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Former ACCR Chair Lenora Pate Inducted into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame

Alabama attorney Lenora Pate, who served as a Chair of Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform from 2003-2020, has been inducted posthumously into the Alabama Women’s Hall of Fame at the University of West Alabama. ACCR Chair Kristi Thomson said, “Lenora lead ACCR with grace, intelligence, and compassion. We were blessed to observe her critical  thinking style of leadership, her humor, and her eye on the end result.” Lenora’s husband, attorney Steve Brickman, highlighted Lenora’s many accomplishments with the following tribute at the induction ceremony: 

                 This moment is our collective Stairway to Heaven both to honor Lenora and the other distinguished honorees and their families and to thank G-d for the blessings we received all the days of their beautiful lives.

                Today is more than an honor, this is a deeply appreciated public affirmation of their amazing and glorious lives, devoted to the service of others, that brings all of us together today to remember, reflect and honor.

                Before I talk about Lenora, I want to tell Ms. Burnes and the entire Board we are deeply grateful to each of them for the time and effort they sacrificed to bring joy and delight and affirmation to each of our families.

                Our loved ones led glorious lives not for their own acknowledgement but in the words of Michah, “to do justice, love, mercy and walk humbly with G-d”.

                I loved, admired and respected Lenora and I miss her. This morning I want to touch on some of her achievements which are many but more importantly to delve into her heart and soul.

                Lenora’s passion for this State is rooted in the lessons she learned growing up in Inglenook, the daughter of a railroad worker and homemaker who reminded her at important junctures in her life that the real blessings we receive from G-d are more precious jewels than any that sparkle in this world. I am pleased that her two brothers and sisters-in-law are here with us today.

                I met Lenora on January 1983 on a Saturday morning at the offices of Sirote and Permutt where I, a single man was the recruiting party. In walked a beautiful woman, impeccably dressed with a luminescent smile and a number ranking in her law school class which she decided to attend with custody of her two young boys, one here today, after her divorce. Within five minutes, we offered her a summer job which she accepted. Humbly, I think it was because of me. After she accepted our permanent offer, I asked her out for what she thought was a standard recruiting dinner to celebrate her acceptance. About ten (10) minutes into the meal, she figured it out and we married at Jim and Dolly’s house on Cliff Road on November 8, 1987.

                From that moment in November 1987 until she slipped the surly bound of earth on June 23, 2021, we were partners in life, law and love. We were, as she used to say, flaming co-dependents, spending almost every minute of every day together at Sirote and Permutt or home. She was the kindest, most gifted and unique person I ever met. She was brilliant and elegant yet humble, compassionate, and well dressed. She taught us all that you can have hopes, dreams, ambitions, causes and loves outside the practice of law. For Lenora, these passions were her love of G-d and her family. Her outward displays of faithfulness were amazing. In a time when so many people shy away from their spirituality she made hers known, always in a non-judgmental way, and opened herself up to the blessings that it brought her. She signed every email with the words “Blessings, Lenora and you knew that the sentiment was individualized and carried profound meaning for her.

                I told everyone if I wasn’t married to Lenora Pate, I would want to be . Lenora was a mother of two sons, Gavin a tenured professor of English at Virginia Wesleyan College and his wife Janna and their three (3) children who are 25, 22 and 19; and Ashby, a partner at Lightfoot Franklin law firm who is here today with his wife Sara Beth and their daughters Oa and Veda, soon to be 14 and 12 and Roland who turned one (1) yesterday (who is not here), whom Lenora never got to meet. One of my hopes and dreams is to make sure Roland knows his Mimi as if she were here with us. When people would try to reconcile her appearance dress with the ages of her grandchildren, her retort would always be, “I’m from Alabama and we start our families early in life.”

                Lenora was once described in a feature article as having an unbelievable resume, better debating and speech making skills than Perry Mason, and more charisma than the A-Table at the Golden Globes – all of which is true. But it wasn’t the external trappings of success, as we typically measure them that define Lenora’s life of meaning and purpose. It was her huge servant’s heart which spoke to us  Cor Ad Cor – heart to heart, her passion for this State, getting fired up for the things she believed in, her warm, inviting and radiant smile, her incredible compassion for others, her indomitable spirit, her principles – always trying to do the right thing the right way, and most importantly her deep and abiding faith in G-d which provided the foundation for everything she achieved in her life.

