It was a hectic couple of days at the Alabama Legislature with everyone scrambling to get their bills on the special order calendars. When this happens so does dissension, which led to a slowdown in both Houses. ASEA was focused on the Senate and is happy to report that working with Representative Rick Rehm and … Read More

It was a wild week at the Alabama State House. The legislative process was slowed down by controversial bills and after a five hour reading of the General Fund bill at length Tuesday, the 2026 budget passed close to midnight. This $3.7 billion General Fund budget included no reduction in revenue for state agencies and … Read More

Mark days 24 and 25 off the list; we are getting closer to the end of the 2025 Legislative Session. This week state employees saw movement on HB472. Sponsored by Representative Reed Ingram, HB472 increases the meal allowance per diem from $12.75 to $14.88. HB472 passed the House of Representatives by a vote of 98-0-3. … Read More

Thursday marked the completion of the 23rd Legislative Day. Only 30 are allowed by law and with seven days left, time is getting tight.Both the House of Representatives and the Senate debated controversial calendars on Thursday which led to a slow-down. The House Special Order Calendar included HB165, sponsored by Representative Rick Rehm, which adds … Read More

The Alabama Legislature met three days this week, completing days 19, 20, and 21 with 9 legislative days to go. While there were many controversial bills debated this week, thankfully none applied to active and retired state employees.On Wednesday, HB472, sponsored by Representative Reed Ingram, passed out of the Ways and Means General Fund Committee … Read More

This week at the Alabama Legislature the focus was on the General Fund Budget. This is the budget that funds most state agencies, state employee retirement, and insurance. The $3.7 billion budget for fiscal year 2026 passed out of the House Ways and Means General Fund Committee on Tuesday. On Thursday, as substituted and amended, … Read More

It took over a year to make it happen but as they say “some things are worth the wait.” The Paid Parental Leave Bill passed the House on Thursday and now goes to the Governor for her signature. With Governor Ivey’s support, and Representative Ginny Shavers and Senator Vivian Figures leadership, the Paid Parental Leave … Read More

The federal government’s new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has brought government efficiency and savings to the forefront on the news. State employees who worked through the trying times of 2008-2014 remember that Alabama tackled this issue almost 15 years ago. In 2019, the Alabama Commission on the Evaluation of Services (ACES) was established to … Read More

Legislative days 7 and 8 are over and we are happy to report back positive news for active and retired state employees. HB165, sponsored by Representative Rick Rehm, was amended in committee. The bill as originally written would have given state employees the choice of taking either Jefferson Davis’ birthday or Juneteenth. As amended, it … Read More

Legislative Days 4, 5, and 6 were quiet in regards to state employee issues and that is not a bad place to be. We are still waiting on the Parental Leave Bill, sponsored by Representative Ginny Shaver and Senator Vivian Figures, to be introduced. As ASEA members are aware, this is legislation that ASEA has … Read More