Alabama animal rights groups ready for Senate decision on dog chaining
Animal welfare activists are preparing for a critical decision from the Senate this week in the push for stronger animal rights legislation in Alabama. In a Facebook message this week, Alabama Voters for Responsible Animal Legislation (AVRAL) called on its 7,000 members to reach out to lawmakers in support of Senate Bill 468, also known as the Alabama Dog Tethering and Outdoor Shelter Act. The bill would make it illegal for dog owners to tie their pets to stationary objects and says that any pet kept outside must have adequate food, water, and shelter. An owner who violates the statute could be charged with a Class B misdemeanor and face up to six months in jail, according to the Alabama criminal code. The Senate Judiciary committee is scheduled to vote on Senate Bill 468 this Wednesday. With the 2015 legislative session drawing to a close, the dog chaining bill could be the last of four closely-watched protections against animal cruelty before lawmakers this year: Earlier this month, a measure to set care, confinement, and breeding restrictions on Alabama puppy mills failed in the House Agriculture and Forestry Committee when chairman Rep. David Sessions refused to put the bill on the agenda. Rep. Paul Beckman sponsored House Bill 548 and told AL.com that the chairman thought it was a “’bad bill’ that makes criminals out of dog breeders.” Legislation filed by Rep. Patricia Todd and Rep. Howard Sanderford would ensure that only veterinarians can make surgical or medical decisions for animal treatment and allow veterinarians to work at nonprofit spay/neuter facilities. House Bill 563 is Rep. Todd’s third attempt at strengthening regulations on Alabama spay and neuter clinics. A House committee gave the bill a favorable report last week, but with so few days left in the session, Rep. Todd told AL.com the bill may not get much further. She indicated that she may try the legislation again next year. President of Animal Advocates of Alabama Joey Kennedy said, however, that another bill may not be necessary. In a statement on the organization’s website, Kennedy said: “The nonprofit spay/neuter clinics are operating now and can provide more services than would be allowed even under Todd’s bill. Plus, there is more scrutiny of the state Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, which has spent years and hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to shut down the clinics.” That scrutiny, Kennedy said, might be enough to protect the clinics. The fourth bill, Senate Bill 51, would force shelter operators to publish monthly census reports, detailing how animals enter the facility, the number of adoptions or transfers, and reasons the animals were euthanized. The companion bill was voted down in the House in March. AL.com reported concerns from members that the bill would encourage lawsuits from animal activists and that moving from yearly to monthly reports would add to shelter workloads. Senate Bill 51 has passed the Senate and is now pending in the House committee on public safety and homeland security. The bill is not on the committee’s agenda for the coming week.
Alabama Statehouse week in review: May 12-14
Thursday was Day 22 of the Alabama Legislative Session, which means lawmakers have just eight days left to pass budgets for public education and the general fund. Gov. Robert Bentley told The Huntsville Times this week that “the only constitutional duty that the Legislature has is to pass budgets … All this other stuff is just extra. If they fail at that job, then they’ve had a failed session – even though we’ve passed a lot of good bills.” House Republicans did pass a general fund budget out of the Ways and Means Committee on Thursday. The budget includes cuts to Medicaid, prisons and mental health. The proposal includes no tax increases, since House GOP members successfully pulled those from consideration Tuesday. Ways and Means General Fund Chairman Steve Clouse said in a prepared statement that that the budget package is simply a vehicle to send to the Senate so lawmakers there can send back their own budget proposal. On the heels of Clouse’s statement, Bentley issued his own strong language to the Legislature via reporters: “This budget is unworkable, it’s irresponsible, it really hurts people. The people who depend on the general fund for services – and that really includes everybody in the state of Alabama – will be hurt by this budget.” The governor also said that a Special Session is “certainly more likely.” Meanwhile, the Senate Committee on Tourism and Marketing cleared Sen. Del Marsh’s gambling proposal by a 5-3 vote. Several items not related to budget moved out of the Alabama statehouse this week. Here are a few that we’ve been watching: Funding for