Issue: Public Transportation

Learn more about Arise’s 2020 issue proposals

By Alabama Arise

Grassroots democracy will be on display when Alabama Arise members choose our 2020 issue priorities at our annual meeting Sept. 7 in Montgomery.

The following proposals will be up for a vote for our 2020 legislative agenda.

Below, you’ll find member groups’ summaries of their new and modified proposals. And you’ll find our policy staff’s overviews of the current issue priorities and our two permanent priorities: tax reform and adequate state budgets. We hope to see you in September as we gather to renew our shared commitment to building a better Alabama for all!

New issue proposal

Housing Trust Fund revenue

Submitted by Gordon Sullivan, Low Income Housing Coalition of Alabama (LIHCA)

LIHCA thanks Alabama Arise and its members for supporting the Housing Trust Fund in 2018 and previous years. Our combined efforts resulted in social and political momentum to secure dedicated revenue for the Alabama Housing Trust Fund (AHTF)! We are here to ask for your continued support of the AHTF and help in securing dedicated revenue for the fund in 2020.

We believe safe, decent and affordable housing is a basic human right. Hard-working Alabamians should be able to pay rent and still be able to put food on the table. Unfortunately for many Alabamians, finding a safe and affordable home is only a dream. Alabama is in a housing crisis, with a lack of nearly 70,000 rental homes for folks surviving on minimum wage and fixed incomes.

Folks making minimum wage have to work 82 hours a week to afford a market-rate two-bedroom apartment. By doing so, they miss out on family suppers and Little League, because there simply aren’t enough hours in the day. Every child deserves a safe place to call home and a chance to have those who love them help with homework and read bedtime stories.

The AHTF created a fund to construct, rehabilitate and maintain homes for low-income households. Though the AHTF was created in 2012, it was enabling legislation and did not come with funding. That means we can’t create any new or rehabilitate any existing homes or address housing problems related to natural disasters. That is why LIHCA will seek dedicated revenue for the AHTF in 2020.

Proposed legislation to fund the AHTF

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Neil Rafferty, D-Birmingham, would increase the mortgage record tax from 15 cents to 20 cents for every $100 of a mortgage. This would put approximately $15 million per year in the AHTF. This type of revenue is a common funding source for housing trust funds across the country. In Alabama, this tax has not been increased since it was enacted in 1935.

We know that two-thirds of Alabamians (67%) see the lack of affordability as a problem in our state and that a strong majority (63%) of Alabamians are ready for state action to increase housing opportunities for households priced out of the market. Building on the momentum of previous years, we believe attaining bipartisan co-sponsors and endorsements from influential groups throughout the state is possible in 2020.

With the creation of new affordable homes in Alabama, families will begin to achieve economic stability. Communities will reduce blight. And the state will see an economic impact of nearly $1 billion over 10 years.

The dedicated revenue bill supports Arise’s values and its membership’s vision for addressing poverty in Alabama by investing in communities and helping low-income households access safe and affordable homes. The dedicated revenue bill will provide $15 million per year to create and rehabilitate homes for those in need. We have been successful in building momentum with Arise’s support in past years. Let’s work together to finish what we started!

Modified issue proposal

Voting rights

Submitted by Scott Douglas and Tari Williams, Greater Birmingham Ministries, and Ned Freeman, Birmingham Friends Meeting (Quakers)

Let’s build on Arise’s commitment to voting rights, continuing to prioritize automatic voter registration (AVR) and focusing on restoration of voting rights for Alabamians affected by felony disenfranchisement. Under AVR, Alabamians would be registered to vote by default, without having to register themselves, because the state already has the necessary information. And restoring voting rights for everyone would affirm basic ideals of democracy.

Historically, Alabama has been a leader among states with the most severely punitive disenfranchisement laws. These laws, with their blatantly racist history, have kept African Americans from the polls in enormous – and enormously disproportionate – numbers. Of the more than 280,000 disenfranchised felons in Alabama, nearly 150,000 are black, according to the Sentencing Project. That means that disenfranchised felons make up more than 15% of the state’s voting-age African American population.

Alabama’s felony disenfranchisement policies have disparate impact on individuals convicted of felonies who are poor, black or both. Therefore, we propose the introduction of legislation that will (a) remove the financial barrier of requiring payment of all fines, fees and/or restitution and (b) restore voting rights to individuals while on probation and parole. This legislation is not cost-prohibitive, may take one to three years to pass because of upcoming elections and is not potentially divisive for Arise members.