                She believed, as I do that to whom much is given, much is required and that we are called by G-d to share those blessings. She believed that we must look out not for ourselves but for the next generation and the generations yet to come. To her, we are partners with G-d to help repair the world and make it a better place, because to her what good was her wealth and education and talents if our hearts are small, our vision is dim and our hands are weak.

                That was why she was one of the most preeminent health care lawyers in the Southeast and was named in a poll as one of the five (5) most influential lawyers in Birmingham.

                That is why she served for many years as Chairman of the ACCR, the statewide organization devoted to reforming our antiquated 1901 Constitution which she did.

                That’s why she gave back to her law school as Chairwoman of their National Alumni Association as a thank you to her alma mater (where she finished second in her class) for giving her the skills to build financial security through the marvelous law firm, Sirote and Permutt we both have been privileged to work during her entire legal career and where her primary project of which she was very proud was working with Dr. John Kirklin for many years to develop the Kirklin Clinic, a jewel in the Crown of our City. That’s why she chaired the Board of the Jefferson Blount Mental Health Authority to make lives better for those who struggle with mental illness and other disabilities.

                That’s why as a cancer survivor, she chaired the Board of the local American Cancer Society in the hopes they could find a cure for the disease that took her life and where she was recognized as the muti state Mid South Volunteer of the Year for leading the charge to pass public smoking bans in many Birmingham cities to make our lives better and healthier and received the National St. George award for these same achievements.

That is why she took a tour of duty in the public sector as the first woman Director of the Department of Public Relations and led Gov. Riley’s transition team and why she felt called in her late 40’s to run for Governor in 1998 – who does that but a fearless woman involved with power, love and a sound mind, promoting ideas and ideals that were ahead of their time and serving as a role model to so many women in the State.

                But even after all she accomplished, she innately understood that true joy and happiness emerge from a spirit of giving and caring for others, particularly the young women who worked with her, were graced by her wisdom and whom she loved and mentored so they too might reach their full potential in life.

                Lenora taught me how to live my life with meaning and purpose but also taught me how to die. In December 2000, doctors removed her thyroid, finding the most benign form on thyroid cancer. The survival rate is very high. Nearly two (2) years later, on May 6, 2021 after an MRI earlier that day, we received news that her cancer had migrated to her brain, an extremely rare occurrence. After her first radiation treatment, I thought she would be tired or down. Not Lenora because with her big smile she cheered up the other patients getting treatment and asked me to drive her to visit a friend solely to let her friend know how well she was doing.

                On June 17, 2021, my mother in Charleston celebrated her 100th birthday with a big party. I had to go because I hadn’t told my mother or four (4) of my five (5) siblings.  While I was waiting for my connecting flight, Lenora, who had barely been able to speak the day prior, face timed me and tried to assuage my guilt and told me to make sure I told my mother that she loved her and would see her soon. My mother passed away two (2) plus months later. Lenora sent long memos to friends and family describing her condition, asking for specific health related prayers and always ended with the words that marked Lenora’s life – Faith over Fear.

                She broke into a big smile when friends visited, sang to her and tenderly caressed her heart. When a friend arrived at the hospital on June 18, the day before she was discharged and five (5) days before she passed away and read to her, her favorite Psalm, the 23rd. After he finished, she looked at him with a smile on her face and peace in her heart and spoke the words I will never forget – “My cup runneth over.” And when our son Ashby sat at her bedside two (2) days before she left us, and told her he was scared at losing her, she told him not to be frightened and spoke the words from Timothy she had spoken to him when he was twelve (12) and again throughout his life at his important forks in the road that “G-d has not given us a Spirit of Fear but Power, Sound Mind and Love.”

                At this special moment, I see her beautiful face and feel her warm embrace as she gently takes my hand and tenderly caresses my heart, gently reminding us it is always better to light a candle than to curse the darkness, we are called to do the possible and have faith G-d will do the impossible, that good things will happen in G-d’s time not ours and that faith will always overcome fear. And when we follow her counsel, wisdom and faithfulness to

G-d, we know our lives were enriched by her presence, and like Lenora, our cup too does runneth over.

                Lenora exemplified this states hope, inspiration and future and served as a shining example of what is good and pure in each of us and our State. She would always remind us to look to our future with hope and joy and that she would shine her light on us even in the darkest times. I want all of us to close our eyes for a few seconds to remember her smile, her brilliance, her touch, her enduring friendship, her unselfish leadership in so many areas which significantly benefitted our State, her love of G-d which blessed her each day of her life and through her blessings, blessed us as well.

