passing these important bills.” SB116, sponsored by Sen. Tom Whatley and Rep. Debbie Wood, will help ease the burden of military families moving to Alabama. It allows children of active military members moving to Alabama to enroll in local public schools remotely without being physically present in the state. Three bills, SB99 by Sen. Andrew Jones and Rep. Kenneth Paschal, SB167 by Sen. Shay Shelnutt and Rep. Dickie Drake, and SB141 by Sen. Tom Butler and Rep. Parker Moore, are all aimed at making it easier for military families to find work when relocating to Alabama. Each of the bills allows for greater flexibility in occupational licensing for military spouses. SB28, sponsored by Sen. Tom Butler and Rep. Andy Whitt, would create the Space National Guard within the Alabama National Guard if the federal government creates the Space National Guard. Finally, SB119, sponsored by Sen. Will Barfoot and Rep. Dickie Drake, will expand scholarships provided under the Alabama G.I. and Dependents’ Educational Benefit Act to include in-state and private two-and four-year colleges. “The men and women from across Alabama who serve on the Military Stability Commission understand the important role that our bases and other infrastructure play in keeping the state’s economy strong and jobs growing,” commented Ainsworth. “The bills that the Legislature passed and Governor Ivey signed into law will assist our mission of making Alabama the nation’s friendliest and most welcoming state for active service members, military veterans and their families.”
Alabama covid cases down below 5%, first time since omicron surge
Alabama’s positivity rate for COVID tests over the last seven days fell below 5% for the first time since the start of the omicron surge, reported AL.com. According to the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH), Alabama’s positivity rate hasn’t been this low since before the delta surge. Data from the Covid-19 Dashboard show 4% of COVID tests performed in the state over the last seven days have come back positive, the lowest in almost nine months. Cases and hospitalizations also continue to decline. There were just over 400 COVID hospitalizations statewide as of Sunday, the lowest number since Christmas. The state has been averaging between 500 and 1,000 cases per day since late February. However, during the peak of the omicron wave, there were nearly 10,000 cases reported per day. On Twitter, the ADPH stated, “ADPH will be endorsing the new community levels recently released by @CDCgov. Our #COVID19 Data & Surveillance Dashboard will reflect these new measures soon. The dashboard will only be updated Monday-Friday instead of daily.” State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris stated in a press release, “The solid red high-risk map indicating overall level of community transmission seen over the past 2 months in the state is now colored in the low, moderate, or substantial risk levels in a majority of counties, and the percent positivity in tests is under 10. As we enter our third year battling COVID-19, more than half of the state’s population is fully vaccinated.”
Court rejects GOP redistricting plans in North Carolina, Pennsylvania
In a victory for Democrats, the Supreme Court has turned away efforts from Republicans in North Carolina and Pennsylvania to block state court-ordered congressional districting plans. In separate orders late Monday, the justices are allowing maps selected by each state’s Supreme Court to be in effect for the 2022 elections. Those maps are more favorable to Democrats than the ones drawn by the states’ legislatures. In North Carolina, the map most likely will give Democrats an additional House seat in 2023. The Pennsylvania map also probably will lead to the election of more Democrats, the Republicans say, as the two parties battle for control of the U.S. House of Representatives in the midterm elections in November. The justices provided no explanation for their actions, as is common in emergency applications on what is known as the “shadow docket.” While the high court did not stop the state court-ordered plans from being used in this year’s elections, four conservative justices indicated they want it to confront the issue that could dramatically limit the power of state courts over federal elections in the future. The Republicans argued that state courts lack the authority to second-guess legislatures’ decisions about the conduct of elections for Congress and the presidency. “We will have to resolve this question sooner or later, and the sooner we do so, the better. This case presented a good opportunity to consider the issue, but unfortunately, the court has again found the occasion inopportune,” Justice Samuel Alito wrote in a dissent from the Supreme Court’s order, joined by Justices Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas. Justice Brett Kavanaugh made a similar point but said he didn’t want to interfere in this year’s electoral process, which already is underway. The filing deadline in North Carolina was Friday. The state courts were involved because of partisan wrangling and lawsuits over congressional redistricting in both states, where the legislatures are controlled by Republicans, the governors are Democrats, and the state Supreme Courts have Democratic majorities. In