We hope you enjoy this preview of Alabama Arise’s weekly legislative update! We are proud to offer this as a members-only benefit of Arise. If you enjoy this recap, join us today with a gift of any amount, and you will continue receiving this recap throughout the session. Memberships renew annually.
Every week during the Alabama Legislature’s regular session, we send our members this up-to-the-minute summary of what you need to know from the past week at the State House – and what to expect in the week ahead.
When you join today, we also hope you will consider sustaining our work year-round by becoming a monthly donor. Click “make my gift recurring” below your gift amount to do this.
Thank you for your support of our movement for a better Alabama! If you cannot afford a membership but would like to join Arise, email development associate McKenzie Burton at [email protected].
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Arise Legislative Update: Feb. 11, 2025
Arise's David Stout recaps a busier-than-usual first week of the 2025 Alabama legislative session, with updates about our progress on issues like paid parental leave, maternal health care and school breakfast for all. He also discusses some harmful new immigration legislation, as well as our ongoing work to close Alabama's health coverage gap through Medicaid expansion. |
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Alabama Arise: Alabama at risk from threatened federal funding cuts
“Our lawmakers should reject harmful service cuts for working people and tax giveaways to wealthy households,” Arise’s Robyn Hyden said. “And they should focus instead on building an economy that works for everyone in Alabama and across our country.” |
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Alabama Arise: Tell your state rep: Vote NO on HB 29
Alabamians who have lost their job should be able to claim unemployment insurance (UI) benefits they have earned without unnecessary hurdles. But HB 29 by Rep. Ed Oliver, R-Dadeville, would increase the number of employers that UI participants must contact each week from three to five. This bill would harm struggling workers across our state. Tell your state representative to oppose HB 29. |
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Alabama Arise: We're hiring an organizer!
Alabama Arise seeks an organizer to work to support the mission and vision of Arise by organizing religious and community groups and individuals in support of state and national policies affecting Alabamians marginalized by poverty. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 5 p.m. CST. |
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Alabama Arise: Paid parental leave improves life for Alabama workers
"Paid parental leave’s benefits for Alabama children and parents are clear and broad. Babies have better outcomes across the board when their parents can stay with them in the crucial weeks after birth," Arise's Dev Wakeley wrote in a new fact sheet. |
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Alabama Arise: School breakfast for all: What Alabama can do to help feed all of our kids
"School breakfast reduces child hunger across our state. In Alabama, 23% of school-age children are food insecure, meaning they do not always have enough to eat or know when they will get their next meal. That rate is even higher among children of color. School breakfast could guarantee a morning meal for all Alabama children during the school day," Arise's Carol Gundlach and LaTrell Clifford Wood wrote. |
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Alabama Arise: Remove tax incentives for companies that break child labor laws in Alabama
"Companies that break child labor laws shouldn’t receive public money while they’re doing so. The people of Alabama deserve good jobs and responsible employers. Economic development does not require that we accept bad actor companies taking dangerous, illegal shortcuts. Bad employers harm their workers and the overall economy, and they shouldn’t be rewarded for exploitative business practices," Arise's Dev Wakeley wrote. |
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Cover Alabama: Register now for Cover Alabama's Medicaid expansion advocacy day!
Join the Cover Alabama coalition at the State House in Montgomery (11 S. Union St.) on Tuesday, Feb. 25, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., as we unite to urge our state leaders to expand Medicaid.
At this event, you'll hear powerful stories from Alabamians caught in the coverage gap, alongside insights from health care experts, faith leaders, and others. We’ll also help you schedule meetings with your lawmakers so you can advocate directly for Medicaid expansion in Alabama. Please register by Feb. 19. |
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Public News Service: New health toolkit aims to bridge AL’s care gap for expecting mothers
"We have high maternal and infant mortality death rates," Arise's Jennifer Harris told the Public News Service. "We also have a number of growing maternal health deserts where women lack access of care. So the toolkit was created in mind to let women know about resources." |
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Alabama Reflector: Social justice groups set their agenda for 2025 Alabama legislative session
"Civil rights groups also want to see changes to the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles. Alabama Arise, for the first time, included reforming the parole system to its legislative priorities," Ralph Chapoco at the Alabama Reflector reported. |
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Alabama Political Reporter: House Democrats question bill restricting unemployment benefits
"The only member of the public who spoke on the bill before the committee on Wednesday, Alabama Arise worker policy advocate Dev Wakeley, told them that HB 29 was 'an attempt to implement a work search standard that was explicitly rejected by the Legislature just three years ago,'" the Alabama Political Reporter stated. |
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Alabama Political Reporter: Overtime tax exemption’s fate to be determined this session
“What we really should be doing is putting an Alabama economy together so that one person making one salary can safely, comfortably and reliably see to everything that they need to do and raise a family on that money,” Arise's Dev Wakeley said. |
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Alabama Channel: Live and recorded legislative meetings
The Alabama Channel is a searchable library of live and recorded videos of floor debates and committee meetings at the Alabama Legislature. It is a project of the League of Women Voters of Alabama Education Fund. |
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Bills we're watching: -
HB 29 by Rep. Ed Oliver, R-Dadeville, would require an unemployed person to contact at least five prospective employers each week while receiving unemployment insurance benefits, up from the current three. The House could vote on HB 29 as early as Tuesday, Feb. 11. Alabama Arise opposes HB 29.
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HB 40 by Rep. Chris England, D-Tuscaloosa, would create additional oversight of the Pardons and Parole Board, require the board to follow its own guidelines and allow appellate review of parole denials. The House Judiciary Committee will consider HB 40 on Wednesday, Feb. 12, at 1:30 p.m. Alabama Arise supports HB 40.
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SB 53 by Sen. Wes Kitchens, R-Guntersville, would create crimes of concealing undocumented people or providing transportation to them under certain circumstances. The Senate could vote on SB 53 as early as Tuesday, Feb. 11. Alabama Arise opposes SB 53.
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Alabama Arise
P.O. Box 1188, Montgomery, Alabama 36101
(334) 832-9060 · [email protected]
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