SB325 By Senators Dial, Holley, Ward and Sanford RFD Governmental Affairs Rd 1 03-MAR-16

SYNOPSIS: Under existing law, various services are provided to the Legislature by the Legislative Reference Service, Legislative Fiscal Office, and Alabama Law Institute.

This bill would create the Legislative Services Agency and reconstitute the Legislative Reference Service, Legislative Fiscal Office, and Alabama Law Institute as divisions of the Legislative Services Agency and repeal conflicting and obsolete provisions.

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT

Relating to the Legislature; to create the Legislative Services Agency to provide certain staff services to the Legislature; to reconstitute the Legislative Reference Service, Legislative Fiscal Office, and the Alabama Law Institute as divisions of the agency; to add Chapter 5A (commencing with Section 29-5A-1) to, and to repeal Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 29-5-1), Section 29-6-2.1, Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 29-7-1), and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 29-8-1) of Title 29 of, the Code of Alabama 1975.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:

Section 1. Chapter 5A (commencing with Section 29-5A-1) is added to Title 29 of the Code of Alabama 1975, to read as follows:

Chapter 5A. Legislative Services Agency.

Article 1. Legislative Services Agency.

§29-5A-1.

(a) There is hereby created the Legislative Services Agency which shall be under the supervision, direction, and control of the Director of Legislative Services. The director shall be appointed by the Legislative Council and shall receive the compensation and benefits established by the council, payable as the compensation of other state employees.

(b) The agency succeeds to and is vested with all of the functions of the Legislative Reference Service, the Legislative Fiscal Office, and the Alabama Law Institute. A reference in any law to the Legislative Reference Service, Legislative Fiscal Office, or the Alabama Law Institute shall be deemed a reference to the agency.

(c) On October 1, 2016, all papers, books, materials, furnishings, funds, personnel, and property of the Legislative Reference Service, Legislative Fiscal Office, and the Alabama Law Institute shall be transferred to the agency.

§29-5A-2.

The agency shall consist of three divisions as follows:

(1) The Legal Division, which shall be headed by the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Legal. The deputy director, legal, shall be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the director and shall receive the compensation determined by the Legislative Council. The Legal Division succeeds to and is vested with all the powers of, and the duties previously performed by, the Legislative Reference Service.

(2) The Fiscal Division, which shall be headed by a Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal. The deputy director, fiscal, shall be appointed by and serve at the pleasure of the director and shall receive the compensation determined by the Legislative Council. The Fiscal Division succeeds to and is vested with all the powers of, and the duties previously performed by, the Legislative Fiscal Office.

(3) The Law Revision Division, which shall be headed by the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Law Revision. The deputy director, law revision, after consultation with the Alabama Law Institute Council, shall be appointed by and shall serve at the pleasure of the director and shall receive the compensation determined by the Legislative Council. The Law Revision Division succeeds to and is vested with all the powers of, and the duties previously performed by, the Alabama Law Institute.

§29-5A-3.

The director shall hire professional staff necessary to effectuate the purposes of this chapter. The employees shall be exempt from the merit system. The director shall determine their compensation and benefits, and supervise the performance of their duties.

§29-5A-4.

(a) Communications concerning a request for assistance between the Director of Legislative Services, and each officer and employee of the Legislative Services Agency and an individual authorized by this chapter to make a request for assistance shall be privileged and confidential. When responding to a request for assistance, the Director of Legislative Services, and each officer and employee of the Legislative Services Agency shall maintain this privilege. All requests for assistance and the contents thereof, including, but not limited to, the fact a request was made, any materials related to the request, and any work product related to or arising from the request, shall be confidential and privileged until this privilege is waived. The privilege is waived when the agency receives instructions to release the material from the member of the Legislature in whose name the request for assistance was made, or the Lieutenant Governor for a request for assistance made in the name of the Lieutenant Governor, or the Governor for a request for assistance made in the name of the Governor.

(b) The introduction of a bill prepared by the agency is a waiver of the privilege imposed by this subsection only with respect to the contents of the bill.

(c) The advertising of a local bill by synopsis or in a form less than in its entirety is not, in and of itself, a waiver of the privilege for the purposes of this subsection.

(d) In order that the purposes of this article shall be best served, each department and agency of State of Alabama government shall furnish to the Legal Division copies of all monthly, quarterly, annual, biennial, quadrennial, and other regular reports which it is required by law to prepare for other agents or officials of the state government and copies of all printed publications that it issues. Each department or agency of State of Alabama government shall comply with requests for supplementary reports made by the Legal Division and approved by the Legislative Council. Each department and agency of State of Alabama government shall make its internal records available to the Legal Division upon request.

