Daily News Digest – April 25, 2022

Presented by the

League of Alabama Municipalities

Good morning!

My apologies for not posting a Weekend Digest on Sunday. I’m in Washington, DC for a wedding this weekend. Speaking of which, congratulations to newlyweds Seth and Hannah Morrow!

Here is your Daily News for Monday, April 25.

• In 2018, 3,291 beginning teachers entered Alabama’s K-12 public classrooms. By the end of 2020, 1,721 of them had left these schools.
• More than 50% of new educators leave their first classrooms within three years, according to a new interim report on teacher retention by the Alabama Service Evaluation Commission.
• In comparison, nationally, 44% of new teachers leave their first job within five years, according to the report.
• “There are root causes that are driving (Alabama teachers) away and that probably needs to be dug deeper,” Marcus Morgan, director of ACES, told Alabama Daily News. The commission was created in 2019 to assess the effectiveness of various state programs.
• Only 18 of Alabama’s 143 school districts have teacher retention rates above 60% for the first time since 2016, according to ACES.
• Governor Kay Ivey and the Alabama Legislature made strides to address the issue during this year’s legislative session. The fiscal year 2023 budget includes a 4% raise for all educators and salary increases for mid-career educators. Teachers with nine or more years of experience would get raises ranging from 5% to 21% for those with 35 years of classroom experience. According to information from the Southern Regional Education Board, the average salary for beginning teachers in Alabama is higher than that of all surrounding states.
• Read Mary Sell’s full report HERE.

• Randy Scott of Alabama Public Television took over as anchor to host Capitol Journal last week while I took a few days off.
• The show featured timely stories and conversations, including the ribbon cutting for the new Perry County Reintegration Education Program Center.
• Guests included Cam Ward, director of the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles; Joe Borg, commissioner of the Alabama Securities Commission; and Dr. Don Williams, president and CEO of the Alabama Hospital Association.
• Watch the full episode HERE.

A message from

the League of Alabama Municipalities

Each spring, ALM hosts its annual convention and expo offering timely general and concurrent sessions, access to municipal vendors and state agencies, and exceptional networking opportunities for municipal officials and employees.

This multi-day event is the largest event hosted by the League and is carefully planned to maximize attendee time and attention.

• The Alabama Democratic Party has launched a “Free Weed” website to support its efforts to legalize the recreational use of marijuana in the state.
• The site, www.FreeWeedAL.com, argues that prosecutions for small amounts of cannabis are a waste of criminal justice resources and have disproportionately affected communities of color. The party argued that legalizing marijuana could also bring economic benefits to the state.
• The Republican-dominated Alabama legislature has approved a medical marijuana program but rejected efforts to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana.
• Eighteen states have legalized the recreational use of small amounts of marijuana for adults, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures, though none of them are in the Deep South.
• Learn more HERE.

• New public access areas will be available later this year at Alabama’s largest state park, which is expanding with the purchase of more than 1,600 acres of land in the Birmingham metro area.
• The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources plans to expand Oak Mountain State Park’s biking, hiking and horseback riding trails with the addition of land acquired through the Forever Wild Land Trust, the agency said in a statement.
• The park, located in highly populated Shelby County, will comprise more than 11,000 acres with additional land, most of which is forested.
• Learn more HERE.

• As Republicans prepare for an eventual return to power amid growing hopes of winning the House and Senate in the November elections, they are laying the groundwork to make Hunter Biden and his business connections a central target of their lobbying efforts. investigation and monitoring.
• Republican lawmakers and staff discussed analyzing specific messages and financial transactions found on the laptop and also discussed issuing congressional subpoenas to foreign entities involved in paying Hunter Biden. The conversations are in their early stages, but have included talks about bringing in Republican lawyers and former Justice Department officials to help with the investigations.
• The White House, in turn, is gearing up to defend the Democratic president against any allegations of wrongdoing and to argue that Republicans are driven by opportunism. Democrats will likely point out that Republicans have not called for investigations into President Donald Trump’s business activities in Russia and China or the foreign dealings of his children and son-in-law while in office. keys in the campaign or in the White House.
• All of this raises the possibility of a messy and politically explosive showdown between a GOP-controlled Congress and the White House that could deepen the affairs of the president’s family and shape the contours of the 2024 race for the White House.
• Learn more HERE.

