Bills of Interest This Week

There are some interesting bills being debated in House Committees this upcoming week. Considering the pledge by Rep. John Rogers to kill the rest of the session on the floor of the House , committee action might be all that is seen this week. One bill by Rep. Greg Canfield would drastically change the way the Alabama adopts its state budgets. This bill would provide for a 15 year view of revenue growth in order to base budgeting for future years. This is a much better approach to the eclectic approach currently used by the various state budgeting committees.

Another bill that should generate some lively debate this will be a bill Rep. Patricia Todd to allow for the legal use of marijuana in certain medical cases. This bill has been around for several years and it always generates a good debate in the House Judiciary Committee. This committee has never been known to be easy on bill sponsors anyway so this should be a fun one to watch by political observers.

Finally my good friend Rep. Allen Treadaway continues to have fun with a bill that has been a political hot potato in Montgomery. His bill House Bill 556 would prevent the Sheriffs in Alabama from personally profiting from the system where they feed inmates. This issue came up as a result of some controveries with certain sheriffs in making tens of thousands of dollars by basically starving the inmates under their care and the profiting the left over food money. This is currently a legal practice in Alabama but certainly one that needs to change. Rep. Treadaway has a law enforcement background and has demonstrated he is determined to see this practice change.