Issue: Housing

Here’s what Alabama Arise heard in 2024!

By Presdelane Harris

Alabama Arise listens because we deeply value the input we get from members, partners and most importantly, those directly affected by the work we do together. We depend on what we hear to help guide our issue work and our strategies.

We held two virtual statewide Town Hall Tuesdays this summer, and each featured three to four listening session breakouts. Arise staff either facilitated or were part of 20 additional listening sessions, both online and in person around the state. We engaged more than 500 people in a total of 27 listening opportunities.

Following are direct notes from the town halls and highlights from the other sessions. These notes and highlights are listed under the names of the Arise organizers who heard them.

Town Hall Tuesdays

A better Alabama is possible, July 16

We had four breakout rooms during this session. We asked folks in each group to discuss their thoughts on current issues and to share other priorities they had. Here’s what our organizers heard from participants:

Pres Harris:

  • Death penalty reform. We need to consider the impact that potential new appointees to the U.S. Supreme Court might have on this issue at the state level.
  • Concern about new school choice laws that divert funding from public education. There is special concern in rural areas where there are either no or very limited options to public education for children. Many participants said this is a way to take more money from funding public education. Several participants agreed with the education concern.
  • A sight-impaired participant lifted up education, voting rights and public transportation as key issues impacting people living with disabilities. There is a disparity in education among low-vision students. The disabilities community has been advocating for electronic voting so that sight-impaired people can vote with privacy. And lack of public transportation is a barrier to voting and other quality-of-life activities.
  • Concern about the maternal health crisis and subsequent infant health care needs. We need to improve access to maternal care and health care overall. We need to expand Medicaid.
  • One participant raised the need for people to have legal representation in civil issues like family issues, bankruptcy, school issues, etc. Another participant said the Alabama State Bar might be an ally in advancing such an issue.
  • Public transportation was highlighted again as a need and a quality-of-life issue.
  • In the main session, a participant raised the need to address a variety of veterans’ issues, with emphasis on veteran housing availability.

Stan Johnson:

  • More funding for education programs for children ages 0-3. For a better Alabama, we need to focus on early education. Alabama has a home visitation program called First Teachers, designed to support families at risk for poor developmental outcomes. They use a variety of models, including Parents as Teachers and First Family Partnership. They go and visit families with children 0-3 years of age. Alabama is not putting additional money into 0-3 education. A participant noted that the state budget has included such funding in the past, and he wants to ensure it stays there. We have appropriated a couple million dollars, but Alabama receives more from the federal government than what the state puts in for this service. Minnesota puts 10 times as much money into their program as Alabama. Missouri has universal access to 0-3 education.
  • Kids need to master their social and emotional milestones, and the ability to have a two-way productive interpersonal relationship. They need the ability to modulate their emotions appropriately in a group setting, to have a sense of curiosity and to have a sense of who they are. If they do not get the basic scaffolding in the first three years of life, then all the remediation in the world will not help them get through high school. Efficacy-based programs exist and have proved effective. Alabama is not doing enough about it.
  • A participant said she is a retired teacher and could tell the difference between kids who were read to, loved and cuddled. The first three years make a world of difference. She said this does not need to be a named Arise priority, but it should be addressed.
  • We have picked up momentum with Medicaid, but not nearly enough. Many participants said this needs to continue to be the No. 1 issue. Adequate health care is important for a better Alabama.
  • Participants said they want to help with Medicaid expansion. They understand all it would take is for the governor to sign it and it would be a done deal. They do not understand why people would say they do not want money from the feds. For every dollar we send, we get back $2.17.
  • Participants opposed turning back federal infrastructure money and ARPA money. The argument has no logic.
  • Rural hospitals and departments closed this year, including in Thomasville, Monroe County and Union Springs. What are the governor’s plans to help those areas? Some voters in those areas do not realize that state policies have caused them to lose their health care. We have been saying for years that lack of Medicaid expansion would cause hospitals to close.
  • Some women are now having to drive as far as 90 minutes away to get to an OB-GYN. We can see the harm that elected officials are causing to their constituents.
  • Unfortunately, people do not realize when they vote that they sometimes are voting for representatives who do not seem to have their best interest in mind. We have already lost $7 billion in funding by not expanding Medicaid.
  • One participant said the new teacher certification test is an issue for young or new teachers. What are some alternate ways toward certificates?
  • A participant said Congress should have passed a Medicaid expansion bill, the Save Rural Hospitals Act. This would have helped rural areas to reopen hospitals. The state chose to enhance the port in Mobile instead of providing funding to rural hospitals. The hospitals would have provided jobs and training for RNs, LPNs, CANs and other hospital staff, as well as other jobs once the hospitals opened.
  • We have to educate our decision-makers about looking at cost holistically and not just as a one-time investment. We are losing people due to not investing and not expanding Medicaid.

Adam Keller:

  • It’s hard to begin, because all of the issues are so interrelated and important.
  • Public transportation is so important to access to food and work. Several participants weighed in on public transportation.
  • One participant said crime is out of control and expressed concern about gun safety. They are concerned about gun violence and how Gov. Kay Ivey and lawmakers have loosened restrictions. They emphasized the need for citizen participation.
  • There are false narratives around crime. We need more community-based public safety.
  • A participant brought up the lack of Medicaid expansion, closing of rural hospitals and lack of OB-GYNs. She had a medical incident and only survived because she had immediate attention.
  • A participant said the secretary of state’s salary should be tied to voter registration. They also brought up bicycles as a help for transportation, as well as university bike share programs and bike grants. They said the state needs to grant more paroles and shouldn’t require people to pay a bunch of fees before voting rights are restored.

