AL
Alabama Senate Bill SB184

Alabama 2024 Regular Session

Alabama Senate Bill SB184 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.
OldNewDifferences
11 SB184INTRODUCED
22 Page 0
33 SB184
44 KNG6AUU-1
55 By Senator Elliott (N & P)
66 RFD: Local Legislation
77 First Read: 29-Feb-24
88 1
99 2
1010 3
1111 4
1212 5 KNG6AUU-1 01/29/2024 FC (L)ma 2024-154
1313 Page 1
1414 First Read: 29-Feb-24
1515 A BILL
1616 TO BE ENTITLED
1717 AN ACT
1818 Relating to Baldwin County; to provide for the election
1919 of the Chair of the Baldwin County Commission on a countywide
2020 basis; to provide for the power, duties, and salary of the
2121 chair; for this purpose to amend Section 45-2-70.01 of the
2222 Code of Alabama 1975; to amend Section 45-2-120.12 of the Code
2323 of Alabama 1975, relating to the county civil service system,
2424 to further provide for certain appointed contract employees to
2525 be appointed by the chair of the commission; to provide for
2626 the election of the four remaining county commissioners from
2727 single member districts only by the qualified electors of each
2828 respective district; to repeal Section 45-2-72.01 of the Code
2929 of Alabama 1975, to conform with this act; and to provide a
3030 referendum on the adoption of this act.
3131 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
3232 Section 1. (a) Effective at the 2026 General Election
3333 and thereafter, the Chair of the Baldwin County Commission
3434 shall be elected countywide. The chair shall serve as
3535 presiding officer of the county commission. The term of the
3636 chair shall be for four years concurrent with the terms of
3737 the remaining four members of the county commission. The term
3838 of the chair shall commence in November after the election at
3939 1
4040 2
4141 3
4242 4
4343 5
4444 6
4545 7
4646 8
4747 9
4848 10
4949 11
5050 12
5151 13
5252 14
5353 15
5454 16
5555 17
5656 18
5757 19
5858 20
5959 21
6060 22
6161 23
6262 24
6363 25
6464 26
6565 27
6666 28 SB184 INTRODUCED
6767 Page 2
6868 of the chair shall commence in November after the election at
6969 the same time provided for members of a county commission.
7070 (b) The Chair of the Baldwin County Commission shall
7171 serve on a full-time basis and shall perform all duties of a
7272 chair of a county commission provided by general law or a
7373 local law applicable to Baldwin County. The chair may vote in
7474 any matter coming before the commission.
7575 (c) The chair of the county commission shall receive a
7676 salary based on the same salary schedule as a circuit court
7777 judge in Baldwin County. The salary schedule shall be applied
7878 to the chair in the same manner as the salary schedule is
7979 applied to a circuit judge, including any provision for
8080 adjustments based on years of service.
8181 (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of Section
8282 45-2-120.12, Code of Alabama 1975, the Chair of the Baldwin
8383 County Commission shall only appoint the following contract
8484 employees subject to approval of the county commission:
8585 (1) County Administrator.
8686 (2) County Engineer.
8787 (3) Clerk/Treasurer.
8888 (4) Budget Director.
8989 (5) Emergency Management Director.
9090 (6) Personnel Director.
9191 (e) Each appointed contract employee shall report
9292 directly to the Chair of the Baldwin County Commission. A
9393 contract employee shall not be considered an unclassified
9494 employee under the civil service system.
9595 Section 2. Sections 45-2-70.01 and 45-2-120.12 of the
9696 Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
9797 29
9898 30
9999 31
100100 32
101101 33
102102 34
103103 35
104104 36
105105 37
106106 38
107107 39
108108 40
109109 41
110110 42
111111 43
112112 44
113113 45
114114 46
115115 47
116116 48
117117 49
118118 50
119119 51
120120 52
121121 53
122122 54
123123 55
124124 56 SB184 INTRODUCED
125125 Page 3
126126 Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
127127 "§45-2-70.01
128128 (a) In Baldwin County, effective beginning the next
129129 term of office, the annual basic compensation of each member
130130 of the county commission , except the chair, shall be an
131131 average of the median annual household income in Baldwin
132132 County for the previous four years as ascertained and adjusted
133133 each four-year term by the State Department of Labor to take
134134 effect on the first day of November the first year of each
135135 four-year term and to be payable in equal monthly installments
136136 from the general fund of the county.
137137 (b) Effective beginning the next term of office, the
138138 member serving as chair of the commission shall receive
139139 additional compensation in the amount of five thousand dollars
140140 ($5,000) per annum for service as chair, payable from the
141141 general fund of the county in equal monthly installments.
142142 (c) In the event the number of county commissioners in
143143 Baldwin County is increased for any reason or if the county
144144 commissioners are no longer elected at-large in countywide
145145 elections, the salary of each county commissioner, including
146146 the chair as provided in subsections (a) and (b), shall revert
147147 back to the amount of compensation received on November 1,
148148 2004.
149149 (d)(b) Notwithstanding the other provisions of this
150150 section, in order to be eligible to receive any compensation
151151 or expense allowance increase provided pursuant to this
152152 section, a county commissioner shall waive in writing any
153153 compensation increase otherwise provided pursuant to Section
154154 11-2A-4.
