Alabama Senate Republicans

April 18, 2012 – Montgomery, Ala. – Senator Cam Ward and Representative Paul DeMarco jointly sponsored the legislation that will bring both criminal penalties, and police and investigatory techniques for computer based crimes into the 21^st Century.

“This legislation will provide added protection for our families and businesses who are being put at risk by cyber criminals, internet bullies, and all manner of bad actors – both in our state and around the world,” Senator Ward said.

This bill puts Alabama on the leading edge with remedies allowing law enforcement to obtain subpoenas and search warrants for information held by out-of-state providers such as Facebook and Twitter and network providers like AT&T and Verizon. The bill also allows for Alabama Judges and Prosecutors to issue warrants for information held by these specialized companies, and for Alabama companies to honor the same warrants coming from out of state law enforcement. As you know, many crimes are committed where the vital evidence in solving the crime involves information from computers – this law will aid our law enforcement in tracking down criminals throughout the country.

Many of the worst “cyber” crimes are actually committed over the computer – by people seeking to take advantage of Alabama citizens. These crimes include industry terms such as “phishing” and “skimming”: criminals stealing personal or business information, to steal money, identities, or get credit cards issued on accounts in their names. Many of the programs and devices used to commit these crimes have no legal use, and this bill let’s our police and investigators seize and destroy this equipment.

“The world we live in is enhanced by technology. It makes our businesses more efficient, it allows us to stay in touch with friends and relatives more easily; it can also be a disaster,” Rep. DeMarco said. “The reason we sponsored this legislation is to make sure that while Alabama is becoming more and more ingrained in our wired world, that all of our citizens are protected against those who wish to do us harm.”

The Alabama Senate today passed significant education reform legislation known as the Education Options Act of 2012.

The proposal, Senate Bill 513 sponsored by Senator Dick Brewbaker (R-Pike Road), includes three major components aimed at turning around underperforming schools across the state:

• Allows for innovative flexibility options where school systems may enter into a school flexibility contract with the State Department of Education that allows for flexibility from state laws, including State Board rules, regulations and policies, in exchange for exceptional levels of results-driven accountability;
• Authorizes the establishment of a limited number of public charter schools in priority local school systems; and
• Gives the state school superintendent the duty to intervene in order to improve “persistently low-performing schools” if local officials fail to act.

Senator Brewbaker cited 58 schools across the state that have been identified as “persistently low-performing,” meaning the schools have ranked in the bottom five percent of schools on science, reading and math standardized test scores for the past three years.

Continual underperformance is no longer an option under this proposal, Brewbaker said.

“In America, we don’t tell you where to go to church of what to do for a living, but we do tell you where you have to send your kids to school. It’s about time we ensure each and every child across the state has access to a quality education,” Senator Brewbaker said. “By giving education officials the tools and flexibility to best meet the needs of our local schools, we are sending a clear message that failure in our schools is no longer an option.”

Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh said giving education leaders innovative options to better manage schools is a positive step toward improving the quality of education in Alabama.

“Alabama’s children are the building blocks of our future and we ought to give them every opportunity to succeed,” Senator Marsh said. “That starts with a quality education. While there is no silver bullet to cure all education problems, giving education leaders the flexibility and resources to improve underperforming schools is a great step in the right direction.”

The legislation now goes to the House for consideration.

MONTGOMERY - The Alabama Senate passed HB2 today, a bill that would finally ban texting while driving on Alabama roads.

Known as the “TTYL Act,” HB2 would prohibit driving a vehicle on an Alabama highway or street while using a wireless telecommunication device to write, send or read a text-based communication, including email. The title “TTYL,” short for “talk to you later,” is intended to reach the texting-crazed 16-25 demographic and urge them to put the phone down while driving, according to Senator Jabo Waggoner (R-Vestavia Hills), the bill’s sponsor in the Senate.

“It’s important that our traffic laws shift with the changing times,” Waggoner said. “As mobile technology rapidly becomes an essential part of our lives, we must make sure we are keeping Alabama drivers focused on the road and not on their phones.”

