Tuesday 5/6/2008 DAILY NEWS DIGEST
Birmingham News - House to vote today on measure to exempt federal stimulus checks from state income tax.
Birmingham News - The Birmingham News reviews the Senate’s actions this legislative session, finds much to be done in final days of regular session.
Mobile Press-Register - Senate passes resolution supporting John Birch Society “urban legend.”
Mobile Press-Register - “The Political Skinny,” the weekly roundup from Mobile, Montgomery and Washington for readers of the Press-Register.
Tuscaloosa News - The Tuscaloosa News reviews Governor’s tax proposal, concluding that “most of what everyone wants and pleases no one entirely.”
Anniston Star - The Anniston Star looks at the connection between state’s income gap and education gap.
Anniston Star - The Anniston Star reviews issues facing legislature in final days of 2008 regular session.
Times Daily - The Times Daily says efforts to tie four-year cycle for property tax appraisal to proposal to end sales tax on food may doom both proposals.
Montgomery Advertiser - Time running out for state to criminalize purported hallucinogenic plant.
Montgomery Advertiser - The Montgomery Advertiser urges state senate to allow voters to decide on whether to remove sales tax from grocery purchases.
Opelika-Auburn News - Commentary by House Minority Leader and GOP chair Mike Hubbard (R-Auburn) says state’s voters deserve a state free of corruption.
Opelika-Auburn News - Commentary by Democratic chairman Joe Turnham says that “GOP hypocritical, not ethical” in battle over legislation to ban “double-dipping.”
FROM TODAY’S ANNISTON STAR:
Bill in House makes changes to Landlord-Tenant Act
By Markeshia Ricks
Staff Writer
05-06-2008
MONTGOMERY — Landlords could have a little more flexibility in dealing with tenants and appealing eviction judgments if a bill clears the House today.
The legislation clarifies some of the requirements for landlords in the state’s Uniform Residential Landlord-Tenant Act that was passed in 2006.
Sponsored by Rep. Jeff McLaughlin, D-Guntersville, the bill makes small changes to existing law, including making offenses such as criminal assault against another tenant, use of a firearm on the premises and drug possession immediate grounds for eviction.
The bill also relaxes restraints on access to rental property for requested repairs or property showings without a two-day notice, but with the consent of the tenant.
McLaughlin said the legislation simply cleans up language in existing law, and is not an attempt to significantly change it.
“I think the Landlord-Tenant Act we have is well balanced and I don’t want to do anything to upset that balance,” he said.
McLaughlin said that’s why he held the bill a year so that landlord and tenant-advocacy groups could work out a compromise on what needed to be adjusted in the law.
The original form of the bill would have amended the Landlord-Tenant Act to change the civil procedure to speed up eviction cases and allow landlords to recover attorney’s fees if they’re sued by a tenant and win the case.
Niko Corley, spokesman for the Alabama Association for Justice, said the amendments would have shifted the balance of power between landlords and tenants toward landlords.
The changes “don’t protect the folks who are doing a good job. It protects those who are being unscrupulous,” he said.
Tenant advocacy groups such as Alabama Arise and the Alabama Appleseed Center for Justice are not objecting to the bill, but they remain vigilant over any attempts to roll back the rights it took 13 years to get.
Ron Gilbert, policy analyst for Alabama Arise, said the advocacy group is OK with the current form of the bill.
“The 2006 legislation worked to guarantee habitability,” Gilbert said. “These are just technical amendments that tweak a couple of things … (they) certainly aren’t harmful.”
Shay Farley, an attorney with the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, said if the bill doesn’t pass it wouldn’t make that much difference, because the intention of the existing law won’t change.
McLaughlin said there is a good chance that the bill won’t pass.
It is second to last on the House calendar for debate, and McLaughlin said that’s not a good sign.
“I’m not real encouraged that we’re going to get much done,” he said.
After today, the Legislature has two more meeting days.
(R) Jeff Sessions (1-19)
(D) Vivian Figures (33-1)
(D) Artur Davis (1-49)
(R) Mike Hubbard (13-1)
(?) David Bronner (OFF)