From ou statehouse studio in Montgomery.

I'm Todd Stacey.

Welcome to Capitol Journal.

Today was the second day of the Alabama Legislature's 2026 regular session.

That means it was time for the introduction of the state budgets under the state constitution.

The governor must submit her proposed general fund and Education Trust Fund budgets.

The day after the session begins.

House and Senate members gathered for a joint hearing here at the State House to hear from state budget leaders about their spending plans.

That started with Kirk Fulford of the Alabama Legislative Services Agency offerin lawmakers an economic outlook.

After all, the budgets tend to rise and fall based on the economy.

Fulford said the latest data shows Alabama's economy is strong.

So the Alabama economy is still strong.

We still are experienced experiencing above average growth, although like everyone else, our growth is moderating and coming back down to a more normal growth rate.

Our unemployment rate is below what the U.S.

rate is, is 2.7%, is down from a September rate of 2.8.

These figures are from November.

Because of the shutdown and the delay of getting information, state level information out.

There's only 65,000 unemployed people in Alabama, from that information, compared to 66 in September and 78,000 last year.

So there's a drop of over 13,000.

And the number of unemploye people year over year, our labor marke participation rate is still 57.7 So let's take a closer look at what's in Governor Ivey' proposed budgets released today.

We'll start with the general fund, which pays for no education agencies and programs.

The governor's total budget proposal totals $3.6 billion for fiscal year 2027.

That's a slight decrease from the current fiscal year less than 1%.

The budget includes a 2% pay raise for state employees specific to agencies.

The proposal calls for 1.17 billion for Alabama medicaid agency.

That's level funded from the current fiscal year, 867 million would go toward the Department of Corrections.

Again, that's the same amount it had in this year's budget.

The Department of Mental Health is slated for 243 million about a half percent decrease.

And the Alabama law Enforcement agency would get 143 million, also level funded from the current fiscal year.

Now to the Education Trust Fund, which pays for the range of education programs from pre- all the way through higher ed.

The total proposed budget is $10.4 billion, which would be a new record for the state and a 5.75% increase over the current fiscal year.

It also includes a 2% pay raise for teachers and other education employees.

Breaking down the budge by category K through 12 schools would receive $5.8 billion, a 6% increase over the current fiscal year.

State universities would ge 1.88 billion, a 5.84% increase.

The Alabama Community College System would receive $685 million, a 5.75% increase.

The state Department o Education would get 955 million, a 3.5% increase over the current fiscal year.

And early childhood education which includes the first class pre-K program, would get 226 million, a 6.9 6.29% increase over the current fiscal year.

Of course, today was just the first step in the budgeting process.

Lawmakers will now begin marking them up in committee with inputs from all kinds of stakeholders, and then eventually sending them to the floor.

That process usually takes a few months.

The House and Senate have a tradition of taking turns on the two budgets.

This year, the general fund will start in the House, and the Education Trust Fund will start in the Senate.

And of course, we'll be following those budgets every step of the way here on Capitol Journal, onto committee action.

As lawmakers on the Judiciary Committee's wasted no time taking up high profile, high profile bills today.

We'll start in the House Judiciary Committee, where lawmakers considered legislation that would allow the death penalty for those convicted of rape or sodomy of a child under the age of 12.

The bill from state Representative Matt Simpson came up last year after reports surfaced of a brutal child se trafficking ring in Bibb County.

Simpson says multiple state are considering the same policy, which he argues takes away the unusual nature of the punishment for constitutional purposes.

But State Representative Chris England pushed back, saying that the death penalty is reserved for crimes that result in the death of a victim.

It's it's cruel and unusual, cruel part o it, because it also in the dicta that that decision talks about killing or putting someone to death when the victim didn't die.

Correct.

Is that not also mentioned in the in the opinio it is mentioned, the rationale and the basis behind it was that it was unusual in that five states at the time used this.

There were only five states that used it.

Because of that they ruled that it was unusual.

And that is the that is the precursor of what they were discussing of this is what we're saying.

It's unusual because only five states have this punishment.

