Bill overhauling Alabama's largest water utility heads to governor's desk despite local outcry
Alabama legislators passed a bill on Thursday that would strip Birmingham of control over the state's largest water board and transfer power to the governor and surrounding suburbs, reigniting a decades-long, polarizing debate.
Proponents of the bill point to frequent rate hikes and say that the move will prevent catastrophic events that have happened in cities like Jackson, Mississippi, or Detroit, Michigan. Opponents of the bill say that it is a power grab that diminishes the power of Black residents in Birmingham, Alabama.
Birmingham city officials currently appoint six of the nine board members' seats, giving Birmingham leadership unrivaled influence over the decisions affecting the city's water. Board members approve rate hikes and manage infrastructure projects.
If signed into law, SB330 would make the board just seven people. The mayor of Birmingham and the Birmingham city council would appoint two board members, while the governor, lieutenant governor and three neighboring county commission presidents would each appoint one board member.
Five counties rely on the Birmingham Water Works Board, but over 40% of the utility's 770,000 customers are concentrated in the city of Birmingham, and 91% are in Jefferson County. The new system would give more weight to Birmingham's neighboring counties that house the reservoirs that supply the system.
Republican lawmakers from the Birmingham suburbs sponsored the bill, saying that it will improve the efficiency of the system. They say aging infrastructure and lack of investment means residents pay for water that just gets leaked out of old pipes.
'So many elected officials have been getting so many complaints, and I'm sure yours have too, about the quality and the price of Birmingham water,' said Republican Rep. Jim Carns, who represents Blount County, one of the places that will now appoint a board member.
The water board had approximately $1 billion in debt in 2023, according to the most recent financial statements, and the board has the second highest credit score, according to bond rating agencies.
Carns said that the regional board would make the utility more frugal. AL.com reported that the utility has been accused of lacking transparency in recent years and has sometimes made costly errors in distributing bills. Trust in the board was further undermined in recent years after high-profile ethics scandals.
Many in Alabama's vocal Democratic minority conceded that the board wasn't perfect, but they also condemned the move as a political takeover that would wrest power from Birmingham's majority Black residents and redistribute it to customers in the city's mostly white suburbs.
'Frankly the language used today was insulting, with words like competence being thrown around as if the city of Birmingham is not growing by leaps and bounds,' Democratic Rep. Kelvin Datcher of Birmingham said after the bill passed. He questioned how the new board's composition would address any of the bill sponsor's concerns about efficiency.
Democratic legislators also took issue with the fact that they were excluded from the overall process.
'Each of us in this chamber would be rightfully concerned if outside representatives attempted to dictate how water systems operate in our districts without consulting us or even including us at the table, or, hell, even the room where this legislation was created,' Rep. Neil Rafferty of Birmingham said.
Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin joined Birmingham city council members for a press conference to echo those concerns.
'The ratepayers deserve to be at the forefront of this conversation, and they have not been,' Woodfin said. 'Let's call it what it is. This is a political power grab. This is not in the best interest of our citizens.'
The bill passed along party lines 66 to 27. It now goes to Republican Gov. Kay Ivey 's desk.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC News
34 minutes ago
- NBC News
Why Trump could be the X factor in New Jersey: From the Politics Desk
Welcome to the online version of From the Politics Desk, an evening newsletter that brings you the NBC News Politics team's latest reporting and analysis from the White House, Capitol Hill and the campaign trail. In today's edition, Steve Kornacki looks ahead to the general election in New Jersey after last night's gubernatorial primaries. Peter Nichols previews this weekend's military parade in Washington, which occurs against the backdrop of immigration protests around the country. And Andrea Mitchell examines the ripple effects of the new travel ban. — Adam Wollner The Trump factor looms over New Jersey's newly set race for governor By Steve Kornacki The matchup for New Jersey's gubernatorial election is set, but looming over the contest will be a name that won't be on any ballot: Donald Trump. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, who secured the Democratic nomination in Tuesday's primary, is already running ads that attack Republican Jack Ciattarelli for his ties to the president. Ciattarelli, who was also the GOP's nominee in 2021, romped to victory in his party's primary after successfully cultivating Trump's support. In focusing on Trump, Democrats have history on their side. New Jersey voters have a strong tendency to elect governors from the party that doesn't control the White House. This has been the case in all but two races over the past four decades. Plus, Democrats have run this playbook successfully in New Jersey before. Eight years ago, during Trump's first term, Gov. Phil Murphy scored a 14-point win over Republican Kim Guadagno. Murphy sought to tie Guadagno to Trump, whose approval rating in New Jersey that fall stood at just 33%. (Murphy was also aided by the cratering popularity of outgoing Republican Gov. Chris Christie.) Republicans are counting on the Trump factor playing differently this time around. And, at least for now, there are some key variables they can point to with optimism. One is the result of last year's presidential