- Primary Sponsor
- Session
- Regular Session 2014
- Title
- Legislative Council, reconstituted, Senate Legislative Council, House Legislative Council estab., Legislative Council, Joint Fiscal Committee, Legislative Building Authority, Permanent Legislative Committee on Reapportionment Committee abolished, Law Institute part of Legislative Department, Chief of Legislative Operations created, Secs. 29-1-5, 29-1-22, 29-2-52, 29-2-200, 29-2-201, 29-4-20, 29-4-22, 29-4-25, 29-4-30, 29-4-32, 29-4-35, 29-4-40, 29-4-42, 29-5-2, 29-5-3, 29-5-4, 29-5-13, 29-6-1, 29-6-2, 29-6-3, 29-6-4, 29-6-7, 29-7-4, 29-8-1,29-8-2, 29-8-3, 29-8-4, 29-8-5, 41-19-3, 41-19-3.1 am'd.; Secs. 29-6-8, 29-6-9 added; Secs. 29-2-50, 29-2-51, 29-7-5 repealed
- Summary
SB11 restructures Alabama's legislative support system by creating new Legislative Council bodies and moving staff, budgeting, and law-reform functions into a unified Legislative Department.
What This Bill Does
It abolishes several existing entities (the Legislative Building Authority, Joint Fiscal Committee, Permanent Legislative Committee on Reapportionment, and related House/Senate Legislative Council structures) and transfers their duties to newly created Legislative Council entities (Legislative Council, Senate Legislative Council, and House Legislative Council). It centralizes salary setting, budgeting, accounting, space, and administrative functions for the Legislative Department and creates the Chief of Legislative Operations to oversee staff. It makes the Alabama Law Institute part of the Legislative Department, with director appointment by the Legislative Council on the Institute Council's recommendation and authority to hire staff. It repeals an automatic funding provision for the Legislature when funds are tight, requires a public website listing legislative expenditures, and adds new provisions (including 29-6-8 and 29-6-9) to govern records and phased implementation of the changes.
Who It Affects
- Members and staff of the Alabama Legislature (Senate and House) whose duties, compensation, budgeting, and staffing will be reorganized under the new Legislative Council structures and who must operate under unified administrative rules and reporting requirements.
- The Alabama Law Institute and related legal entities (including the Alabama State Bar and university law schools) whose governance, director appointment, and staffing arrangements are reorganized as part of the Legislative Department.
Key Provisions
- Abolish the Legislative Building Authority, the Joint Fiscal Committee, and the Permanent Legislative Committee on Reapportionment, transferring their responsibilities to the new Legislative Council structures (Legislative Council, Senate Legislative Council, House Legislative Council).
- Create a centralized Legislative Department with membership, salary schedules, budgeting, accounting, space, and purchasing functions overseen by the Legislative Council, and appoint a Chief of Legislative Operations and staff as determined by the councils.
- Require the Legislative Council to maintain a public website listing legislative expenditures, including employee names, salaries, expenses, and contracts for the Legislative Department.
- Make the Alabama Law Institute part of the Legislative Department, revise the Institute Council’s membership, require the director to be appointed by the Legislative Council on the Institute Council’s recommendation, and authorize the director to hire staff.
- Continue the office of the President Pro Tempore of the Senate and provide governance structures for ongoing leadership roles within the reorganized framework.
- Add Sections 29-6-8 and 29-6-9 to require record-keeping and allow staged implementation of the amendments, and repeal sections 29-2-50, 29-2-51, and 29-7-5.
- Repeal an existing automatic funding provision for the Legislature when funds are low and adjust related budgetary provisions accordingly.
- The act becomes effective immediately upon its passage and approval by the Governor (or as otherwise provided by law).
AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 24, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.
- Subjects
- Legislature