Since that time, Florida in 2023 passed this bill, Tennessee in 2024 passed this bill.

Idaho, Oklahoma and Arkansas in 2025 passed this bill.

What they are doing is showing that it is not unusual.

And this is a nationwide push to show that this is not an unusual punishment.

And therefore the rational and Kennedy is no longer valid.

And this is the tip of the arrow to challenge that.

Now, I imagine one of thos states would probably go first.

I know Florida has already pursued one case where the death penalty is being there, and they're prosecuting under the death penalty.

I anticipate that that would b the first case to be challenged in the Supreme Court.

And when Florida gets up and makes their argument to the Supreme Court about that, it is not unusual.

They're going to use these other four states that have joined them and said, it's not unusual to look at these other ones.

I would like Alabama to be added to that list to say no.

Now there's five state and potentially you're talking more states after the 2026 legislative session to go through.

So we're so we're showing tha this is not unusual punishment.

And that's the push that everybody.

But the other part of that decision was the five four decision found that Louisiana's law allowing capital punishment for the rape of a child under 12 was disproportionate, as the crime did not result in death and violated the evolving standards of decency.

The court held that the death penalty should be reserve for crimes that take human life.

That bill eventually advanced out of committe and now goes to the full House.

The Senate Judiciary Committee took up a bill named in memory of a young man whose family says legal silenc contributed to his tragic death.

Senator Matt Woods is sponsoring today's law, which would make nondisclosure agreements unenforceable in civil cases involving sexual abuse.

The bill is named for Trey Carlock, a Texas native whose family says being barred from speaking out about his abuse playe a role in his death by suicide.

Some committee, some committee members raised concerns about possible unintended consequences after his abuser was sentenced to three life terms in 2010 to pursue justice, to hold others involved accountable through civil litigation.

The Retraumatizing process ended with a settlement agreement that included a restrictiv nondisclosure agreement barring Trey from ever speaking about his abuse and the camp's role in it.

Sadly, at age 28, Trey died by suicide after telling a therapist they will always control me and I'll never be free.

I'm worried that the consequence may be when we're talking about not the offender, but rather an entity that certainly has liability.

But I'm concerned that I'm concerned that we're really going to negatively impact settlement amounts.

I think you cannot put up a price on a person who has gone through trauma, particularly a child.

And to me, part of the healing proces is to be able to talk about it.

And then I think about in them sharing their story, they can help so many other people.

That bill advanced out of committe and now goes to the full Senate.

The House Education Policy Committee met today and considered legislation that would support the Dolly Parton imagination.

Libraries work inside the state to provide books to childre to promote childhood literacy.

Committee chairman Terry Collins said the progra is already making a difference, but it needs more support from the state to reach more children.

House Bill 50 is the bil that we talked about last year about Imagination Library, and it's the Alabama program, and we are actually working on this now.

We are funding it at the state level.

It has a 50% local level match.

We are working.

I think they even may have come finally gotten it in all 67 counties.

I've heard nothing but positive things about it.

It's to promote the love of reading in our young people and what it does.

Her Imagination Library sends a book a month once a child is born, until they start school.

And it's just a wonderful program, supported by any, there is a reportin that goes out at the end I like, and it's the number of programs where they are, the number of children that are reached, the number of books that have gone ou and, who the local partner is.

That bill passed out of committe and now goes to the full House.

Lawmakers today paused to honor the life of Montgomery native Claudette Colvin, who passe away Tuesday at the age of 85.

If you're not familiar with Colvin's name, there might be a good reason for that.

She was just 15 years ol in 1955, when she was arrested for refusing to give up her sea on a segregated Montgomery bus that happened nine months before.

The more high profile arrest of Rosa Parks, which sparked the Montgomery bus boycott and in many ways, the entire civil rights movement.

Colvin was never as well know as parks, but in recent decades her story has become bette known in the annals of history.

Today, on the Senate floor, lawmakers reflected on her courag and the legacy that she leaves.

When we were signing our paperwork, I had the opportunity just to talk with her and I, and I asked her what was going through your mind that day.