Formeeca Tripp:

  • It’s important to know the history of Alabama so we can understand the past and where we are going.
  • A longtime Alabama Arise member is eager to keep learning more. He believes the issues proposed are good, and we need to keep focusing on them.
  • One big supporter of Medicaid expansion believes it needs to keep being addressed in the legislative sessions. He also supports the end to the state grocery tax but is lost on “what else can we do?” He also has concerns with gun violence, along with other participants.
  • Another longtime member is a big supporter of Medicaid expansion and believes we need to keep working on the current list of priorities for the next legislative session.
  • Another participant believes payday and predatory lending should be addressed and a priority issue. Transportation, specifically for disabled veterans, is important and needs to be addressed, not just grouped under the general transportation umbrella. She also would like to see gun violence reduction as a priority issue and has a movement called “SWAG – Safer Without A Gun,” to buy back real and toy guns as well as educate on gun safety, conflict resolution and problem-solving skills, especially in underserved communities.
  • Medicaid expansion, transportation and gun violence were the dominant topics in our breakout room.

Building toward a better Alabama, Aug. 6

We had three breakout rooms during this session. We asked folks in each group to discuss what motivates them to act on issues and how Arise supports their actions. And we asked them to indicate their priority issues. Here’s what our organizers heard from participants:

Pres Harris:

  • Participants shared consensus about the need to expand Medicaid to address several health care concerns. These included rural hospital closures, maternal mortality rates in Alabama and support for mental health care needs.
  • Concern for the survival of our democracy with attacks on voting rights was expressed. Public education, affordable housing and public transportation also were highlighted. Several said it is hard to prioritize the current Arise issues, as they are all critical.
  • Participants shared what motivates them to action: hearing the stories of those directly impacted, knowing they are coming together with others to advocate, and the feeling of confidence they get because Arise has helped equip them with information and tools to act.

Stan Johnson:

  • We heard consensus that all the issues are important, and it is difficult to pinpoint which is a priority over another.
  • Jobs to Move America supports everything Arise does and wants to see a clawback of incentives to companies that violate child labor laws (e.g., Hyundai’s supply chain). We want to raise that up for consideration. These kids come from impoverished backgrounds in Mexico/Central America, and they send money back to their families. Sen. Merika Coleman and Rep. Neil Rafferty had a bill last year, and it passed in the Senate and House committee unanimously; we just ran out of time. We need to send these car manufacturers a message. They are working on a strategic direction proposal to submit.
  • We need to continue to grow the communication network throughout the state.
  • Alabama Arise is the most respected organization in the State House.
  • We need to make serious reforms to the state budgets and appropriations so we can take care of the people of Alabama, instead of Mercedes, etc. We do not have money to fund social programs, but corporations are receiving gigantic tax breaks. These are billions of dollars that could have helped the citizens of Alabama.
  • One organization is working on criminal legal reform in Alabama, especially looking at the death penalty.
  • A participant was very upset that Alabama does not participate in programs, and then the same government comes and says we do not have any money.
  • Several participants said transportation needs to improve in Alabama, which also helps people have access to jobs. Transportation is a big topic for people with disabilities. One participant said some of her clients are not able to get to appointments at UAB because of a lack of public transportation. Some transportation directors, on the other hand, do not see the need and want to make further cuts because of low ridership on the buses. Her clients are losing their jobs because of unreliable transportation. Decatur has Ride on Demand, where you must call in to request a ride. It can be a two-hour wait time. There are bus stops on busy roads, so it is dangerous for individuals in wheelchairs as well as able-bodied individuals. These are some of the reasons people do not use Decatur’s transportation system.
  • Another participant from Mobile said she has been working on Medicaid expansion and is glad we were able to get an extension on the coverage for postpartum maternity care. She is pushing health care as the main issue, along with the social determinants associated with health.

Adam Keller:

  • We need more mental health services, which will help reduce prison overcrowding and crime.
  • Alabama needs prison reform, including addressing the prison labor situation.
  • We heard affirmation of our current agenda, including specifically voting rights and Medicaid expansion.
  • We heard discussion of burnout and the importance of persistence (with the grocery tax as an example).
  • Some members shared that they wouldn’t be involved if it wasn’t for our help and said Arise gives them more hope for the state.

Additional listening sessions

This section highlights participants’ input from the 19 additional sessions recorded by the Arise organizing team. In general, all participants strongly affirmed Arise’s work on current legislative priorities. Many thought that Arise should continue to build on momentum it has around some of the current issues. Many also said we need to see more change in the existing priorities. Members seemed to affirm these sentiments, as no new issues were proposed for 2025. These notes lift up the other issues of concern that participants highlighted as we listened.

Pres Harris – Baldwin, Elmore and Mobile counties

Participants in these meetings affirmed the current Arise priorities, acknowledging that our issues are long-haul issues.

Other issues raised:

  • The need to address gun violence.
  • The need for parole reform was proposed by a group of women from the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women who are sponsored by Arise member group Greater Birmingham Ministries. GBM submitted the issue as a strategic approach under the existing criminal justice reform issue.

Stan Johnson – Birmingham/Jefferson County and Tuscaloosa/West Alabama

Most of the participants in these meetings focused on the existing legislative priorities and discussed ways to continue the work toward progress.

