Friday Five: April 11, 2025
Alabama’s legislative session is underway, and the trail ahead is full of decisions that will shape the state’s future.
Each week, our #FridayFive maps out the key developments from the State House. We’ll track legislation that is gaining momentum, facing obstacles or coming to a halt. Stay informed as we break down what’s moving, what’s stalled and what it all means for Alabama.
For the full picture, explore our 2025 Alabama Legislative Guide and get ahead of the twists and turns this session.
THIS WEEK’S FRIDAY FIVE
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This week, the Alabama House of Representatives made two significant moves on health care access — one for pregnant women and one focused on member-based health plans.
In a unanimous vote this week, the Alabama Houses passed SB102, legislation that grants presumptive Medicaid eligibility to pregnant women. This means expectant mothers can begin receiving care up to 60 days before their formal Medicaid application is approved — an important step in ensuring timely prenatal care. The bill, championed by Sen. Linda Coleman-Madison (D-Birmingham) and Rep. Marilyn Lands (D-Huntsville), marks a bipartisan victory for women and families. While the policy comes with a modest cost increase — an estimated $1 million annually — it represents a meaningful investment in maternal and infant health outcomes across the state.
Meanwhile, HB477, sponsored by Rep. David Faulkner (R-Mountain Brook), also cleared the House with overwhelming support. This proposal would allow the Alabama Farmers Federation (Alfa) to offer health plans to its members. The bill was approved 98–1 after extensive debate and amendments adding consumer protections, including mandatory coverage for emergency services and mental health care, and a prohibition on dropping members’ coverage due to illness.
Supporters say the plans could offer lower-cost options for Alfa members, particularly in rural areas. However, critics — including health advocates and insurers — have raised concerns that the plan would operate outside traditional insurance regulations and lack sufficient oversight. The bill would not expand coverage broadly, as plans would be limited to Alfa members. It now moves to the Senate for consideration.
Read more: Alabama bill giving pregnant women presumptive Medicaid coverage passes unanimously (AL.com); Alfa health plan bill sees overwhelming House support, some oversight debate (Alabama Daily News)
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This week, the Alabama Senate passed a record-setting $12.1 billion education spending package, alongside legislation to fundamentally change how the state funds students with greater educational needs.
The budget allocates $9.9 billion for FY2026, a 6% increase over the current year, plus $2.15 billion in supplemental funding for this fiscal year. Highlights include $6.7 billion for K-12 schools (5.9% increase) and $2.6 billion for higher education (6.7% increase). Lawmakers in the Senate moved the budget package forward quickly, with little debate.
The Senate also passed SB305, the Renewing Alabama’s Investment in Student Excellence (RAISE) Act, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur). The bill would establish a new weighted student funding formula. This model moves away from the current approach, which distributes funding based on daily school attendance numbers and uses fixed estimates for number of students with special needs, rather than counting the actual number of enrolled students. The RAISE Act would provide additional resources for students in poverty, English-language learners, special education and gifted students, as well as charter school students.
The RAISE Act also would offer local flexibility. It proposes allowing school districts to shift resources among eligible student groups to address their most pressing needs, while still meeting federal spending requirements.
“We took a big step as a state today in that we established this RAISE Act fund, because we’re acknowledging that it does take more to educate children in poverty, or English language learners or special education students or gifted students,” said Sen. Orr, who sponsored both the budget package and the RAISE Act.
All measures now move to the House for further consideration.
Read more: Alabama Senate advances student-based public education funding overhaul (Alabama Political Reporter); Revamped education funding formula and $12 billion education package sail through Alabama Senate (Alabama Daily News)
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A long-awaited bill to review certain incarcerated individuals’ sentences a is now just one vote away from the Governor’s desk.
SB156, sponsored by Sen. Will Barfoot (R-Pike Road), would create a path for judicial review of sentences handed down under Alabama’s outdated Habitual Felony Offender Act (HFOA) — a law that once mandated life without parole for some repeat offenders, even in nonviolent cases.
Known as the “Second Chance Act,” the bill would allow individuals sentenced under the HFOA before May 26, 2000 to ask a judge to reconsider their sentence. It excludes people convicted of any offense that caused physical harm to another person.
