Alabama Senate opens session, adopts several memorial resolutions and advances many bills to second reading

The Alabama Senate convened in formal session and moved through routine business and a series of committee reports on multiple bills before adopting several memorial and ceremonial resolutions.

The day opened with a prayer delivered by Reverend Todd Russell of Mountain Hill Baptist Church in Montgomery, who asked that members be "created with a spirit of power, not of timidity," and a pledge led by University of Alabama student Dominic Weir.

In a procedural morning, Secretary Treadwell called roll and the presiding officer announced 24 senators present, establishing a quorum. Senator Wagner moved to excuse absent senators and to dispense with the reading of the previous day's journal; both motions were approved with no objection.

The Senate received messages from the Alabama House of Representatives and agreed to immediate consideration on several House joint resolutions that the chamber subsequently adopted by voice vote.

Committee reports advanced many bills to second reading for placement on the calendar. The Judiciary Committee reported favorably on several bills, including Senate Bill 20 (reported favorable with one amendment; committee tally recorded as 10 ayes, 1 nay, and 1 abstention) and Senate Bill 30 (11 ayes, 1 nay). A separate Judiciary entry for Senate Bill 31 showed a favorable report with one amendment; the transcript's tally for that item is unclear but indicates an affirmative committee recommendation. The Committee on Banking and Insurance reported Senate Bill 19 favorable (10 ayes, 0 nays, 1 abstention). The Committee on County and Municipal Government and the Committee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development reported a long list of bills as favorable (many recorded as unanimous committee votes, e.g., multiple fiscal committee items recorded as 14 ayes, 0 nays). The Veterans and Military Affairs Committee likewise reported multiple bills favorable, most by unanimous committee votes of 7 ayes and 0 nays.

Votes at a glance: the transcript records committee tallies for dozens of bills and multiple unanimous favorable reports; specific committee tallies noted in the record include Judiciary (SB20: 10-1-1; SB30: 11-1), Banking and Insurance (SB19: 10-0-1), County and Municipal Government (examples include SB12: 7-0, SB42: 8-0), Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development (many listed at 14-0), and Veterans and Military Affairs (most listed as 7-0). Several tallies in the transcript are garbled or unclear; where the transcript provided ambiguous numbers the article notes that ambiguity.

On motions and resolutions, the Senate adopted several ceremonial measures by voice vote. The chamber adopted Senate Joint Resolution 6 mourning the death of former Representative Brian Melton Jr.; Senate Joint Resolution 7 supporting the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act; Senate Joint Resolution 8 naming the U.S. 98 bridge over Big Creek Lake in Wilmer the Lamar Harrison Memorial Bridge; Senate Resolution 9 mourning the life of Samuel Allen Harper; and Senate Joint Resolution 10 celebrating the life and legacy of civil rights figure Claudette Colvin. After the Colvin resolution passed, multiple senators offered personal remarks about her role in the civil rights movement and her later efforts to clear her juvenile record. Senator Coleman called Colvin "one of my sheroes" while recounting work to expunge Colvin's record and praising her courage at age 15.

The presiding officer closed business after a round of remarks and Senator Gudger moved to adjourn until 8:30 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 15; the motion carried by voice vote and the Senate adjourned.

The session was largely procedural, advancing a substantial number of bills out of committee for second reading and adopting multiple ceremonial and memorial resolutions. Several committee tallies were recorded verbatim in the transcript; a few committee vote counts in the record are unclear or appear garbled and are noted as such above.