SB80ENROLLED
Page 0
SB80
KXP4UUU-2
By Senator Butler
RFD: State Governmental Affairs
First Read: 04-Feb-25
1
2
3
4
5 SB80 Enrolled
Page 1
First Read: 04-Feb-25
Enrolled, An Act,
Relating to the Alabama Local Government Training Act;
to amend Sections 11-3-42, 11-3-44, 11-3-45, 31-9-61, and
36-25-4.2, Code of Alabama 1975; to change the name of the
Alabama Local Government Training Institute to the Buddy
Sharpless Education Institute.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Sections 11-3-42, 11-3-44, 11-3-45, 31-9-61,
and 36-25-4.2, Code of Alabama 1975, are amended to read as
follows:
"§11-3-42
As used in this article, the following terms shall have
the following respective meanings, except where the context
clearly indicates a different meaning:
(1) BOARD. The Board of Directors of the Alabama Local
Government Training Buddy Sharpless Education Institute.
(2) COUNTY COMMISSION. The governing body as created in
Section 11-3-1 and each county governing body created by local
act.
(3) INSTITUTE. The Alabama Local Government Training
Buddy Sharpless Education Institute, named in memory of O.H.
"Buddy" Sharpless, the former executive director of the
Association of County Commissions of Alabama, under whose
leadership the institute was established in 1994 .
(4) STATE. The State of Alabama and any department,
board, bureau, commission, or other agency thereof."
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28 SB80 Enrolled
Page 2
board, bureau, commission, or other agency thereof."
"§11-3-44
(a) There is created and established the Alabama Local
Government Training Buddy Sharpless Education Institute. All
costs of operating and conducting the institute shall be paid
from public funds appropriated for this purpose.
(b) The institute shall have the power, duty, and
authority to design, implement, and administer the course of
training and education pursuant to this article.
(c) The course of training and education required by
Section 11-3-43 shall be conducted by the institute as soon as
practicable after each general election at which county
commissioners are elected. The training and education shall be
completed no later than two years from the election. The
institute shall have sole responsibility for determining the
specific date or dates the course of training and education
shall be conducted.
(d) The board shall establish guidelines and procedures
to permit a person an individual elected or appointed as a
member of a county commission who is unable to attend or
complete the course of training and education when offered by
the institute due to the appointment of a commissioner to fill
a vacant office during a term, medical disability,
providential cause, or another reason deemed sufficient by the
board to comply with the requirements of this article.
(e) The board shall perform all other duties and have
other powers and authority necessary and proper or as
prescribed by general law."
"§11-3-45
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56 SB80 Enrolled
Page 3
"§11-3-45
(a) The institute shall be under the direction and
supervision of the Board of the Alabama Local Government
Training Buddy Sharpless Education Institute. The board shall
have the power and duty to organize, administer, control,
oversee, and advise the institute so that the institute shall
be operated pursuant to this article.
(b) The board shall be composed of the following
members:
(1) One representative of a four-year institution of
higher education in Alabama appointed by the Alabama
Commission on Higher Education.
(2) The President of the Association of County
Commissions of Alabama.
(3) The Executive Director of the Association of County
Commissions of Alabama.
(4) Three members who shall serve at the pleasure of
and be appointed by the Board of Directors of the Association
of County Commissions of Alabama.
(5) The Chair of the Senate Governmental Affairs
Committee.
(6) The Chair of the Local Government Committee of the
House of Representatives.
(7) One member appointed by the Governor.
(8) One member appointed by the Lieutenant Governor.
(9) One member appointed by the Speaker of the House of
Representatives.
(c) Members of the board appointed by the Governor,
Lieutenant Governor, and Speaker of the House of
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84 SB80 Enrolled
Page 4
Lieutenant Governor, and Speaker of the House of
Representatives shall be county commissioners who shall serve
for four-year terms.
(d) The appointing authorities shall coordinate their
appointments to assure the board membership is inclusive and
reflects the racial, gender, geographic, urban, rural, and
economic diversity of the state.
(e) The board shall annually elect a chair and other
officers deemed expedient. The officers shall serve at the
pleasure of the board and shall have the duties and powers
determined by the board.
(f) The board may accept appropriations, grants, gifts,
donations, or contributions from the federal government and
the state government; a county, municipal, or local
government; a board, bureau, commission, agency, or
establishment of any such government; another organization,
firm, or corporation, public or private; and an individual or
groups of individuals in furtherance of the services,
purposes, duties, responsibilities, or functions vested in the
board and college.
(g) The board shall make contracts, leases, or
agreements necessary and convenient to carry out the duties
and purposes for which the board is created. The board shall
enter into contracts, leases, or agreements with a person an
individual, firm, or corporation, public or private, upon
terms and for purposes deemed advisable.
(h) The board shall provide advanced or continuing
training and education to county commissioners through the
institute in addition to that required by Section 11-3-43.
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112 SB80 Enrolled
Page 5
institute in addition to that required by Section 11-3-43.
Public funds may be expended for the advanced or continuing
training and education in the same manner as the required
training and education, but a county commissioner's enrollment
in, attendance at, or completion of an advanced course of
study shall be voluntary and shall not be required.
(i) The board shall provide for the grant of awards,
degrees, diplomas, or other forms of recognition for
successful completion of its programs as it deems proper. The
board may also award certification to county employees and
programs meeting the criteria established by the board or by
state agencies.
(j) The board shall receive no additional compensation
for their service pursuant to this article.
(k) Five members of the board shall constitute a quorum
for the purpose of transacting business."
"§31-9-61
(a)(1) The following requirements are hereby
established for the position of certified local emergency
management director created herein:
a. Satisfactory completion of two years of college
level education.
b. At least three years of work experience in the area
of emergency response, emergency management, or qualified
military service.
c. Two hundred hours of course work in emergency
management as recommended by the Alabama Association of
Emergency managers and approved by the Director of the Alabama
Emergency Management Agency.
