Recent editorials from Alabama newspapers:
May 19
Anniston (Alabama) Star on anti-tax forces:
Gov. Robert Bentley came to Anniston last week to sell his budget proposal, which includes taxes on cigarettes and automobiles.
As The Star’s Tim Lockette reported, Bentley told an audience gathered at the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce, “Ronald Reagan, the icon of conservatism, raised taxes because he was a conservative.”
Points to the governor for promoting his plan, which attempts to keep state government from falling apart because of a huge budget crisis. Points also for pointing out that President Reagan did indeed raise taxes while in office.
The episode is a reminder of Gov. Bob Riley’s 2003 attempt to bring fairness to Alabama’s tax code. Dismissed as nothing but a tax increase by foes, it lost at the polls by a 2-to-1 margin. This breach of Republican anti-tax orthodoxy was supposed to spell doom for Riley’s chances in elected office.
Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, said at the time, “Years from now, little baby Republican governors will be told scary stories late at night, around the campfire, about the sad fate of governors like Riley who try to steal a billion dollars from their people.”
Yet, in 2004 Riley easily won a second term.
Norquist’s spooky story isn’t working on Bentley, an Alabama governor who sees a looming train wreck if the state doesn’t get its finances in better shape.
Online:
https://www.annistonstar.com
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May 19
Dothan (Alabama) Eagle on the board of education:
Little by little, the Alabama Legislature appears to be dismantling the state Board of Education by shifting responsibilities from its authority.
That’s alarming because those responsibilities are being handed off to newly created and untried oversight bodies.
Earlier this year, lawmakers passed a bill that would remove oversight of postsecondary education from the state BOE and create a two-year college oversight board with members confirmed by the Alabama Senate.
Last week, the school board refused to confirm a list of nominations for a new charter school commission, saying it hadn’t had time to interview the nominees. In reaction, the Senate is now considering a measure that would allow the nominations to bypass school board confirmation, and Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh has threatened to move forward with a bill to make the state school board an appointed panel as well.
“I thought it was ridiculous,” Marsh told The Associated Press. “Those members had the information over a week. If they had taken the time to go through it they would have been prepared for the meeting.”
What seems more ridiculous is expecting the state school board to properly vet nominees and make an informed determination on confirmations in a week’s time.
Writer Robert Ruark, in his 1957 novel about the Mau-Mau uprising, wrote, “When we take away from a man his traditional way of life, his customs, his religion, we had better make certain to replace it with something of value.”
Before the Alabama Senate dismantles the traditional state board of education, it should ensure that the oversight system it proposed as a replacement is at least as effective as what the state currently has in place.
Online:
https://www.dothaneagle.com
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May 15
Decatur (Alabama) Daily on cuts to state law enforcement:
Speaking in north Alabama this week, the head of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency had solemn words of warning about the plight of the state’s top law enforcement agency.
“We are struggling to keep our head above water,” said Spencer Collier, secretary of the ALEA. “There are some real problems that must be addressed.”
Collier didn’t mince words as he laid out in clear, concise details what the budget cuts proposed by the Legislature will mean for his agency: ALEA’s budget would be sliced from $56 million to $39 million, a 30 percent cut.
If that happens, Collier warned, residents in the Decatur area and across Alabama should brace themselves for the fallout, which will include:
- 100 state troopers will be laid off.
- 33 driver’s license offices will be closed.
- 13 trooper posts will be closed.
Yes, fewer troopers will lessen the likelihood you’ll get a ticket if you choose to exceed the speed limit while driving, but before you offer a celebratory high five, consider the downsides.
What happens if you or a loved one gets stranded on the side of a road late at night or in the early morning, or they are involved in an accident? If the nearest trooper is two or three counties away, it could be hours before a trooper is able to get to the scene.
And forget about having any troopers on hand to help with security for those big local events in the Decatur area. It’s not likely to happen.
The same applies for help following natural disasters. If the damage is widespread, there may not be any troopers available to assist.
And that relatively short wait at the local driver’s license office you grumble about will become even more intolerable when you have to drive to Birmingham. And imagine how long those lines will be when people needing licenses are coming from counties spread throughout the northern part of the state.
Get the picture? It’s not a pretty one. Even in the likely event Collier is overstating the cuts he will have to make, the reduction in services will be significant.
Collier urged residents to contact their legislators and let them know that public safety is important and needs to be funded.
“I don’t care how they get the money. We need to fund ALEA,” he said. “Believe me, this is not a ploy. These are real numbers, and something has to be done.”
Online:
https://www.decaturdaily.com
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