With a little less than half of the Alabama Legislature’s 2025 regular session remaining, Arise’s David Stout breaks down what to expect in the weeks ahead. The General Fund and Education Trust Fund budgets both will begin moving soon. Arise is working to ensure the education budget includes funding to allow every public school to choose to provide no-cost school breakfast for every student.

Arise will keep advocating to reduce the state sales tax on groceries again this year. We’re also hopeful for continued progress on bills to improve maternal health and reform Alabama’s criminal justice system. And we are opposing bills that would authorize junk health plans and harm immigrant communities and their families.

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Hello, I’m David Stout, legislative director for Alabama Arise, with a look forward to the last 14 days of this legislative session.

Most importantly are the two budgets. The General Fund budget, which will allocate over $3 billion, and the Education Trust Fund budget, which will allocate over $9 billion, will be moving in the last days of the session. Arise has been working hard to include in the Education Trust Fund budget monies to incentivize all schools to provide breakfast for every student.

Very important in the Education Trust Fund budget is a bill that reduces the grocery tax by another cent. This has been a longtime objective of Arise. It is now in the Senate awaiting action.

There are several criminal justice and parole bills that have a chance of passing. A couple of the criminal justice bills deal with resentencing, which is progressive and will allow some inmates to be paroled early. Secondly, there are bills to provide oversight to the parole board, which is much needed. Also, for the first time, there is a bill moving that allows virtual hearings, meaning that a person or an inmate who is eligible for parole will be able to present directly, virtually, to the parole board.

There are a couple of Medicaid bills moving forward that are very important for maternal health. One will provide care early in pregnancy for a Medicaid-eligible mother, and another will provide drugs and care for mothers who suffer from postpartum depression.

And of course, there are always controversial bills that we will be monitoring and perhaps working against. One is the so-called Alfa insurance plan, which is not insurance at all. It does not provide oversight for the programs, nor does it cover preexisting conditions. Secondly, immigration bills continue to hang around, which can be punitive and certainly disruptive in Alabama.

Lastly, there are two Medicaid- and SNAP-related bills under consideration that would severely restrict the allocation of those benefits to the elderly, children, and those with disabilities.

It’s important to stay informed in the last 14 days of the session. It’s also important that you continue your membership or join. It is through contributions and membership that Arise is able to continue working on bills that will benefit all Alabamians.

Thank you.