House committee extends Stand Your Ground law to Alabama churches
An Alabama House committee on Wednesday approved a bill that would extend the state’s Stand Your Ground law to churches. Sponsored by Rogersville-Republican State Rep. Lynn Greer, HB34 was sent to the full House on a voice vote by the House Judiciary Committee sent. Under existing law, a person is justified in using physical force, including deadly force, in self-defense or in the defense of another person under certain conditions. And a person is legally presumed to be justified in using deadly physical force, in self-defense or the defense of another person against a person committing or attempting to commit certain specified crimes. Under Greer’s bill, a person is presumed justified in the use of physical force to defend an employee, volunteer or member of a church from assault, whether on church grounds or in a church-related activity. Greer said he introduced the bill after churches in his district asked him to sponsor the legislation due to church shootings around the country. But not everyone is in favor of the bill. Members of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America opposed the bill in a public hearing last week, putting pressure on lawmakers to reject it. There, Anne Leader, leader of the Alabama Chapter of the group, argued that Stand Your Ground laws allow people to “shoot first and ask questions later.” The bill moves on the full House for consideration.
Alabama legislative week in review: March 21 – March 25, 2016
Legislators briefly passed through Montgomery this week with an eye toward their spring break, which began Thursday and won’t have them back in the statehouse until April 5. Despite only two legislative action days this week, both bodies took up high-profile legislation. Tuesday, the 17th day of the legislative session, got under way with the Alabama House of Representatives clearing the long-contested bill to provide a path to visitation rights for grandparents. HB334 from Rep. Mike Jones (R-Andalusia) passed with an affirmative vote from 97 lawmakers, though debate came over the fact that the bill may circumvent the will of fit parents to make decisions regarding the welfare of their children. Over in the Senate, lawmakers passed SB260 from Sen. Clay Scofield (R-Guntersville). The bill would bar the state from taking money from the state’s park system to prop up the General Fund. The practice is a legitimate concern, as lawmakers have taken $15 million from state park coffers over the past five years to deposit into the General Fund. The Senate also cleared HB34 from Rep. Mac McCutcheon (R-Capshaw). The bill, which was carried by Sen. Greg Reed (R-Jasper), provides tax breaks for state ports in an effort to remain competitive among states with similar incentives. Supporters say the move will attract large businesses and bring jobs to the state. The Senate continued on its roll Wednesday with the passage of SB205 from Sen. Paul Sanford (R-Huntsville), which would prohibit the location of abortion clinics within 2,000 feet of a school and bar the Alabama Department of Public Health from reissuing licenses to any clinic in violation of the new law. The Senate also approved a General Fund budget, which lacks sufficient funding for Medicaid, despite a veto threat from Gov. Robert Bentley. The Senate’s session came to a halt when it stalled a vote on Bentley’s landmark prison transformation bill. In committee hearings this week, the Mobile delegation declined a bill along party lines that would allow county residents to vote on whether or not to raise the local minimum wage to $10.10 an hour. A house committee approved a bill that will put to a vote the notion that a person is a person from the time of fertilization, effectively outlawing abortion in the state. A Senate committee took up a bill that would decriminalize possession of the epilepsy-relieving drug cannabidiol (CBD), but did not vote on the measure. It will likely come up for discussion again when legislators return from spring break April 5.
Senate approves bill to give tax breaks to state ports
Keeping with their previously announced agenda, Senate Republicans passed a bill Tuesday that will provide tax breaks for Alabama ports with an eye toward increasing state revenue and creating new jobs. HB34 from Rep. Mac McCutcheon (R-Capshaw), which was carried in the Senate by Sen. Greg Reed (R-Jasper), builds upon the “Made in Alabama” legislation passed last year, which provided “additional, pay-as-you-go incentives for existing business expansions and new industrial projects.” Also known as the “Alabama Renewal Act,” the new legislation creates the “Growing Alabama Act” tax credit to address economic development needs in the state and establishes procedures by which tax credits can be applied for and ascertained by relevant parties. According to a statement released Tuesday afternoon, the bill will “increase the availability of shovel-ready land sites for job creation” and “stimulate cargo traffic at the state’s port facilities and connect Alabama businesses to new opportunities around the world via a new Port Credit.” “Our economy is improving and the legislature is committed to doing everything possible to create more jobs, especially in rural Alabama,” Reed said in a press release. “The Alabama Renewal Act will help us achieve this goal while being fiscally responsible to taxpayers.” “Creating jobs by incentivizing companies to invest in Alabama will mean more of our citizens get to take home a respectable paycheck,” McCutcheon noted in the statement. “That is the most important job we have at the Statehouse.” Because most states already offer such incentives, the new legislation will make Alabama more competitive by providing more options for luring in large companies and new jobs. “The Alabama Renewal Act will enhance the competitiveness of our economy,” Greg Canfield, Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce, said in the press release. “We are thankful for the legislature giving our state another tool we can use to facilitate growth and expand Alabama’s employment base.” A floor amendment added to the bill will send it back to the House of Representatives before being sent to the governor’s desk for final approval.