I mean, how often d we get a chance to hear directly from someone who was a part of the fabri of the history of this country?

So I said, what was going through your mind that day?

You know what?

What gave you that courage?

And she told me, she said we had some great teachers and we had just been studying about the role that African Americans had played in Africans all over the world.

And she said, I was just filled with pride.

And I can't imagine doing something like that at age 15, when I was 15.

And she stood for righteousness and justice.

And so many of us in this chamber today, in the also in the House chamber and across the state, stand on her shoulders, tha we would not be in the positions that we're in today for he not making that courageous move.

What a legacy.

We'll take a quick break and return of more of what happened today, the second day of the legislative session.

Stay with us.

You can watch past episodes of Capital Journal online any time at Alabama Public Television's website.

Appy tv.org.

Click on the online video tab on the main page.

You can also connect with Capital Journal and link to past episodes on Capital Journal's Facebook page.

Born in Fairfield, Alabama.

Willie Mays is one of the greatest baseball players to ever play the game in 22 major league seasons, mostly with the New York and later San Francisco Giants.

Mays had a 302 lifetim batting average and amassed 3283 hits, 660 home runs, and an untouchable total of 7095 career putouts from the outfield.

Mays was the National League Rookie of the year in 1951, and played a significant role in the New York Giants World Series victory in 1954.

The most memorable moment and Mays.

His career occurred in the first game of that series, when he made a running over the shoulder catch at the warning track, popularly known as The Catch.

Mays earne two MVP awards, was awarded 12 Gold Gloves, made 24 All-Star game appearances, and was a first ballo Hall of Fame inductee in 1979.

In 2015, President Barack Obama awarded May a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Welcome back to Capital Journal.

For the last four years I've invited lawmakers, cabinet officers, members of the judiciary, and government affairs professionals to gather the morning after the state of the state for the Alabama Daily News Legislative issues.

Breakfast.

This year featured a conversation with House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter.

Senate President Pro Tem Garland, governor and Hous Minority Leader Anthony Daniels.

We talked about what to.

What to expect this session on issues like education, taxes, health care and affordability.

We also talked about how despite political differences, the Alabama legislature manage to avoid the toxic partizanship that has plagued Washington, D.C.. Here are some of the highlight from this morning's breakfast.

I really appreciate y'all making time.

It's a it's a busy start to the legislative session.

But, Mr.

Speaker, I was going to start with you kind of on that, subject of time.

Everybody in this room is curious about the pace of this legislative session.

There's a lot of talk about three day weeks.

We know there's one this week.

Probably next week.

Can you kind of, enlighten us as to what the pace of this legislative session will be, how many three day weeks and kind of the reason behind that.

Yeah.

First of all, let me say it's good to be here today and thank you for what you do.

And I mentioned this last year, but I think Todd and his crew deserves a round of applause for being true journalists.

And that's.

Thank you.

It's it's it's really getting harder and harder to find.

So thank you for that.

You know, let me say this.

It's sort of been a pleasure working with Garland and Anthony.

I mean, they're great men and do a tremendous job, and and they love this state, just like I do.

And, you know, we go into this session because we've got election cycles, we've got members that has done a really good job.

And we want to try to keep them, because the growth that we've had in Alabama and the successful had is because of the people that serve.

And without question, I think we got servant legislators more than not.

And, especially in the House on the garlic to speak to the Senate.

But, I am really proud of them and what they've done.

So our goal is to try to move along, get get them back in their districts to campaign.

I mean, I'm not gonna make a that's just the fact.

And the thing about i is, you know, we're not going to skip on the work we do.

We just talked about it at the table.

We will have committee meetings today.

We put we'll put bills on the floor tomorrow.

So even though we're doing three day weeks, we're going to be moving legislation.

You know we eliminated one of the spring breaks to be able to get in quicker.

We'll do some three day weeks.

The one thing about the three day wake up front, it helps us start the process Senator Garrett, last night one of the things we heard from the governor was momentum, right?

That was a big theme to her speech.

And what I took away from that, kind of reading between the lines was she's obviously in her last year.