Pennsylvania, Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf vetoed the plan the Republican-controlled Legislature approved, saying it was the result of a “partisan political process.” The state, with a delegation of nine Democrats and nine Republicans, is losing a seat in the House following the 2020 Census. Republicans said the map they came up with would elect nine Democrats and eight Republicans. State courts eventually stepped in and approved a map that probably will elect 10 Democrats, the GOP argued. North Carolina is picking up a seat in the House because of population gains. Republican majorities in the Legislature produced an initial plan most likely to result in 10 seats for Republicans and four for Democrats. The governor does not have veto power over redistricting plans in North Carolina. After Democrats sued, the state’s high court selected a map that likely will elect at least six Democrats. Lawsuits are continuing in both states, but the Supreme Court signaled in Monday’s orders that this year’s elections for Congress in North Carolina and Pennsylvania would take place under the maps approved by the states’ top courts. Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
National gasoline average tops $4 a gallon, expected to continue to rise
The average price for regular gasoline topped $4 a gallon Monday, the first time motorists paid so much at the pump since 2008. Analysts predict gas prices will continue their climb, and crude oil could hit $200 a barrel. The national average for regular gasoline was $4.065 a gallon Monday compared to the $3.610 average a week ago, $3.44 average a month ago, and $2.768 average a year ago, AAA reports. California continues to have the highest average price of $5.34 a gallon. The ten states that saw the largest weekly increases are Rhode Island (+58 cents), Nevada (+57 cents), Connecticut (+56 cents), Kentucky (+56 cents), Alabama (+56 cents), West Virginia (+55 cents), Virginia (+55 cents), Massachusetts (+54 cents), New Hampshire (+52 cents) and New Jersey (+52 cents), AAA reports. The ten most expensive markets in the U.S. are California ($5.34), Hawaii ($4.69), Nevada ($4.59), Oregon ($4.51), Washington ($4.44), Alaska ($4.39), Illinois ($4.30), Connecticut ($4.28), New York ($4.26) and Pennsylvania ($4.23). “The all-time high for the national average retail price of gasoline was $4.114 set July 17, 2008,” Andrew Lipow of Houston-based Lipow Oil Associates LLC told The Center Square in an email. “And we will break that record Tuesday as the national average heads to $4.50.” The all-time high for the national average retail price of diesel was $4.845 on July 17, 2008. “We will break that record in the next few days as the national average heads to $4.90,” Lipow added. Gas prices at the pump, and all costs impacted by gasoline prices, will continue to rise as the Biden administration continues to restrict U.S. domestic oil production, analysts say, and expands reliance on foreign production, which is greatly impacted by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The U.S. and others are considering a ban on importing Russian crude as its invasion of Ukraine continues. The WTI Crude hit $130 a barrel Sunday night, dropping to $121 a barrel Monday morning, with Brent Crude surpassing $123 a barrel. By comparison, on Wednesday, February 23, the day before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the WTI was $92 a barrel. “The market is pricing in a 3 million barrel per day disruption,” Lipow said. “A complete ban on Russian exports will lead to $150+ per barrel. This is happening at the same time 330,000 barrels per day has been shut in Libya by protesters and 400,000 barrels per day is offline in Iraq due to field maintenance.” Analysts at Bank of America predict that if the majority of Russian oil exports are cut off, there could be a 5 million barrel per day shortfall, causing crude to hit $200 a barrel, Reuters reported. If Russian oil supply faces continued disruption, Brent could end the year at $185 per barrel, JPMorgan analysts forecasted, according to Bloomberg News. On February 23, the national average retail price for diesel was $3.96. Today it’s $4.61, with California having the highest average of $5.69. On February 23, gasoline futures prices were $2.72 a gallon, Lipow notes, now up 96 cents a gallon today at $3.68. Diesel futures prices also skyrocketed from $2.83 a gallon to $4 a gallon, a 117 cent per gallon increase. “These increases will ultimately be passed through to the consumer in the form of higher gasoline prices, higher airline ticket prices since they use jet fuel, and all sorts of goods that are made from petroleum, as well as delivery service fees because trucks and railroads are using diesel,” Lipow said. “If one is heating their home with heating oil, those costs just went up as well.” Gas prices soared under President Joe Biden well before the Russian-Ukrainian conflict began due to a number of factors. Last October, oil prices hit a 7-year high as American oil and gas companies continued to fight the Biden administration over policies restricting production. As the economy began to reopen in 2021 and the demand for fuel increased, Biden, through executive order, halted and restricted oil and gas leases on federal lands, stopped construction of the Keystone Pipeline, and