A member group planned to submit a proposal for a strategic approach to getting more funding for the 988 mental health crisis hotline that connects folks to needed resources. This is not a new issue, but it would be part of Arise’s permanent priority of adequate state budgets.

Other issues raised: More needs to be done about payday loans, energy/solar power incentives and veterans in crisis.

Whit Sides, Arise’s Cover Alabama storyteller, participated in a session with disability advocates that involved listening to and sharing stories related to intellectual disabilities and neurodivergence/autism. Participants were interested in developing their stories for advocacy with policy and lawmakers.

Adam Keller – Northeast/Madison and Morgan counties

Most of the participants in these meetings strongly affirmed the current Arise priorities.

During further discussion, participants highlighted issues related to public education, child nutrition, paid parental leave and parole/probation reform.

Several conversations centered on how the work of Arise connected with labor and worker power.

Formeeca Tripp – Houston, Lee, Montgomery and Tallapoosa counties

Many participants in these meetings expressed appreciation for Arise’s work around our current issues, especially voting rights, health care and other safety net issues.

Other issues raised:

  • The lack of affordable housing that contributes to issues of homelessness.
  • Legislation that impacted the Black population historically and current laws and policies that lawmakers have passed.
  • Issues that negatively impact racial equity and inclusion.
  • The need to address gun violence and have programs for youth.

The Alabama Tenants’ Handbook (2024 update)

By Alabama Arise

More than 500,000 Alabama households live in rental housing. For a long time, there was no state law protecting the rights of renters. As of Jan. 1, 2007, it’s a different story. We now have the Alabama Landlord-Tenant Law to help make sure every rental house and apartment is a decent place to live.

This handbook, last updated in May 2024, tells you what’s in the landlord-tenant law, along with some basic information for renters. Download the full PDF here.

Here’s what Alabama Arise heard from you in summer 2023!

By Presdelane Harris

Alabama Arise listens because we deeply value the input we get from members, partners and most importantly, those directly affected by the work we do together. We depend on what we hear to help guide our issue work and our strategies.

We held three statewide online events this summer: two Town Hall Tuesdays and one public transportation listening session. And we facilitated eight additional listening sessions around the state, engaging a total of about 375 people.

The town halls happened on July 18 and Aug. 8, and the public transit event was Aug. 9. Other meetings took place throughout the summer. This year we are sharing the direct notes and highlights from each of the meetings as recorded during the sessions.

Town Hall Tuesdays & Public Transportation Listening Session

  • Building on our vision: We had three breakout rooms during this session. We asked folks in each group to discuss their thoughts on current issues and to share other priorities they had. Here’s what we heard:

Group One: Participants generally thought Arise should continue working on the current issues. They noted that the issues are interconnected, and that makes it hard to prioritize. Concerns about criminal justice conviction practices were raised, along with the need for continued work on voting rights and Medicaid expansion. Other issues raised were the need for more affordable housing, paying a living wage versus a minimum wage, and the need to discuss the impact of the opioid epidemic on grandparents now raising children because their parents suffer with addiction. Participants also raised reapportionment as an important issue.

Group Two: Participants strongly believed all of the Arise priority issues are important and that we should continue to work on them. Some of the specific issues lifted up were transportation, voting rights, payday lending and Medicaid expansion. Some issues that are not current Arise priorities raised were housing, disability, mental health access and accountability and prison reform.

Group Three: Medicaid expansion received the most support for continued work. Several people voiced prisons and criminal justice as a concern, including the need for prison reform and bail reform. Voting rights and the concern about the many voter suppression bills was a high-priority topic. Participants discussed passionate concern about payday loans, and the group supported the present slate of issues.

  • Building on our hope: We had three breakout rooms during this session. We asked folks in each group to discuss what motivates them to act on issues and how Arise supports their actions. We also asked them to indicate their priority issues. Here’s what we heard:

Group One: 

  1. The discussion in the group was hot and heavy concerning voting rights and specifically the absentee ballot application. The group concluded that a no-excuse absentee ballot should be the norm and should be an Arise issue for 2024.
  2. The group felt strongly that the 2023 Arise slate of issues should all remain on the 2024 list of Arise priority issues. Medicaid is an issue we need to keep fighting for, they said.
  3. This group had a primary focus and lengthy discussion around voting rights.

Group Two: 

  1. All members of the group strongly believe all the Arise priority issues are important and that we should continue to work on them.
  2. Members also strongly believe affordable housing and public transportation should receive a strong voice like Medicaid expansion.
  3. Members said that to further our support of advocacy work, Arise can help unite nonprofits and grassroots organizations across the state to work together toward shared goals as opposed to working separately toward shared goals.
  4. Members lifted up our education and lobbying work as essential to connecting the people to those who represent them in the Legislature.

Group Three: Voting rights emerged as a strong theme from this group’s discussion. Participants stressed the importance of voter education and folks making the connection between voting and the policies elected officials make that impact their lives. Other voting themes included restoration of voting rights and engaging younger and BIPOC voters. Other issues raised were around public transportation and the need to fund mental health services. One participant expressed appreciation for the storytelling work Arise does related to Medicaid expansion and urged similar storytelling to help move elected officials around other Arise issues.

  • Public Transportation Listening Session: We had three breakout rooms during this session. We asked folks in each group to discuss what’s needed to improve public transit in Alabama, what strategies are needed to move the issue forward and how public transit impacts quality of life in their communities.