                I see Lenora’s light shinning on us today just like the light of all the amazing women who were inducted over time in this Hall of Fame. I feel her presence, and see her beautiful face and warm smile, reminding me how far this State has come but how much farther it still needs to go. Today, as we depart this sacred space, let’s remember the words of my parents who wrote to Lenora over and over, “When we count our blessings we count you twice.”

                Today, as we celebrate this singular honor, we too count our blessings twice and light a candle to illuminate her memory. That light will always lead our way, as we count our blessings twice and will always be inspired by her life and blessed by her memory.

                Thank you.

             

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The Alabama Constitution: Despite a Century of Updates, Traces of its Racist Past Linger

The constitution’s extensive amendments and inclusion of local government rules make Alabama’s constitution the country’s longest

By Keisha Stokes-Hough
Published: 

This essay is part of a 50-state series about the nation’s constitutions. We’ve asked an expert from each state to dive into their constitution, narrate its history, identify its quirks, and summarize its most essential components for our readers.

Alabama has been governed under seven constitutions. The 1901 constitution, which remained in effect longer than its five predecessors combined, was described by one law review article as “specifically designed to maintain the antebellum system of white supremacy.” After decades of critical scholarship and calls to improve it, organize it, and strip it of racist language, Alabama adopted a new constitution in 2022.

But that constitution was derived by and large from the 1901 document, meaning the vestiges of Alabama’s discriminatory foundations remain. Another result? It’s the nation’s longest and most unwieldy state constitution.

Advancement Toward Equality, Then Retractions

Of Alabama’s seven constitutions, only the latter three were ratified by the electorate. The first three — in 1819, 1861, and 1865 — became operable after adoption at the constitutional conventions that created them, reflecting Alabama’s emergence as a new state in 1819 and the evolving circumstances of the Civil War from 1861–1865.

The 1868 constitution, also known as the Reconstruction Constitution, is perhaps Alabama’s most progressive, “guaranteeing the rights of all citizens, protecting the property rights of married women, protecting black suffrage, broadening the voting rights of poor whites, and creating a bureau to promote industrial development,” Joshua Shiver wrote in the Encyclopedia of Alabama.

Importantly, the 1868 constitution was the first to include an equal protection provision, which was retained in the subsequent 1875 constitution: “That all persons resident in this State, born in the United States, or naturalized, or who shall have legally declared their intention to become citizens of the United States, are hereby declared citizens of the State of Alabama, possessing equal civil and political rights and public privileges.”

The 1868 constitutional convention, which met in Montgomery, was comprised of 100 elected delegates, including 18 Black men. According to a history of the Alabama judicial system, while the 1868 constitution included several progressive reforms, the convention splintered along racial lines on questions of Black equality, voting down amendments that segregated public facilities but failing to make an affirmative statement on social equality for Black Americans. At the completion of the 1868 constitution, the history says, a third of “native white Republicans” were against it, and many discontented white Alabamans left early. At the same time, Black Americans were also unhappy with the result.

The 1868 constitution was the first in Alabama to go to voters for ratification. After white Democrats staged a widespread boycott of the ratification election, the constitution did not receive the two-thirds majority required by the Second Reconstruction Act. The U.S. Congress intervened, changing the two-thirds requirement to a simple majority, and making it retroactive so the constitution would be ratified. The Alabama legislature subsequently ratified the 14th Amendment, and the state was formally readmitted to the Union in July 1868.

When Democrats, who were then generally anti-reconstructionist, took control of both the governor’s mansion and the state legislature less than a decade later in 1874, Reconstruction was effectively over in Alabama. A new constitutional convention was held in 1875. Its 99 delegates included only 4 Black men. Many delegates were also Confederate veterans.

The 1875 constitution was ratified by the voters that November and is regarded as a triumph of agrarian interests over the forces of commerce. It abolished the office of lieutenant governor and the State Board of Education. Ultimately, the 1875 constitution “rolled back many of the advances of the [1868 constitution] by reducing the size of government, reducing funds for public education, and weakening the political power of African Americans,” Shiver wrote.

Nevertheless, to many white Alabamians, this retrenchment of civil rights for Black Americans did not go far enough. At the turn of the 20th century, conservative Democrats began to demand a new constitutional convention, in large part to disenfranchise Black Alabamians.