the Children First Trust Fund (House Bill 129) was approved by the House Ways and Means Committee by a unanimous voice vote. As money from the landmark tobacco settlement comes to Alabama, legislators appropriate a portion to the Children First Trust Fund to cover juvenile services, mental health and substance abuse programs, and child abuse and neglect. • • • Lawmakers gave a favorable report to House Bill 563 this week, though bill sponsor Rep. Patricia Todd told AL.com that the bill may not get much farther. She and Rep. Howard Sanderford sponsored the legislation to ensure that only licensed veterinarians can make medical or surgical decisions on the treatment of animals. The bill also says spay and neuter clinics would be regulated as veterinary facilities. • • • A bill to give judges, ministers and other officiants the right to refuse to perform marriage ceremonies is inching closer to becoming law, after a favorable report by the Senate Judiciary Committee this week. House Bill 56 passed the House in mid-March after four hours of emotional debate, AL.com reported. Bill sponsor Rep. Jim Hill said he brought the legislation after hearing from judges and ministers concerned about being forced to perform marriage ceremonies for gay couples. • • • The Senate Judiciary Committee also gave a favorable report to House Bill 237, a bill that would give grandparents the right to petition for visitation with their grandchildren. • • • Lawmakers voted down a bill that would impose term limits on the State Board of Education. The Montgomery Advertiser reported that committee members were concerned about the potential loss of institutional knowledge. • • • The Senate Committee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development voted in favor of Senate Bill 452, legislation brought forth by Sen. Bill Holtzclaw to allow brewpubs to sell beer for off-premise (as well as on-premise) consumption. Keep checking ALToday.com for updates.
Lawmakers move bills on marriage, children closer to law
In case you missed it, panels in the Alabama House and Senate considered several key bills Wednesday. Here are a few that have been on our radar: •A bill to give judges, ministers and other officiants the right to refuse to perform marriage ceremonies is inching closer to becoming law, after a favorable report by the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday. House Bill 56 passed the House in mid-March after four hours of emotional debate, AL.com reported. Bill sponsor Rep. Jim Hill said that he brought the legislation after hearing from judges and ministers concerned about being forced to perform marriage ceremonies for gay couples. •The Senate Judiciary Committee also gave a favorable report to House Bill 237, a bill that would give grandparents the right to petition for visitation with their grandchildren. That bill passed the House in late April. •House Bill 129, the appropriations bill for the Children’s First Trust Fund, was approved by the House ways and means committee by a unanimous voice vote. As money from the landmark tobacco settlement comes to Alabama, legislators appropriate a portion to the Children’s First Trust Fund to cover juvenile services, mental health and substance abuse programs, and child abuse and neglect. •Lawmakers gave a favorable report about House Bill 563 on Wednesday, though bill sponsor Rep. Patricia Todd told AL.com that the bill may not get much further. She and Rep. Howard Sanderford sponsored the legislation to ensure that only licensed veterinarians can make medical or surgical decisions on the treatment of animals. The bill also says spay and neuter clinics would be regulated as veterinary facilities. •The Senate committee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development voted in favor of Senate Bill 452, legislation brought forth by Sen. Bill Holtzclaw to allow brewpubs to sell beer for off-premise (as well as on-premise) consumption. •Lawmakers voted down Senate Bill 465, a bill that would impose term limits on the State Board of Education. The Montgomery Advertiser reported that committee members were concerned about the potential loss of institutional knowledge. •A proposal to pool the state’s two major budget funds, the and the General Fund, into a new Alabama Recurring Expense Fund was rejected by a Senate panel. Sen. Paul Sanford said Senate Bill 12 would allow the general fund to share in some of the growth revenue now earmarked for what is essentially a savings account in the Education Trust Fund. We’re still waiting for committee decisions on the education budget and the General Fund budget. Votes on those bills have been rescheduled for at 8:30 a.m. Thursday. Sen. Del Marsh’s gaming legislation is scheduled for committee vote at 9:30 a.m. The full committee schedule is available here.