Group One: 

  1. Private companies like Uber and Lyft are not equipped to serve the disability community, group members said. This is very important when talking about transportation for the disability community wherever they may be, rural or urban. In other words, the private companies are not a viable resource, participants said.
  2. Rural linkage: Many rural counties have transportation-on-demand systems, but they only serve the county boundaries. Many health services reside in urban centers, and the rider needs to get from Blount County to UAB or Children’s Hospital in Birmingham. These riders are out of luck. Transfer hubs for rural to urban systems do not exist.
  3. A state transportation planning system is needed to coordinate all the existing public systems, rural and urban. Participants hoped Arise’s forthcoming transit study will shine some light on the need for a statewide public transportation planning entity.
  4. The group felt a need for massive public education around the benefits of public transportation. Somehow, Arise or a group of organizations should seek funding for an advertising budget, participants said.
  1. The real cost of owning a car versus using public transportation. This kind of information should be available to the public.
  2. The fact that public transportation is good for business development throughout the state should be targeted to legislators and local business councils and chambers of commerce.

Group Two: 

  1. This group believes public transportation is essential.
  2. There is a need for more hubs and covered stops for locations that already have public transportation in place.
  3. There is a need for more routes with more frequent buses each hour, as well as drivers who are paid livable wages.
  4. Specific strategies discussed included working with for-profits, chambers of commerce, small businesses and corporations to improve transportation for their employees. Participants also suggested surveying the need for transportation by including a question on applications to ask if transportation is needed.
  5. Public transportation impacts the quality of life across the board: health, food, employment, education, leisure, etc.
  6. People have a right to comfort, dignity, pride and independence that public transportation can provide.
  7. One member said reaching out to people who do not need or use public transportation is important to educate them that they can still benefit from it. It helps reduce traffic and road congestion, decreases likelihood of drinking and driving, and helps people out of desperate situations, which can help decrease poverty and crime.
  8. A member of the Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind shared how losing the ability to drive caused depression. But oppression is felt when there are no options for transportation other than relying on friends or family if you have them, or simply being unable to go to doctor’s appointments, shop for groceries or pick up medications when needed.
  9. Some members suggested a public Lyft/Uber service.

Group Three: 

  1. Needs: Money/state funding, alternative models, transit-oriented development at local levels, accessibility, buy-in from agencies like ALDOT, changed perception of public transit.
  2. Strategies/tactics: Collect public transit stories, share statistics on earning power with vs. without good public transit and other data relevant to workforce development, and highlight workforce development as a theme for legislative lobbying. Participants discussed a license plate fee, tire fee or special license plate (like public schools have, for example).
  3. Quality of life: A visually impaired participant described how a trip to the grocery store or polling place only a couple miles away is a $25 Uber ride one way. Another participant who works with clients described how their lack of access to public transit affects not just work but health appointments, visiting DHR to secure SNAP, applications for housing, etc. They also mentioned that even “low-cost” transit can be a barrier to low-income folks who may not have a dollar for a ride.

Additional listening sessions

Following are the brief notes/summaries from eight other sessions our organizers held during the summer. In general, all participants strongly affirmed Arise’s work on the current issue priorities. They also highlighted some other issues of concern.

  • Cullman, July 26 (Stan Johnson) – This was a well-informed group with a lot of comments and questions concerning criminal justice, public transportation, death penalty and new prison construction.
  • Opelika, July 26 (Formeeca Tripp) – This group discussed issues surrounding housing, transportation, food insecurity, health care and the legal system. Housing was a top issue.
  • Zoom, Aug. 3 (Formeeca) – A death penalty group discussed issues related to recent executions in Alabama, as well as upcoming executions nationwide. Participants said more attention and connections are necessary to bring more awareness to death penalty reform.
  • Tuscaloosa, Aug. 7 (Stan) – The most passionate suggestion from this meeting was the need for legislative action to provide funding for mental health.
  • Opelika, Aug. 17 (Formeeca) – Arise conducted listening sessions in the form of a series of small group meetings.

Group 1: Predominantly parents, people of the community and law enforcement. They supported all current issues but wanted to focus on housing and transportation.

Group 2: Predominantly school staff, counselors, superintendents, principals, resource providers, etc. They wanted resources for non-English-speaking families, housing, transportation and effective mental health services.

Group 3: Predominantly youth, teenagers and support staff. They wanted to learn more about their representatives and how to lift up their own voices, as well as better wages and job opportunities.

  • Montgomery, Aug. 17 (Formeeca) – This group discussed their strategic plan to add to the existing public transportation priority issue. They want to add a $1 fee to license plates to fund the Public Transportation Trust Fund.
  • Birmingham, Sept. 10 (Stan) – This group showed special interest in fair housing and criminal justice reform. Voting rights also was a concern to the group, specifically absentee voting bills that may be reintroduced in the upcoming session.
  • Auburn, Sept. 21 (Formeeca) – Students from an Auburn University class filled out a 2024 issue proposal survey form asking them to rank issues of priority. The top three issues that seemed to rank the highest were public transportation, voting rights and criminal justice reform.

2023 was a momentous session on Alabama Arise policy priorities

By Mike Nicholson

June 6 ended one of the most significant legislative sessions ever for Alabama Arise and our supporters. Through timely and persistent advocacy, Arise members helped build a better, more equitable Alabama.

While our work continues, we want to highlight the many important strides this year in our movement for a better Alabama for all – and celebrate Arise members’ role in advancing that goal. This article summarizes some of the key bills on Arise priorities during the Legislature’s 2023 regular session. For information on all bills we tracked this year, visit the Bills of Interest page on our website.