Alabama’s disenfranchisement laws have fostered an underclass of tens of thousands of people who are unable to vote because they do not have enough money. In 1964, the 24th Amendment abolished the poll tax, but to this day in Alabama, money keeps a disproportionate number of people away from the ballot box. People should not be barred from voting solely because they are unable to pay back their fines, fees and restitution.

Restoring voting rights to rebuild community ties

If we truly want people convicted of felonies to re-engage with society, become rehabilitated and feel a part of a broader community (thus creating incentives not to recidivate), then our state should do everything possible to reincorporate these individuals into mainstream society. In terms of being a just and even-handed society, it is not fair if thousands of people are unable to regain their voting rights because they are poor. People who are wealthy or have access to money are able to repay their financial debts. But poor people (the vast majority of people who have felony convictions) are not. This is an unjust system.

Individuals on probation and/or parole are actively working on retaining and/or rebuilding their ties to their families, employers and communities. Allowing them to reestablish ties as stakeholders in political life provides an analogous and important reintegrative purpose and promotes public safety.

Felony disenfranchisement provisions, especially in the South and particularly in Alabama, date back to the post-Reconstruction era. Their intent was always clear and explicit: to disenfranchise African Americans and preserve white domination.

Restoring voting rights and automatically registering voters is good policy. Arise prioritizing these policies also has the immediate benefit of putting a positive voting rights agenda in the public debate during an era when voting has been under attack.

Current Arise issue priorities

Criminal justice debt reform

Court fees and fines impose heavy burdens on many struggling families. Driver’s license suspensions over unpaid fines can cause Alabamians with low incomes to lose their jobs. Cash bail for minor offenses can imperil families’ economic security. And multiple fees can stack up, making it impossible to move on from a conviction because consequences never end. In Alabama, people are subject to 63 separate fees in the criminal justice system – including even a $1 fee for paying fee installments.

This year, Arise emphasized reforming civil asset forfeiture within the umbrella of criminal justice debt. This practice allows police to seize cash or other assets if they find probable cause to link the property to a crime. But the process doesn’t require a criminal conviction, or even a charge.

Originally intended to fight drug kingpins, civil asset forfeiture today sees heavy use against people accused of minor crimes. Underfunded law enforcement agencies have incentives to use forfeiture because they are often able to keep much of the seized property.

A philosophically diverse coalition is seeking to end forfeiture abuses in Alabama, and reform efforts already have borne fruit. In 2019, comprehensive reform efforts moved quickly at first but then slowed amid law enforcement opposition. Eventually, the Legislature passed incremental reform, mandating public reporting of property seizures. Public opinion strongly favors further change, and momentum continues to build.

Death penalty reform

Alabama’s capital punishment system is unreliable and racist. Our state hands down nearly double the national average of death sentences. We are the only state with no state-funded program providing legal aid to death row prisoners. And state laws give insufficient protection against executing people who were mentally incapable of understanding their actions.

Arise has worked for increased transparency on the lethal injection procedures and a three-year moratorium on executions. Bills were introduced but did not move in recent years. In 2017, the Legislature voted overwhelmingly to bar judges from imposing death sentences when a jury recommends life without parole. But the judicial override ban is not retroactive. About a fifth of the 175 people on Alabama’s death row received death sentences against the jury’s recommendation. We would like to enforce the override ban retroactively.

Alabama’s death penalty practices reflect deep racial inequities. Before the 2017 ban, judges imposed death against a jury’s determination more often when victims were white. The state argued as recently as 2016 that it should be allowed to kill a prisoner even when a judge explicitly cited race at the sentencing hearing. Much work remains to modernize Alabama’s justice system and prevent erroneous executions.

Payday and title lending reform

Every year, high-interest loans trap thousands of struggling Alabamians in a cycle of deep debt. Payday loans are short-term (usually two-week) loans charging high annual percentage rates (APRs), up to 456%. Auto title loans charge up to 300% APR and also carry the risk of repossession of the family vehicle.

These high-cost loans strip wealth from borrowers and hurt communities across Alabama. Payday lenders are on track to pull more than $1 billion in fees out of Alabama communities over the next decade, with most of that money flowing to out-of-state companies. Predatory lending practices disproportionately target people of color and exacerbate the economic challenges in struggling rural and urban communities.

