Skip to content

lobbyist

News / State

Bill to exempt economic developers from registering as lobbyists passes Senate

Economic developers may soon be exempted from registering as lobbyist after a tense day in the Legislature characterized with delay tactics and a narrow Senate vote. House bill 314, which would exempt economic developers from registering as lobbyist, cleared the Senate on Wednesday, but it took many hours of delay tactics by opposing senators. Sens. … Continued
March 29, 2018

Senate committee gives favorable report to economic developer bill HB317

The Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee gave a favorable report to a much-amended version of House Bill 317 after a lengthy discussion. House Bill 317 is sponsored by state Rep. Ken Johnson, R-Moulton, and is being carried by Senate Pro Tem Del Marsh, R-Anniston, in the Senate. The Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development … Continued
March 22, 2018

Are Hubbard-Riley emails key to answering the mystery surrounding HB317?

By Bill Britt Alabama Political Reporter Controversy still clings to HB317, also known as The Alabama Jobs Enhancement Act, despite the substitute added Tuesday that, at first blush, appears to fix problems with the original bill. Concerns remain. The mystery of why a substantial change to the Ethics Act is linked to amendments addressing business … Continued
March 8, 2018

Bill to clarify the role of economic developers passes House

By Brandon Moseley Alabama Political Reporter Tuesday, the Alabama House of Representatives passed a controversial bill that specified that economic developers are not lobbyists. The House Bill 317’s sponsor is state Rep. Ken Johnson, R-Moulton. Johnson said that this bill is the Alabama Commerce Department’s. This bill has been widely panned in the media for … Continued
March 7, 2018

Willful American stupidity: How Russia rigged the U.S. election

By Josh Moon Alabama Political Reporter This is how Russia manipulated a U.S. presidential election. On Tuesday, my Facebook feed began filling up with posts about the Florida high school students who are leading the gun reform charge following the deadly shooting on their campus last week. Most of those posts were people in awe … Continued
February 22, 2018

Is HB317 a return to the orgy of greed and corruption? 

By Bill Britt Alabama Political Reporter At least it seemed for a moment that the cancer eating away at Alabama’s state government was in remission. The rise of Gov. Kay Ivey and Speaker Mac McCutcheon after the removal of Gov. Robert Bentley and Speaker Mike Hubbard appeared to herald a new day in state politics. … Continued
February 6, 2018

Under guise of economic development, legislation would open door for public officials to lobby government

By Bill Britt Alabama Political Reporter New legislation in the Alabama House of Representatives would alter the definition of lobbyist and lobbying in such a way as to open the floodgates for public officials to use their office for personal gain under the guise of economic development. Behind HB317 is Republican Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield, … Continued
January 29, 2018

Is a former ALEA executive running afoul of revolving door statute?

By Bill Britt Alabama Political Reporter Recently, the Alabama First Responders Wireless Commission voted to recommend that Alabama opt-in to a first responders’ wireless network provided by AT&T. But there may be a problem. AT&T’s man on the ground in Alabama is the former executive director of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Former ALEA Executive … Continued
October 5, 2017

Alabama politicos react to Moore-Strange debate

By Brandon Moseley Alabama Political Reporter Thursday, Republican Senate candidates Roy Moore and Sen. Luther Strange, R-Ala., debated a number of issues in a Lincoln-Douglas style debate in Montgomery. Afterwards, supporters of both campaigns declared victory. Former state Rep. Perry Hooper Jr., who is also chair of Trump’s Victory Committee in Alabama, endorsed Strange. “The … Continued
September 25, 2017

Strange faces off against Moore in first and only debate

By Brandon Moseley  Alabama Political Reporter Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017, Roy Moore and Luther Strange finally faced in a debate in Montgomery. The Lincoln-Douglas style debate had no actual moderator and did not really have much disagreement on the actual issues.  The two Republican Senate candidates both enthusiastically support President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great … Continued
September 22, 2017