Tax reform

Lawmakers proposed many significant tax reform bills this session. But none will have more lasting significance to Alabamians than reducing the state sales tax on groceries, a longstanding Arise priority. Thanks to phenomenal member advocacy, our state is finally removing part of this regressive tax.

HB 479, sponsored by Rep. Danny Garrett, R-Trussville, became law this year. This legislation will cut the state grocery tax by half in the coming years. This huge victory for tax justice resulted from decades of hard work by Arise members. (See page 1.)

Adequate state budgets

Alabama’s 2024 General Fund (GF) and Education Trust Fund (ETF) budgets are both significantly larger than 2023. The GF budget is about $3 billion and includes a 2% pay raise for state employees. It also includes significant funding increases for Medicaid, mental health care and other state services. The 2024 ETF budget is nearly $8.8 billion, half a billion dollars more than the previous year’s ETF.

HB 295 and SB 202, known as the PRICE Act, were sponsored by Rep. Ernie Yarbrough, R-Trinity, and Sen. Larry Stutts, R-Tuscumbia. These bills would have allowed parents to take tax dollars that otherwise would support local public schools and use them to pay for private schools or home schooling. Arise and other advocates helped defeat this legislation, protecting nearly $600 million of public education funding.

Voting rights

HB 209, sponsored by Rep. Jamie Kiel, R-Russellville, did not pass this session. This bill would have criminalized many efforts to assist voters with absentee ballot applications or completed ballots. Arise and other groups successfully stopped this bill, which passed the House but never reached the Senate floor.

Criminal justice reform

SB 154, sponsored by Sen. Will Barfoot, R-Pike Road, became law this year. This legislation will make it harder for the state to suspend people’s driver’s licenses for failure to pay traffic tickets. Arise and our partners at Alabama Appleseed strongly supported this bill.

HB 24, sponsored by Rep. Reed Ingram, R-Pike Road, passed despite Arise’s opposition. This bill will criminalize asking for money on the side of roads, punishing many Alabamians facing housing insecurity. Federal courts have found similar laws unconstitutional in recent years.

HB 229, sponsored by Rep. Chris England, D-Tuscaloosa, would have allowed resentencing of certain incarcerated individuals sentenced to life imprisonment without parole under Alabama’s Habitual Felony Offender Act. This bill passed the House and gained Senate committee approval, but it never reached the Senate floor. Arise supported this bill and expects a similar one to be filed next session.

Death penalty reform 

England’s HB 14 would have required a unanimous jury sentence to impose the death penalty. The bill also would have made the state’s judicial override ban retroactive. This bill received a public hearing but did not leave the committee. Arise supported this bill and expects a similar one to be filed next session.

Other issues 

SB 196, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, would have increased government transparency by improving Alabama’s open records process. This bill passed the Senate and gained House committee approval but did not pass in the House. Arise supported this bill and expects a similar one to be filed next session.

SB 242, sponsored by Sen. Keith Kelley, R-Anniston, would have undermined tenant protections by removing the cap on the amount of the security deposit that landlords can charge to renters. Arise opposed this bill, and it died without reaching the Senate floor.

Alabama shouldn’t make housing insecurity a crime: Vote ‘No’ on HB 24

By Alabama Arise

HB 24, sponsored by Rep. Reed Ingram, R-Pike Road, would make it a Class C misdemeanor to loiter on a public roadway or the right-of-way of a public roadway. This effectively would criminalize Alabamians who are experiencing homelessness and asking for help. Here are three reasons why Arise opposes this bill:

Alabama should invest in solutions to housing insecurity, not criminalize poverty.

  • Being housing insecure shouldn’t be a crime. Neither should asking neighbors for help.
  • This bill would create unnecessary hardship for people who lack housing. They also could increase the likelihood of tense encounters between police and marginalized Alabamians.
  • This legislation could have the unintended consequence of exacerbating the overcrowding and funding crisis within our county jails.

Multiple federal courts already have deemed this type of law unconstitutional.

  • Passing this bill would result in expensive litigation that would waste Alabama taxpayers’ money. And the most likely outcome would be for the state to be retold what a federal court already has stated: Laws like this are unconstitutional.
  • A federal judge intervened in March 2023 to block a similar municipal law and to prevent the Montgomery Sheriff’s Office and the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency from arresting people who were soliciting donations. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also has ruled these kinds of laws violate the First Amendment.
  • By criminalizing poverty in this way, our state would be demonizing a marginalized segment of our population. Alabama also would be wasting valuable resources on lawsuits seeking to impose fines (or potentially jail time) on the people who can least afford them.
  • This bill would be a bad and unconstitutional approach to an issue that requires empathy and communal engagement, not callousness and incarceration.

Putting people in jail over housing insecurity would be both cruel and expensive. Investing in housing and other support services is a much more humane and efficient approach.

It’s time for Alabama to stop criminalizing poverty: Oppose HB 24

HB 24, sponsored by Rep. Reed Ingram, R-Pike Road, would make it a Class C misdemeanor to loiter on a public roadway or the right-of-way of a public roadway. This effectively would criminalize Alabamians who are experiencing homelessness and asking for help. Here are three reasons why Arise opposes this bill:

  • Alabama should invest in solutions to housing insecurity, not criminalize poverty. Being housing insecure shouldn’t be a crime. Neither should asking neighbors for help.
  • Multiple federal courts already have deemed this type of law unconstitutional. This bill likely would result in expensive litigation that would waste Alabama taxpayers’ money.
  • Putting people in jail over housing insecurity would be cruel and expensive. Investing in housing and other support services is a much more humane and efficient approach to addressing this issue.

