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Executive Director's
Report - Volume 52, Number 2 - 2008
Don't be too hard on the Alabama Senate.
The Alabama Senate is often the target of considerable criticism. Recently it has been blamed for causing the necessity of a Special Session of the Alabama Legislature to address important matters that failed to pass during the 2008 Regular Session. This criticism caused me to think about the Senate and offer some observations about that institution.
I have been observing the Alabama Senate for more than 36 years. It has frequently been described as the “deliberative body.” That is to say that it generally devotes more time and effort than the Alabama House of Representatives when considering legislation. That is not to say that the House does not give adequate consideration to matters that come before it. The distinction has much to do with the fact that there are 105 members in the House and only 35 members in the Senate.
When I came on the scene in the early 1970s, the Senate could be characterized as an exhibition of statesmanship and parliamentary maneuvering. There would be the occasional extended filibusters, but they would be well-planned and orchestrated, and the issues involved would be, for the most part, clearly identifiable.
There always existed the unwritten rule that differences exhibited “on the floor” of the Senate did not carry over into relationships outside the chamber. It was no surprise to find members of the Senate who, during the day were on opposite sides of a heavily debated issue, enjoying a meal together that evening in a Montgomery restaurant.
It is no secret that the Alabama Senate is much different today. It can now be described as the “contentious body.” Words like “anger,” “disordered,” and “bitterness” can also be used to describe the body. Considerable space could be devoted to exploring how and why the Senate has found itself in its current state. Influences relating to partisan differences, race and individual egos certainly fit well among discussions of the matter.
The Alabama Senate has during the past several legislative quadrennials received a great deal of criticism relating to its performance and related activities. Some of it deserved. Yes, for the past several years the Senate has not been as productive as many would like. And yes, the Senate’s failure to pass the education budget and other essential legislation during this year’s Regular Session caused the tax payers to foot the bill for a Special Session.
All that having been said, I do not think we should be too hard on the Alabama Senate. Most everyone would like for the body to perform more efficiently and harmoniously. The Association of County Commissions of Alabama, like many other organizations representing particular interests, has experienced having legislation its supported pass the House just to die in the Senate.
I mentioned above that the Senate is sometimes referred to as the “deliberative body.” In that role it performs a very important function; it keeps a lot of the bills introduced during a session from becoming law.
There are more than a thousand bills introduced during a Regular Session of the Alabama Legislature. The ACCA staff will typically identify dozens of them as what we refer to as “danger bills.” Other interest groups have similar lists. A considerable amount of time and effort is spent trying to prevent such bills from becoming law or trying to amend them in such a way that renders them harmless.
Even when it was at its most efficient behavior, the Senate stopped the passage of many bills. In its current posture, it is extremely difficult to pass any legislation through the Senate that has considerable opposition or controversy associated with it. There is little doubt that during the past few legislative quadrennials several bills we identified as “bad for county government” would have stood a better chance of becoming law if it were not for the current posture of the Alabama Senate.
Many point to 1999 as the year during which the Senate began its trek to its current state. It was in that year that the Senate adopted rules that stripped the Lieutenant Governor of his or her theretofore possessed powers as presiding officer of the body.
It must be pointed out that, notwithstanding, the situation in the Alabama Senate, during the 10 years beginning with 1999, the Alabama Legislature has passed 57 new laws that originated as items on ACCA legislative agendas.
It is clear that the ACCA staff and membership have established a very positive relationship with the vast majority of the Senate membership. This relationship has resulted in the passage of laws beneficial to county government during these recent difficult years.
I would be remiss in not recognizing that in order to become a law a bill must be passed by both houses of the legislature. It is clear that ACCA’s legislative initiatives have been supported by the leadership and members of the House of Representatives.
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