HB129 Alabama 2020 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Andrew SorrellAuditor

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2020

Title

Local legislation, publication or posting of notice, advertisement of local bills on the Internet, Section 106 (Section 106, Recompiled Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended), am'd., const. amend.

Summary

This bill would let local bill notices be published on the Internet, not just in newspapers.

What This Bill Does

It proposes a constitutional amendment to allow notice of intention to introduce local bills to be published on a public Internet site for 28 consecutive days. If the Internet notice is deemed insufficient, the notice must be published in a newspaper for four consecutive weeks (or posted in five places in the county if there is no newspaper). An affidavit proving that notice was given must be provided to both houses and recorded in the journal. The amendment is self-executing, and an election would be held to approve it under existing election laws.

Who It Affects

• County and local government bodies in affected areas, who would be responsible for publishing Internet or newspaper notices for local bills
• Residents in the affected counties, who would receive notice about local bills via Internet publication (and via newspaper posting if required)

Key Provisions

• Authorizes publication of notice for local legislation on the Internet for 28 consecutive days, unless the governing body determines the website would not provide adequate notice
• If Internet notice is insufficient, requires at least four consecutive weeks of newspaper publication in the affected county, or four weeks of posting at five places in the county if there is no newspaper
• Requires an affidavit proving notice was given to be presented to both chambers of the Legislature and recorded in the journal
• The change is self-executing; no enabling legislation is needed
• An election will be held to adopt the amendment, with ballot language describing the amendment’s purpose

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Constitutional Amendments