race, when Trump lost New Jersey by 6 points to Kamala Harris. That was a far cry from his 16-point loss in 2020 and his 14-point defeat in 2016. From the outset of the 2017 gubernatorial race, it was obvious that Trump would be a major electoral liability for the GOP. That's not as clear this time around. In fact, a PIX11/Emerson College poll conducted a few weeks ago showed Trump with a 47% job approval rating in New Jersey. That's far higher than he fared during the 2017 campaign, or for that matter, at any point during his first term. It's also higher than the 40% approval rating for Murphy, who is term-limited and provides Ciattarelli with his own opportunity to tie his opponent to an unpopular leader. There's also some history Republicans can point to. Democrats have controlled the New Jersey governorship for two consecutive terms now, with Sherrill seeking to make it three. This is the fifth time since 1981 that one of the two parties has tried for a third straight term. They all failed. Bridget Bowman and Ben Kamisar have five key takeaways from Tuesday's results. Adam Noboa breaks down how each of the candidates in the crowded Democratic field fared on their home turf. Julie Tsirkin, Olympia Sonnier and Bridget explore how Ciattarelli is now attempting to pivot to the general election. By Peter Nicholas President Donald Trump is getting the parade he wanted showcasing America's military power — but he'll also be getting mass protests exposing the nation's partisan divisions. The tanks and artillery launchers rolling through Washington on Saturday will honor the Army's 250th anniversary, which falls on the day Trump turns 79. But in Washington and in all 50 states, organizers are scheduled to stage protests that could dwarf the parade in size. A coalition of pro-democracy, labor and liberal activists is arranging a full day of counterprogramming to make the case that Trump is hijacking the Army celebration to venerate himself. The parade is happening at a fraught moment when Trump has drawn the military — among the nation's most trusted institutions — into a tense standoff in Los Angeles over his aggressive efforts to deport people living in the United States illegally. The Trump administration this week activated about 700 Marines to help quell demonstrations over his immigration enforcement methods, despite warnings from California officials that he is inflaming the situation. ICE is preparing to deploy its Special Response Teams to five cities run by Democratic leaders, according to two sources familiar with the planning of the future operations. The Trump administration is telling immigration judges — who report to the executive branch and are not part of the independent judiciary — to dismiss pending cases as a tactic for speeding up arrests. During an interview with NBC's 'Nightly News' anchor Tom Llamas, White House border czar Tom Homan said that protests in Los Angeles are making immigration raids more 'difficult' and more 'dangerous.' Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott said he'll deploy the National Guard across the state 'to ensure peace and order' ahead of a planned protest in San Antonio. California Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom warned that 'democracy is under assault' in a speech blasting Trump's immigration tactics. A federal grand jury indicted Rep. LaMonica McIver, D-N.J., on charges stemming from a confrontation with law enforcement at an ICE detention center in Newark last month. The way Trump has responded to protests in California is very different than how he treated the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. By Andrea Mitchell Little noticed amid the uproar over the ICE raids in Los Angeles this week is the imposition of a travel ban 2.0 — a retooled version of President Donald Trump's first-term policy, modified to avoid legal challenges. 'We want to keep bad people out of our country,' Trump said. The last time around, the Trump White House had to rewrite the proposed ban three times before it passed Supreme Court muster. This time, the administration released fact sheets to show they were singling out countries whose citizens had high rates of overstaying their visas or don't properly screen their citizens for terrorism, not because most of the 12 countries banned are in Africa or the Middle East — prompting accusations of racial motivation, which would be unconstitutional. While not facing immediate legal challenges, the decision to bar travelers from Afghanistan in particular is outraging many U.S. veterans, including Trump supporters, who say they could not have survived the war without their Afghan translators. They say the U.S. is abandoning its Afghan allies and their families, who are being attacked, imprisoned and, in some cases, tortured by the Taliban for their past association with the U.S. Shawn VanDiver, president of #AfghanEvac, a coalition of U.S. veterans and advocacy groups, told me: 'The Taliban has made it very clear through their actions, not their words, what's going to happen to them. We get photos and videos every week of people being hunted down and killed.' We met an Afghan man who worked as a translator with the U.S. military for seven years who we can't identify without putting his family at risk. He got a special visa to come to the U.S, became a citizen and enlisted in the Marines to return to Afghanistan for another tour in Helmand Province. He spent years trying to bring his siblings and aging parents to the U.S. from Afghanistan to escape retaliation. They were approved last December and told to prepare to travel within days. Now the travel ban has shut the door. He told me when Trump announced the ban, 'For the first week, I couldn't go to work. I laid in bed, I was shocked for a week.' He added, 'I want to see my parents. They're getting old and I feel so bad. I cannot forgive myself if they pass and I can't see them.' He blames himself. But critics of the travel ban say it's the U.S. that went back on its word — something they warn future allies will remember when America wants their help.
