Alabama top stories in brief
- The Alabama legislature has officially passed HB479, which, unless vetoed by Gov. Kay Ivey, will cut the state’s grocery tax from 4% to 3% this September. If the Alabama Education Trust Fund sees an estimated growth in revenue of at least 3.5%, then the tax will be cut to 2%. If fully implemented, the tax cut is expected to save the average Alabama family $300 per year from their grocery bill.
- The state of Alabama intends to execute James Edward Barber by lethal injection. They will have 30 hours starting July 20 to complete the execution, and this will be the first attempted execution since November of 2022. The 30 hour period of time for executions is part of recent changes made to the execution process. These changes came after Ivey temporarily put a halt to all executions while the process was reviewed after the state failed to complete its second execution in two months.
- The National Park Service announced in May that it had awarded over $3.1 million in grants to six civil rights preservation projects in Alabama. Alabama isn’t alone in receiving grants. The funds are part of $21 million distributed across 16 states for the African American Civil Rights Grant Program.
- The House Ethics and Campaign Finance committee approved SB196 last week, which would require public agencies to acknowledge and respond to public records requests. In the committee, the bill was changed to allow public information officers to ignore requests if they were deemed vague, ambiguous or unreasonable in scope. The bill now needs to be passed in the house and then go back to the senate.
Alabama Legislature passes bill to ban state entities contracting with companies that boycott fossil fuel providers
The Alabama legislature passed a bill last week to restrict government entities’ ability to enter into certain contracts with companies that boycott other businesses based upon environmental or social concerns.
SB261 says that it will “prohibit governmental entities from entering into certain contracts with companies that boycott businesses because the business engages in certain sectors or does not meet certain environmental or corporate governance standards or does not facilitate certain activities.”
The bill defines an economic boycott as refusing to do business “without an ordinary business purpose.”.
The bill has several specific examples of economic boycotts, including: being a part of the fossil fuel industry, supporting the use of firearms, not committing to meet environmental standards or disclosure criteria and not offering access to abortion or gender transition surgery.
Alabama is not the only state to pass a bill of this nature. Other republican led states have pushed for similar measures, which are known as anti-environmental, social and governance bills.
ESG is a lens which some investors use to make financial decisions.
The environmental element means that ESG investors might avoid companies with a poor track record when it comes to environmental regulations or look for companies that have specific policies in place designed to reduce environmental impacts.
The social aspect could mean that the investors consider how a company treats its employees. It also can include social issues, like abortion or the Black Lives Matter movement.
The governance aspect has to do with how well the company is being run by its executives.
The three elements of ESG don’t all have to be considered together, and some companies or investors focus more on certain aspects than others.
Lawmakers critical of ESG say that it is politicizing investing.
“This bill requires companies that contract with the state to certify that they don’t boycott other companies based on any purpose other than ordinary business purposes,” said Rep. Chip Brown, R-Hollinger’s Island, who carried the SB261 in the House.
Opponents of the bill believe that it is an impediment upon free market and free speech.
“This is just government interfering into the private affairs of a business,” said Rep. Neil Rafferty, D-Birmingham.
There are exceptions to the bill. State entities may still contract with companies that do not comply with the requirements if: the government entity made “good faith efforts to obtain services meeting the requirements,” it would be significantly more expensive to hire a group that follows these requirements and the government entity “determines that a waiver is clearly in the best interest of the public.”
The bill has been passed by both houses and awaits Gov. Kay Ivey’s approval.
Our articles you might have missed
- In the latest edition of The Alabama Ramble, our Alabama travel columnist, Wesley Miller visited the charming town of Elkmont, where he sampled specialty cheese and visited some amazing trails. The Alabama Ramble is a column that occurs every two months. Wesley travels the state to visit sites both famous and obscure, meet with locals and revel in the many adventures you can have here in Alabama.
- The most recent edition of The Breathing Room covers the limitations of human relationships and the love we can share in a short time. Read “I can only give you now,” by managing editor Hannah Irvin on our website.
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