Pact program
More on the "PACT fix" bill
28/02/10 10:55
Brian over at Flashpoint has a good rundown of the problems with the PACT bill currently being debated in the Alabama legislature.
My only question is this: Why didn't any of the Republicans vote against it? I know opposing a PACT fix would be unpopular with many parents and grandparents across the state, but you would think that some of the Republicans would have taken a stand and let them know the bill will most likely put them back in the same position in a few years. People in Alabama aren't stupid and most would understand the problems inherent in the severability clause if anyone took the time to explain it to them.
On Thursday Alabama’s House of Representatives passed a bill meant to salvage Alabama’s Prepaid Affordable College Tuition (PACT) program on a vote 0f 104-0. The bill (HB228 sponsored by Craig Ford) includes a provision that Mike Hubbard referred to as a “poison pill.” The Montgomery Advertiser quoted Hubbard, but didn’t delve into the substance of his warning. The concerns come from a coupling of two provisions of the bill: a cap on tuition for PACT students and a rarely used “inseverability clause.” Those two provisions create the very real possibility of the entire legislative act becoming null and void. Read full post here.
My only question is this: Why didn't any of the Republicans vote against it? I know opposing a PACT fix would be unpopular with many parents and grandparents across the state, but you would think that some of the Republicans would have taken a stand and let them know the bill will most likely put them back in the same position in a few years. People in Alabama aren't stupid and most would understand the problems inherent in the severability clause if anyone took the time to explain it to them.
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Legislative Update
25/02/10 11:25
As is typical at this point during the legislative session, not much happened on Goat Hill this week. The Senate is stuck on gambling (SB 380) and Sen. Lowell Baron's roads bill (SB 120). Democrats don't have the votes to overcome the BIR on either. (For those of you who don't follow Alabama politics, the BIR is the Budget Isolation Resolution-a procedure by which 2/3s of members must vote to set aside the budget and consider other legislation. The legislature is bound by law to pass state budgets before other legislation can be considered--unless they can get 2/3s to agree to set the budgets aside).
Look for the gambling bill to be modified slightly in the next few weeks--namely for the tax breaks for Country Crossings to be removed from the legislation. More on the gambling bill below.
As for the House, they spent the week on a constitutional amendment that would call a constitutional convention to rewrite the Alabama Constitution. The bill failed to get the necessary votes to stay on the table for debate, and is thought to be dead for the rest of the session. Today, the House began debate on a bill that would rescue the bankrupt PACT program. Some Republicans were unhappy with the bill because it capped tuition for students whose parents participated in the PACT program. This would result is different students being charged different amounts of tuition. It sounds like a total nightmare for universities and patently unfair to students.
Gambling was the big issue on Goat Hill Tuesday. Both sides had rallies scheduled at the State House--the Anti-Gambling crowd at 12:30 and the Pro-Gambling crowd at 2:00. Naturally, the Pro-Gambling crowd showed up early, and crashed the Anti-Gambling rally. Participants became very aggressive--yelling "Scalp Riley" and "Impeach Riley" and became very nasty toward First Lady Patsy Riley. I think the Pro-Gambling people really hurt their cause with Tuesday's display.
Regardless of how you feel about gambling in Alabama, this legislation is TERRIBLE. This is NOT, I repeat NOT, free-market gambling. It was written by a handful of wealthy and powerful gambling bosses and sets them up with a monopoly and gives them immunity from any criminal or civil prosecution. For details on the legislation, click here.
Look for the gambling bill to be modified slightly in the next few weeks--namely for the tax breaks for Country Crossings to be removed from the legislation. More on the gambling bill below.
As for the House, they spent the week on a constitutional amendment that would call a constitutional convention to rewrite the Alabama Constitution. The bill failed to get the necessary votes to stay on the table for debate, and is thought to be dead for the rest of the session. Today, the House began debate on a bill that would rescue the bankrupt PACT program. Some Republicans were unhappy with the bill because it capped tuition for students whose parents participated in the PACT program. This would result is different students being charged different amounts of tuition. It sounds like a total nightmare for universities and patently unfair to students.
Gambling was the big issue on Goat Hill Tuesday. Both sides had rallies scheduled at the State House--the Anti-Gambling crowd at 12:30 and the Pro-Gambling crowd at 2:00. Naturally, the Pro-Gambling crowd showed up early, and crashed the Anti-Gambling rally. Participants became very aggressive--yelling "Scalp Riley" and "Impeach Riley" and became very nasty toward First Lady Patsy Riley. I think the Pro-Gambling people really hurt their cause with Tuesday's display.
Regardless of how you feel about gambling in Alabama, this legislation is TERRIBLE. This is NOT, I repeat NOT, free-market gambling. It was written by a handful of wealthy and powerful gambling bosses and sets them up with a monopoly and gives them immunity from any criminal or civil prosecution. For details on the legislation, click here.