NBC News
2 hours ago
- NBC News
'There is no Plan B': Republicans make a daring bet on the debt limit
WASHINGTON — As Republicans barrel toward a critical deadline this summer to lift the debt ceiling, they say there's no 'Plan B' to avert an economically disastrous default if they fail to pass the massive bill for President Donald Trump's agenda in time. Congressional Republicans are eyeing increasing the debt limit by $4 trillion to $5 trillion so the government can keep borrowing to meet the country's obligations. It's part of their broader domestic policy package, which the Senate needs to pass before it can go back through the House and ultimately to Trump's desk for his signature. And the GOP only has three votes to spare in both chambers. 'There is no Plan B,' Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Tuesday when asked by NBC News if he has a backup plan for the debt limit. 'It's Plan A. We have to get it done. Failure is not an option.' It's a risky gamble by GOP leaders, who are putting all their chips on passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act by the debt ceiling deadline. 'We're going to get reconciliation done,' Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said when asked what the party's fallback plan is on the debt ceiling. (Reconciliation refers to the budget process Republicans are using to pass their bill, which allows them to bypass the 60-vote threshold in the Senate and cut Democrats out of the process.) The Treasury Department has urged Congress to raise the debt ceiling "by mid-July" to safely avoid default. The Congressional Budget Office projected this week that the deadline may be later, 'between mid-August and the end of September,' although that won't be official unless the Treasury Department agrees. If Republicans fail to pass their sprawling bill in time, they would need to negotiate with Democrats to pass a standalone debt limit extension through the 60-vote process in the Se nate. But there have been no negotiations between party leaders on that front, according to Republican and Democratic aides with knowledge of the dynamics. One GOP aide said the party is 'full steam ahead on Plan A' and suggested there may still be time to consider a fallback if they absolutely need to. Some Republicans say it's a deliberate tactic to drive up the urgency of passing their filibuster-proof bill. 'We should be set an expectation that we're getting this done in July, and it includes the debt ceiling,' said Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. 'I think the minute you start talking about a backup plan, you're going to have a backup plan.' If Republican leaders eventually decide they want to cut a bipartisan deal on the debt ceiling, it's unclear what — if anything — Democrats would demand. Some, like Sen. Elizabeth Warren, of Massachusetts, and Rep. Brendan Boyle, of Pennsylvania., have insisted on abolishing the debt limit entirely in order to prevent the full faith and credit of the United States from being used as leverage in policy negotiations. That's an idea Trump recently endorsed. 'I am very pleased to announce that, after all of these years, I agree with Senator Elizabeth Warren on SOMETHING,' Trump wrote on Truth Social last week. 'The Debt Limit should be entirely scrapped to prevent an Economic catastrophe.' But there's scant support within the GOP for it, as Republicans have found success using it to extract concessions from Democratic presidents in the past. There's no indication that Democrats would respond in kind this year if Republicans came to them and asked for their votes on the debt ceiling. 'I'm not debating hypotheticals,' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said when asked what he'd want in exchange.
