Alabama Politics in
Doc’s Political Parlor
& Home of Lawn Mower Repair

Birmingham News - State Board of Education adopts new high school graduation requirements.

Birmingham News - Son of former Fire College director pleads guilty in continuing probe of corruption in two year college system.

Birmingham News - Conference committee working on watered-down ban on PAC-to-PAC transfers.

Birmingham News - Senate refuses to take debate plan that would remove sales tax from food purchases.

Birmingham News - The Birmingham News comments on former chief financial officer of state’s two-year college system now under scrutiny by federal prosecutors.

Mobile Press-Register - Lt. Governor announces commission to study feasibility of major highway connecting Mobile and Florence.

Mobile Press-Register - State official tells Congress that another $100 million needed for Katrina-related housing repairs.

Mobile Press-Register - Press-Register blasts Senate for adopting resolution against non-existent conspiracy to create a “North American Union,” urges House to reject resolution, concluding that we “need legislators who are still in touch with reality. ”

Huntsville Times - Wrangling over Limestone County bill to regulate rock quarries delays consideration of measure to end sales tax on food.

Tuscaloosa News - Bill to expand state’s hate crimes law to include sexual orientation among protected groups in line for final legislative approval.

Anniston Star - The Anniston Star looks at the legislative session, says that there is “still time for good things to happen, if only the people Alabamians elected will let them.”

Decatur Daily - The Decatur Daily calls for the appointment of special prosecutor to investigate claims that Siegelman prosecution was politically motivated.

Montgomery Advertiser - Legislature gives final approval to measure to increase minimum auto insurance requirements.

Montgomery Advertiser - Legislature gives final approval to “captive insurance” bill.

Montgomery Advertiser - Commentary by DHR commissioner warns that new Medicaid regulations will shift millions of dollars of costs to state government.

New York Times - Critics question Sen. Richard Shelby’s ties to real estate industry as Senate begins consideration of bill to help struggling homeowners.

Associated Press - Summary of yesterday’s legislative action.

FROM TODAY’S ANNISTON STAR:

Film incentives bill likely dead this session

MONTGOMERY — An effort to attract the film and television production industry to Alabama is dead, at least for the 2008 regular session.

Sponsors of the House and Senate versions of a bill that would provide tax breaks for production companies that make movies in the state said time was the enemy of the legislation, not special interests.

“We’ve simply run out of time,” said Rep. Richard Lindsey, D-Centre.

The bills would have provided incentives to companies that incur between $500,000 and $10 million in production expenditures.

Companies would have received an income tax credit equal to 25 percent of production expenditures, plus 35 percent of all payroll for wages and benefits paid to Alabama residents.

The legislation also would have granted state sales and lodging tax exemptions to film and television companies that spend more than $150,000 in Alabama.

Lindsey’s version of the bill made it to the floor for debate last week, but was killed when the House voted to adjourn before it could move to final passage.

The Senate version of the bill, sponsored by Senators Roger Bedford, D-Russellville, and Tom Butler, D-Madison cleared the upper body, but stalled in a House committee.

Butler said the bills already have been taken to the Legislative Reference Service to be updated and prepared for the next regular or special session.

“They just got caught up in the mechanics of the legislative process,” Butler said. “Things simply went awry in the Senate and then in the House.”

The Senate shut down during a five-week filibuster over bingo bills for Macon and Greene counties.

The House went into a slowdown during the discussion of the education budget.

That slowdown killed Lindsey’s version of the film incentives bill on the same night that House passed the education budget.

Alabama is among about 15 states that offer no incentives to attract the film industry.

The state offered incentives until 2006, when the tax breaks expired.

Butler said to get the new tax breaks passed, the sponsors will have to be persistent and less concerned with attaching some kind of revenue measure to the passage of the bill.

The Alabama Education Association wants lawmakers to link some revenue measure to the passage of any bill that would provide tax breaks to recoup any school funding lost.

“Any amount of revenue that the film industry generates would more than pay for any lost funding,” he said.

Lindsey said he’s inclined to tie it to some kind of revenue measure since that was one of the major sticking points earlier this year.

The Joint Powers Authority, which oversees the development of the former Fort McClellan, had hoped that incentives would help attract the film industry here.

Pete Conroy, JPA board member and director of Jacksonville State University’s Environmental Policy and Information Centers, said he’s optimistic that the tax breaks will come through, possibly in a special session.

“We have on record support from the House, the Senate, AEA and every media outlet that has reported on this bill,” Conroy said. “The stars have never lined up like that.”

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