Rep. Stubbs speaks about human trafficking and a record state budget before the Elmore Commission

BY SARAH STEPHENS

ELMORE AUTAUGA NEWS

Dist. Rep. 31 Troy Stubbs was in very familiar territory Tuesday as he spoke before the Elmore County Commission.

Before winning his current seat, Stubbs served as chairman of the Elmore County Commission. He returned to give commissioners an update on the recent legislative session, with some important highlights and results.

Stubbs said he wanted to share the important events of the spring, and that recently ended.

During the session, many things were discussed, but not everything becomes law, he said.

“I wanted to make sure that some of the highlights that came to the governor's desk and were signed were on your radar as you interact with citizens and as you manage your county's business,” Stubbs said.

Stubbs said this is a historic year when it comes to the state's general fund and education trust fund budgets.

“The general fund budget this year was $3.4 billion. It's a record. And the education trust fund budget was $9.35 billion, which is also a record.

As part of the general fund, supplemental budget funds were allocated to continue construction of prisons across the state, including one in Elmore County.

“We are ensuring that the Elmore County site moves forward and has the necessary funding.”

In the field of mental health, Stubbs said there was an 11.3 percent increase in funding from the general fund budget.

“We're certainly not where we should be, but it's important for you to know that this is a priority of the legislature, and we're making sure of that by putting money into it with this 11 percent increase,” Stubbs said.

Additionally, Stubbs said there would be a 2 percent pay increase for all state employees.

In the Education Trust Fund budget, a 2 percent salary increase was provided for education and support staff.

School choice

“A major piece of education legislation that passed early in the legislative session was the Education Act that creates hope and opportunity for our students. This was a priority for Governor Ivey and the Legislature. This is what we all consider an academic choice. This allows taxpayer dollars to follow the student wherever they go to school,” he said.

Stubbs emphasized that this is a conservative priority nationally and that many states have followed through with a very strong school choice program.

“We believe this is a very good step in the right direction,” he said. “It’s not a universal school choice, but it will get there in three years. »

Stubbs said that during the first two years of the program, there was a financial cap, meaning if the family earns more than 300 percent of the poverty level, they are not eligible. But in the third year of the program, there is no financial cap. So a family, regardless of their income, can be entitled to the $7,000 that would follow the student whether they attend a parochial, private or other school.

Stubbs explained that it's not a matter of sending the family a $7,000 check and that “we're crossing our fingers that they spend it correctly.” The money never goes to the family. All this goes through the state. They request it, then the private school involves the student who participates in the financing. They send a purchase order to the state and that money goes to the private school for that student on a quarterly basis.

“I applaud state leaders and the governor’s office for recognizing that this is necessary, but also taking advantage of the things we can learn from other states,” Stubbs said.

Stubbs says he sees this as a net positive for all education. He believes taxpayer dollars should be spent on educating students wherever they are.

“It’s an investment. And we are investing in these students so that they can, in turn, become productive citizens of the state of Alabama,” he said.

Stubbs also spoke about a bill banning ballot harvesting.

“It has been a concern when people were illegally collecting mail-in ballots, passing them out to a large group of people, having them sign them, and then processing a number of mail-in ballots at the same time. It's almost an orchestrated system by which they are trying to manipulate our electoral system. We tried to pass it last year. We were able to achieve it this year. The Secretary of State fully supports this initiative and hopes it will ensure election security for all of us.”

Human Trafficking in Alabama.

Another topic Stubbs discussed was the Sound of Freedom Act which was passed.

It imposes a minimum sentence of life imprisonment on those convicted of human trafficking of a minor in the state of Alabama.

“It’s another example of things we see and hear. We are disappointed that things like human trafficking are happening. But we don't just talk about it. We acted. And we've ensured that the state of Alabama has one of the harshest penalties for those who commit these types of acts against our children.

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Stubbs said lawmakers also passed several bills related to artificial intelligence and child pornography.

“There are people now who are creating a pornographic image of teenagers at school by taking their faces and putting it in a pornographic image and then spreading it among students,” he said. “This obviously causes irreparable harm to that person’s self-esteem and other issues.”

Stubbs also addressed the property tax cap.

“It’s something I’ve worked very closely on with the Association of County Commissions and Sonny Brassfield,” he said. “Clearly, on its face, a cap on property taxes is alarming. I have sat in your shoes and recognize that this is important to the County Commission in terms of providing services and funding to the residents of Elmore County.

However, Stubbs said lawmakers were able to negotiate a sunset on this measure, so that in five years this sunset will provide time to evaluate whether it is effective and whether it is detrimental to county commissions and school districts in financing terms.

The negotiated cap was seven percent, meaning no property tax can increase in one year by more than seven percent.

Stubbs said that in some areas of the state, individuals have seen their property taxes increase by as much as 30 percent or more in one year. “It was alarming for people who are suffering from high inflation and all the other things we're seeing with the economy right now. This is something we were able to resolve.

In other issues, Stubbs said, “Sometimes it's not what we transmit that matters, but what we prevent from being transmitted.” »

He said there were countless bills aimed at taking away gun rights and other issues that didn't pass.

“But one bill went further than I thought, namely levying an additional tax on online sales. This would take the online sales tax that we all pay, and from which the county commission receives a portion, and increase it by 1.4 percent. The money would then be distributed among cities, counties and school systems. At first glance, this seems like an opportunity to make things more equitable.”

However, Stubbs said the distribution of funds was unbalanced and benefited the state's 10 largest cities, leaving counties “high and dry.”

“We were able to fight this, stop it before it happened,” Stubbs said.

Finally, Stubbs spoke about the game, which was a major topic and a cloud hanging over the session.

Ultimately, a statewide gambling bill failed.

Commissioners thanked Stubbs for the update, praising him for his open-mindedness and willingness to work with them on a multitude of issues.

Commissioner Mack Daugherty said, “It’s just amazing what you’re doing for us. I know I can pick up my phone and call you anytime.

Daugherty said everything mentioned in the update is important, but as a law enforcement officer he is particularly pleased with the bills passed regarding human trafficking.

“I would like every state in the Union to adopt such a severe sanction. Even in Elmore County, locally, because of migration and migrants with young children, we're seeing more of this phenomenon. Seeing this passage makes my heart smile. Please know that you have the gratitude of all in law enforcement, and this is something that we have needed for a long time.