Latest updates from the state Legislature as members head to their spring break:
Dual enrollment bill goes to governor
The Alabama Senate gave final passage Thursday to a bill requiring public schools to allow students to participate in dual enrollment programs where they can take college courses for high school and college credit.
House Bill 102 by Rep. Jeana Ross, R-Guntersville, now goes to the governor for her signature.
It says schools shall allow high school students “to enroll in any dual enrollment course that is
offered by a local community college or university and approved for dual credit by the State Department of Education.”
Sen. Donnie Chesteen, R-Geneva, carried the bill in the Senate.
“Many (schools) see the value in dual enrollment courses,” Chesteen said on the Senate floor. “However there are some that do not participate or participate on a limited basis, denying students the opportunity to participate in dual enrollment courses.”
A school isn’t required by the legislation to incorporate any dual enrollment courses into its curriculum, but must award high school credit to students who pass approved courses through colleges.
Bill enhancing criminal penalties for resisting arrest passes through House
The House adopted a bill Thursday that would enhance criminal penalties in instances where a law enforcement officer or bystander sustains an injury while an individual is resisting arrest.
Sponsored by Rep. Joe Lovvorn, R-Auburn, Senate Bill 265 would enhance a misdemeanor charge to a Class D felony, punishable with up to five years in prison, were a law enforcement officer or a bystander to sustain an injury while an individual is resisting arrest.
“There’s currently no provision in Alabama law where an individual actively resists a lawful arrest, and as a result, causes injury to a law enforcement officer without the specific intent to do so,” Lovvorn said. “This gap in the law means that officers who suffer injuries due to this resistance are not adequately protected, and offenders may only face misdemeanor charges that do not reflect the severity of their actions.”
Rep. Niel Rafferty, D-Birmingham, posed a hypothetical question to Lovvorn regarding his bill.
“What if a guy has a little dime bag on him or something like that, runs off from the police, and then that cop falls down and scrapes his knee,” Rafferty said. “Would that person go from having misdemeanor possession to now having a felony for resisting arrest?”
Lovvorn confirmed that under his bill, the penalty enchantments could be instituted under that scenario.
The bill ultimately passed with a vote of 78–14. It now moves to the Senate.
House approves tougher criminal penalties for undocumented immigrants
A bill that would enhance criminal penalties for undocumented immigrants in cases where there is a minor victim passed out of the House Thursday with a vote of 76-3, and 24 abstentions.
The bill, House Bill 3, is sponsored by Rep. Chip Brown, R-Hollingers Island, and would mandate that what is now a Class B felony would automatically elevate to a Class A felony, should the accused be an undocumented immigrant and the victim of the alleged crime a minor. The bill elevates a misdemeanor charge to a class C felony if the perpetrator is an undocumented immigrant and the victim is a minor.
The bill is one of several anti-illegal immigration bills moving through the Legislature. It now goes to the Senate.
Glock switch ban close to final passage
Legislation to outlaw “machine gun conversion devices,” also known as Glock switches, is one vote away from final passage after having passed out of the House Thursday with a vote of 77–23, and four abstentions.
The devices can modify firearms to fire at rates comparable to a fully automatic weapon. They’re already banned by federal law, but the pending state legislation would let law enforcement arrest people in possession of the devices.
Senate Bill 116 is a GOP priority this year and part of Gov. Kay Ivey’s anti-crime legislation package. It’s supported by law enforcement agencies and mayors from around the state.
While SB116 is sponsored by Sen. Will Barfoot, R-Pike Road, Rep. Phillip Ensler, D-Montgomery, has been sponsoring a ban bill since 2023, and worked alongside Barfoot in helping draft and fine tune the duel bills.
“After we passed this ban in the House last year, I worked very closely with the Senate to get it passed up there first,” Ensler said on the House floor. “I’m glad now that it’s back down here.”
The bill now moves back to the Senate to concur with the House’s change, a minor language revision to make the bill more consistent with federal law. That will happen after the Legislature returns March 18 from a district work week.
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