News Post

Legislative Tracking

The Alabama State Bar provides legislative status reports concerning pending legislation that may be of interest to our members, with direct links to the actual legislation. The reports divide legislation into the following categories for your convenience: criminal, domestic relations, judicial, court costs, elections ethics and government relations (EEGR), civil/ general and tax.

You can find our comprehensive updated bill-tracking spreadsheet here.

Legislative Summary

This week marked days 23 and 24 of the possible 30 legislative days in the 2021 Legislative Session. There were numerous committee meetings on Wednesday and lengthy calendars on Tuesday and Thursday. The introduction of new bills has continued to slow down as it takes a minimum of five legislative days to pass a bill. As of this week, there were seven new bills introduced in the Senate and 22 new bills introduced in the House of Representatives. This brings the total of bills introduced in the Senate to 394 and 633 in the House of Representatives.

Some of the bills introduced this week involved child abuse and probate issues. Bills in committee included legislation on the completion of a trustee’s work in probate matters, and there was further discussion on conservatorships and guardianships, convictions and drivers licenses, as well as sentences related to the possession of marijuana. The judicial compensation restructure legislation was passed out of the second committee and is now awaiting final passage in the House of Representatives. There was also a bill requiring reports from the Department of Corrections to the legislature regarding prison oversight issues.

The Alabama Law Institute’s bill on the latest modernization of the corporations code for non-profits received final passage as well as a bill revising the due date of income taxes to coincide with the due date of federal taxes. A bill changing some child custody presumptions passed out of the Senate. There was debate on legislation involving state park upgrades and the creation of a new Chief Procurement Officer. Other bills receiving votes this week were a comprehensive lottery and gaming bill, which moved out of the Senate, and continued discussion of broadband issues. Additionally, the Governor signed a bill allowing home alcohol delivery.

As always, the Alabama State Bar encourages all members to be aware of legislation that may impact court costs and fees. Access to justice is a priority. Please be aware of advertisements that may be occurring for local bills and those that may already be filed to use the courts as a fundraiser for non-court entities. We encourage you to be informed and notify us as well.

Legislative Calendar

The regular session of the 2021 Legislative Session is proceeding as follows:

• The Senate has adjourned until Tuesday, April 20, 2021 at 2 p.m.
• The House has adjourned until Tuesday, April 20, 2021 at 1 p.m.