Evan Mealins

Evan Mealins is a reporting intern at the Alabama Political Reporter and student at Auburn University working toward a B.A. in media studies. You can follow him on Twitter @EvanMealins or email him at [email protected].

News / Education / State

Commission on Higher Education focuses on making college more affordable

At the quarterly meeting for the Alabama Commission on Higher Education on Friday, Commission members focused on easing the path to college for more students by making higher education more affordable. “Student success is crucial in continuing Alabama’s economic momentum,” said Commission Executive Director Jim Purcell. Next year’s education budget, the largest in state history, … Continued

June 10, 2019

Sen. Jones: Trump’s proposed Mexico tariffs will be “incredibly damaging”

Sen. Doug Jones spoke out against President Trump’s proposed 5 percent tariffs on Mexican goods during a talk with Alabama media outlets on Thursday, calling them “incredibly damaging for the American people, and particularly the people of Alabama.” “Mexico is Alabama’s third largest trading partner,” said Jones. “In 2018 alone, Alabama imported more than $4.2 … Continued

June 7, 2019

Civil asset forfeiture bill passes House, but is it enough?

On Thursday, the Alabama House passed Senate Bill 191 that would increase transparency around civil asset forfeiture in the state. It now moves to Gov. Kay Ivey’s desk for approval. “SB 191’s passage is a good first step toward bringing more transparency to Alabama’s civil asset forfeiture practices,” said Robyn Hyden, executive director of Alabama … Continued

May 31, 2019

House Democrats discuss new education budget, successes, shortcomings

On Wednesday, State Reps. Pebblin Warren, D-Birmingham, and Kirk Hatcher, D-Montgomery, led a discussion about the Education Trust Fund budget that was passed on Tuesday. “Our future is only as strong as our education system is today,” Warren said at the Democrats’ weekly press conference. The education budget, Senate Bill 199, is marked at $7.1 … Continued

May 30, 2019

Study: Socioeconomic status correlates with higher test performance in Alabama

Results from Alabama’s 2018 standardized grade level tests have been released. Across the board, Alabama students in grades 3-8 scored 47.5 percent proficient in math and 46.3 percent proficient in reading. The proficiency rate for science is tested in the fifth and seventh grades and Alabama students scored 38.0 percent proficient in science. 2018 was … Continued

May 23, 2019

Ivey announces record tourism growth in Alabama

On Monday, Gov. Kay Ivey announced record-breaking tourism statistics for 2018. The tourism industry attracted 27.7 million visitors in 2018, a million more than ever before. “We are excited our tourism industry grew by 8.5 percent in 2018, and we are proud to welcome millions of visitors to every region of our state, from the … Continued

May 21, 2019

Sen. Doug Jones, colleagues introduce bill to align secondary and higher education

Democratic Alabama Sen. Doug Jones and two of his colleagues introduced a bill last week to reduce the need for remedial courses and improve remedial programs in post-secondary education. The bill, called the Promoting Readiness in Education to Prevent Additional Remediation and Expense (PREPARE) Act, aims to align high school graduation requirements with entrance requirements … Continued

May 20, 2019

Senate approves bill to lower drug prices, improve transparency

A bill that could lower prescription drug costs for Alabamians passed the Alabama State Senate 27-0 on Wednesday. The bill—if passed in the House of Representatives and signed into law—will outlaw “gag clauses” used by pharmacy benefit managers. These contractual gag clauses keep pharmacists from informing a customer they could save money by purchasing a … Continued

May 17, 2019

SPLC launches new Voting Rights Practice Group

The Southern Poverty Law Center announced on Tuesday the formation of a Voting Rights Practice Group focused on fighting voter suppression, voter disenfranchisement and partisan gerrymandering around the country, primarily in the Deep South. On Monday, the group took its first official action at a congressional field hearing in Birmingham titled, “Voting Rights and Election … Continued

May 16, 2019