Arise is part of a statewide coalition promoting interest rate caps on payday and title loans. In 2019, we supported legislation to give payday borrowers a 30-day repayment period – the same as other monthly bills – up from as few as 10 days now. But the bill didn’t move, despite the Senate Banking Committee chairman’s assurances that he would allow a vote.

The 30 Days to Pay bill’s sponsor – Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur – is working to ensure it will receive consideration early in the 2020 regular session. Heavy citizen engagement will be needed to overcome the lending lobby.

Public transportation

Our state’s jumble of local transportation systems fails to meet the needs of many people in rural, suburban and urban areas. Alabama is one of just five states with no state public transportation funding. For many low-income workers, seniors and people with disabilities, the transit gap is a barrier to daily living. Many folks can’t get to work, school, the doctor’s office or other places they need to go in a reasonable amount of time.

Alabama took a good first step in 2018 by creating a state Public Transportation Trust Fund. But the law did not allocate any state money, even though it would be a high-return investment in our future. Each $1 million invested in public transportation creates 41 full-time jobs, research shows. Those jobs would fuel economic growth and improve quality of life in our communities.

Appropriations for the state trust fund would be eligible for a 4-to-1 federal match. So by not funding public transit, Alabama leaves millions of federal dollars on the table each year.

The General Fund remains a key potential source for state public transit funding. Greater Birmingham Ministries’ Economic Justice/Systems Change group also has urged Arise to support legislation in 2020 to allow Alabamians to dedicate part of their state income tax refund to public transit. The state already allows voluntary contributions for mental health care, foster care and other public services.

Compiled by Dev Wakeley, policy analyst

Permanent Arise issue priorities

Adequate state budgets

Our state’s upside-down tax system starves state budgets of money needed to invest in our shared future. Alabama provides almost no state money for child care. In-home services for parents of at-risk children receive a paltry $3 million a year, far less than other states. And young adults struggle to afford rising tuition and fees at universities and two-year colleges.

Alabama must address comprehensive sentencing and prison reform in 2020. The General Fund budget will need more revenue to pay for stronger investments in mental health care, substance use treatment, drug courts, community corrections and more corrections officers.

Arise’s health care advocacy has three main goals: defend, reform and expand Medicaid. Our defense work this year focused on Alabama’s pending plan to impose a catch-22 work penalty, which would strip Medicaid from thousands of parents with extremely low incomes. Looking ahead, we expect a new push to cut Medicaid by block-granting federal Medicaid funds to states.

We’ve seen progress on Medicaid reform. The statewide Integrated Care Network (ICN) for long-term care launched last October. And the long-delayed regional primary care reform takes effect this October. Arise has recruited consumer representatives for the ICN governing board and all seven Alabama Coordinated Health Network (ACHN) boards. Next year, we’ll push for the next step: Medicaid expansion, which would benefit more than 340,000 Alabama adults.

Tax reform

Alabama’s tax system is upside down. The rich get huge tax breaks, while the heaviest tax burden falls on people with low and moderate incomes. High, regressive sales taxes on groceries and other necessities drive this imbalance. So does the state’s deduction for federal income taxes (FIT), a skewed break that overwhelmingly benefits wealthy people.

Arise has fought to end the grocery tax for more than a decade. The central challenge is how to replace the $480 million it raises for education. In 2020, we’ll intensify our efforts to show legislators the powerful link between untaxing groceries and ending the FIT deduction.

Alabama is one of only three states where filers can deduct all federal income tax payments from state income taxes. This tax break disproportionately benefits wealthy people, who pay more in federal income taxes and are more likely to itemize. Ending the FIT deduction would bring in enough revenue to untax groceries, fund Medicaid expansion and meet other critical needs.

Compiled by Jim Carnes, policy director, and Carol Gundlach, policy analyst

Better policy choices on taxes, transit can improve Alabamians’ health

By Chris Sanders

Deeper and smarter investments in education, housing, infrastructure and other vital services can eliminate barriers to good health for low-income residents and communities of color, according to a new report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), a nonpartisan policy research organization based in Washington, D.C.

