Hopes for family-friendly legislation were high when the 2012 session of the Alabama Legislature opened Feb. 7. But when the gavel came down on the regular session May 16, there was general disappointment among leaders of family-friendly organizations who regularly work in Montgomery.
Joe Godfrey, executive director of Alabama Citizen’s Action Program (ALCAP), for example, stood before the State Board of Missions of the Alabama Baptist State Convention two days after the session closed and declared plainly, “I’m disappointed in our conservative friends who lead the state Legislature.”
Godfrey had every right to be disappointed. The Legislature failed to act on priority legislation to strengthen laws against illegal gambling in Alabama. The lawmakers sidestepped bills to limit abortion. And while legislative leaders claimed there was insufficient time to consider a variety of pro-family legislation, both the Senate and House of Representatives found ample time to endanger the lives of Alabama citizens through expanded alcohol bills.
After raising hopes that the legislative culture of Alabama would be different under new leadership with a long list of accomplishments in the 2011 session, the 2012 session was more like business as usual. Perhaps that was best illustrated by the fact that in 2011 the new leaders delivered on their promise to quickly pass all the required state budgets so attention could be given to other issues. But in 2012 the Legislature was back in its old patterns of waiting until the final minutes of the session to approve state budgets. As a result, some important issues went unresolved and Gov. Bentley had to call a special session of the state Legislature so the bodies could complete their assignments.
One measure that was completely overlooked during the regular session was State Attorney General Luther Strange’s attempt to strengthen penalties against illegal gambling. He worked closely with legislative leaders and argued that Alabama law enforcement does not have the tools it needs to fight illegal gambling because “of the weakness found in our criminal statutes.”
He asked the Legislature to make possession of more than 10 slot machines a Class C felony instead of a misdemeanor. The proposal was introduced in House Bill (HB) 414 with a lot of fanfare and a commitment by leaders in the House and Senate to pass the bill.
But it did not happen. The bill never came to the floor of the House for consideration. The result, as Strange warned, leaves Alabama vulnerable to another invasion by slot machine owners who will gladly exchange the petty fines they might have to pay in exchange for the huge profits their machines take from Alabama citizens.
House leaders are trying to explain away their lack of action by talking about “changing the strategy” to get the bill passed. Interestingly even their own explanations include making decisions when the attorney general was out of the state and failing to communicate the strategy changes to colleagues in the Senate.
Unlike the years before the current leadership, no pro-gambling bills were considered by the Legislature and for that we are thankful. Still it is hard to see the lack of action on this important bill as anything but a failure of leadership. We can only hope this decision by the state Legislature does not signal a return of the power of gambling forces.
Abortion foes had high hopes going into the legislative session. A bill that appeared certain for approval was HB 223 which would have required abortion centers to meet similar standards required in other medical centers. The logic of the bill seemed self-evident. Health and safety standards should be consistent for all types of medical centers. But because standards are different today, the bill would have drastically reduced the number of abortion sites in the state. The bill passed from the House but never made it out of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education committee.
Of all the anti-abortion bills introduced, only a politically charged option relating to national health insurance passed. That bill allows Alabama to opt out of permitting abortion coverage by exchanging participating health plans, which could receive funds under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, thereby using taxpayer money to fund abortions.
Again promises made by the conservative majority in the state Legislature failed to be translated into anything but words.
Alcohol-related legislation had a different outcome. Like their predecessors, current legislators continued to ignore the health and cultural impact of alcohol.
The alcohol content of standard drinks of table wine, a bottle of beer or a shot of whiskey or other distilled spirits all contain equivalent amounts of alcohol. A breathalyzer can tell no difference between a 12-ounce bottle of regular beer (6 percent alcohol by volume), a 5-ounce glass of red or white wine, or a drink of one and a half ounces of 80-proof distilled spirits (either straight or in a mixed drink).
In 2009 the Alabama Legislature increased the allowable legal alcohol content of beer from 6 percent to 13.9 percent. That made a single bottle of beer more than twice as dangerous as two shots of whiskey because of the increased alcohol content.
This year the Legislature increased the allowable size of beer bottles from 16 ounces to 25.4 ounces. That is the size of a wine bottle. Legislators said it was a “business” decision. What it does is create a far more dangerous culture where drinking a single bottle of beer can have the same effect on the body as belting back five shots of whiskey or drinking five glasses of wine. That is not the kind of culture that bodes well for Alabama.
Good people serve in our state Legislature. Not all wear the same party label. Many are devoted to the highest good of the state. Some are personal friends for whom we pray regularly. Still it is disappointing to see how far short the 2012 state Legislature fell from the high standards members set for themselves when first elected. Alabama needs better than that. Alabama deserves better than that.
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