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140 SB80 Enrolled
Page 6
Emergency Management Agency.
(2) Any individual who is serving as a local emergency
management director on June 14, 2007, shall be deemed to
satisfy the requirement for two years of college level
education if he or she has a minimum five years' work
experience as a local emergency management director and he or
she meets the requirement of paragraph (a)(1)c.
(b) Any local emergency management director meeting the
standards set out in subsection (a) shall be granted the
designation of local emergency management director without the
completion of any further requirements unless the requirements
are approved by the governing board of the Alabama Local
Government Training Buddy Sharpless Education Institute
established in Section 11-3-44."
"§36-25-4.2
(a) At the beginning of each legislative quadrennium,
the State Ethics Commission shall provide for and administer
training programs on the State Ethics Law state ethics laws
for members of the Legislature, state constitutional officers,
cabinet officers, executive staff, municipal mayors, council
members and commissioners, county commissioners, and
lobbyists.
(1) The training program for legislators shall be held
at least once at the beginning of each quadrennium for members
of the Legislature. An additional training program shall be
held if any changes are made to this chapter, and shall be
held within three months of the effective date of the changes.
The time and place of the training programs shall be
determined by the Executive Director of the State Ethics
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168 SB80 Enrolled
Page 7
determined by the Executive Director of the State Ethics
Commission and the Legislative Council. Each legislator must
attend the training programs. The State Ethics Commission
shall also provide a mandatory program for any legislator
elected in a special election within three months of the date
that the legislator assumes office.
(2) The training program for the state constitutional
officers, cabinet members, and executive staff, as determined
by the Governor, shall be held within the first 30 days after
the Governor has been sworn into office. An additional
training program shall be held if any changes are made to this
chapter, and shall be held within three months of the
effective date of the changes. The specific date of the
training program shall be established by the Executive
Director of the State Ethics Commission with the advice of the
Governor and other constitutional officers.
(3) The training program for lobbyists shall be held
four times annually as designated by the Executive Director of
the State Ethics Commission, the first of which shall be held
within the first 30 days of the year. Each lobbyist must
attend a training program within 90 days of registering as a
lobbyist. A lobbyist who fails to attend a training program
shall not be allowed to lobby the Legislature, Executive
Branch, Judicial Branch, public officials, or public
employees. After attending one training program, a lobbyist
shall not be required to attend an additional training program
unless any changes are made to this chapter. Such additional
Additional mandatory training program shall be held within
three months of the effective date of the changes.
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196 SB80 Enrolled
Page 8
three months of the effective date of the changes.
(4) All municipal mayors, council members and
commissioners, county commissioners, and members of any local
board of education in office as of January 1, 2011, shall
obtain training within 120 days of that date. Thereafter, all
municipal mayors, council members and commissioners, and
county commissioners , and members of local boards of education
shall obtain training within 120 days of being sworn into
office. Training shall be available online and may be
conducted either online or in person. Evidence of completion
of the training shall be provided to the commission via an
electronic reporting system provided on the official website.
The scheduling of training opportunities for municipal mayors,
council members and commissioners, and county commissioners
shall be established by the Executive Director of the State
Ethics Commission with the advice and assistance of the
Alabama League of Municipalities and the Association of County
Commissions of Alabama. Any provision of this section to the
contrary notwithstanding, the training for county
commissioners required by this subdivision shall be satisfied
by the successful completion of the 10-hour course on ethical
requirements of public officials provided by the Alabama Local
Government Training Buddy Sharpless Education Institute
established pursuant to Article 2 of Chapter 3 of Title 11.
The Alabama Local Government Training Buddy Sharpless
Education Institute shall quarterly provide written notice to
the State Ethics Commission the names of those county
commissioners completing the institute's program.
(b) The curriculum of each session and faculty for the
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224 SB80 Enrolled
Page 9
(b) The curriculum of each session and faculty for the
training program shall be determined by the Executive Director
of the State Ethics Commission. The curriculum shall include,
but not be limited to, a review of the current law, a
discussion of actual cases and advisory opinions on which the
State Ethics Commission has ruled, and a question and answer
period for attendees. The faculty for the training program may
include the staff of the State Ethics Commission, members of
the faculties of the various law schools in the state, and
other persons deemed appropriate by the Executive Director of
the State Ethics Commission and shall include experts in the
field of ethics law, persons affected by the ethics law, and
members of the press and media.
(c) Except as provided herein, attendance at any
session of the training program shall be mandatory, except in
the event the person is suffering a catastrophic illness.
(d) This section shall not preclude the penalizing,
prosecution, or conviction of any member of the Legislature,
any public official, or public employee prior to such person
attending a mandatory training program.
(e) All public employees required to file the Statement
of Economic Interests required by Section 36-25-14, no later
than May 1, 2011, shall participate in an online educational
review of the Alabama Ethics Law state ethics laws provided on
the official website of the commission. Employees hired after
January 1, 2011, shall have 90 days to comply with this
subsection. Evidence of completion of the educational review
shall be provided to the commission via an electronic
reporting system provided on the official website."
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244
245
246
247
248
249
250
251
252 SB80 Enrolled
Page 10
reporting system provided on the official website."
Section 2. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2025.
253
254 SB80 Enrolled
Page 11
1, 2025.
________________________________________________
President and Presiding Officer of the Senate
________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Representatives
SB80
Senate 20-Feb-25
I hereby certify that the within Act originated in and passed
the Senate.
Patrick Harris,
Secretary.
House of Representatives
Passed: 04-Mar-25
By: Senator Butler
255
256
257
258
259
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287