redirected U.S. policy to import more oil from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia (OPEC+) instead of bolstering American oil and gas exploration and production. Last November, Biden approved the largest release in the history of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve of 50 million barrels. He also consistently looked to OPEC+ member countries to increase production, including Russia. In January, before Russia invaded Ukraine, “tensions along the Ukrainian border have helped push crude oil prices higher almost daily,” AAA reported. “While President Biden is urging Russia and OPEC to increase production, the Interior Department is erecting roadblocks to American production,” Western Energy Alliance President Kathleen Sgamma said at the time. “Oil and natural gas from federal lands is among the most sustainably produced in the world and certainly cleaner than the oil produced in Russia. Besides the stricter environmental controls on public lands, producers agree to extra measures to protect wildlife, reduce emissions, reduce water use, and ensure stewardship of the land. “Further, the Interior Department continues to ignore diverse voices who have urged the administration to move forward with developing oil and natural gas in America,” she added. “Democratic governors, minority community leaders, tribes, small businesses, and many others have voiced support for continued federal oil and natural gas development, but the administration prioritizes activists and environmentalists over bipartisan policymakers and a broad array of stakeholders.” Still, Biden remained resolved to prioritize dependence on OPEC+ member country production and to continue to release oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Last week, he announced that 31 countries, including the U.S., were releasing 60 million barrels of oil from reserves around the world, with the U.S. releasing half. The U.S. alone requires 18 million barrels a day, Daniel Turner, founder and executive director of Power The Future, notes. Biden’s plan would only provide enough domestic supply for two days. “President Biden’s efforts aren’t going to solve any problems any time soon,” Turner said. “It’s clear the Biden
Alabama House committee advances $1.28 billion Education Trust Fund spending bill
A bill appropriating $1.28 billion toward Alabama’s Education Trust Fund continues to move through legislative channels after receiving a favorable vote from a House panel. In January, state Rep. Danny Garrett, R-Trussville, introduced House Bill 138, outlining how funds from the ETF could be appropriated through the end of the state’s current fiscal year, which ends September 30. Most recently, a substitute version of the bill, with an updated list of proposed allocations, was under review. The House Ways and Means Education Committee, which Garrett chairs, approved the substitute version of the bill on March 2 without any substantive discussion. The bill currently remains in committee upon a further hearing. Daniel Davenport, a state legislative fiscal analyst, provided a fiscal note after the House Ways and Means Education Committee adopted the substitute version of HB 138. According to Davenport’s analysis, the bill in its current iteration would fund two-dozen specific education line items if it were adopted as-is. The largest appropriation, accounting for nearly half of the total bill amount, would go toward the ETF’s advancement and technology fund for an assortment of one-time technology and capital projects. It totals $652.12 million. The $1.28 billion ETF spending package also includes several other sizable allocations, including $200 million to service existing debt and $177.37 million toward the Alabama State Treasury Office’s Prepaid Affordable College Tuition, or PACT, program. Also on the list is a $111.18 million line item to the ETF’s budget stabilization fund and $58.4 million toward the teachers’ retirement system for a one-time bonus for the retirees receiving benefits through the program. HB 138 was one of 11 pieces of legislation the House Ways and Means Education Committee took up at its March 2 meeting. The committee also gave a favorable vote on HB 136, legislation that would provide a 4-percent salary increase for public education employees in several sectors. Among them: local boards of education, the two-year postsecondary institutions under the board of trustees of the Alabama Community College for the fiscal year 2023, and multiple state-based specialty schools. Garrett also is the lead sponsor of HB 136. In his fiscal note for this particular bill, Davenport laid out the estimated cost of the 4-percent pay increase and its long-term ramifications. “The total estimated cost of this salary increase is $178.6 million, including the associated retirement and FICA increases, for fiscal year 2023 and each year thereafter,” Davenport wrote. He added, “This act will increase the obligations of the funds of the various local boards of education for fiscal year 2023 and each year thereafter by undetermined amounts, dependent upon the extent that local boards of education have employees paid from federal or local funds or provide a pay raise on salary supplements.” By Dave Fidlin | The Center Square contributor Republished with the permission of The Center Square.
