After U.S. Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) on Monday announced he would not seek reelection to a seventh term in 2022, candidates from both parties started circling the waters in the nascent race to succeed Alabama’s longest serving senator. However, U.S. Senator Rick Scott (R-FL), chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), is already emphasizing […]

One of the justifications for the Ivey administration to pursue a build-lease prison plan instead of the traditional bond issue for the construction of three new mega-prisons throughout the state is the legislature has not been able to reach an agreement over the past several years, and that has forced Gov. Kay Ivey to go […]

MONTGOMERY — Legislators return to the State House on Tuesday for the fourth day of the 2021 regular session. The third day of legislative business this past Thursday saw three major bills advance from their respective chambers of origin; HBs 170 and 192 passed the House and received a first reading in the Senate, while […]

MONTGOMERY — Yellowhammer News editor-in-chief Sean Ross on Thursday afternoon sat down with Alabama Senate President Pro Tempore Greg Reed (R-Jasper) and House of Representatives Speaker Mac McCutcheon (R-Monrovia) following the third day of the legislature’s 2021 regular session. The two legislative leaders reflected on the beginning of the session, including how the ongoing COVID-19 […]

The National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS) voted to give Montgomery civil rights attorney Bryan Stevenson the Margaret Chase Smith American Democracy Award during the group’s annual winter conference last week. Stevenson, head of the nationally renowned Equal Justice Initiative, was nominated by Alabama Secretary of State John Merill for the honor. “We are […]

Following the devastating EF-3 tornado that struck Fultondale and nearby areas in Northern Jefferson County recently, HomeTown Lenders’ (HTL) Birmingham branch wanted to not only give back to the community, but also bring local residents together in the trying time. The HTL Birmingham team did just that, cooking and serving 500 hotdogs and hamburgers to […]

While it was not a total surprise, Monday’s announcement from Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Tuscaloosa) that he would not seek a seventh term in 2022 did send shockwaves through the political universe — not just in Alabama but around the country. Shelby served four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and nearly six terms in […]

Following a vote by its membership, the Alabama Coal Association on Monday announced its expansion and rebranding as the Alabama Mining Association (AMA). AMA’s formation includes a new digital identity and website, which can be accessed here. A release from the association advised that the mission of AMA “is to promote the safe and sustainable […]

Prominent Alabama leaders across the public and private sectors are reacting to U.S. Senator Richard Shelby’s (R-AL) Monday announcement that he will not seek reelection to a seventh term in 2022. Shelby made the announcement in a written statement, which can be read here. Reactions quickly poured in, including from the Yellowhammer State’s chief executive. […]

U.S. Senator Richard C. Shelby (R-AL) on Monday announced he will not seek reelection in 2022. His current term is set to expire on January 3, 2023. Shelby, already Alabama’s longest-serving senator in history, continues to have an unprecedented impact on his home state. He is now serving as vice chairman of the powerful Senate […]

Governor Kay Ivey’s prison plan, which includes three facilities, constructed in Escambia, Elmore and Bibb Counties with the State of Alabama leasing those facilities from a private contractor that will build and own them, has been met with skepticism from state lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. However, last week, Ivey signed leases for […]

For decades, every legislative session begins with a question about this possibly being the year legislators pass something to initiate a lottery in Alabama. With each passing year, support for a lottery grows. This year is no different, according to State Senate Majority Leader Clay Scofield (R-Guntersville). During an appearance on this week’s broadcast of […]

Birmingham-based molecular diagnostics company BioGX plans to expand its R&D and manufacturing capabilities at a new corporate headquarters location in Shelby County, where it will beef up its workforce. The Birmingham Business Alliance announced today that BioGX has purchased a building on Valleydale Road in Shelby County for the move from its current location at Innovation Depot, […]

Martin J. Heslin, MD, MSHA, has been named director of the USA Health Mitchell Cancer Institute. Heslin is a renowned surgical oncologist and former associate director of the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He serves as executive vice chair of the Department of Surgery and is the chief of […]

Last week, the Alabama Senate Judiciary Committee gave a favorable report to SB 46, a bill brought by Sen. Tim Melson (R-Florence), which would legalize medical marijuana in the state. That likely clears the path for the legislation’s passage in the Alabama Senate. Its future now rests in the Alabama House of Representatives, where it […]

According to Alabama Secretary of Labor Fitzgerald Washington, despite the economic downturn tied to the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still many unfilled positions around the state. Washington, whose agency has been dealing with claims tied to layoffs because of the pandemic, also has been working to find skilled labor for those open positions. During an […]

Last month, U.S. Rep. Barry Moore (R-Enterprise) was appointed to the House Agriculture and Veterans’ Affairs committees, which compliments his second congressional district’s military and agriculture presence. Moore, a freshman lawmaker just over one month into his first term, noted how the assignments lined up with his military service and agricultural science studies at Auburn […]

Last month during a budget hearing before the Alabama Legislature began the 2021 regular session, State Reps. Rich Wingo (R-Tuscaloosa) and Arnold Mooney (R-Indian Springs) called on Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Jeff Dunn to reveal more details about Gov. Kay Ivey’s plan to lease three new mega-prison facilities. At the time, just days before […]

Last week, SB 97, legislation brought by State Sen. Tom Whatley (R-Auburn), the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, that would limit the power of the state health officer and add a check on the executive branch under a state of emergency, advanced through the Judiciary Committee by a 7-4 vote. Complaints surfaced during the […]

Alabama Power’s parent company has been named to Fortune magazine’s list of the “World’s Most Admired Companies.” The 2021 list ranks Southern Company among the top four electric and gas utilities worldwide, up two spots from last year. “On behalf of the thousands of people making thousands of good decisions every day at Southern Company, we are pleased […]

Alabama’s coronavirus vaccination process is set to enter a complicated new phase in the coming days as hundreds of thousands of people who received their first dose return to get their second, and an additional 750,000 citizens become eligible to get their first. On Monday, February 8, the state’s expansion of eligibility to all citizens […]

The NCAA has announced that its Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee (MOIC), in conjunction with the NCAA office of inclusion, is recognizing Auburn University Director of Athletics Allen Greene and four other individuals as “Champions of Diversity and Inclusion for their work in supporting ethnic minorities and other underrepresented groups and individuals.” According to a release, […]

MONTGOMERY — Talk 99.5’s “Matt & Val Show” broadcast live from inside the Alabama State Capitol on Thursday morning, interviewing Governor Kay Ivey, members of her cabinet and prominent state legislators. The interview came ahead of the third day of the legislature’s 2021 regular session and two days after Ivey’s annual State of the State […]

U.S. Senators Richard Shelby (R-AL) and Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) early Friday morning joined their Republican colleagues in voting against Senate Concurrent Resolution 5, the Fiscal Year 2021 budget reconciliation package. The Senate vote split evenly on party lines, 50-50, however, Vice President Kamala Harris broke the tie to adopt the resolution. The budget reconciliation package […]