As former Alabama Supreme Court Justice J. Gorman Houston Jr. once noted, all prior Alabama constitutions were occasioned by historical events: statehood in 1819, secession in 1861, post-Civil War reorganization in 1865, Reconstruction in 1868, and its end in 1875. But the 1901 constitution was precipitated by a distinctly ulterior motive. “Historians regard the Constitution of Alabama of 1901 . . . as one not required by historical necessity, but promulgated to effectuate a purpose, to inaugurate a rigidly segregated society and to legalize inequality,” Houston wrote.

Black citizens were systematically excluded from that convention. The convention’s “primary purpose,” University of Alabama professor William Stewart wrote in 2001, was “‘purifying’ the suffrage; in other words, eliminating blacks and, many hoped, radical-minded white farmers who were greatly upsetting things as far as Alabama politics was concerned.”

Records of the constitutional convention show that its president, John B. Knox of Anniston, addressed the delegates, saying “the negro was the prominent factor” in the “issue” to be addressed by the convention. Pushing back against the policies of the Reconstruction era, he added: “It is within the limits imposed by the Federal Constitution, to establish white supremacy in this State.”

The 1901 constitution, the Encyclopedia of Alabama says, perpetuated structural inequality by “concentrat[ing] power in the state legislature, decreas[ing] opportunities for home rule, and establish[ing] voter requirements that even many white men could not meet, reducing the political influence of the state’s many poor whites.” The voter disenfranchisement provisions included poll taxes, a lengthy residency requirement, and disqualification of those deemed “insane” or “idiots[,]” as well as persons convicted of various crimes. The 1901 document also criminalized paying another’s poll taxes or lending money for poll taxes as a form of bribery, punishable by a minimum of one to five years in prison.

In addition, it removed the explicit equal protection provision established in the 1868 constitution. The removal of this provision was premised by those who wanted that redaction on the understanding that the rights were covered by the federal 14th Amendment. The convention records also reiterated the position of some that Black citizens were unqualified to exercise the franchise. Said Knox: “There is a difference, it is claimed with great force, between the uneducated white man and the ignorant negro. There is in the white man an inherited capacity for government, which is wholly wanting in the negro.”

Having stripped Alabama’s local governments of home rule powers to manage their own affairs, the 1901 constitution instead entrusted most of the responsibility for regulating local matters to the state legislature — meaning the state legislature spends much of its session, even today, passing local legislation. “Cities, towns, counties do not govern themselves. We’re governed essentially by their legislative delegations. And to change any law, even to pay a probate judge or to establish a bingo game, you have to amend the 1901 constitution,” Wayne Flynt, a professor emeritus in Auburn University’s history department, said in 2009.

Following its adoption by statewide vote in November 1901, the constitution rapidly grew in length as local measures were added as amendments. By 2009, the Alabama Constitution had been amended more than 700 times and was 40 times longer than the U.S. Constitution.

It was in a 1914 address that Alabama Gov. Emmet O’Neal said, “No real or permanent progress is possible in Alabama until the present fundamental law is thoroughly revised and adapted to meet present conditions.” Nevertheless, the 1901 constitution remained in effect for more than a century.

In 2020, after decades of calls for change, voters approved a constitutional amendment that authorized the legislature to prepare a new version of the state constitution. Alabama voters ratified the revised and reorganized constitution on November 8, 2022. While the 2022 revision of the Alabama Constitution aimed to remove racist language, get rid of repealed provisions, and better organize the document, a press report described the 2022 constitution as “a pretty limited update, aimed mostly at modernizing some text and making it easier to read.” According to the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama, even after passing the new constitution, Alabama remains “governed by the basic operating system established by the 1901 Constitution.”

Declaration of Rights

The Declaration of Rights is Article I of the Alabama Constitution. It “recognizes that individuals possess basic rights that cannot be taken from them by the majority acting through the legislative, executive, or judicial departments of government,” the supreme court justice Houston wrote.

Section 1 paraphrases the Declaration of Independence, pronouncing “that all men are equally free and independent; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Section 2 asserts that “all political power is inherent in the people.”

Several provisions of Alabama’s Declaration of Rights parallel principles established by the U.S. Constitution, including the right to free exercise of religion and the prohibition against establishing a state religion by law, the right to free speech and press liberty, the prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures, the rights to a speedy criminal trial, the right to trial by jury, and the right to bear arms.

The Declaration of Rights provides “that excessive fines shall not be imposed, nor cruel or unusual punishment inflicted,” and “that no person shall be imprisoned for debt.” Additionally, “the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended by the authorities of this state.”