155155 57
156156 58
157157 59
158158 60
159159 61
160160 62
161161 63
162162 64
163163 65
164164 66
165165 67
166166 68
167167 69
168168 70
169169 71
170170 72
171171 73
172172 74
173173 75
174174 76
175175 77
176176 78
177177 79
178178 80
179179 81
180180 82
181181 83
182182 84 SB184 INTRODUCED
183183 Page 4
184184 11-2A-4.
185185 (c) This section shall not affect the salary of the
186186 elected Chair of the Baldwin County Commission. "
187187 "§45-2-120.12
188188 One appointed employee position may be filled by the
189189 judge of probate which position shall be designated chief
190190 clerk. Two appointed employee positions may be filled by the
191191 revenue commissioner which positions shall be designated chief
192192 clerk of collections and chief appraiser. Three appointed
193193 employee positions may be filled by the sheriff which
194194 positions shall be designated chief deputy, chief jailer, and
195195 chief of the civil division. The following shall be appointed
196196 contract employees: County administrator, emergency management
197197 director, juvenile detention director, personnel director,
198198 building official, clerk/treasurer, county engineer,
199199 development and environmental director, and budget director ,
200200 and communication and information systems director . Each of
201201 the appointed contract employees shall be employed under
202202 contract with the commission chair subject to approval of the
203203 contract by the county commission . Each contract shall include
204204 at a minimum the following provisions:
205205 (1) A provision for termination and severance.
206206 (2) A job description for the position.
207207 (3) An annual written evaluation to be reviewed with
208208 the employee and retained by the commission chair in the
209209 employee's personnel file.
210210 (4) A provision that the contract will be nonbinding on
211211 the successor commission chair after each four-year election;
212212 however, the contracts must be cancelled or continued within
213213 85
214214 86
215215 87
216216 88
217217 89
218218 90
219219 91
220220 92
221221 93
222222 94
223223 95
224224 96
225225 97
226226 98
227227 99
228228 100
229229 101
230230 102
231231 103
232232 104
233233 105
234234 106
235235 107
236236 108
237237 109
238238 110
239239 111
240240 112 SB184 INTRODUCED
241241 Page 5
242242 however, the contracts must be cancelled or continued within
243243 90 days of the successor commission chair taking office.
244244 (5) A provision that any appointed contract employee
245245 employed by the county commission may not be subject to any
246246 action to cancel or not to renew the contract or in any other
247247 manner dismiss or terminate the contract employee except by a
248248 three-fourths vote of the elected members of the county
249249 commission."
250250 Section 3. Effective for the general election in 2026,
251251 each of the four members of the Baldwin County Commission, not
252252 including the chair, shall be elected from a single-member
253253 district only by the qualified electors of each respective
254254 district. The district boundaries for the election of the
255255 members of the county commission shall be provided by local
256256 law enacted prior to July 1, 2025. In the event a local law
257257 providing new boundaries for the county commission is not
258258 enacted prior to July 1, 2025, the districts for the election
259259 of members of the county commission shall be drawn by the
260260 Presiding Circuit Judge of the Baldwin County Circuit Court.
261261 The plan for the apportionment of the districts shall be filed
262262 with the Office of the Judge of Probate prior to October 1,
263263 2025. Each member shall be elected only by the qualified
264264 electors of each respective county commission district.
265265 Section 4. Section 45-2-72.01 of the Code of Alabama
266266 1975, providing for the appointment of the chair of the county
267267 commission, is repealed, effective November 13, 2026.
268268 Section 5. Sections 1 through 4 of this act shall
269269 become operative only if approved by the qualified electors
270270 who reside within Baldwin County who vote in a referendum
271271 113
272272 114
273273 115
274274 116
275275 117
276276 118
277277 119
278278 120
279279 121
280280 122
281281 123
282282 124
283283 125
284284 126
285285 127
286286 128
287287 129
288288 130
289289 131
290290 132
291291 133
292292 134
293293 135
294294 136
295295 137
296296 138
297297 139
298298 140 SB184 INTRODUCED
299299 Page 6
300300 who reside within Baldwin County who vote in a referendum
301301 election to be held on the date of the 2024 General Election.
302302 An order setting the election shall be entered by the judge of
303303 probate. The notice of the election shall be given by the
304304 Judge of Probate of Baldwin County, and the election shall be
305305 held, conducted, and the results canvassed in the manner
306306 provided for other countywide elections. The question shall be
307307 substantially as follows: "Do you favor the adoption of Act
308308 _________ of the 2024 Regular Session of the Alabama
309309 Legislature which provides for the Baldwin County Commission
310310 to be composed of five members and provides further for the
311311 operation of the county commission in Baldwin County? Yes ( )
312312 No ( )." The county shall pay all costs and expenses
313313 incidental to the election. If a majority of the votes cast in
314314 the election are "Yes," this act shall become operative
315315 immediately. If the majority of the votes are "No," this act
316316 shall have no further effect. The judge of probate shall
317317 certify the results of the election to the Secretary of State.
318318 Section 6. This act shall become effective June 1,
319319 2024.
320320 141
321321 142
322322 143
323323 144
324324 145
325325 146
326326 147
327327 148
328328 149
329329 150
330330 151
331331 152
332332 153
333333 154
334334 155
335335 156
336336 157
337337 158
338338 159