MONTGOMERY — Lawmakers in the House and Senate engaged in a brief bout of gamesmanship Tuesday, as the chambers refused to pass each other's bills with only nine legislative days left in the 2025 regular session.
After a relatively normal start, the day took an unusual turn when House leadership suddenly began carrying over every Senate bill. This happened after State Sen. Andrew Jones (R-Centre) asked the Senate to carry over House bills while threatening a filibuster.
Jones cited issues with how House leadership handled Senate bills and threatened to hold up House bills for the remainder of the session.
"It's nothing against the bill or the content of the bill; I've just got some concerns with our processes, which are common courtesies between the House and Senate, and how I feel like our Senate bills are not being handled properly in the House," Jones said in the Senate chamber. "I don't think that's good for anyone. When we change the process up and do things that are not customary, then that's not a good posture to be in."
"This is not just a today thing. I'm happy to be up here every day from here on out, long as I need to on these [House Bills] until we get this ironed out. I'm hopeful we'll get it ironed out. You know, we just got nine legislative days left. I am going to bring some comfy shoes again if I have to be here for all nine days. We'll just see how that shakes out."
The House swiftly reciprocated, with House Rules Committee chairman State Rep. Joe Lovvorn (R-Auburn) motioning to carry over the remaining Senate bills on the House Special Order Calendar.
Jones did not reveal which bills, in particular, his actions were based on.
Downstairs in the House, Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) was thoroughly unimpressed with the display, calling the Senate's claim of unequal bill passage "hogwash."
"Let me give you the numbers, y'all make a decision," Ledbetter said. "There's been 891 filed. The House, out of this chamber, has passed 277 bills; the Senate has only passed 119. Out of those bills, the House has sent 37 House Bills to the governor's desk; the Senate has sent 49. So, as you can see on percentage, we've done a lot more work as far as passing of bills and gotten fewer to the governor's desk."
Ledbetter was equally vague in explaining the holdup, saying only that it was about a local bill that leadership had not seen until late last week.
"I don't know exactly what the resolution is," Ledbetter continued. "We worked very well with [Senate President Pro Tem Garlan] Gudger, and we'll be talking to him and kind of see what they want to do going forward."
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