Statistics show that sending and receiving text messages while operating a vehicle is as likely or more likely to contribute to a deadly crash than drunken driving. People issued a citation for driving will receive a fine of $25 for the first violation, $50 for the second and $75 for a third or subsequent violation. The bill will also be a two-point violation on the persons driving record.

“Sending text messages while driving is incredibly dangerous. People are taking their eyes off the road and their hands off the wheel,” Waggoner said. “What people don’t realize is that that texting while driving isn’t just a danger to the person texting; it’s a danger to every other Alabamian on the road.”

According to a University of Utah study, distraction from a phone delays a driver’s reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. And the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that drivers who use cell phones are four times as likely to get into an injury-causing crash.

“Texting while driving creates a danger to all of us that is 100% preventable. We owed it to the people of Alabama to pass this legislation,” Waggoner said. “This bill will save lives.”

The Alabama Job Creation Act of 2012, passed out of committee yesterday. The bill, HB160 would allow new and existing companies to retain a percentage of state income taxes withheld from eligible employees.

Sen. Phil Williams, who is sponsoring the legislation in the Senate, said the bill is going to  be key in keeping Alabama competitive in attracting businesses.

“19 other states have similar legislation already passed, which means we are behind the curve. This bill is critical for job growth in Alabama,” Williams said.

While the bill has experienced misguided opposition from special interest groups, Williams said the bill will grow the state economy, and allow for the creation of Jobs.

“We came into this session with a promise to the people of Alabama that we would work to improve the economy and create jobs. This bill is paramount, not just to the state economy and the education trust fund, but to the people of Alabama who are going to benefit from the jobs created.”

Governor Robert Bentley has also expressed his support of the bill.

“Creating jobs in Alabama is my #1 priority as governor,” Bentley said. “National and international companies are investing in Alabama because we have a favorable business climate and the best workforce training program in the country. To remain competitive with other states in our ability to recruit and retain industry, we need more effective, targeted incentives. This bill means more jobs for Alabama citizens, and it is a critical component of my economic development agenda. I applaud Senator Phil Williams for his leadership, and I will continue to work with him and the Legislature to pass this bill.”

Alabama Department of Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield joined Bentley in thanking Sen. Williams and Rep. Barry Mask for their work on the legislation and echoed the importance of the legislation.

“We appreciate the dedicated efforts of Senator Williams and Representative Mask as sponsors of this important bill.  Alabama now has an incentive used in 19 other states that allows us to compete to create new jobs,” Canfield said. “The bill also will have a positive impact on the growth of revenue in the Education Trust Fund.”

The bill will be on the special order calendar in the near future.

House Bill 363 is one of the country’s toughest meth laws and will serve as a deterrent to those who seek to prey on the citizens of Alabama. Senator Bill Holtzclaw (R-Madison), sponsor of the bill in the Senate, said the passage of the bill will help deal with the epidemic of Crystal Meth.

“It’s important that we do everything we can to stop the manufacture and distribution of crystal meth in our state. At the same time, we don’t want to burden our law abiding citizens by making this common drug difficult to obtain. This bill allows for that,” Holtzclaw said. “I’m very pleased to see the overwhelming support we’ve had for this bill.”

One of the most pervasive problems in Alabama is the proliferation of methamphetamine. Newly created ways to manufacture meth such as “shake and bake” labs have created an additional threat to law enforcement and our citizens. To make this destructive drug, one key ingredient is often needed; pseudoephedrine and/or ephedrine. While Alabama’s District Attorneys and other law enforcement continue to do their job, without crucial legislation to tighten the availability of these base ingredients, we are losing this war, according to Randy Hillman, the executive director of the Alabama District Attorney’s Association.

“The Alabama District Attorneys Association would like to applaud the decisive and overwhelming action taken by our legislature to address this pervasive problem that endangers users, the environment and our children. The passage of this bill is a testament to bill sponsor Representative Blaine Galliher (R-Etowah), Senator Bill Holtzclaw and a diverse group of statewide partners who came to the table with a solution designed to support law enforcement efforts to combat this drug,” Hillman said. ”Although we may never eliminate all illicit drugs from our society, we stand firm in our commitment to do what it takes to protect Alabama.”