Fresh opportunities to push for a better Alabama

By Akiesha Anderson

The Alabama Legislature will welcome 37 new lawmakers to its halls when its 2023 regular session begins March 7. Alabama Arise sees this as an opportunity to educate new legislators and identify new allies on issues of importance to our members. We urge folks to join us in calling for change, including at Arise Legislative Day on April 11.

Eliminate the state grocery tax

In early February, 11% of Alabama households said they sometimes or often didn’t have enough food to eat. And those hunger challenges are even more severe in communities of color. More than 23% of Black Alabamians and 13.6% of Hispanic Alabamians said they sometimes or often didn’t have enough food.

Untaxing groceries would help families across Alabama keep food on the table. As we have for more than two decades, Arise once again will support bills this year to remove the state’s 4% sales tax on groceries. We also will support replacing the grocery tax revenue by limiting or ending a tax loophole for the wealthiest households. This legislation by Sen. Andrew Jones, R-Centre, and Rep. Penni McClammy, D-Montgomery, would empower Alabama to untax groceries while protecting funding for public schools.

Expand Medicaid to close the health coverage gap

For nearly a decade, Alabama has been outside looking in on a good deal. While hundreds of thousands of Alabamians continue to struggle without health insurance, state leaders have failed to expand Medicaid. Alabama is one of just 11 states that has yet to expand Medicaid. And that inaction has left more than 220,000 Alabamians in a health coverage gap.

Fifteen rural hospitals in Alabama are at imminent risk of closing this year if state leaders don’t act soon to protect health care access. Gov. Kay Ivey should act swiftly to expand Medicaid herself, but the Legislature’s support also will be vital. Arise will keep working to educate lawmakers and the public on the economic, budgetary and humanitarian benefits of Medicaid expansion.

Take bold steps to reform our criminal justice system

Legislators have an opportunity and an obligation to make strides in solving the many problems within Alabama’s criminal justice system. This issue has added urgency as Alabama faces a U.S. Department of Justice lawsuit alleging unconstitutional prison conditions.

Many avenues for progress exist. Arise will urge lawmakers to end the practice of suspending driver’s licenses for debt-based reasons. We will advocate for reform of the state “three-strikes” law, known as the Habitual Felony Offender Act. And we will support a bill to require the jury to be unanimous before imposing the death penalty.

Address housing and transportation needs

State House insiders expect the Legislature to go into a special session this spring to decide how to use remaining federal funds under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). From the start, Arise has taken the position that Alabama should use some of its ARPA funds to jump-start public transportation and help thousands find an affordable place to call home.

During the probable special session, we will continue to uplift the need for these investments in the people of Alabama. Learn more at alarise.org/arpatoolkit.

Budget priorities for the people

By Robyn Hyden

Two weeks before the Alabama Legislature’s 2023 regular session, lawmakers, lobbyists and advocates packed into the State House in late February for the annual joint legislative budget hearings. One might call it the Super Bowl for budget nerds.

After years of scarcity, both Alabama budgets are starting out with a revenue surplus. There’s $351 million in “excess” revenue for the General Fund, and $2.7 billion for the Education Trust Fund. That’s not even counting the remaining $1.1 billion in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds still awaiting allocation.

What we heard at this year’s budget hearings was not surprising. Public services like education, health care, mental health and supportive services need more resources after years of underinvestment. State agencies are struggling with worker shortages and the consequences of underfunding – and understaffing – critical programs. It’s no surprise that lawmakers heard a long, detailed list of opportunities to meet these needs. Most agency heads were clear that new funding can’t fix all of the problems – but it’s a start.

Some lawmakers have floated the idea that this one-time surplus is a sign we need a tax rebate. If that proposal materializes, Arise will be front and center advocating for funds to go directly to low- and moderate-income households bearing the brunt of higher costs. But Arise’s proposal, which comes directly from listening to our members, is a longer-term solution to our upside-down tax code. Our bill to untax groceries would help families keep food on the table while also protecting funding for public schools. It’s a solution that goes beyond just one year to create more foundational and sustainable change.

One concern you may have heard is that nobody has enough workers. Too many Alabamians are still disconnected from the workforce due to missing critical infrastructure investments in child care, public transportation, health care and affordable housing. This year, we’ll be pushing for investments in these supports to help people get and keep work, and to build the healthy and educated workforce Alabama needs.

Our 2023 policy proposals provide that roadmap for change. Expand Medicaid to ensure nobody has to die for lack of preventive care or live in poverty because they have a chronic health condition. Invest in infrastructure to support workers, including child care, housing, public transportation and education. Stop funding public services with punitive fines and fees, and start ensuring the wealthiest Alabamians pay their fair share.

We look forward to seeing you all at our Legislative Day this April. If we continue to stand and work together, we will make significant progress for Alabama.

Public transit, healthy food access among key pathways to increase economic opportunity in Birmingham area, new report finds

By Chris Sanders

Greater Birmingham has experienced a resurgence in economic growth and civic engagement in recent years. But the benefits of this prosperity are not widely shared among everyone living in the region – and a new comprehensive report that Alabama Arise and the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) released Thursday shows that people across Jefferson County know it.

The report, Homecoming: The Greater Birmingham Community Speaks on Regional Cooperation and a More Inclusive Economy, includes a professional survey of 1,024 residents of the Greater Birmingham area conducted this year. Three in four residents said the region’s economic resources are not distributed fairly. And only one in four said they are personally included in the Birmingham area’s economic revival.

