The day Governor Kay Ivey signed the bill, Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin and the Birmingham City Council filed suit on behalf of the City of Birmingham, asking the court to "enjoin, restrain, and otherwise prevent the Defendants (named and/or fictitious) from signing SB330 into law."
"This action is to stay the operation, enforce, execution, and application of SB330," the suit read. "Plaintiffs request a trial by jury of all triable issues."
Ivey signed the bill shortly thereafter.
Late this week, the City of Birmingham amended the complaint, adding Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth, Attorney General Steve Marshall, Jefferson County Commission President Jimmie Stephens, the Shelby, Jefferson, Blount, and St. Clair county commissions and all newly appointed members of the regional board.
One of the arguments outlined in the lawsuit was that there is no basis for the legislature to say that the utility was mismanaged. In 2022, however, Woodfin spent several months tweeting quite the opposite sentiment.
The lawsuit centers around unfounded claims that the legislation is racially motivated.
The long list of "facts" to support this claim include, "At least one legislator who voted for Act 2025-297 referred to the City of Montgomery, which is also a majority Black city, as "Monkey Town," a racially pejorative phrase," another was, "All of the new, illegal appointments by Defendants to the Regional Board are White/Caucasian, other than those appointed by Plaintiffs."
The lawsuit comes as the new board has requested that the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts review $2.6 million in last-minute employment contracts and contract revisions to their attorney and other senior executives, along with revelations that millions of dollars of copper may have been stolen from the utility by employees.
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