MONTGOMERY — The Alabama Senate finally passed its version of the Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs (ADVA) restructuring bill, and the House is now poised to take it up with little to no additional changes.
After weeks of debate and over a dozen amendments, the Alabama Senate advanced legislation this week to make the ADVA commissioner a cabinet position in Gov. Kay Ivey’s administration and change the State Board of Veterans Affairs (SBVA) to an advisory role.
The bill received initial backlash for the perceived lack of input from the state’s veterans service organizations (VSOs), who initially came out in force at the state house in opposition.
After weeks of debate, the Senate finally passed the bill on Tuesday, while the House Veterans and Military Affairs Committee opted to delay voting on its own version.
On Thursday, after the legislature finished its business for the week, House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) said he anticipated the bill to come before the committee next week and undergo little to no changes.
“We wanted to see what the Senate did to it and how they handled it,” Ledbetter said. “From our standpoint, that’s why we didn’t move the House version, to kind of get an idea of what they were going to do and what they would accept. I think there’s a good chance, once we get that bill down here, there’s a good chance we may pass it as-is because they did a lot of work with it, and some of the work that they’ve done I think was positive. I commend them for the job that they’ve done and the work they’ve done on the bill. So, we’ll get a chance to look at it next week; probably have it in committee if it all falls in place next week. But I think you’ll see, if not the same bill, one that is very similar. And I wouldn’t be surprised if you going to see the same bill.”
The bill's House sponsor, House Veterans and Military Affairs Committee chairman Ed Oliver (R-Dadeville), did not immediately return a call from 1819 News to give his perspective.
The Senate’s amended version still elevates the ADVA commissioner to a cabinet position. However, it also maintains the current law, keeping the governor as the sole appointer of board members selected from recommendations from the state’s VSOs.
The SBVA would only exist in an advisory capacity under the new bill, bearing no real authority.
With the newest version, the only remaining complaint from VSOs that are still in the bill relates to the perceived demotion of the SBVA to an advisory role.
However, the bill’s Senate sponsor, State Sen. Andrew Jones (R-Centre), said, "There's no way to have a commissioner be a cabinet official and have him answer to the board.”
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email craig.monger@1819news.com.
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