Alabama News Archives

The Legislature on Saturday voted to exempt federal stimulus checks from state income taxes.

The Alabama Senate has approved trustees for the University of Alabama, University of South Alabama, University of Montevallo and University of West Alabama without any dissent.

An aging church in Valley, the home of a former Alabama governor in Coffee County and a historic fort on Mobile Bay are among eleven sites placed on a statewide list of historic properties in peril.

The Alabama Legislature is returning for the fourth day of its special session over the state education budget.

State Sen. E.B. McClain, D-Midfield, during legislative budget hearings in the House Chamber at the Alabama Statehouse in January.

The IRS e-file program set another benchmark this tax season. Nationwide, 60% of federal taxpayers filed income tax returns electronically this year.

The Alabama Legislature has voted to create a statewide autism council to seek federal funding and coordinate state services.

The Meridian Coca-Cola Bottling company will fill its last bottle in June. The company will not shut down.

Alabama House and Senate committees have passed a proposed constitutional amendment that would set up a "rainy day" savings account for the state's General Fund budget.

A compromise education budget moving through the Alabama Legislature's special session would give K-12 schools $5 million more and universities $5 million less than the budget that died in the Legislature's ...

Alabama legislators opened a special session Tuesday, but several lawmakers complained they were never given official word to come to Montgomery.

Federal wildlife officials proposed Tuesday naming 326 miles of the Alabama and Cahaba rivers critical habitat for the Alabama sturgeon, a move that shipping groups fear could limit access to the commercial ...

Summary of action in the Alabama Legislature on Tuesday, the first day of the special session: HOUSE _Passed a resolution to establish a task force to coordinate services provided by state agencies to help ...

A new poll shows Alabamians have gone from feeling the pinch of gas prices to being put in a headlock by the rising costs and a majority say their finances are only fair at best.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service.

Republican and Democratic legislators alike predict swift passage of the 2009 education budget when they meet for a special session that begins this afternoon.

The Justice Department's Office of Professional Responsibility is now investigating allegations of selective prosecution in cases involving Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Oliver Diaz Jr.

Ninety-three Alabama military men and women who died on Sept. 11, 2001, and in the war since then, were honored during a Memorial Day remembrance at the Alabama Veterans Memorial off Interstate 459 in ...

Lunchroom monitors in Alabama are watching students' plates a little closer these days to make sure no one's biting off more than they can chew.

The Alabama Supreme Court is upholding a judge's decision to temporarily block the implementation of the 2-year college system's double dipping ban.

When the State Board of Education named James Lowe on Thursday to head Bishop State Community College - in a system still struggling to emerge from multiple scandals - the board members immediately faced a new ...

Watching the filming of a scene for the 1962 movie "To Kill a Mockingbird" are producer Alan Pakula and author Harper Lee, whose Pulitzer prize winning novel has been adapted for the screen.

Posted by Staff Report May 23, 2008 3:07 PM Louisiana-Lafayette senior Brent Solich limited South Alabama to just four hits as the host Ragin' Cajuns sent the South Alabama Jaguars to the losers' bracket of the ...

Gov. Bob Riley is calling the Alabama Legislature into a special session starting Tuesday to pass an education budget and to handle other unfinished business from the regular session.

Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman asked a federal appeals court Thursday to overturn his conviction in a government corruption case.

A new U.S. Drought Monitor Survey is out today and the news on the surface it great.

Gov. Bob Riley plans to announce Friday when he will call the Alabama Legislature back into special session to reconsider the state education budget.

In Q1, leading healthcare organizations purchased Sentillion identity and access management solutions for enterprise-wide implementations, including: Underscoring the momentum in its business, Sentillion also ...

Democrats in the Alabama House and Senate have asked Gov. Bob Riley to include a bill to exempt federal rebate checks from state taxes in his list of priorities for a special session.

Gov. Bob Riley is asking Alabama's churches to take care of newly released inmates, saying the state doesn't have the money or the flexibility.

Alabama's two-year colleges will not raise tuition for the fourth consecutive year, Postsecondary Chancellor Bradley Byrne announced Wednesday.

The Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery is without power. A spokesman for the Alabama House of Representatives, Clay Redden, said the power went out about 6:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Dunkin' Donuts said it is searching for franchisees to open more than 142 new stores across Alabama over the next several years.

U.S. News & World Report , one of the nation's leading sources of news analysis and service journalism, recently released its updated list of America's Best High Schools.