Article 2. Legal Division.

§29-5A-20.

The Legislative Reference Service is reconstituted as the Legal Division. The division shall be under the supervision, direction, and control of the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Legal, who shall be appointed as provided in Article 1.

§29-5A-21.

(a) The Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Legal, shall have all of the following powers and duties:

(1) To respond to questions concerning the organization and administration of state government or the operation of constitutional or statutory law.

(2) To render assistance in the drafting of bills and amendments to bills.

(3) To make studies and reports on problems of state and local government in Alabama, either upon request or on his or her own initiative.

(4) To conduct a continuous analysis of the scope, effect, and methods of federal, state, and local government operations in Alabama and make those recommendations to the Legislative Council as he or she determines to be appropriate.

(5) To prepare, when directed by the Legislature, a compilation or code of the statutes of Alabama.

(6) To act as Code Commissioner in determining the content of the code and any supplements thereto and to prepare an annual codification bill to adopt changes to the code enacted at prior sessions of the Legislature.

(7) To enter into a printing contract on behalf of the State of Alabama, when approved and directed by the Legislative Council, to publish the official code of the statutes of Alabama.

(b) Requests for assistance under subdivisions (1) and (3) of subsection (a) shall be prepared only for a member of the Legislature or the Lieutenant Governor, or a person authorized by a member of the Legislature or by the Lieutenant Governor. Requests for assistance under subdivision (2) of subsection (a) shall be prepared only for a member of the Legislature, the Lieutenant Governor, or the Governor, or a person authorized by a member of the Legislature, by the Lieutenant Governor, or by the Governor. A request for assistance made by a member of the Legislative Council or a person authorized by a member of the Legislative Council shall be given priority over any other request. A request for assistance made by a member of the Legislature or a person authorized by a member of the Legislature shall be given priority over any other requests other than by members of the Legislative Council. The Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Legal, may respond to other requests for assistance, including, but not limited to, requests from other state governments, as he or she determines to be in the best interests of the state.

§29-5A-22.

(a) The Code Commissioner for the Code of Alabama 1975, in compiling the contents of the code and any cumulative supplement and replacement volume to the code, may not alter the sense, meaning, or effect of any act. The Code Commissioner, in compiling the contents of the code and any supplement and replacement volume to the code, may perform all of the following editorial functions:

(1) Change the wording of descriptive headings and catchlines.

(2) Change hierarchy units as specified in an act to appropriate code hierarchy.

(3) Change reference numbers to conform with renumbered hierarchy units, or make corrections in reference numbers if the correction can be made without substantive change in the law.

(4) Substitute the proper hierarchy unit for the terms "this act," "the preceding section," and the like.

(5) Remove language that is surplusage, including "of the Code of Alabama 1975," "of this section," and the like when such language follows a designated hierarchy unit.

(6) Substitute "this title," "this chapter," or other hierarchy designation in place of reference to the specific unit, if the reference is within that unit.

(7) Translate dates to the appropriate month, day, and year.

(8) Change words when directed by law.

(9) Substitute the name of any agency, officer, or instrumentality of the state or of a political subdivision whose name is changed by law or to which powers, duties, and responsibilities have been transferred by law, for the name which the agency, officer, or instrumentality previously used or of the agency which was previously vested with the same powers and charged with the same duties and responsibilities.

(10) Divide, consolidate, and rearrange hierarchy units and parts of hierarchy units.

(11) If any section or part of a section of the Code of Alabama 1975, is amended by more than one act at the same session of the Legislature, incorporate into one or more code sections the section as amended or altered by the several acts, if each of the amendments, changes, or alterations are not in substantive conflict and can be given effect and incorporated in the code section or code sections in a manner which will make the code section or code sections intelligible.

(12) Resolve nonsubstantive conflicts between multiple acts.

(13) Change capitalization, spelling, and punctuation for the purpose of uniformity and consistency.

(14) Correct manifest grammatical, clerical, and typographical errors, including, but not limited to, by means of the addition or deletion of language.

(b)(1) Upon the adoption and incorporation of the annual cumulative supplement and each replacement volume into the Code of Alabama by statute, that supplement or replacement volume shall be considered as part of the entire Code of Alabama and shall be considered for statutory construction purposes in the same manner as all other portions of the code.

(2) This adoption and incorporation by statute shall constitute a continuous systematic codification of the entire Code of Alabama 1975, for purposes of Section 85 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901. Such a statute is a law that adopts a code for the purposes of Section 45 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901.