Economic opportunity and financial vulnerability across Greater Birmingham vary widely by race, gender and geography, the report finds. Homecoming highlights the critical problems facing the region’s residents – and the solutions they want to see. The report defines Greater Birmingham as Jefferson County, the City of Birmingham and 33 other municipalities within Jefferson County.

Picture of the Birmingham skyline. Report cover text: Homecoming: The Greater Birmingham Community Speaks on Regional Cooperation and a More Inclusive Economy.

“The results of this comprehensive study of the issues facing Greater Birmingham residents speak volumes, especially in the wake of the results of the midterms, about where communities stand on the major issues that impact not only Alabama, but our country as a whole,” said Marc Bayard, associate fellow of the Institute for Policy Studies and the report’s co-author.

“Alabama’s economy is growing, but ordinary people aren’t seeing the same changes to their bottom line. We see the real-life effects of economic and racial inequality, and we also see the profound need for change in how the government responds to the most urgent needs and concerns of Alabama residents.”

Click here to read the full report.

Policies to promote broadly shared prosperity

The study includes a professional survey of 1,024 Greater Birmingham residents conducted in 2022. It focuses on ensuring broad representation across race, gender, political ideology and geography.

“Too many people are being left behind in Birmingham’s economy these days. The region needs broadly shared prosperity that creates good jobs that provide a living wage and upward mobility,” said Allan M. Freyer, Ph.D., visiting fellow with Alabama Arise and the report’s lead author.

“Our study provides local governments across the Birmingham area with a toolbox of potential strategies for promoting equitable economic growth that benefits everyone. Better transit, access to healthy foods, affordable housing, accountability for development projects, and more local authority are the key to a more prosperous, thriving region.”

Key findings

  • Two-thirds of survey respondents identified transportation – especially lack of public transit – as the top challenge facing Greater Birmingham. The region is one of the country’s most auto-dependent metro areas.
  • More than 55% of residents cited lack of access to healthy food in certain neighborhoods as a significant problem.
  • Almost 80% of respondents identified rising housing costs as a problem. Another 73% said the same about the overall lack of affordable housing.
  • More than 73% of survey respondents rated lack of good jobs as at least somewhat of a problem. This included 82% of Black respondents and 62% of white respondents.
  • Nearly 60% of respondents said gaining access to job training programs is a challenge, and those fortunate enough to complete these programs might not find available jobs calling for their new skills.
  • More than 60% saw child care as a significant challenge for the region’s economy.
  • More than three-quarters of residents want their local government to ensure companies create the jobs they promise in exchange for public subsidies or tax incentives – and require those jobs to pay living wages.
  • A supermajority of residents (nearly three in four) oppose preemption (through which states can limit the authority of local governments) and support home rule (where localities are relatively autonomous). Large majorities of Black and white residents alike said local governments should be able to set their own minimum wage.

“Hope for a brighter future is a value shared by people of every race and in every part of the Greater Birmingham area,” Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden said. “For prosperity to be shared more broadly, residents are telling us we need to invest in recruiting high-quality, better-paying jobs. We can support workers in getting to those jobs with better public transportation and stronger investments in child care and affordable housing.”

Methodology

To capture a range of ideas and perspectives effectively, the Arise and IPS report:

  • Commissioned a professional survey in 2022 of 1,024 Greater Birmingham residents. The goal was to understand the challenges residents are facing and the policy solutions they support.
  • Conducted 12 focus groups with key categories of stakeholders to learn more about the biggest challenges facing Greater Birmingham residents. Researchers engaged approximately 80 people, including corporate leaders, business owners, faith leaders across the racial spectrum, grassroots activists, leaders of women’s groups, youth development groups, and other nonprofit leaders working in various aspects of equitable development across the area.
  • Conducted two dozen one-on-one interviews with community leaders to hear their concerns and proposed solutions. These included staff at local governments, regional foundations, regionwide civic initiatives, grassroots activists, policy advocates, nonprofit leaders, neighborhood association presidents and local developers.

Read the full report here.

Here’s what Alabama Arise heard from you in summer 2022!

By Presdelane Harris

We deeply value the input we get from Alabama Arise members, our allies and most importantly, those directly affected by the work we do together. We depend on what we hear to help guide our issue work and our strategies.

Despite the ongoing challenges of connecting in person, we kept working at finding ways to listen. We did another series of three statewide online Town Hall Tuesdays. And we held seven additional listening sessions around the state, engaging about 200 people.

The town halls happened every two weeks, starting July 12 and ending Aug. 9. Other meetings took place throughout the summer. Below are summaries of what we heard in those meetings.

Town Hall Tuesdays

Food and health

Most participants deeply cared about Medicaid expansion. They discussed how it would help many people, including rural communities struggling with access to care. Many were frustrated that Gov. Kay Ivey has not yet expanded Medicaid in Alabama. Others discussed the connection between health and access to healthy food and nutrition. Some participants noted that other barriers like transportation also directly impact health, nutrition and employment.

Related issues raised were the needs to address the racial wealth gap and increase wages for front-line workers. Many people expressed appreciation for food banks and pantries but acknowledged that they cannot meet all food security needs. Participants encouraged Arise to remain vigilant about the threat to impose stringent work requirements for Medicaid and SNAP food assistance. Many participants also mentioned untaxing groceries as a way to improve food security.