Alabama can take many important policy steps to remove barriers to better health. These include:

  • Expand Medicaid to cover more than 340,000 adults with low incomes.
  • Provide state funding for public transportation to help seniors, people with disabilities, and people who can’t afford a car get to work or the doctor’s office and meet other basic needs.
  • End the state grocery tax to make it easier for families to make ends meet.
  • Modernize the state’s upside-down tax system to ensure Alabama raises enough money to invest in vital services and doesn’t tax struggling people deeper into poverty.

“Good health and good quality of life go hand in hand,” Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden said. “By investing in Medicaid and public transportation and making our tax system more progressive, Alabama can build a stronger, healthier, more prosperous future for everyone.”

Income and wealth inequality, on top of centuries of structural racism, have taken their toll on health for black Alabamians. Black residents of our state die three years earlier than white residents, on average. Black babies in Alabama are twice as likely as white babies to be born with low birth weight, and they are twice as likely to die before their first birthdays.

Social, economic and environmental factors account for half of an individual’s health, the CBPP report says. That finding underscores the importance of investments in the common good.

“If Alabama really wants to improve the health of its residents, policymakers must prioritize education, housing, the environment, infrastructure, health programs and other public investments in their budgets,” CBPP senior policy analyst Jennifer Sullivan said.

Public transit is an investment in Alabama’s future

By Dev Wakeley

It’s time to jump-start public transportation in Alabama. Our lack of state support for this vital service is hurting people, communities and the broader economy. Many Alabama seniors, people with disabilities, and people with low incomes rely on public transit to go to work, get to the doctor and run essential errands. Yet unlike almost all other states, Alabama provides no state money to help meet those needs. Alabama can fix this problem with a General Fund appropriation to the Public Transportation Trust Fund.

Lack of investment leaves Alabama behind

Alabama’s gasoline tax brought in more than $430 million in 2018. But not one penny of that money is available to public transit agencies. A 1952 constitutional amendment prohibits the use of gas tax revenues for anything other than road and bridge construction and maintenance, law enforcement, and highway-related debt payment. Alabama spends about $7 of every $100 of its state budgets on transportation, but none of that money goes to public transit.

Public transportation is vital to the well-being of families throughout Alabama. In the Birmingham metropolitan area alone, 3 million bus rides per year help take people where they need to go. But a lack of funding severely limits the bus schedules and routes there and elsewhere. No public transit system in Alabama operates past 11 p.m., even on weekends. Many rural lines operate only from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays, and they often are booked weeks in advance. Maintenance problems can cause hours of wait time between buses on the lines that do exist.

Alabama is one of only five states to provide no state funding for public transit, unlike all four of our neighbors. By failing to invest in these services, Alabama leaves millions of dollars in federal matching funds on the table yearly. If public transit agencies in the state invest in new buses or vans, the federal government can contribute $4 for every $1 that Alabama invests. For other necessary public transportation expenses, the federal government can double any state investment.

Transit funding expands economic opportunity

Stronger investment in public transportation could create hundreds of good-paying jobs in every part of our state. Every $1 million spent on public transit capital improvements creates 24 full-time jobs, and every $1 million spent on operation creates 41 full-time jobs, according to the American Public Transportation Association. These are stable, long-term jobs with benefits and a 2017 median salary of $58,000.

The economic benefits of state public transit funding would stretch across Alabama. Reliable public transportation systems greatly improve the economic opportunities available in an area. Companies often determine whether to expand to a location based partly on the health and availability of public transportation there. State support for the Public Transportation Trust Fund would mean much more than just money for buses, vans and trains. It would be an investment in Alabama’s economy and quality of life. It would be an investment in our people. And it would be an investment in our state’s future.

Medicaid expansion, end to grocery tax highlight Alabama Arise’s 2019 priorities

By Chris Sanders

Medicaid expansion and legislation to end the state sales tax on groceries are among the top goals on Alabama Arise’s 2019 legislative agenda. More than 200 Arise members picked the organization’s issue priorities at its annual meeting Saturday, Sept. 8, 2018, in Montgomery. The seven issues chosen were:

  • Tax reform, including untaxing groceries and closing corporate income tax loopholes.
  • Adequate funding for vital services like education, health care and child care, including approval of new tax revenue to protect and expand Medicaid.
  • State funding for the newly created Public Transportation Trust Fund.
  • Consumer protections to limit high-interest payday loans and auto title loans in Alabama.
  • Legislation to establish automatic universal voter registration in Alabama.
  • Reforms to Alabama’s criminal justice debt policies, including changes related to cash bail and civil asset forfeiture.
  • Reforms to Alabama’s death penalty system, including a moratorium on executions.