This week at the Alabama Statehouse: May 12-14
All eyes will be on the Republican leadership this week as competing solutions to the state’s budget shortfall make their way through the House and Senate: At 1 p.m. Tuesday the Senate Tourism & Marketing Committee holds a public hearing on Senate Bill 453, Sen. Del Marsh’s proposal to legalize casino-style gambling in Alabama. Marsh is expected to ask the committee to vote on the bill the same day. At 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, a House panel on boards and commissions will consider a handful of bills. Included on the agenda is House Bill 563. Rep. Patricia Todd and Rep. Howard Sanderford sponsored the legislation to ensure that only licensed veterinarians can make medical or surgical decisions on the treatment of animals. The bill also says spay and neuter clinics would be regulated as veterinary facilities. House Bill 14 by Rep. Randall Shedd will also be heard. It makes revisions to the state cosmetology and barbering board by removing the licensing for barbers and changing details related to who can be appointed and for how long to the renamed cosmetology board. At 3 p.m. Wednesday, the Senate committee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development will hear Senate Bill 452 offered by Sen. Bill Holtzclaw, which would change the law for brewpubs to allow allow them to sell beer not just for on-premises but also off-premises consumption. A slate of proposals to boost tax revenue are expected on the House floor this week. House Republicans unveiled their budget plan last week, including $151 million in tax revenue and a recommendation to accept an offer from the Poarch Band of Creek Indians in exchange for exclusive gaming rights. The Times Daily is reporting that the tax measures are likely to fail in a Senate unconvinced of the need to boost revenue. A full committee meeting schedule can be found here. Keep checking ALToday.com for updates.
House budget panel to vote on proposed cigarette tax increase
Alabama business leaders and advocates testified Tuesday before the House’s General Fund budget committee about the economic and health consequences of increasing the cost of tobacco products purchased in the state. The public hearing was to consider Rep. Patricia Todd’s House Bill 572, a proposal to increase the state tax on tobacco products by 25 cents. Advocates supporting higher cigarette taxes warned the panel that the bill didn’t go far enough to bring substantive health and economic benefits. Kimble Forrester, executive director of Alabama ARISE, said that an increase of at least 55 cents per pack is necessary for the state to see a decrease in health costs, as well. “The studies I’ve seen say that you have to raise taxes enough by at least 10 percent per pack to give people some sticker shock,” he said. Others spoke against a higher tax, warning that the increase would send consumers across state lines to purchase tobacco at lower costs per pack. A retailer from Andalusia said that dozens of his customers come from neighboring Florida “because it’s $10 a carton cheaper.” House Bill 572 is the smallest of three proposed cigarette tax increases lawmakers have considered. Originally, Todd had proposed a tax increase of 32.5 cents. And as part of his budget plan, Gov. Robert Bentley had proposed an 82.5-cent tax increase on cigarettes. Todd’s proposal was one of several before the committee today as lawmakers try to agree on a path to overcome an estimated $541 million shortfall in the state budget. The committee also heard comment on legislation to increase taxes on car sales and car rentals, along with two proposals to cut state employee pay through furloughs or by cancelling annual bonuses. The committee chairman indicated that the panel will reconvene on Wednesday for a formal vote.
