Alabama top stories in brief

• Governor Kay Ivey signed a $74.9 million contract last week for the West Alabama Corridor project, a plan which will create a four lane highway from Tuscaloosa to Thomasville. Funds for the project will come from bonds financed by the additional revenue provided by the gas tax increase approved by lawmakers 2019. 

• Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to jail Rep. John Rogers for violating the conditions of his bond by contacting a witness in his case. According to prosecutors, Rogers attempted to contact a witness via FaceTime. The witness did not answer the call and reported it to the prosecution. Rogers was charged with two counts of obstruction of justice relating to a case of mismanagement of state funds. The case involved Rep. Fred Plump, who pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy and obstruction of justice. 

• On October 25, 2023, Montgomery Circuit Judge James Anderson dismissed a lawsuit in which Birmingham Southern College accused Alabama State Treasurer Young Boozer of arbitrarily vetoing a loan. Judge Anderson dismissed the lawsuit due to sovereign immunity, despite the BSC attorney’s claiming an exception to immunity of Boozer acting in a “arbitrary and capricious manner.” After the dismissal, BSC’s future remains unclear as they continue to financially struggle. 

• After several court cases and rule changes, the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission has announced that they will completely reset the licensing process, including all 90 previous applicants. The commission holds that it maintains full discretion in their decisions, however, new rules allow applicants to contest deficiencies in their applications. Applicants can also provide additional materials to their files that previously they could not. As ongoing litigation continues, AMCC will begin accepting public comments for and against applicants on Oct. 27, until Nov. 26. 

• As part of the 2021 federal Infrastructure bill, Alabama is beginning the process of grant approvals for the $80 million allocated to the state for electric vehicle charging stations. The $80 million, provided over the course of the next five years will be awarded by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs. Early projects will be focused within a mile of Alabama interstate systems, while later rounds may see expansion of EV stations in rural areas of the state. 

Our articles you might have missed

• In “Singing Alabama’s Praises,” our third episode of From Dusk to Dawn, we sit down with Wesley Miller, the writer for our travel column, The Alabama Ramble. Wesley shares stories about his recent trip to Wetumpka Alabama and talks about why he cares so much about telling the local stories of Alabama. You can check out the transcript on our website or listen to the episode on Spotify. 

Announcements

• We’ve decided to make our event calendar free for everyone! We’ll let everyone list events on our calendar for free until May 31, 2024. 

• There will be no October edition of The Breathing Room. We will publish an artist feature in its place this Tuesday. 

Events this week

• Alabama Invitational: An exhibition featuring work created by current and former Alabama artists in the mediums of sculpture, glass, photography, painting and textiles produced by artists originally from or currently based in Alabama. View more details on our event calendar. 

• If you’re interested in having your event advertised on our calendar, you can submit events here. 

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