NBC News
3 hours ago
- NBC News
After a boost from Trump, Jack Ciattarelli pivots in the New Jersey governor's race
DOVER, N.J. — Republican Jack Ciattarelli won Tuesday's primary for governor in New Jersey in part by touting President Donald Trump's endorsement. But the former state legislator is now looking to make his campaign against Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill about a different executive. Ciattarelli name-checked Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy's administration five times in the course of a nearly 7-minute interview with NBC News at a Colombian bakery here on Wednesday. He only mentioned Trump's name once, when prompted, and went on to call Sherrill 'out of touch' with key state issues like affordability, education and immigration policies, suggesting she would be an extension of Murphy's administration if she wins the governorship. 'This race is all about New Jersey,' Ciattarelli said. 'My opponent is going to want to talk about Donald Trump every day of the week, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security — by the way, the way to save those programs is by getting rid of the fraud. I've got to hit the reset button here in New Jersey come January. We're going to keep the focus on New Jersey.' 'What people want to hear about [is] what are we doing about property taxes? What are we doing about public education? What are we doing about our infrastructure? What are we doing about the lawlessness? What are we doing about the over development? What are we doing about the cost of electricity? Those are all the failures of the Murphy administration. Mikie Sherrill has supported every one of his policies,' Ciattarelli added. Ciattarelli's focus on Murphy comes as he is trying to win over independent voters and disaffected Democrats in the traditionally blue state. Trump significantly improved on his margin last year compared to 2020, but he still lost New Jersey by 6 points. Ciattarelli called out those voters in his victory speech Tuesday night, and on Wednesday he laid out how he plans to win them over. 'They've had it, as have I,' Ciattarelli said. 'They've had it with sanctuary cities. They've had it with us being a sanctuary state. They've had it with our property taxes. We saw what went on on our Jersey Shore over the Memorial Day weekend, flash mobs, because we don't support our local police. It's across the board. Look what's happened in education. We just slipped from two to 12 on the national report card because of the performance or lack thereof of our students.' Ciattarelli is, of course, still linked to Trump, who endorsed him and helped consolidate Republican primary voters behind him, helping fuel his resounding re-nomination. On Tuesday night at a victory party in Holmdel, New Jersey, voters who spoke to NBC News emphasized Trump's endorsement as having 'sealed the deal' for them. 'If he continues with Trump and doesn't become like one of them RINOs [Republican In Name Only], if he continues going the right path, I think he's going to do great,' one supporter said. On Wednesday, Ciattarelli said Trump is 'really excited about the possibilities here in New Jersey. There's an opportunity for us to win this year, and that's exactly what we're going to do.' Sherrill suggested in her primary victory speech Tuesday night that she plans to tie Ciattarelli to the president, referring to her opponent as a 'Trump lackey.' 'This country is too beautiful to be beholden to the cruelty and self interest that Jack and Trump are trying to hoist on her,' Sherrill said. For his part, Ciattarelli has been hesitant to publicly break with the president. The Republican told NBC News that he supports Trump's decision to federalize California's National Guard troops to respond to protests in Los Angeles against immigration raids, despite objections from Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom. 'The first job of any elected official is public health and safety. If they feel the National Guard is needed, why not? I think our local police and our state police would welcome the National Guard here to help them,' Ciattarelli said. Sherrill wrote in an X post on Sunday that the Trump administration's move was 'a dangerous stunt designed to inflame divisions and further a political agenda' and that it was 'disturbing' to see Ciattarelli applauding the decision. 'I think it's a dangerous situation to put military on the streets of this country, trained in combat, as opposed to the police officers who know how to handle this,' Sherrill told reporters after casting her primary ballot on Tuesday, noting a governor can ask the federal government for support. 'That is not the case here,' Sherrill said. 'Governor Newsom surged law enforcement in and what Trump seems to be doing is trying to add fuel to the fire and really make a situation violent and bad. And I just think that's completely unacceptable.' Immigration is expected to be a top issue in the governor's race, with around 1 in 4 New Jersey residents born in another country, according to census data. The first of several Ciattarelli campaign events on Wednesday took place in a predominantly Latino area in Sherrill's congressional district. 'Immigrants that are here legally want to achieve the American dream, and too many people right now don't feel like they can do that here in New Jersey,' Ciattarelli said. 'Whether it's get the job of their dreams, get the education they want, raise a family, start a business, retire here, those are all the things that people are terribly insecure about.' 'Those are all the failures of the Murphy administration,' Ciattarelli added. Ciattarelli, who lost a close race against Murphy in 2021, said that this year is going to be different, in part because the state is not in the throes of the Covid-19 pandemic. 'I thought we were going to win in '21, but I know we're going to win this race. The political landscape is very different,' Ciatterelli said. 'I'm not competing with a pandemic or a shelter-in-place order. I'm not going up against an incumbent. I'm going up against somebody who's totally out of touch with what it is that really matters and bothers New Jersey.'