Pulitzer winner Joey Kennedy, wife launch animal advocacy website
A new website focusing on animal rights launched this week, though the man behind will be familiar to most Alabama advocates and lawmakers. Pulitzer Prize winner Joey Kennedy and his wife Veronica, a freelance editor and former social media marketer, have launched ALAnimals.com to spotlight animal welfare and protection issues across the state. Kennedy spent more than 33 years as at the Birmingham News and was on its editorial board from 1989 until early this year. In a conversation with ALToday.com, Kennedy said the site will be a clearinghouse of information for animal owners and advocates. “Right now there are dozens of great resources out there, but you’ve got to go to each one,” Kennedy said. “We want to bring that all together so a person can go to our site and get what they need.” One of the site’s major functions will be to spotlight state laws and municipal ordinances concerning treatment of animals and to advocate for stronger protections. “In Alabama, we don’t have a lot of laws that govern animal abuse,” he said. “We finally got a pretty strong abuse law, though it isn’t aggressively enforced.” Among the legislation the group will watch at the state level are Rep. Paul Beckman’s House Bill 548 to place restrictions on puppy mills and Rep. Patricia Todd’s House Bill 563 to treat spay and neuter clinics as veterinary facilities. Kennedy said both proposals sound promising, but may have come too late in the season to be passed this year. “It sounds like it’s on the right track. It’s a baby step, but it’s a good thing. Sometimes you have to go (through the legislative process) three or four times before it finally clicks. What you have to do is introduce it and start walking it through.” In his first post for ALAnimals.com, he called the website a continuation of the animal issues journalism he and his wife have both done over the years. “We have so far to go as a state, on many issues,” Joey Kennedy said. “Animal welfare and protection is among those issues. While we do not have felony laws against animal abuse, many law enforcement officers and prosecutors are slow to make cases, even when the evidence is clear.” While still writing for the Birmingham News and AL.Com Joey Kennedy frequently used his voice and platform as a strong advocate for animals. He was a constant voice in support of legislation to protect nonprofit spay/neuter clinics. Photo credit: By Pugman at en.wikipedia [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons
State Supreme Court rules against payday lenders
The Alabama Supreme Court has ruled that the state Banking Department can establish a payday loan database to enforce an existing $500 limit on how much people can borrow at one time from the short-term lenders. The decision was a victory for advocates who have sought restrictions on the loans, but they say it does not go far enough in limiting an industry they said preys upon the financially vulnerable. A payday loan store owner argued that the database is unworkable because much of the industry is online and untouched by state regulation. Payday lenders sued Alabama’s Banking Department in 2013 to block creation of the system. Justices upheld a Montgomery’s judge’s ruling that the state was within its rights to establish the database. “It was great. Hallelujah,” said Rep. Patricia Todd, a Birmingham Democrat. Todd was sponsoring legislation to spell out that the state had the right to create the database. She said she will withdraw her bill that was up for a vote Tuesday in the House of Representatives. Existing law prohibits people from taking more than $500 in loans at one time. However, that limit is essentially unenforceable without a centralized system to track the loans. Shay Farley, legal director of Alabama Appleseed, said the database will give the state the tools it needs to enforce the loan limit. A store owner said borrowers will seek out loans from online lenders. “The database, it will not work. It’s just not going to work. Over 50 percent of the industry is online and unregulated by the state of Alabama,” said Max Wood, the owner of Cash Spot stores in Birmingham and Tuscaloosa. Although the Banking Department has announced the creation of the database, it is unclear when it will be implemented. The department announced last week that a June rollout date had been delayed. Todd, Farley and other advocates said other reforms are needed in addition to the database. “While we believe these regulations are a step in the right direction, it doesn’t end the 456 percent interest rates payday lenders are allowed to charge Alabamians,” said Sara Zampierin, a staff attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center. Bills pending in the Alabama Senate patterned after Colorado regulations would give borrowers up to six months to repay the loans instead of just 10 to 14 days. The longer repayment window would reduce what borrowers pay. Customers are unable to pay off a payday loan within two weeks, advocates said, and accumulate large fees by rolling over the loan or taking out subsequent loans to pay off the first. Wood said many storefronts closed after Colorado put similar requirements on payday lenders. Republished with permission from The Associated Press.
Patricia Todd picked to be director of Human Rights Campaign Alabama
Alabama’s only openly gay legislator is the new state director of a group that advocates for gay rights. Democratic state Rep. Patricia Todd of Birmingham was introduced Friday as the new state director of the Human Rights Campaign in Alabama. The Washington-based group calls itself the nation’s largest civil rights organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. It’s working on a project to increase acceptance of gays and lesbians in Alabama, Arkansas and Mississippi. Todd says the job is a continuance of her work for LGBTQ equality. Project One America interim director Hayden Mora says Todd has a “unique combination of intellect, leadership, and moxie.” Todd worked for the last 10 years at AIDS Alabama, most recently serving as the organization’s executive director. Republished with permission of The Associated Press.
