A federal appeals court ruled this week that Alabama can now enforce its ban on gender-affirming care. The law, titled Vulnerable Child Compassion and Protection Act, prohibits minors from receiving puberty blockers, hormone therapy or gender-affirming surgeries. It also punishes not only doctors, but also “any other individual” who “prescribes or administers” the treatments with a felony conviction and up to 10 years in jail. AL.com reports a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a district judge’s injunction that had temporarily blocked the state from enforcing the ban. A trial is scheduled for April 2 on whether to permanently block the law.
Seven years after voting to sell its Bellefonte nuclear plant site, the Tennessee Valley Authority decided to keep the Jackson County power plant for another potential use. AL.com reports TVA directors voted Thursday to rescind their 2016 declaration of most of the Bellefonte site as surplus and will retain ownership of one of America’s biggest unfinished construction projects. How TVA will use the 1,400-acre riverfront site has not yet determined.
Also on Thursday, The Tennessee Valley Authority approved a rate hike. It’s the utility’s first such hike in four years. WHNT TV reports the 4.5 percent increase is set to go into effect on Oct. 1.
A free course through the Alabama Community College System is offering steps toward getting a license to drive a school bus. WBRC TV in Birmingham reports that since announcing their free training, the Alabama Community College System has helped 115 school districts fill the need for drivers. ACCS courses are funded through the state legislature, which allows them to offer no cost training. For those interested in learning more or applying, the website is innovation.accs.edu
Huntsville is ranked No. 1 on a new list of “North America’s Next 25 up-and-coming markets for tech talent.” That’s according to a report by the real estate services and investment company CBRE Group. AL.com reports Huntsville has seen double-digit growth in technology jobs with a five-year growth rate of 14 percent and total tech wages rising 13 percent. That’s an average tech salary in Huntsville of $96,000. Most of the new top 25 are in the South and Midwest. The list also includes Birmingham at No. 22.