House Speaker Nathaniel Leadbetter believes state lawmakers accomplished great things for Alabamians during the 2024 legislative session. He offered more details Thursday about the bills that will be up for reconsideration next session.

Leadbetter said reforming the state's ethics laws will remain a priority for him next year. This year, state Rep. Matt Simpson (R-Daphne) introduced a bill to replace the current Alabama ethics code that guides state lawmakers with one that would increase penalties for violations.

HB 227 passed the House on a 79-9 vote, but the Alabama Senate Judiciary Committee did not have time to consider it until the final day of the 2024 legislative session.

The Speaker discussed the issue in a recent interview on WVNN's “Yaffie Program.”

“I think the ethics law has had its head buried since Matt Simpson started working on it and then they had a talk show go on the air where one of the ethics commissioners resigned for violating the ethics law,” Leadbetter explained. “I think it's had its head buried because nobody has a clear idea, and I know there's been a lot of pushback about it at times.”

RELATED: State Rep. Matt Simpson defends push for ethics reform

Leadbetter was referring to Stan McDonald, an Alabama politician who resigned from the Alabama Ethics Commission after it was revealed he had donated to multiple Republican campaigns while serving as one of the commission's three commissioners.

The Speaker said the goal was to gain further clarity on the Bill's effects before it passes through Parliament.

“I think it's about getting people to understand,” he said. “This affects over 300,000 people in the state of Alabama. If the legislature doesn't get it clearly, how are firefighters and teachers going to understand it?”

Leadbetter praised Simpson's work on the bill, saying it lays the groundwork for future discussions in the session.

“He did a really good job,” he argued, “I just think there just wasn't enough time. I know Senator Givhan brought this bill to the Senate and mulled it over, and I applaud his efforts, but in the end he wasn't able to get it passed, and I understand that.”

Despite these setbacks, he believes there's a good chance it could become law in the future.

“I think we really picked up momentum as we got towards the end of the session,” he said, “so we'll see where it goes. I applaud him for the job he's done.”

Yaffe is a contributing writer for Yellow Hammer News and hosts “The Yaffe Program” weekdays from 9-11 a.m. WhistlerYou can follow him on X @Yaffe