On Tuesday, the Alabama Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on State Rep. Matt Simpson's proposed overhaul of Alabama's ethics law. With the Senate session adjourning on Tuesday, leaving just two days in the 2024 state legislative session, Simpson (R-Daphne) addressed the committee to make one final push.

He told lawmakers he has worked closely with state Sen. Sam Givhan (R-Huntsville) in recent weeks and that senators have been improving the bill through alternative proposals since it passed the House more than a month ago.

“This bill amends Alabama's ethics laws. This bill is not just a bill, it comes out of years of work in this building to address ethics laws and make sure that ethics laws make sense,” Simpson said. “The goal behind it is clarity and clearing up confusion.”

Sen. Givhan (R-Huntsville) also spoke before the committee, detailing specific areas that will be the focus of changes in the Senate, including clarifying definitions and refining provisions regarding conflicts of interest and financial disclosure.

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“This alternative bill is a combination of proposals from various senators from both parties. We also have proposals from the director of ethics and proposals from the attorney general's office,” Givhan said. “So it was a mix of proposals that ultimately came out as this.”

One of the big changes involves the classification of bribery crimes. The original House bill classified all bribery, regardless of amount, as a Class B felony. Givhan explained that there is a graduated approach where bribes up to $10,000 would be considered Class C felonies, and anything above that would remain a Class B felony.

Givhan also noted that a provision allowing the ethics commission to refer cases with intent to commit wrongdoing for prosecution was removed following concerns raised by the attorney general's office.

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State Sen. Arthur Orr voiced opposition to Simpson's reforms because he was part of the group that considered the bill in 2018-2019, but refrained from introducing the bill after learning of alternative proposals.

“The committee certainly made some good recommendations, but this bill appears to go well beyond those recommendations. I appreciate your work, and you're certainly interested in this bill,” said Rep. Ohr (R-Decatur).

The bill has been moved forward and is scheduled for a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee at 8 a.m. Wednesday on the 29th day of the 2024 Legislative Session.

Grayson Everett is the state and politics editor for Yellow Hammer News. You can follow him on Twitter. Grayson