Lawmakers are heading back to Montgomery for a special session on a state lottery.
Governor Robert Bentley made the announcement this morning in a video urging legislators to approve the measure and allow Alabamians to vote on the issue.
Bentley says he believes voters in the state will make the right decision if lawmakers approve the constitutional amendment for a state lottery…
“Let’s hear from the people of this great state on whether the time has come to approve a statewide lottery to help fund essential state services for our children, our elderly, those with mental illness and those who are in most need.”
Bentley says the state has to find a solution to a funding crisis in Medicaid. He says lottery proceeds would go to "essential state services. The announcement doesn't include a date for the special session.
Alabama's suspended Chief Justice Roy Moore is defending his January memo to probate judges regarding same-sex marriage.
The state's Judicial Inquiry Commission accuses Moore of disrespecting the judiciary by telling judges the state's injunction against gay marriage remained in effect despite the Supreme Court's ruling that gays and lesbians have a fundamental right to marry.
Moore responded in an affidavit yesterday that he was only answering questions from judges at a time when his fellow justices weren't addressing the impact of federal rulings on the state's injunction.
Moore's attorney Mat Staver calls the commission's accusations "slanderous" and says Moore never told probate judges what to do.
The commission wants Moore removed from office.
The Secretary of State’s office is working to ensure residents in Southwest Alabama have the proper identification to vote.
A mobile registration unit will be in Washington County tomorrow to issue free photo ID’s to all qualified applicants. Alabama legislature made voter IDs mandatory by state law.
Secretary of State John Merrill explains what prospective voters will need in order to register...
“Well they need to be able to prove who they are and they can do that by having a form of identification which will let them be able to tell an individual that's helping them with this process who they are - whether is a power bill or social security card.”
The mobile van will be set up tomorrow morning and afternoon at the Millry Town Hall. Merrill says the unit will travel to all 67 counties this year and the next stop will be Lauderdale County.