Catch up on the biggest news about people, places, events and activities happening in Huntsville and the Tennessee Valley for the week ending June 2nd, 2023.
Gov. Kay Ivey has signed into law Alabama’s largest ever education and General Fund budgets, along with two supplemental spending bills for budget surpluses. The budgets are for the fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. AL.com reports the education budget will allocate $8.8 billion from the Education Trust Fund. That amount is $537 million, or 6.5%, more than this year. The educationsupplemental bill will allocate another $2.8 billion. The supplemental is the result of a surplus that was available because tax revenues exceeded expenditures last year. The General Fund budget will allocate $3 billion for non-education state programs, such as Medicaid, prisons, courts, law enforcement, mental health, and others. The budget is 6% higher than the current year. The supplemental allocates another $208 million from the General Fund for state and local programs and projects.
Governor Ivey also signed a new law prohibiting people from loitering on a public roadway or in the right-of-way of a public roadway. The bill also prohibits pedestrians from soliciting employment, business, or contributions or distributing articles on a highway. Representative Reed Ingram tells WHNT TV violators of the new law will be charged with a misdemeanor and face jail time and it’s an officer’s discretion whether to take them in. This law goes into effect across the state on August 1st of this year.
Alabama lawmakers on Thursday approved a gradual 2 percentage point cut on the state portion of the sales tax assessed on groceries. The tax cut, which could be fully implemented by September 1, 2024, is estimated to bring an estimated $300 annual savings in the typical Alabama family’s grocery bill. AL.com reports The cut would only take effect if the projected growth revenues into the state’s education budget are at or above 3-1/2%. The House version required a growth rate of 2% before the sales tax cut would be allowed. The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to rule next month in a case that could result in Alabama redrawing its seven Congressional districts. It could also affect other states in how the Voting Rights Act is applied. The lawsuit filed in 2021, challenged the district map approved by the Alabama Legislature after the 2020 census. The plaintiffs alleged that the map violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits election laws and procedures that are racially discriminatory. AL.com reports a key contention was that Black residents make up 27% of Alabama’s population, but only one of the seven Congressional districts, or 14%, had a majority Black population.
FBI Director Christopher Wray has committed to further growth at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville. Wray told a Senate hearing that the FBI is “on track” to increase staffing from 1,800 employees now to “about 3,000″ employees. The testimony came during a hearing of the Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee. Senator Katie Britt of Alabama sits on that committee. It was in response to her questions about the bureau’s commitment to Redstone growth. AL.com reports federal funding for ongoing construction at the FBI campus on Redstone has already exceeded $3 billion. The Land Trust of North Alabama will officially open Hickory Cove Nature Preserve, its tenth public preserve, on Saturday which is National Trails Day. A quick celebration and ribbon cutting at 9 AM will be followed by guided hikes. Land Trust board and staff will be available to answer questions. To join the celebration, turn right into the Trailhead community at the intersection of Highway 72 and Moores Mill Road. Then turn right onto Trailhead Main Street. The greenway parking lot is located straight ahead at the end of the street. More information is at landtrustnal.org.