She's very proud of a lot of the progress that y'all have made together.

And I was specifically thinking about things like education and the way to take away, I was thinking was like, she doesn't want to take her foot off the gas.

Because we've seen what happens before when, you know, things like the Reading initiative, stop getting Funded and all that kind of stuff.

So understanding this is her last year in office, understanding we're going to have a new governor about this time next year.

How does the legislature keep some of this momentum, as she's talked about and even just continuity on some of the things I've worked on, understanding that there's gonna be a lot of new people coming into office about this time next year.

Continuity, momentum, all kind of rolls in together when we talk about politics.

And then when she was talking about the momentum that we had last night and what we talked about, afterwards were a lot of the different people in the state constitutional offices are on the ballot.

You've got a new governor that's probably coming in next year, and you can tell she doesn't want to take her foot off the glass of the gas, and that she wants to continue to, to make things happen.

The reason being, I believe, is because we've made that momentum.

We're going in a fast pace.

Now, if you just look at education back to your example on the Numeracy and Literacy Act, we've moved up 15 spots in the literacy, eight spots in the Numeracy Act.

And then if you look at overall, we're number one as far as the growth that's been moving of those spots.

So she can see that momentum changing and moving th needle in the state of Alabama.

And so I think that's a partnership.

And I always talk about team work when we get in front of people.

Because wha no one person can do anything.

If you don't have a group of people around you that surround yourself with the same vision, then you're not going to really be able to accomplish your goals, especially large goals.

Mr.

leader, of course we're talking about fast pace, things like that.

But you can always slow things down, as y'all sometimes say, on the House floor, just in case it get you moving a little too quick.

We talked about this recently.

Last time you're on Capitol Journal, I guess that was last week you came on and I asked yo specifically about one of your signature pieces of legislation, and that was, eliminating the income statement tax on overtime.

Wildly popular bill, but obviously it expired.

You know, this is the sunset was in there partially because of the revenue, you know unexpected, hit on the revenue.

So you talk about bringing it back.

But my question is, you know, knowing that we might see something like that, how might it be different?

How does it need to be different in order for it to, you know, pass muster and all that kind of stuff?

And what might we seen?

Make some news today, Mr.

Leader.

I think for me, just really looking at the budget and seeing where we are, but also making the case, as I tried to make before going out last year about the, the, the profit, the corporate, tax receipts, there received as a result of the industries that individuals were seeking jobs and working in jobs especially in our manufacturing, in our health care system as well, but also, looking at the individual income tax receipts that were also, gain as a, as relates to the overtime bill.

And so when you start looking at, the corporate tax receipts, so if I'm a chicken plan in Bullitt County and I have 20 vendors and folks that I'm serving, but if I have employees working additional hours, by the end of the year, I'll make a decision to say, hey, maybe I'm able to add 3 or 4 new additional vendors.

Well that's increased the bottom line for that particular company, which increases the corporate tax receipts that we're receiving at the state level.

And also their employees are making more money.

So some of them move in a different tax bracket.

And so the individuals income tax receipts increase, I think about 1.9% in the corporate tax receipts above 10%.

And so when you see those projections and then the spending that hourly workers are whe they're spending in the economy, it also brings back revenue an local county and state budgets.

And so when you look at those particular areas and the impact that it had on the workforce participation rate, it's a no brainer.

We wrap up on this and let everybody get back to the state House.

But y'all heard me say many times, whether it's own Capital Journal or an events like this, that, one of the things I want to, prevent and avoid i what happened in Washington, DC.

I want to prevent that from happening in Montgomery.

We've seen how over the last couple of decades, really, especially the last decade, how poisonous, toxic partizanship has really just made Congress really unworkable.

There's so much out of DC, and I really want to prevent that and help avoid that from happening all summer, because when I see the legislature, when I saw y'all last night and deserv y'all over the last eight years, I see a lot of partizanship.

I mean, y'all argue about things all the time, but at the end of the day, it just does not seem nearly as toxic.

As Washington.

So that's what I want to end on.

