MONTGOMERY — The Alabama legislature has now sent both the General Fund and Education Trust Fund budgets for Fiscal Year 2021 to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk. The Senate on Saturday unanimously passed the education appropriations package, including three bills with floor substitutes: HB 187 (the ETF budget bill), HB 190 and HB 189. Those bills […]

The results are in from the Alabama COVID-19 Workforce Response Survey, which was developed by AlabamaWorks. Nearly 1,800 business owners across the state participated in the survey, and the results provide an in-depth look at the pandemic’s impact on Alabama’s employers. Ultimately these results will also help determine how private industry and state government together […]

Alabama Goodwill is safely reopening all nine retail thrift stores and five donation centers, and is resuming career services to start rebuilding communities and “Get Alabama Back to Work!” “Now more than ever, our career services will play a critical role in assisting the most vulnerable segments of our community who have been laid off or displaced from employment,” said […]

Governor Kay Ivey’s decision to go public about a disagreement with Republican leadership in the Alabama legislature had upset a number of its members, as many have interpreted a statement she released, along with a list of proposals leaked to the capitol press corps that included a line-item for a new statehouse, as being used […]

In early March, as many of the nation’s physicians were consumed by a public health care crisis, Susan Harding, M.D., a pulmonologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, was dealing with one that was much more personal. Her beloved father, Darrel, a stoic 92-year-old army colonel, was slowly succumbing to advanced lung disease. “Dad moved […]

Although it had been trumpeted by Gov. Kay Ivey as a reason to be leery of the legislature’s control of an estimated $1.8 billion allocated to the state of Alabama in the name of coronavirus relief, State Rep. Steve Clouse (R-Ozark), the chairman of the House Ways and Means General Fund committee, insists no amount […]

Jefferson County Health Officer Dr. Mark Wilson is strongly recommending members of the public refrain from gathering in groups of 10 or more people for the next two weeks, but is not going issue a health order making that a requirement. Wilson specifically mentioned houses of worship as, in his view, a risky place for […]

A number of business and workforce development groups have partnered with Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth’s (R-AL) office to create a database of personal protective equipment (PPE) suppliers. The coalition is hoping to connect business operators with the supplies they will need as more companies resume operations. The effort is being hosted on the Tuscaloosa Chamber […]

MONTGOMERY — State Rep. Steve Clouse (R-Ozark) on Friday released a statement saying that Governor Kay Ivey has “indicated” that she will veto the Fiscal Year 2021 General Fund budget that passed the Alabama legislature on Thursday. Clouse is the House Ways and Means General Fund committee chairman. His statement follows Ivey on Thursday announcing […]

In a live televised phone interview with “Fox & Friends” on Friday morning, President Donald J. Trump launched perhaps his strongest public criticism yet of former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions. When asked by Fox News’ Brian Kilmeade if there would have been a “Russia hoax” at all if current Attorney General Bill Barr had […]

The President Donald Trump campaign announced on Friday that it will be hosting an Alabama-focused virtual fundraiser featuring Donald Trump, Jr. and Kimberly Guilfoyle. The younger Trump, who has previously visited the Yellowhammer State in person, cited the role played by Alabama in the election four years ago as a reason why he wanted to […]

MONTGOMERY — Governor Kay Ivey on Friday announced that she is amending her administration’s current “Safer-At-Home” order effective Monday, May 11. This amended order will expire on Friday, May 22, at 5:00 p.m. Key changes in the amended order include the governor allowing restaurants to provide onsite dining and close-contact services such as barbershops and salons […]

Governor Kay E. Ivey on Friday issued two new supplemental state of emergency proclamations related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The two proclamations issued Friday respectively represent the eighth and ninth total supplemental SOE proclamations that she has issued related to the outbreak. The eighth proclamation, available here, provides certain liability protections to businesses, health […]

Friday, former Auburn head football coach Tommy Tuberville, a candidate for U.S. Senate, announced in a statement his call for urging the Trump administration to suspend new guest worker visas “so that American workers can fill American jobs.” Tuberville echoes the call from his rival, former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who also announced a […]

The chair and vice chair of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians (PCI) have praised President Donald J. Trump for his administration’s efforts in responding to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Steven T. Mnuchin and Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt released a joint statement explaining how $4.8 billion […]

As the Alabama legislature is sorting out budgets in the waning days of the 2020 session amid the coronavirus pandemic, questions remain as to when the state’s economy can get back to a degree of normalcy with the opening of businesses that still remained shuttered as a result of an order from Gov. Kay Ivey […]

Earlier this week, State Sen. Tom Whatley (R-Auburn) introduced SB334, legislation that limits the powers of the State Health Officer and puts a 14-day limit on the length of time the governor can declare a State of Emergency. The Lee County Republican lawmaker had been a critic of State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris’ decision […]

The unemployment numbers released by the Alabama Department of Labor on Thursday show 28,985 Alabamians filed jobless claims during the latest reporting period. This number represents a steep decline in weekly claims, which reached a peak of 106,739 for the week ending April 4. A total of 448,332 of the state’s residents have filed initial […]

Recruitment has opened for the U.S. Space Force, and the newest branch of the U.S. military is making a powerful pitch through its first advertisement. Opening with a narrator offering, “Some people look to the stars and ask, ‘What if?’ Our job is to have an answer,” the newly-released video combines aspirational language with science […]

The mission statement is only four words: Creating jobs. Keeping character. The work of Main Street Alabama is crucial during normal times. Even more so during the pandemic. More than two dozen communities rely on guidance and support from the nonprofit organization. “Main Street Alabama has been extraordinarily proactive during the COVID crisis, sharing daily […]

MONTGOMERY — The Alabama House of Representatives on Thursday passed a package of education appropriations bills covering the Fiscal Year 2021 budget. SB 242, a $1.25 billion Public School and College Authority bond issue, received final passage and now heads to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk. This came after House passage of HB 187, the FY21 […]

AUBURN, Ala. — Neighborhoods and social media are buzzing with hype as citizens are concerned about “murder hornets.” Alabama Cooperative Extension System professionals would like to put this rumor to rest. These stinging insects have not been found in Alabama. However, the detection of Asian giant hornets is unnerving for beekeepers and citizens in the […]

One North Alabama physician believes the latest data, and the whole well-being of the state’s citizens, call for an immediate, full reopening of Alabama. Dr. Andrew Hodges practices in internal medicine in Jackson County. Earlier this week, he wrote a letter to State Health Officer Dr. Scott Harris outlining the reasons why he thinks the […]

MONTGOMERY — Governor Kay Ivey on Thursday announced that she is willing to abdicate control over spending the approximately $1.8 billion in federal stimulus money made available to the State of Alabama through the CARES Act. That federal legislation designated all spending authority to the respective governor of each state, however the Alabama legislature has […]