There are provisions that differ from the federal Constitution as well. Alabama’s 2022 constitution incorporated the state religious freedom amendment into the Declaration of Rights, which describes its purpose as “to guarantee that the freedom of religion is not burdened by state and local law; and to provide a claim or defense to persons whose religious freedom is burdened by government.” The amendment empowers any “person whose religious freedom has been burdened” to seek “appropriate relief against a government.”

The Declaration of Rights also says the Ten Commandments can be displayed on state property and in public schools, though only “in a manner that complies with constitutional requirements,” including “being intermingled with historical or educational items, or both, in a larger display.”

Other Unique Characteristics

Alabama’s constitution is about four times as long as Texas’s — the next longest state constitution — and complex even in its updated form.

Despite the goal of the 2022 update to remove redundancies and struck provisions, the extraordinary length is due to the nearly 1,000 amendments added since 1901. Unlike other state constitutions, Alabama’s “is not a basic template and statement of principles,” the public affairs council said, but rather, “more closely resembles a law code, with almost 500 pages worth of amendments that relate to localities rather than to the state as a whole.”

The 2022 constitution sorts local provisions by county at the end of the document. Examples of local measures include a provision authorizing Shelby County to provide “litter, trash, and rubbish regulation,” a provision approving a special tax in Chambers County “for library purposes,” and a provision authorizing Chilton County’s control of dangerous dogs.

As part of its constitutional revision in 2022, Alabama joined Oregon, Tennessee, and Vermont (whose voters approved similar language changes in that election) in amending provisions relating to slavery and involuntary servitude. Like the 13th Amendment, Alabama’s 1901 constitution “prohibited slavery and involuntary servitude, ‘except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.’” This “Punishment Clause” exception, originating in the U.S. Constitution and reproduced in state constitutions throughout the country, has been criticized for allowing states to target Black Americans with stiff legal punishments and for using the criminal justice system to recreate a type of slavery.

The Alabama Constitution now imposes an absolute ban, declaring that “no form of slavery shall exist in this state; and there shall not be any involuntary servitude.” This strengthening of constitutional prohibitions against slavery and involuntary servitude may create opportunities to challenge forced work programs in state prison labor systems.

Governance

The Alabama Constitution requires the state government be divided into three “distinct” branches — legislative, executive, and judicial.

The legislature consists of a senate and a house of representatives, made up of no more than 35 senators and 105 house members, with those numbers being its current composition. If additional counties are created, however, each new county is entitled to one representative. Each senator represents a district of approximately 137,000 Alabamians.

The constitution says the “executive department” consists of a governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state auditor, secretary of state, state treasurer, superintendent of education, commissioner of agriculture and industries, and a sheriff for each county. They are elected positions.

For the judicial branch, the constitution provides there be a supreme court; a court of criminal appeals; a court of civil appeals; a trial court of general jurisdiction, known as the circuit court; a trial court of limited jurisdiction, known as the district court; a probate court; and municipal courts.

“All judges shall be elected by vote of the electors within the territorial jurisdiction of their respective courts,” the constitution says.

Amendments

As mentioned, the Alabama Constitution has been amended hundreds of times to resolve developing state and local issues.

The amendment process is itself somewhat cumbersome, including requirements that the proposed amendment be read on three days in the legislative house proposing it, then approval by three-fifths of that house, then to a public election on a specified day. A simple majority is required for it to pass.

Judicial Interpretation and Limiting Equal Protection

Ex parte Melof, decided in 1999, is one of the most important cases interpreting the Alabama Constitution. In upholding the state’s retirement benefit taxation classifications against an equal protection challenge, the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that the Alabama Constitution does not provide an equal protection guarantee, as the express equal protection provision was removed during drafting of the 1901 constitution.

The state supreme court had recognized the existence of a state guarantee of equal protection in a line of cases going back decades. However, the Melof court reviewed the proceedings of the 1901 convention and the development of its own case law and concluded that the finding of a state equal protection guarantee was mistakenly premised on “an erroneous unofficial annotation” that was included in a printing of the Alabama Code in 1940 and in subsequent editions. This annotation was then relied upon and quoted by the Alabama Supreme Court in its decisions.