“Public policy barriers block the path to real opportunity and justice for far too many Alabamians,” Alabama Arise executive director Robyn Hyden said. “We’re excited to unveil our 2019 blueprint to build a more just, inclusive state and make it easier for all families to make ends meet.”

Alabama’s failure to expand Medicaid to cover adults with low wages has trapped about 300,000 people in a coverage gap, making too much to qualify for Medicaid but too little to receive subsidies for Marketplace coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Expanding Medicaid would save hundreds of lives, create thousands of jobs and pump hundreds of millions of dollars a year into Alabama’s economy. Expansion also would help keep rural hospitals and clinics open across the state.

The state grocery tax is another harmful policy choice that works against Alabamians’ efforts to get ahead. Alabama is one of only three states with no sales tax break on groceries. (Mississippi and South Dakota are the others.) The grocery tax essentially acts as a tax on survival, adding hundreds of dollars a year to the cost of a basic necessity of life. The tax also is a key driver of Alabama’s upside-down tax system, which on average forces families with low and moderate incomes to pay twice as much of what they make in state and local taxes as the richest Alabamians do.

House vote for public transportation bill is a win for mobility, economic development across Alabama

By Chris Sanders

Arise Citizens’ Policy Project executive director Kimble Forrister issued the following statement Thursday, Feb. 22, 2018, in response to the House passage of a bill to create the Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund:

“Creating the Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund is an important step forward for public transportation. Today’s House vote for SB 85 brings us closer to the day when our state will finally step up and make a meaningful investment in public transportation so all Alabamians can get where they need to go in a timely manner.

“Alabama is one of only five states with no state funding for public transit. That lack of investment makes it harder for thousands of Alabamians, especially seniors and people with disabilities, to meet basic everyday needs like going to the doctor’s office or the grocery store. It also serves as a barrier to economic development, making it harder for people to get to work and costing our state tens of millions of dollars in federal matching funds every year.

“This bill does not provide state funding, but it sets the stage for needed investment by creating a landing place for future appropriations to support and expand public transportation across Alabama. We thank Sen. Rodger Smitherman and Rep. Jack D. Williams for sponsoring this important legislation, and we urge Gov. Kay Ivey to sign it into law.”

Public transportation bill sails through Alabama House committee

By Chris Sanders

A good month for public transportation advocates in Alabama continued Wednesday when a state House committee approved legislation to create an Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund. SB 85, sponsored by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, now goes to the House, which could vote on the bill and send it to Gov. Kay Ivey as soon as Tuesday.

The Senate voted 26-0 for the measure last week. A similar bill – HB 10, sponsored by Rep. Jack Williams, R-Vestavia Hills – also won House committee approval earlier this month.

Alabama is one of five states with no state funding for public transportation. As a result, the state leaves tens of millions of dollars of federal matching funds on the table every year. This lack of investment in public transportation makes it harder for thousands of Alabamians, especially seniors and people with disabilities, to meet basic needs like getting to work or the doctor’s office. It also poses a barrier to economic development and job creation. For those reasons and others, Arise members chose public transportation as one of our 2018 issue priorities.

SB 85 and HB 10 would not provide state public transportation funding, but they would create a landing place for future state or federal appropriations to support and expand public transportation options in Alabama. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) would administer the fund. Click here for more information on the bills.

By Chris Sanders, communications director. Posted Jan. 31, 2018.

Alabama Senate passes public transportation trust fund bill

By Chris Sanders

Public transportation took another step forward Thursday when the Alabama Senate voted 26-0 for legislation to create an Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund. SB 85, sponsored by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, moves to the House. A similar bill – HB 10, sponsored by Rep. Jack Williams, R-Vestavia Hills – won House committee approval last week.

Alabama is one of five states with no state funding for public transportation. As a result, the state leaves tens of millions of dollars of federal matching funds on the table every year. This lack of investment in public transportation makes it harder for thousands of Alabamians, especially seniors and people with disabilities, to meet basic needs like getting to work or the doctor’s office. It also poses a barrier to economic development and job creation.

SB 85 and HB 10 would not provide state public transportation funding, but they would create a landing place for future state or federal appropriations to support and expand public transportation options in Alabama. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) would administer the fund. Click here for more information on the bills.