(c) The Legislature finds and declares that this section is declaratory of, and does not constitute a change in, the law existing since the amendment of Section 29-7-6 by Act 93-618 of the 1993 Regular Session designating the Director of the Legislative Reference Service as the Code Commissioner.

§29-5A-23.

(a) Whenever any provision of this code contains a preprinted form that contains language which indicates the year of application or execution as "19__," the language shall be deemed to mean either a year beginning with the numbers 19 or 2 as the case may be.

(b) The Code Commissioner, when and as deemed appropriate, shall implement editorial changes to such language to conform the preprinted form to the applicable date.

§29-5A-24.

(a) For the purposes of this section, "joint legislative operations" means those activities, responsibilities, and procedures of the Legislature as an institution of government including, but not limited to, activities, responsibilities, and procedures involving the enactment and codification of legislation, the process by which administrative regulations are adopted, relations with the other branches of government, and internal operations of the Legislature as a whole including, but not limited to, joint rules, legislative compensation, and joint activities of the two houses. The term does not include activities, responsibilities, or procedures involving only one house of the Legislature, such as matters relating to the rules, liabilities, or employees of the particular house.

(b) In addition to the reporting requirement in Section 36-15-21.1, whenever litigation required to be reported under Section 36-15-21.1 concerns joint legislative operations, the state official who is a party to the litigation shall promptly notify the chair of the Legislative Council and the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Legal.

§29-5A-25.

(a) The Code Commissioner shall prepare an official recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended. This official recompilation may not make any substantive change to any existing operative constitutional provision.

(b) The official recompilation shall include all of the following:

(1) The removal of all expressly repealed sections or amendments, or portions thereof.

(2) The insertion of expressly identified amendatory language contained in a particular constitutional amendment into the identified location and the deletion of the language being amended and replaced; and the retention of the original article and section number or amendment number.

(3) The relocation of various constitutional amendments applicable to the entire state in the appropriate article of the constitution based upon a logical sequence and the particular subject or topic.

(4) The grouping of various constitutional amendments applicable to the entire state in the same location in the document based upon a logical sequence and the particular subject or topic.

(5) The grouping of local constitutional amendments in the same location in the document based upon a particular subject or topic or by county.

(6) The elimination of constitutional provisions or amendments, including portions of such provisions or amendments, that have lapsed or have been invalidated, directly or indirectly, by decision of a court of last resort.

(7) The inclusion, after the text of a relocated provision, of the official constitutional amendment number assigned to that provision at the time of ratification.

(8) Other editorial changes necessary to accurately reflect the current status of the constitution in a logical manner.

(c) The Code Commissioner, upon completion, shall instruct the official Code Publisher to publish the official recompilation.

(d) The recompiled constitution published under this section shall be known as and cited as the Official Recompilation of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended.

(e) In the event of a conflict between the official recompilation published under this section and the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, or any amendments to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, or the amendments thereto, or both, shall prevail over the official recompilation.

§29-5A-26.

(a) The Legislature recognizes that language used in reference to individuals with disabilities shapes and reflects society's attitudes towards people with disabilities. Many of the terms currently used diminish the humanity and natural condition of having a disability. Certain terms are demeaning and create an invisible barrier to inclusion as equal community members. The Legislature finds it necessary to clarify preferred language for new and revised laws by requiring the use of terminology that puts the person before the disability.

(b) The Code Commissioner is directed to avoid all references to: Disabled, developmentally disabled, mentally disabled, mentally ill, mentally retarded, handicapped, cripple, crippled, deaf-mute, deaf-dumb, dumb, and mute in any new statute or resolution and to change such references when appropriate in any existing statute or resolution as sections and provisions including these references are otherwise amended by law.

(c) The Code Commissioner is directed to replace terms referenced in subsection (b) in the Code of Alabama 1975, when such replacement is appropriate with the following revised terminology: Individuals with disabilities, individuals with developmental disabilities, and individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.

(d)(1) No statute or resolution is invalid because the statute or resolution is not in compliance with this section.

(2) No statute or resolution is invalid because of a change in terminology implemented by the Code Commissioner under this section.

(e) Changes in terminology shall not be made by the Code Commissioner if such change may legally impair the statute or its implementation or interpretation.

(f)(1) All action of an administrative agency creating new rules or amending existing rules shall be formulated in accordance with this section.

(2) No agency rule is invalid because the rule is not in compliance with this section.

§29-5A-27.

The Code Commissioner, pursuant to Section 29-5A-32, shall change all references to the Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation in Title 22, and elsewhere as found in this code, to the Department of Mental Health. Code changes shall be made at a time determined appropriate by the Code Commissioner.