The dissenters in Melof and other critics of the decision have pointed to other provisions of the Alabama Constitution which may be interpreted to convey an equal protection guarantee, such as a provision in the Declaration of Rights “that all men are equally free and independent.” But Houston, who authored Melof, has explained that the Alabama Supreme Court cannot simply overlook the racist designs of the framers of the 1901 constitution, and instead advocated constitutional reform: “We cannot change history. Alabama in 1901 was Alabama in 1901. However, Alabama will be remiss if it enters too far into the new century with a constitution having as its main purpose to establish a segregated society and to legalize inequality.”

The express equal protection provision omitted by the 1901 convention remains absent from Alabama’s constitution.

Ex parte James, in 2002, is another important case of constitutional interpretation. In James, the Alabama Supreme Court brought a swift end to what was known for years in Alabama as the “Equity Funding Case,” which alleged the state was infringing on Alabama schoolchildren’s rights by failing to provide an adequate and equitable public education as required by the 1901 Alabama Constitution.

In 1992, a lengthy trial was held, revealing the pitiable state of public education in Alabama due to the lack of adequate funding. The trial court ruled that Amendment 111 of the state constitution, enacted in 1956 “in an attempt to evade compliance with the U.S. Supreme Court’s opinion in Brown v. Board of Education,” violates federal equal protection guarantees.

But the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that the judiciary was constitutionally prohibited from providing a remedy for the problem of inadequate school funding. “The pronouncement of a specific remedy ‘from the bench’ would necessarily represent an exercise of the power of that branch of government charged by the people of the State of Alabama with the sole duty to administer state funds to public schools: the Alabama Legislature.” Accordingly, the Alabama Supreme Court dismissed the litigation. Portions of Amendment 111 were eventually removed from the state constitution by public vote.

• • •

By removing explicitly racist language and reorganizing the lengthy text, the 2022 revision to the state constitution represents an important and necessary step forward for Alabama. But as the current constitution is derived largely from the 1901 constitution, advocates believe additional reform will be necessary to fully remove its discriminatory foundations, empower local governments to meet the needs of their constituents, and improve the provision of public education.

Keisha Stokes-Hough is a deputy director of legal management at the Southern Poverty Law Center.

A correction was made on July 16, 2025: An earlier version of this article stated that Amendment 111 was removed from the state constitution in its entirety. However, only portions were removed.

Keisha Stokes-Hough is a deputy director of legal management at the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Suggested Citation: Keisha Stokes-Hough, The Alabama Constitution: Despite a Century of Updates, Traces of its Racist Past Linger, Sᴛᴀᴛᴇ Cᴏᴜʀᴛ Rᴇᴘᴏʀᴛ (Jul. 8, 2025), https://statecourtreport.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/alabama-constitution-despite-century-updates-traces-its-racist-past

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PARCA report highlights inequities in Alabama’s tax system

Thomas Spencer of PARCA highlights Alabama’s inequitable tax system with a reliance on regressive sales taxes

Published on April 8, 2025 at 8:00 am CDT

The Alabama Constitution of 2022 represents a significant step forward in addressing some of the state’s historical inequities, mainly by removing racist and unconstitutional provisions from the 1901 Constitution. Thomas Spencer, senior research associate for the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama, says that the new version of the Constitution still leaves the state’s tax system essentially unchanged, perpetuating many of its predecessor’s problems, particularly in how taxes are allocated, a PARCA report finds.

One of the most significant issues highlighted is the inequity of Alabama’s tax system. Alabama remains one of the lowest tax-collecting states in the U.S. The state and local governments consistently collect less per capita in taxes than almost all other states. In 2023, Alabama ranked 49th in per capita tax collections, just ahead of Tennessee, a neighboring state with similarly low tax rates.

This low tax collection has impacted public services. Due to the state’s limited tax base, Alabama has far less revenue to spend on crucial public services like education, healthcare, public safety and the justice system.

“If you compare our state and local spending to other states, we’re in the 40s. We spend less than most other states and we’d probably be farther down if the federal government didn’t send us a lot of supplemental money because we are disproportionately poor,” said Spencer.

In many states, legislators and local governments have the power to adjust taxes as needed to respond to changing conditions. In Alabama, however, the state’s constitution imposes strict procedural requirements for increasing property taxes. For a property tax increase to occur, the local government must first approve it, then it must be approved by the local legislative delegation, and finally, the increase must be ratified through a public referendum.

