SB1 Alabama 2014 Session

Updated Feb 27, 2026

Notable

Summary

Primary Sponsor: Gerald O. Dial
Republican
Session: Regular Session 2014
Title: Alabama Ahead Act. commencing with 2014-2015 school year, revised to delete pen-enabled requirement, phase-in requirement and reassignment provisions, advisory committee revised, schools given question of participating, local school systems to contribute 25 percent of funding, Secs. 16-16B-1, 16-16B-2 am'd.
Summary: SB1 rewrites the Alabama Ahead Act to remove the pen-enabled device requirement, make district participation voluntary, adjust funding and governance, and allow bond issuance by the state authority.
What This Bill Does
It eliminates the pen-enabled requirement for devices and the phased-in rollout, and ends automatic device reassignment between grades. It makes participation voluntary for local school systems and requires participating districts to contribute 25% of program funding from local funds, with the State Department of Education able to waive or reduce that share. It updates the advisory committee, and allows the Alabama Public School and College Authority to issue bonds for the program with incremental issuance based on need, while removing a contingent-implementation condition. It also clarifies that implementation is not dependent on separate legislative enactment.

Who It Affects
Local school systems/districts that choose to participate: must provide 25% of local funding (subject to waiver/reduction by the State Department of Education) and decide whether to participate.
Students and teachers in grades 9-12 in participating districts: will receive electronic textbooks and digital instructional materials; pen-enabled device requirements are removed, and the program's infrastructure and devices are planned to support electronic formats.

Key Provisions
Delete the pen-enabled requirement for tablets and mobile devices used for electronic textbooks and materials.
Eliminate the phase-in provisions and the reassignment of devices between grade levels.
Participation by local school systems becomes voluntary; participating systems must contribute 25% of funding from local funds, with potential waivers or reductions by the State Department of Education.
The act requires the Department of Education to develop an implementation plan addressing infrastructure readiness, devices/digital content/management/debt service, and upgrades/maintenance; plan includes minimum device specifications and professional development for teachers.
Allow bonds for the program to be issued by the Alabama Public School and College Authority, with incremental issuance based on projected need and approval by the State Finance Director.
Revise the Alabama Ahead Advisory Committee to include specified leaders and ex officio members from related education and technology agencies; committee to assist and oversee implementation.
Section 14 of Act 2012-560 is amended to remove the requirement that implementation be contingent on separate legislative enactment.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
Subjects: Alabama Ahead Act