By Chris Sanders, communications director. Posted Jan. 25, 2018.

Public transportation bills win committee approval in Alabama House, Senate

By Chris Sanders

Public transportation advocates in Alabama got a double dose of good news Thursday when bills to create an Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund won committee approval in both the state House and Senate. Arise members chose creation of a trust fund as one of our 2018 issue priorities.

HB 10, sponsored by Rep. Jack Williams, R-Vestavia Hills, moves to the full House. SB 85, sponsored by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, awaits a Senate vote.

Alabama is one of five states with no state funding for public transportation. As a result, the state leaves tens of millions of dollars of federal matching funds on the table every year. This lack of investment in public transportation makes it harder for thousands of Alabamians, especially seniors and people with disabilities, to meet basic needs like getting to work or the doctor’s office. It also poses a barrier to economic development and job creation.

HB 10 and SB 85 would not provide state public transportation funding, but they would create a landing place for future state or federal appropriations to support and expand public transportation options in Alabama. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) would administer the fund. Click here for more information on the bills.

By Chris Sanders, communications director. Posted Jan. 18, 2018.

A new way forward: The Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund

By Alabama Arise

Alabama is one of only five states with no state funding for public transportation. That lack of investment makes it difficult or even impossible for tens of thousands of low-income Alabamians to get to work, the doctor’s office or other places they need to go when they need to get there. It also means our state economy loses out on millions of dollars of federal transportation money every year.

HB 10, sponsored by Rep. Jack Williams, R-Vestavia Hills, and SB 85, sponsored by Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, offer a new approach to state funding for public transportation. These companion bills would:

  • Create the Alabama Public Transportation Trust Fund to receive future appropriations for expanding public transit options in the state.
  • Authorize the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) to administer the fund, including making and auditing project awards.
  • Require ADECA to adopt trust fund rules, conduct a public transportation needs assessment and make annual reports.
  • Create an advisory committee to ensure that projects supported by the trust fund address the needs of rural areas, seniors, and people with disabilities.

BOTTOM LINE: Every year, Alabama leaves millions of dollars in federal transportation money on the table because our state doesn’t put up the matching funds needed to get it. HB 10 and SB 85 would take a sensible first step toward expanding public transportation options in Alabama and ensuring that all Alabamians can get where they need to go.

Medicaid funding, public transportation highlight Arise’s 2018 priorities

By Chris Sanders

New Medicaid revenue and creation of a state Public Transportation Trust Fund are among the goals on Alabama Arise’s 2018 legislative agenda. Nearly 200 Arise members picked the group’s issue priorities at its annual meeting Saturday, Sept. 16, 2017, in Montgomery. The seven goals chosen were:

  • Tax reform, including untaxing groceries and closing corporate income tax loopholes;
  • Adequate funding for vital services like education, health care and child care, including approval of new tax revenue to prevent Medicaid cuts;
  • Consumer protections to limit high-interest payday loans and auto title loans in Alabama;
  • Dedicated state revenue for the Alabama Housing Trust Fund;
  • Reforms to Alabama’s death penalty system, including a moratorium on executions;
  • Creation of a state Public Transportation Trust Fund; and
  • Reforms to Alabama’s criminal justice debt policies, including changes related to cash bail and driver’s license revocations for minor offenses.

“All Alabamians deserve equal justice and an opportunity to build a better life for themselves and their families,” Alabama Arise state coordinator Kimble Forrister said. “We’re excited to continue our work for policy changes that would make it easier for hard-working Alabamians to get ahead.”

More than one in five Alabamians – almost all of whom are children, seniors, pregnant women, or people with disabilities – have health coverage through Medicaid. That coverage plays an important role in keeping hospitals and doctors’ offices open across the state, especially in rural areas.

“Medicaid is the backbone of Alabama’s health care system, and we must keep it strong,” Forrister said. “The Legislature needs to step up and approve new, sustainable revenue for Medicaid in 2018. It’s time to stop the annual funding battles and ensure all Alabamians have access to health care.”

Lack of adequate transportation is another major challenge that limits economic growth and erects barriers to daily living for many low-income residents and people with disabilities across Alabama. Arise will push for creation of a state Public Transportation Trust Fund as a step toward closing that gap. A bill to create a trust fund passed the Senate this year and has momentum heading into 2018.