Article 3. Fiscal Division.

§29-5A-40.

The Legislative Fiscal Office is reconstituted as the Fiscal Division. The division shall be under the supervision, direction, and control of the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal, who shall be appointed as provided in Article 1.

§29-5A-41.

The various departments, agencies, institutions, and establishments of the executive branch of government and the regulatory agencies and commissions of the state shall furnish the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal, any available material which the deputy director, fiscal determines to be necessary in the performance of the duties and functions of the deputy director, fiscal. The deputy director, fiscal, upon agreement with the head of any department, agency, establishment, or regulatory agency or commission, may utilize its services, facilities, and personnel, with or without reimbursement; and the head of each department, agency, establishment, institution, or regulatory agency or commission may provide the division services, facilities, and personnel.

§29-5A-42.

In carrying out the duties and functions of the Fiscal Division and for the purposes of coordinating the operations of the division with those of other legislative agencies with a view to utilizing most effectively the information, services, and capabilities of all such agencies in carrying out the various responsibilities assigned to each, the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal, may obtain information, data, estimates, and statistics developed by the Examiners of Public Accounts and, upon agreement, utilize their services, facilities, and personnel of the Examiners of Public Accounts, with or without reimbursement.

§29-5A-43.

It shall be the duty and function of the Fiscal Division to provide to the Committees on Ways and Means of the House and to the Committees on Finance and Taxation of the Senate information that will assist the committees in the discharge of all matters within their jurisdictions, including:

(1) Information with respect to the budget, appropriation bills, and other bills authorizing or providing budget authority or tax expenditures.

(2) Information with respect to revenues, receipts, estimated future revenues and receipts, and changing revenue conditions.

(3) Such related information as such committees may request.

§29-5A-44.

At the request of any other committee of the House of Representatives or the Senate, any joint committee of the Legislature, or any member of the House or Senate, the Fiscal Division shall provide to such committee or joint committee any information compiled in carrying out subdivisions (1) and (2) of Section 29-5A-43 and, to the extent practicable, such additional information related to the foregoing as may be requested.

§29-5A-45.

(a) Every general bill creating, eliminating, or affecting in any way, a state or local program, service, function, or revenue source and which thereby requires the expenditure of county or municipal funds or thereby decreases or increases revenue collections by any county or municipality, before any vote is taken thereon in the Senate or House of Representatives, shall have endorsed thereon or attached thereto an estimate made by the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal, of the amount of money involved therein, and the anticipated increase in county or municipal spending or the decrease in county or municipal revenue collections under the bill. In the event that insufficient data is available to formulate an estimate of the amount of money involved therein, the deputy director, fiscal shall note such fact on such endorsement or attachment which shall constitute compliance herewith.

(b) A fiscal note provided under this section shall be endorsed on the bill or attached thereto, and may be printed on the calendar of bills on third reading immediately following the title of the bill.

(c) The Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal, is authorized to secure information, data, estimates, and statistics directly from the employees and officials of the various departments, agencies, institutions, establishments, boards, and commissions of the county and municipal governments of the state which are necessary for the deputy director, fiscal to fulfill the duties and functions imposed by this section. The employees and officials of all such departments, agencies, institutions, establishments, boards, and commissions shall furnish the deputy director, fiscal any available material which the deputy director, fiscal determines to be necessary in the performance of the duties and functions required by this section.

§29-5A-46.

(a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:

(1) BUDGET PROCESS. The entire process by which funds are appropriated and expended, including, but not limited to, revenue estimating, legislative budget hearings, appropriations, allotment, and expenditure of funds.

(2) REVENUE SOURCES. Any receipt of funds by the state, including, but not limited to, tax receipts, fee receipts, transfers, interest income, transfers between state agencies or funds, or gifts or grants from other instrumentalities.

(b) In addition to the reporting requirement in Section 36-15-21.1, whenever litigation required to be reported under Section 36-15-21.1 concerns the budget process or any revenue source, the state official who is a party to the litigation shall promptly notify the Chair of the Legislative Council and the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Fiscal.

Article 4. Law Revision Division.

§29-5A-60.

The Alabama Law Institute is reconstituted as the Law Revision Division. The division shall be under the supervision, direction, and control of the Deputy Director Legislative Services, Law Revision, who shall be appointed as provided in Article 1.

§29-5A-61.

The general purposes of the Law Revision Division shall be to promote and encourage the clarification and simplification of the law of Alabama to secure the better administration of justice and to carry on scholarly legal research and scientific legal work. To that end it shall be the duty of the division to:

(1) Consider needed improvements in both substantive and adjective law and to make recommendations concerning the same to the chairs and members of the House Judiciary Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee.

