The 2024 Regular Legislative Session has begun! The Regular Session of the Alabama Legislature convened earlier today. The legislature can meet up to 30 days over the next 105 calendar days and must finish by May 20. Legislative leadership has indicated that the legislature will have two breaks in March, including a “district work week” for members the week of March 11 and spring break the week of March 25.  

Strong leadership returns to both chambers for the 2024 Regular Legislative Session. In the House returns Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) and Rep. Chris Pringle (R- Mobile) as Speaker Pro Tem. In the Senate, Sen. Greg Reed (R-Jasper) returns as President Pro Tem, and Sen. Bobby Singleton (D- Greensboro) as House Minority Leader. Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth (R) returns to preside over the Senate body. 

New roles: Sen. Steve Livingston (R- Scottsboro) is the new Senate Majority Leader, replacing former Sen. Clay Scofield (R- Guntersville) who resigned from his seat in October to take a position at the Business Council of Alabama.

Freshman class gains valuable experience: The quadrennial session began with 37 new legislators beginning their first year of a four-year term. After one special session and one regular legislative session, those freshman legislators have had a taste for the legislative process and are even more prepared going into their second year.

Special legislative elections and new faces: Each quadrennial session, the legislature loses members midterm for various reasons. When this happens, the Governor will call a special legislative election to fill the seat. During the last 12 months, the legislature has had five vacancies. Three of those seats have been filled and two remain vacant. 

The Senate has one new member, Sen. Wes Kitchens (R-Arab) was elected to fill the vacant seat in Senate District 9 following the resignation of former Sen. Clay Scofield. The House of Representatives has two new members; Rep. Travis Hendrix (D-Birmingham) from House District 55 who is replacing former Rep. Fred Plump; and Rep. Bryan Brinyark (R-Tuscaloosa) from House District 16 who is replacing former Rep. Kyle South. House District 10 in Huntsville remains vacant following the resignation of former Rep. David Cole. A general election will be held on March 26 to fill that seat. House District 27 remains vacant following Rep. Wes Kitchen’s election to the Senate. A general election will be held on July 16. 

Each legislative session, the Governor and legislative leadership identify priority issues that they expect to focus on during the session. Highlights from the Senate Republican Caucus agenda include election security; school choice; and capping annual property tax increases. Highlights from the House Republican Caucus agenda include streamlining state government, promoting made in Alabama products, and keeping Alabama the most business-friendly state in the nation. Highlights from the House Democratic Caucus include expanding workforce participation; eliminating obstacles to voting; and expanding Medicaid. Governor Ivey will announce her priorities in her State of the State address this evening. 

Workforce Development

Alabama’s unemployment rate is at record lows. And so is Alabama’s workforce participation rate. The latter is far lower than the national average. Almost half of working age Alabamians are neither employed nor looking to be in the workforce. Workforce development has become a major priority for our state’s leadership.

Alabama Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth has led the way forward on potential solutions. He formed a Commission on a 21^st Century Workforce, to explore barriers to Alabama’s workforce participation and to identify solutions. The Commission completed its report and recommendations last month a copy of which can be viewed here. 

“Alabama is the economic recruitment leader of the Southeast, but to maintain our competitive edge we need historic, transformative changes to our workforce development system,” said Ainsworth. “Our commission has created a plan to align our job training efforts so Alabama can seize new opportunities and connect all Alabamians with 21^st century employment. With these reforms, we can make Alabama’s workforce development the envy of the nation.”

Among the many Commission recommendations were solutions to tackle current barriers to workforce entry such as transportation, childcare, and workforce housing. 

School Choice

Governor Kay Ivey said she wants to see Alabama become “the most school choice friendly state in the nation.” School choice expansion is expected to be a priority of this 2024 session. Currently, Alabama does not allow students to attend public schools outside of their zoned schools. In the 2023 Legislative Session, a school choice bill was introduced but did not pass. We expect several proposals to be considered this session. 

Gambling

The legislature is expected to take up a comprehensive package to create a statewide lottery, allow sports betting, and create a limited number of gambling casinos around the state, and create a gaming commission.

Other Topics

Ethics reform, Medicaid expansion, prison reform, gun safety, mental health funding, and increases to the online sales tax rate are also expected to be considered. 

The Alabama Association of REALTORS® (AAR) is proud to advocate for our members and their businesses. AAR actively monitors all legislation throughout the Legislative Session. We will work to support bills that are helpful to our members and their businesses and oppose legislation that is harmful. Stay up to date on the 2024 Alabama Legislative Session with Capital News and Notes, published in our weekly newsletter, Real Estate Alabama, and also found on our website under the public policy tab here.