House Bill (HB) 24, the Child Placing Agency Inclusion Act, sponsored by Rep. Rich Wingo and Sen. Bill Hightower, was finally signed into law by Gov. Kay Ivey thanks to the prayers, the contacts and the encouragement of many of you in our ALCAP family! This bill will protect faith-based adoption agencies from being forced to place children in homes that do not comply with the religious beliefs of the agencies.
For more information on all of the pro-life bills that were supported by ALCAP, click here to read a report from ALCAP’s legal advisor, Eric Johnston.
HB277, the Daycare Bill, sponsored by Rep. Pebblin Warren, passed out of the Senate Judiciary Committee this week with some positive amendments. Click on the following links to read both amendments: Amendment 1; Amendment 2. This bill will now go to the full Senate for a vote. If it passes, as amended, it will have to go back to the House for concurrence. We hope that the bill will pass and be signed into law by Gov. Ivey. The bill will protect children, while maintaining the religious liberty of churches. We are grateful for everyone who has worked on this bill.
HB505, the Sex Education Bill, sponsored by Rep. Patricia Todd, has passed out of committee, but has not been brought to the full House for debate. This bill originally contained language that was of great concern to ALCAP, but legislators on the committee amended the bill to remove the most problematic language. As the bill currently stands, it simply removes language concerning the illegality of homosexual relationships (since the Supreme Court’s ruling in the Obergefell Case) and updates the terminology now in use in the medical and scientific community. The bill does not require that sex education be taught, but only gives guidelines to use if it is taught.
HB354, the Daily Fantasy Sports Bill, sponsored by Rep. Alan Boothe, having passed the House a couple of weeks ago, passed out of the Senate Tourism and Marketing Committee this week. It can be placed on the calendar for debate in the Senate at any time, but with only six legislative days left in this session, we hope that other important bills will take precedence. However, since big companies are driving this legislation in states throughout the nation, they will probably push for passage up until the last day of the legislature. We have asked a number of Senators to filibuster and/or, at least, not vote to cloture a filibuster so that we can keep this bill from passing. It only requires a simple majority to pass, even though ALCAP contends that since Daily Fantasy Sports is gambling, it should require two-thirds of each house and be a Constitutional Amendment for the people of Alabama to vote on.
I ask that you contact your State Senator as soon as possible and urge him/her to vote “NO” on HB354. If this bill passes, it could open the door for full-fledged Class III (casino) gambling in Alabama! Do not delay; call or email today!
Several local Sunday alcohol sale bills have been introduced. I would urge you to contact your local legislators, as well as county and city officials, and ask them to stop pushing for Sunday alcohol sales in your community. One bill, HB353, sponsored by Rep. Juandalynn Givan, will allow county and municipal leaders to move the start time for Sunday alcohol sales from noon (or 1:00 p.m. in some communities) to 10:30 a.m. We did manage to get an amendment added that requires a vote of the people if the original Sunday alcohol sales decision was made by a referendum, but if this bill passes, the expansion of alcohol in our state will continue with no regard to the families and individuals who are hurt by it.
Please keep praying for the ALCAP ministry. We continue to have financial needs and with the summer months approaching, when receipts are typically down, we need your financial support more than ever!