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Report: Over 50% of Alabama teachers leave first classrooms within 3 years

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Watch: Capitol Journal, April 23

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Democrats launch ‘Free Weed’ site for marijuana legalization

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Oak Mountain State Park Expansion

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Hunter Biden is prime target if Republicans win Congress

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Inside Alabama Politics – April 21, 2022

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Internal poll shows Ivey leading re-election bid

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Britt and Brooks challenge Durant to debate in US Senate race

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Apollo 16 Moonwalker Reflects on Mission’s 50th Anniversary

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Suit claims city is trying to limit Confederate statue protests

ALABAMA DAILY NEWS – Powell bolsters expectations of big rate hike next month

AL.COM – These Alabama counties have the fastest growing — and shrinking — economies

AL.COM – Alabama marks Holocaust remembrance with events

AL.COM – Feud with Disney World tests the limits of Florida governor’s power

AL.COM – Mobile, State Officials Open New $11 Million ADEM Building on Broad Street

AL.COM – Who owns the Cahaba? Alabama battles environmental groups for land near Birmingham drinking water intake

AL.COM – Alabama in top 5 states for affordable housing, options lacking for lowest earners

Montgomery Advertiser – Live Voting Moves Montgomery’s Lady K and Pell City’s Tristen Gressett to Idol Top 11

Montgomery Advertiser – Montgomery Police are investigating the death

Montgomery Announcer – Oliver! presented until May 8 by the Pike Road Theater Company

Decatur Daily – Hillsboro man jailed for murder

Decatur Daily – Mission Accomplished: WWII Veteran and Decatur Resident George Mills Dies at 100

Decatur Daily – Deadly Fentanyl Presence Grows Locally, Threatens Even Marijuana Users

Times Daily – Volunteer helps change lives, 1 child at a time

Times Daily – Pruitt: COVID made Carver Commodore stronger

Times Daily – Mayor wants broadband district, council undecided

Anniston Star – Anniston Changers tackle debris around football stadium

Anniston Star – Keselowski, Buescher visit area of ​​Oxford Lake, Civic Center

Anniston Star – Essential NASCAR Ties to Sunny King’s Legacy

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – Remembering Iderrika Finley on her 26th birthday

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – How to save fuel when traveling on the road

WBRC Fox 6 Birmingham – Birmingham Police warn of stolen guns from vehicles

Tuscaloosa News – Social media has become a lifesaving tool since April 27, 2011, says meteorologist

Tuscaloosa News – Willie Nelson’s stripped down ensemble shows off the good nightlife at the Amp

YellowHammer News – Dr. Daniel Sutter: Spending and Prosperity

YellowHammer News – Big Dig: Southern Alabama Archaeologists Excavate Mobile Bay Bridge Site

Gadsden Times – ANIMAL OF THE WEEK: Sweet and laid back Lazareth likes to rub his tummy

Dothan Eagle – US says Russia is failing, promises more aid to Ukraine; Twitter, Musk in talks; this week’s weather

Dothan Eagle – Ukraine Removes Hirohito From Video After Japan Protests

Dothan Eagle – Supreme Court handles case about praying football coach

Opelika-Auburn News – Reports: Twitter in talks with Musk over offer to buy platform

Opelika-Auburn News – Live Updates | Japan: Macron’s re-election key to G-7 unity

Opelika-Auburn News – Trial Begins in UVA Lacrosse Player Death Trial

WSFA Montgomery – Death investigation underway after Wednesday’s shooting in Montgomery

WSFA Montgomery – One man dead, another seriously injured in Eufaula shooting on Saturday

WSFA Montgomery – Alabama Prisoner Serving Sentence for Murder Escapes in Montgomery

WAFF Huntsville – 1 dead in crash involving motorcycle, tractor-trailer near Hwy 72

WAFF Huntsville – House heavily damaged by early morning fire

WAFF Huntsville – Financial Friday: Why You Might Need Travel Insurance

WKRG Mobile – The Cullman Strawberry Festival returns in May

WKRG Mobile – Ukraine removes Hirohito from video after protests in Japan

WKRG Mobile – French President Macron Re-Elected: What Happens Next?

WTVY Dothan – Wiregrass Resident Runs Boston Marathon

WTVY Dothan – UPDATE: One dead, another injured in Eufaula shooting; suspect wanted

WTVY Dothan – Police: Arby’s Worker Throws Hot Grease On Client

WASHINGTON POST — U.S. Says Russia Is “Failing” In Its War Aims; Biden appoints Bridget Brink as Ukrainian envoy

WASHINGTON POST – U.S. wants Russian military ‘weakened’ by invading Ukraine, Austin says

WASHINGTON POST – Biden taps Bridget Brink to be US ambassador to Ukraine

NEW YORK TIMES – Live updates from Ukraine: US says it wants Russian military weakened

NEW YORK TIMES – Covid lockdowns rekindle ghosts of a planned economy

NEW YORK TIMES – Live Updates: Allies hail Macron’s re-election in France

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Twitter and Elon Musk are in talks to reach an agreement

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Stock futures, oil prices and Chinese stocks fall

WALL STREET JOURNAL – Beijing braces for Omicron wave with hoarding and testing