A House amendment added this week gives the attorney general a voice in the process and requires judges to weigh input from prosecutors and victims — particularly if a firearm was involved in the original crime. It also requires the Alabama Sentencing Commission to collect data on how the law is used.
The bill has bipartisan support: it originated with Rep. Chris England (D-Tuscaloosa), and received a major boost this year when Gov. Ivey endorsed it in her State of the State address.
Supporters say the bill would offer hope to aging incarcerated individuals who have served decades behind bars for crimes that would carry lighter sentences today. Critics argue it goes too far in giving repeat offenders another shot at release.
The bill now awaits a final vote in the House, where it came up short last year — but with the Governor’s support this time around, it may finally cross the finish line.
Read more: “Second Chance Act” moves toward final vote to become law (Alabama Political Reporter)
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The Alabama House unanimously passed SB252, legislation designed to increase transparency in the prescription drug pricing mechanism and provide more stability for independent pharmacies.
Carried in the House by Rep. Phillip Rigsby (R-Huntsville), a pharmacist, the bill places new parameters on pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) — third-party administrators that negotiate drug prices and benefits on behalf of insurers.
The bill would prevent PBMs from reimbursing pharmacies below Alabama Medicaid’s reimbursement rate and bars certain practices like retroactive fees and directing patients toward PBM-affiliated pharmacies. It also ensures that 100% of manufacturer rebates are passed to health plans or used to lower patient costs, unless otherwise negotiated.
An amendment adopted on the House floor gives private businesses flexibility in how they receive manufacturer rebates, either as direct payments or applied toward administrative costs in their contracts with PBMs. The final version of the bill also removed a provision that would have allowed pharmacies or patients to sue PBMs over violations and made key reimbursement protections permanent by eliminating a 2027 sunset clause.
Supporters say the legislation offers greater clarity and a more level playing field for independent pharmacies, particularly in rural areas. If signed by Gov. Kay Ivey, most provisions would take effect October 1, 2025.
Read more: Pharmacy reform passes Alabama Legislature after intensive negotiations, compromise (Yellowhammer News)
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An Alabama House committee approved HB244 this week, which would expand the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” law to cover all K-12 public schools. Sponsored by Rep. Mack Butler (R-Rainbow City), the bill seeks to prohibit teachers from discussing gender identity or sexuality at any grade level and would ban the display of pride flags and symbols in classrooms.
An amendment from Rep. Mark Gidley (R-Hokes Bluff) removed a controversial provision that would have prohibited referring to students by their preferred gender if it conflicted with their assigned sex at birth.
The bill builds on existing law, which already restricts such discussions in grades K-5. HB246, also advancing in the House, would offer legal immunity to educators and students using a person's legal name and pronouns based on sex assigned at birth rather than gender identity.
Critics, particularly transgender and nonbinary Alabamians, voiced concerns during public hearings, with former Rep. Patricia Todd (D-Birmingham) — the first openly gay representative elected to the Alabama Legislature — arguing that such laws stigmatize personal identities. Butler, however, maintained that the law would improve public education.
A similiar proposal failed on the final day of last year’s session. The bill now moves to the full House for consideration.
Read more: ‘Don’t Say Gay’ expansion passes House committee (Alabama Reflector)
OUR PUBLISHED BY PERITUS TAKEAWAY
The session moves fast, and the path isn’t always clear. Some bills will race ahead, others will hit rough terrain and a few may never leave the trailhead.
That’s why Peritus PR is here with Friday Five—to help you stay oriented as the session unfolds. We’ll mark the milestones, flag the detours and keep an eye on what’s coming next.
Follow along on our socials and check back here every Friday to stay on course. Double-knot your laces—this session won’t wait for stragglers.
At Peritus Public Relations, we know you want to make an impact. To do that you need confidence and clarity to take action. Tell us what’s keeping you up at night and stop letting fear of a misstep get in the way of driving your mission forward. We believe you deserve to get it right. For over a decade, organizations like yours have trusted us to navigate the best path forward.
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Check out the 2025 Peritus PR Alabama Legislative Guide here.