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Senate adopts several bills on aquatic weeds, utility board pay, commission membership and abandoned roads
Summary
The Alabama Senate approved a group of bills with limited floor debate: SB 64 (state waters/aquatic weeds), SB 95 (Alabama Municipal Electric Authority compensation), SB 104 (Job Creation and Military Stability Commission composition), and SB 42 (abandoned road property return). Votes on each were unanimous or near-unanimous.
The Alabama Senate moved several relatively noncontroversial bills through final passage after committee amendments and brief floor discussion.
- Senate Bill 64 (Senators Livingston and Kitchens) — The bill addresses aquatic weeds on the Guntersville impoundment of the Tennessee River, requiring harvesters who use cutting devices to remove the material from the water. The sponsor said ADEM and the Department of Conservation cooperated on the language. The committee amendment was adopted and the bill passed 31-0.
- Senate Bill 95 (Senator Chastain) — The bill extends board member compensation increases similar to previously approved changes for gas districts to the Alabama Municipal Electric Authority board. Committee amendments were adopted; final passage was 32-0.
- Senate Bill 104 (Senator Stewart et al.) — The measure updates the composition of the Alabama Job Creation and Military Stability Commission to add the chairs of military-affairs committees in both chambers; final passage was 32-0.
- Senate Bill 42 (Senator Melson) — The bill provides a process for returning abandoned rights-of-way to adjoining landowners, including provisions for multiple owners and county/municipal applicability; the Senate adopted amendments and passed the bill 32-0.
Why it matters: Each bill clarifies administrative practices — from aquatic-weed harvesting and public-utility governance to commission membership and local property rights — and passed with bipartisan support.