The Alabama Senate couldn't agree on an education budget on the final night of the 2008 legislative session.

Residents and business owners in several northeast Alabama counties will get financial help to rebuild and repair property affected by the severe storms and tornado on May 11. via WTVY Dothan

Gasoline has hit a yet another record high, both in Alabama and nationally. According to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge Report, Alabama's average for a gallon of regular unleaded hit $3.70 today while the national ... via WSFA-TV Montgomery

“We'll all be on our best behavior”

A campaign to remove the state sales tax from groceries is coming down to the Legislature's final meeting today, with proponents unsure they will be able to muster the votes. via Birmingham News Online

“I called the number and they asked me if I was horny. I got another phone book and redialed the number, but I got the same message”

An Alabama mother says she was offered the wrong kind of assistance when she called a poison control center and instead reached a phone sex line. via Daily India

“What we are talking about today will cost nothing in taxpayer dollars”

Gov. Bob Riley announced a plan Thursday to expand free health screenings to more schools across the state in hopes that healthy students will be better learners. via ABC 33/40

“The acquisition of Alabama Adventure was based on the quali ty of the park, the im pressive turnaround un der the seller's ownership, the strength of the greater Birming ham market and the potential for significant growth”

Adrenaline Family En tertainment announced it has acquired Alabama Adventure amusement park in Bessemer. via Montgomery Advertiser

How many times have you, as an Alaba ma taxpayer, heard this legislator or that legislator, or a political pundit or analyst, bemoan the fact that the Alabama Legislature is having a "slow" session or ... via Montgomery Advertiser

Alabama Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation officials say records containing patient information have gone missing. via WIAT-TV Birmingham

A two-year effort to legalize some of the world's finest and most expensive beers in Alabama is coming to a head. via NBC13.com

Alabama's unemployment rate declined slightly in April to 4.0 percent. State Industrial Relations Director Tom Surtees said the April rate was down from 4.1 percent in March, but it was up from the 3.4 percent ... via WSFA-TV Montgomery

Renee Culverhouse is leaving Gadsden State Community College immediately instead of waiting until December 31 as originally planned. via NBC13.com

“They get a lot of beans, but we feed them meat every day”

Back in the day of chain gangs, Alabama passed a law that gave sheriffs $1.75 a day to feed each prisoner in their jails, and the sheriffs got to pocket anything that was left over. via WSLS

Congressional seats are almost equiva lent to federal judge ships. As you know, federal jurists are appointed for life. via Prattville Progress

A summary of action in the Alabama Legislature on Thursday, the 29th meeting day of the regular session: HOUSE _Joined the Senate in giving final approval to a bill that raises saltwater fishing licenses by $8 ... via Alabama Live

Forecasters say Alabama is in for a stormy, rainy Thursday. Heavy showers already are spreading into west and central Alabama, and the National Weather Service says more are on the way. via WTVY Dothan

Republican Secretary of State Beth Chapman works with a state-supported charitable organization that pays her consulting firm nearly $50,000 a year, raising claims that she is no different than legislators with ... via WAAY-TV Huntsville

“Over three years we hope to find out what percentages are actually wearing the seatbelts”

A year and a half ago four students were killed in the Lee High School bus crash. via WAFF-TV Huntsville

The Alabama Legislature has approved a bill that would allow retiring U.S. Representative Bud Cramer to qualify for state pension benefits exceeding $111,000 annually when he reaches age 70. via WSFA-TV Montgomery

“Effect of exercise and calorie restriction on biomarkers of aging in mice”

A study investigating aging in mice has found that hormonal changes that occur when mice eat significantly less may help explain an already established phenomenon: a low calorie diet can extend the lifespan of ... via EurekAlert!

A bill that would ban smoking in work places and many public settings in Alabama still has a chance of becoming law as the Legislature prepares for the final day of its 2008 session. via Anniston Star

A House committee has approved a resolution urging President Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Congress to open up travel between the United States and Cuba. via Canadian Business Magazine

The Alabama Education Association is giving up on a bill that would have short-circuited plans by the chancellor of Alabama's two-year college system to use a private company to do criminal background checks on ... via NBC13.com

The "National Register of Big Trees" for 2008-2009 has been released, and 12 trees in Alabama are on the list. via Montgomery Advertiser

“In the long run we are giving $30 back to the people, but what we may be doing is hurting the company they work for and the company they work for may not be able to hire more people”

The Alabama House has approved a bill to exempt federal economic stimulus checks from state income taxes, saving residents about $57 million. via News Courier

“Why do they want to prolong it? It's already been long enough”

A former state trooper has no trial date a year after being indicted for a fatal shooting in 1965 that became a catalyst for the historic voting rights march from Selma to Montgomery. via The Macon Telegraph

“That's the philosophy that we'd like to use.”

