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Impeachment Committee Meets Next Week, Bottled Water Distributed in North AL Counties

AL House
Alabama House of Representatives

There’s now an official meeting date for the legislative committee that’s looking into the possible impeachment of Governor Robert Bentley. APR’s Stan Ingold has the details.

The House Judiciary Committee scheduled a meeting for 10 a.m. next Wednesday in Montgomery. Committee members will discuss a procedure for handling the investigation, including the possible hiring of special counsel.

Twenty-three members of the House of Representatives in April signed articles of impeachment. They accused Bentley of willful neglect of duty and corruption in office. The filing, under a procedure set up the House, triggered an investigation by the House committee.

The impeachment push came after Bentley admitted making sexually charged remarks to his political adviser, Rebekah Caldwell Mason. Mason played a key role in the administration but was not on state payroll.

Officials have begun distributing bottled water in two north Alabama counties where a utility is telling residents not to drink tap water because of chemical contamination.

Emergency management officials say donated water was being handed out yesterday in parts of Limestone and Morgan counties. Officials have listed 10 different sites where customers of the West Morgan-East Limestone Water and Sewer Authority can get water.

The utility warned its 10,000 customers not to drink its tap water or cook with it last week. The warning pertains to potentially hazardous levels of two chemicals in Tennessee River water. The Environmental Protection Agency recently tightened its standards for allowance of those chemicals, resulting in the change.

The authority's warning goes further than guidance issued by the EPA. State health officials say there is no water crisis.

Future Farmers of America in Alabama are gathering in Montgomery.

High school students from across the state are attending the 88th annual FFA state convention. Students competed in a variety of events earlier this week. Today and tomorrow, the winners will be honored.

Phillip Paramore is the Executive Secretary of FFA in Alabama. He says Alabama's chapter of the FFA was started in 1929, and they've been helping young people ever since.

“Its primary focus is to make a difference in the life of students by hoping to develop their leadership, their personal growth, and their career success through agriculture education.”

Paramore says a total of 2000 students are expected to attend the convention. Yesterday, students were addressed by keynote speaker and former Alabama quarterback Brodie Croyle.

Responding to complaints from Gulf Coast fishermen, NOAA has extended the federal red snapper season by two days.

Red snapper season was originally intended to end at midnight tonight, but due to complaints and also due to effects from Tropical Storm Colin, the season will last two more days. Private anglers will now have until midnight this Sunday, June 12, to fish for red snapper. The extension only applies to federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico, beyond 9 nautical miles from the shore.

Controversy has surrounded federal red snapper season for years. Some believe the season needs to be longer to accommodate more recreational fishermen. Others believe red snapper are being overfished, and the season should be shorter still.

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