(2) Examine and study the law of Alabama and Alabama jurisprudence and statutes with a view of discovering defects and inequities and of recommending needed reforms.

(3) Receive and consider suggestions from members of the Alabama Legislature and the public generally as to defects and anachronisms in the law.

(4) Recommend such changes in the law as it deems necessary to modify or eliminate antiquated and inequitable rules of law, and to bring the law of the state, both civil and criminal, into harmony with legal conditions and opinions.

(5) Render annual reports to the Legislature through the president of the council and, if it deems so advisable, accompany its reports with proposed bills to carry out any of its recommendations.

(6) Recommend the repeal of obsolete statutes and suggest needed amendments, additions, and repeals.

(7) Organize and conduct meetings as needed within the state for scholarly discussions of current problems in Alabama law, bringing together representatives of the Legislature, practicing attorneys, members of the bench and bar, and representatives of the law teaching profession and periodically conduct training and continuing education programs for public officials, including providing educational material.

(8) Advise the Code Commissioner on the performance of the duties imposed on the Code Commissioner by Article 2.

(9) In cooperation with the Legislative Council, establish and facilitate a legislative intern program.

§29-5A-62.

The division, in submitting reports to the Legislature through the President of the Alabama Law Institute Council, shall act solely in an advisory capacity.

§29-5A-63.

(a) The Law Revision Division may establish a special fund in the State Treasury to receive direct grants or contributions from municipal, county, state, federal, or charitable sources, or any other sources, to conduct studies, educate public officials, and carry on the duties of the division. The funds in the special fund are continuously appropriated for the exclusive use of the division, shall be maintained separately, and shall be in addition to any other funds appropriated to the division.

(b) The Law Revision Division shall provide a public report of all funds received pursuant to this section. The public report shall be made on the website of the Legislative Services Agency.

§29-5A-64.

(a) The Governing Council of the Alabama Law Institute Council is continued in existence as the Alabama Law Institute Council.

(b) The council shall be composed of ex officio, appointed, and elected members, as follows:

(1) One justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama, selected by the justices thereof.

(2) One circuit court judge, selected by the Association of Circuit Court Judges.

(3) The Attorney General of the State of Alabama, or his or her designee.

(4) The legal advisor to the Governor of Alabama, or his or her designee.

(5) The Chairs of the Judiciary Committees of the Senate and House of Representatives.

(6) The President of the Alabama State Bar.

(7) The Secretary of the Alabama State Bar.

(8) The chair of the junior bar section of the Alabama State Bar.

(9) The attorney members of the Legislative Council of Alabama, together with the Secretary of the Legislative Council.

(10) Not less than three nor more than six attorney members appointed by the Governor of Alabama.

(11) The Code Commissioner.

(12) The Speaker of the House, or his or her designee.

(13) The President Pro Tempore of the Senate, or his or her designee.

(14) Two members who shall be elected from the members of the faculty of the University of Alabama School of Law, two members elected from the members of the faculty of the Cumberland Law School of Samford University, two members elected from the members of the faculty of the Thomas Goode Jones School of Law at Faulkner University, and six practicing attorneys elected from each congressional district in the state.

(c) The ex officio members shall hold their positions during their respective terms of office. The terms of office of the elected members of the governing council shall be four years. Elected members of the governing council shall be eligible for reelection.

(d) Vacancies in the elected membership created by death, resignation, or otherwise than by the expiration of the terms of office shall be filled by the council under such rules as it may adopt. Vacancies occurring through the expiration of terms of office shall be filled by election by the council under such rules as it may adopt.

(e) Members of the Governing Council of the Alabama Law Institute serving on September 30, 2016, shall continue as members of the Alabama Law Institute Council.

(f) The members of the Alabama Law Institute Council shall serve without any compensation for services as such. The division may pay honoraria to members of the State Bar who perform professional services for the division.

(g) The Alabama Law Institute Council shall advise the Deputy Director of Legislative Services, Law Revision, on the work of the division and shall adopt a plan or plans to encourage and invite the cooperation of all members of the legal profession in the work of the division.

Section 2. All laws or parts of law that conflict with this act are repealed. Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 29-5-1), Section 29-6-2.1, Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 29-7-1), and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 29-8-1) of Title 29 of, the Code of Alabama 1975, are expressly repealed.

Section 3. This act shall become effective on October 1, 2016.

Legislature

Legislative Services Agency

Legislative Reference Service

Legislative Fiscal Office

Alabama Law Institute

Code Added

Code Repealed