TUSCALOOSA -- Here's one wish Alabama coach Nick Saban can't necessarily make come true: To have all the signees in school when the first summer session begins June 3. Saban said it is a 'tremendous advantage' ... via Montgomery Advertiser

Alabama will still have one of the nation's smallest unemployment compensation benefits after raising payments 8.5 percent in July. via Tuscaloosa News

Central Alabama is bracing for stormy weather tonight while several counties recover from tornadoes that packed winds of up to 125 mph. via ABC 33/40

“If we build the road, economic development will come.”

Lt. Gov. Jim Folsom Jr. wants lawmakers to help pave the way for a Florence-Mobile freeway that he hopes will help revitalize poor areas of west Alabama. via NBC 15 Online

“I'm sure Democrats will push it again next session. It's awful public policy and it's the wrong thing to do”

A bill that would let state workers also serve in the Alabama Legislature likely will not pass this year, in part because a filing mix-up has given Gov. via Montgomery Advertiser

“The same sponsor, and the same dead bill”

Alabama Sen. Bobby Denton, who hit the record charts 50 years ago, didn't have any success with his latest musical endeavor - trying to make sure that oldies groups performing in Alabama are the real thing. via NBC 15 Online

The son of the former head of the Alabama Fire College pleaded guilty to conspiracy and mail fraud Thursday in connection with a bogus contract his father arranged with Gadsden State Community College. via WIAT-TV Birmingham

The Alabama Senate has refused for the second time to begin debate on a bill to remove the state sales tax on groceries. via ABC 33/40

The Alabama Education Association is giving up on a bill that would allow public employees to serve in the Legislature and other elected offices. via NBC13.com

Alabama transportation officials are removing roadside memorials along interstates in the Birmingham area, saying they are dangerous to motorists. via Insurance Journal West

The Alabama Senate has approved a $2.0 billion General Fund budget that emphasizes programs serving children and the elderly. via WSFA-TV Montgomery

“We cannot allow the disorderly conduct statute to be read so broadly as to make it a crime to engage in free speech. This is especially true at a time when freedom of expression is so critical to our democracy”

A Tuscaloosa judge has acquitted four people charged by campus police with disorderly conduct for a Feb. via Alabama Live

BIRMINGHAM -- Florence native Fred McCallum Jr. has been named state president of AT&T Alabama, succeeding Thomas L. Hamby, who recently retired. via Montgomery Advertiser

“We go where the smart people are. Now our business operations are two-thirds in the U.S. and one-third overseas. But that ratio will flip over the next 10 years (2015).”

By Joseph B. Morton Twelve years ago, the Alabama State Board of Education took a bold stand and achieved national recognition. via Montgomery Advertiser

“There are no plans at this moment to feature him on the show.”

'CSI' star arrested on drug charges PALM SPRINGS, Calif., April 30 -- Police say they arrested TV actor Gary Dourdan for alleged drug possession in Palm Springs, Calif., this week. via Daily India

Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman received a hero's welcome from Alabama Democrats at the party's annual dinner. via WAFF-TV Huntsville

Republicans in Alabama are proming to push for a stronger law requiring voters to show photo identification at the polling place. via WAAY-TV Huntsville

A juror and two victims of a domestic dispute spent five days in jail in northeastern Alabama on a contempt of court charge after they admitted talking by phone about a case while the jury was deliberating. via WIAT-TV Birmingham

Republican Gov. Bob Riley and Democratic Alabama House Speaker Seth Hammett have urged House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to accept the Air Force's decision to award a tanker contract to North Grumman Corp. via WAAY-TV Huntsville

“There is a cloud over this bill”

The Alabama Senate, during its most productive day this session, passed a bill to exempt the federal stimulus checks people began re ceiving this week from state income tax. via Montgomery Advertiser

A judge threw out the $5 million verdict an Alabama football fan won in his lawsuit accusing the NCAA of slander, ruling in a decision made public Wednesday that jurors were wrongly swayed by prejudice against ... via Athens Banner-Herald