Democracy and justice

Many participants expressed concerns about legislative attempts to suppress voting rights and said Election Day should be a state holiday. Others also expressed concerns about ballot access for people with disabilities, limited numbers of voting precincts and gerrymandering. Bottom line: We should make it easier to vote, as ballot access is key to a strong democracy.

Several participants expressed concerns about the need for more services for people leaving incarceration. We need to expand community corrections programs, enact real prison reform and get rid of unjust fines and fees.

Some participants identified language accessibility as a potential barrier to receiving many services and participating fully in our democracy. Others were concerned about allocation of American Rescue Plan Act funds and wanted more funding for the Housing Trust Fund.

The path forward

This town hall was an opportunity to talk about any issues of concern people wanted to highlight. Participants raised the following needs and concerns:

  • Expand Medicaid in Alabama now and address health disparities, including women’s health issues.
  • Untax groceries and improve our regressive tax system.
  • Improve voting access, including restoration of voting rights for people who were formerly incarcerated.
  • Address environmental issues, including working to improve air quality in schools.
  • Improve affordable housing access and language access, fully fund the child home visitation program and address gun violence.

Group and regional listening sessions

Session participants around the state strongly affirmed Arise’s work on the current 2022 issue priorities. They also emphasized the ongoing work to be done in those areas. Current issues highlighted were Medicaid expansion, criminal justice reform (particularly in the area of unjust fines and fees), more funding for child care and first class pre-K, public transportation and death penalty reform.

Session participants also discussed issues that aren’t on the Arise agenda but are of concern to them and their communities. Some of those issues include:

  • Affordable housing, with a focus on increased funding and availability. One example was discussion of whether to limit the number of vacation rental properties one person could own in an area, as this can contribute to the shortage of affordable housing. Many renters also discussed the soaring prices of rent.
  • Automatic organ donor registration linked to getting and renewing driver’s licenses.
  • Broadband internet extension to reach more rural households and Alabamians with low incomes.
  • Constitutional reform.
  • Government intrusion on private medical decisions. One example shared was concern over lawmakers interfering with rights of transgender teens to seek medical care. Another concern raised was doctors being able to provide medical care during pregnancy and decide the right time to intervene on a pregnancy that threatens the life of the mother.
  • Gun violence prevention.
  • Marijuana sentencing reform.

ARPA 101: How the American Rescue Plan Act can build a more equitable Alabama

By

The COVID-19 pandemic has stretched families, hospitals, schools, businesses and food banks across Alabama to their limits. Like tens of millions of other Americans, local and state officials have had to adapt to new challenges and respond to existing health and economic challenges exacerbated by the pandemic over the last two years.

Congress reacted to these challenges by passing several major recovery packages to provide relief to individuals, states and local governments. The most recent package was the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a $1.9 trillion measure enacted in March 2021. One key provision of ARPA is known as State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds (SLFRF). Congress allocated this money to help states and localities address the impact of the pandemic and promote equitable recovery.

How Alabama has used ARPA funding so far – and the opportunities that remain

Of the $195 billion of SLFRF money appropriated to states, Alabama will receive more than $2.1 billion. State and local governments can spend these dollars in four ways, according to the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Final Rule released in January 2022:

  1. Replace lost public sector revenue.
  2. Support the COVID-19 public health and economic response.
  3. Provide premium pay for eligible workers performing essential work.
  4. Invest in water, sewer and broadband infrastructure.

To date, Alabama has allocated more than $1.1 billion to various programs and projects through three special sessions. Lawmakers allocated $480 million for prison construction and health care during the first two sessions in September and November 2021. The Legislature appropriated another $772 million during the third special session in January 2022. Legislators devoted that money to a range of projects, including broadband, water and wastewater infrastructure and rural hospitals.

The Legislature has yet to appropriate the remaining $1 billion in state ARPA recovery funds. But legislators may return this summer or fall for a special session focused on the use of those funds. Alabama Arise is encouraging lawmakers to invest some of that money in affordable housing, public transportation and food security infrastructure. Each of those investments would provide long-term improvements in economic opportunity and quality of life for people across Alabama.

Top priorities: Affordable housing, public transportation and food security

Priorities for Alabama's remaining ARPA funds: Affordable housing, public transportation and food security.
The COVID-19 recession caused a wave of evictions and foreclosures across Alabama. The state could help address its housing shortage and resulting homelessness by providing $25 million for the state Housing Trust Fund. This investment would create and support jobs across the state. It also would reduce Alabama’s shortfall of more than 76,000 affordable homes for people with low incomes.

Essential work supports can help more Alabamians reenter and stay in the job market during and after the pandemic. One critical support is reliable transportation to and from work, school, child care or medical care. Legislators can help strengthen communities and expand economic opportunity by investing $20 million in the state Public Transportation Trust Fund. Arise partnered with 81 other organizations in June 2022 to urge lawmakers to take that important step forward.

Hunger was already a large and perpetual problem across Alabama even before the pandemic. Sudden income loss, rising prices and occasional shortages have made it much more difficult for many people to feed their children and families. Alabama’s food banks remain essential to feeding those in need, even as many have faced staff and volunteer shortages. Lawmakers can help ease this strain by distributing $5 million to the state’s food banks. This funding would empower food banks to maintain services by replacing and improving critical infrastructure like equipment, fleets and warehouses.

ARPA funding for affordable housing, public transportation and food security infrastructure will make life better for the Alabamians hit hardest by COVID-19 and the economic downturn it caused. And these investments will go a long way toward helping create a more equitable and prosperous future for every Alabamian.

For more on the American Rescue Plan Act, please visit our ARPA toolkit.