This only got a little bit of time, but could you all talk about tha in terms of preserving, knowing that we're in an election year going to get a little chippy up there at times, but preserving this, vibes, this, camaraderie we have in Montgomery in terms of working together, getting along and not letting that toxic, politics creep down from DC.

Let me say this right off the bat.

Certainly.

It's good to see you in here.

And I'm glad his health is back.

And after you're here.

And listen, we just want to tell you.

And I. I've got to be honest about this.

Anthony is a dear friend of mine, and, I think the world of him.

I think he's a good leader.

We don't agree on all the policy issues, and we should.

But, you know, he's going to do what's right.

And I know at the end of the day, man, the only thing he's going t get on to me after this, though, because he's going to say, man, you should talk about me a little worse because I'm to get an opponent, because you did.

And that's what he said.

That's what he told me last night, I actually.

So I don't hear that.

But yeah, he's he's one of those guys that I don't care to go to lunch with, you know, I'll meet him in Huntsville.

He'll ask me to come over for events he's doing for the kid over there, and we've done that.

And he knows if he needs me, all he's gotta do is call me.

And, you know, we come in at the same time.

We will merge leaders together and Anthony Daniels is my friend.

And, I think that is where it needs to be with Partizanship.

Yeah, I love him.

I love his family.

And, Yeah, his little brother is so much like him.

It's unbelievable.

But I think and getting to know the people as people and getting to understand where they come from and why, it's somethin that we need to do all the time.

Yeah.

Well, said, Mr.

Carter, I believe people are people, and we're all fleshly at times, and we get emotional and get upset and we go up and down with our emotions.

But most of the people I feel like that are in the legislature and the people that support us, which is everybody in this room, look at the hearts of the people that we're dealing with, and we have to we have to legislate and help our districts.

And we know our districts all over the state are totally different, right?

Anthony's is different than mine.

At the same time, if I went into downtown Birmingham, Roger Smitherman is different than mine.

In the end, if we don't have that relationship and trust with each other that we're doing this for the right reasons, and that I know that if there's got to be a way I can support them.

And sometimes one siz doesn't fit all, so one statue does not help the whole state.

We have to understand that and be have empathy for that.

But I do think by looking at each other's hearts and having trust, we can get past that toxic politic and I don't see as much of that as obviously we do at the federal government.

But I'm blessed to have really good friends on both sides of the aisle.

And I think we can continue to do that to make sure Alabama moves forward, because that's our goa on both sides of that, Mr.

Lee.

So, I would say there' a long as the cameras are off.

The speaker is right.

You know, he's one of my best friends.

And we talk about a lot of different things, not just in politics.

And I think that oftentimes in politics, you you deal on the policy side.

And some of our members, you know they get on the campaign trail and they try to bring the campaign into the chamber, and we try to stop them at the door to ensure that we're the things that we are prioritizing.

That's good for the state of Alabama, that we're focusing on those areas.

We know that there's some disagreement, and let's be very respectful in our disagreement and so to speak.

And I, we have leadership meetings every week.

And in those leadershi meetings, we try to set the tone for what' going to happen in the chamber.

So there are no surprises.

And he know how I am.

I don't even like birthday parties.

And so there's no surprises on the floor.

And we kind of try to get things worked out.

And if things can't be worked out, we try to get the members to meet with each other about bills and that that members may have concern about certain bills and, and get them to tal at that level so that it doesn't go to the floor.

And if we can't work it out we have a process that we use, to, to allow a lot of time, as to how we're going to deal with a particular issue and making certain that things stay germane.

And so these things get work.

That communication is just like a marriage, you know, communication and communicating and being open and honest about things on the front en so that there are no surprises on the back end and that our members, understand exactly what's going on.

I want to thank those legislative leader for their time and candor today, as well as all the sponsors who made the event possible.

We'll look forward to doing it again next year.

And that's our show for tonight.

Thanks for watching.

We'll be back tomorrow night at the same time right here on Alabama Public Television for our Capitol Journal team.

I'm Todd Stacey.

We'll see you next time.