As a result, Alabama’s local governments are forced to rely more heavily on sales taxes, which are inherently regressive. The state has some of the highest combined state and local sales tax rates in the country, with a weighted average of 9.29 percent. While the state made a small step toward equity by reducing the sales tax on food in 2023, with another decrease working through the legislature now, the change is limited and has not addressed the broader issues of regressive taxation.

Moreover, Alabama’s system of earmarks, which directs revenue to specific uses, further limits the flexibility of the state to address its most pressing needs. The state earmarks more of its revenue than any other state. For example, gas taxes are restricted to funding road construction, which prevents the state from using those funds to support other transportation needs, such as public transit. 

“We don’t enjoy that because of a constitutional provision written by, you know, the road builders and ratified by the people years and years ago with probably not a lot of thought as to what the world would look like later on,” said Spencer.

In terms of education, Alabama spends more on higher education than most states. Over half of the revenue for higher education comes from student tuition, not tax revenue. This reliance on tuition makes college less affordable, particularly for low-income families. Alabama’s in-state tuition is the second highest in the Southeastern U.S., and the state provides less financial aid than its neighbors, making higher education a greater financial burden for families with low incomes.

“We’ve had pretty phenomenal growth in those categories, in supporting education, higher education, but when the economy goes south, which there are apparently some red lights going on right now, that is the first to fall,” said Spencer.

The state’s tax system is also hindered by an imbalance in revenue sources. A fair and efficient tax system is generally based on a balanced approach that relies on a mix of property, sales and income taxes. However, Alabama’s system is overly reliant on sales taxes, which are less stable and more regressive than property taxes or income taxes. Because property taxes are difficult to raise, and income taxes are less developed in the state, the tax burden falls most heavily on lower-income residents.

“I think the point in our free market society is we want people to be able to sustain themselves, and if they’re out earning a living, they should be able to keep that money and support themselves and support their families and build a better life,” said Spencer.

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Third Report from Joint Effort with PARCA – The Alabama Constitution’s Impact on Taxes and Spending

Previously, ACCR announced a joint effort with the Public Affairs Council of Alabama (PARCA) to create a series of reports on how Alabama’s Constitution impacts the lives of its citizens. We are excited to announce the publication of the third of these reports, The Alabama Constitution’s Impact on Taxes and Spending.  This report can be found at: https://parcalabama.org/the-alabama-constitutions-impact-on-taxes-and-spending/

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Brian Lyman: The case for a new Alabama constitution

January 27, 2025

There’s a strange limbo in the weeks before the Alabama Legislature returns to work.

You know what legislators should focus on. Living in Alabama makes that obvious. You can guess where their focus will be based on what they say in the weeks leading up to the gavel drop.

But honestly? No one knows anything until the first day of the session. In fact, the drift of the session may not be clear for weeks afterward.

So we wait.

And not just fools like me who willingly enter that mold-filled building on South Union Street. Local governments sometimes have to wait up to nine months for legislators to make major decisions about their operations. School district officials cross their fingers as the state education budget goes through the legislative process, hoping nothing gets cut.

Every decision must go through Montgomery. And many of those go through unelected lobbyists and special interest groups first, who get an unofficial veto over the public business.

It’s a real irony. A state government that howls at the slightest federal intervention keeps a tight lock on Alabama’s local governments and school districts.

County and city governments only have the power Goat Hill allows them to have. Property tax caps make state funding critical to most public schools, especially those in rural districts. That gives legislators lots of control over areas that either lack the power to levy local taxes or lack the business development that would make that practical.

That’s all thanks to the 1901 state constitution, an authoritarian document that violated the U.S. Constitution; stole the vote from Black Alabamians and snatched it from poor white Alabamians a few years after it went into effect.

The overt racism is no longer there, perhaps. But the 1901 constitution’s vision of a small clique of elites running the state free from public approval is largely how Alabama government still works.

So even though a statewide lottery would be popular (not with me, but I’m only one of 5.1 million), you don’t get to vote on it.

Most Alabamians seem OK with Medicaid expansion. But not our leaders, who knit their brows and sigh at the cost as they shovel billions of dollars into an ever-more expensive prison.

If polls are correct, a majority of people living here don’t like Alabama’s effective abortion ban. But the Legislature, which only listens to hardcore Republican voters, will keep it in place.

You know what would address these problems?

A new state constitution.

Yes, yes, I know. The powerful interests that dominate Alabama government aren’t going to surrender their privileges without a fight. Electing people to a constitutional convention could be messy. There’s no guarantee that what would emerge from a convention would be better than what we have. And even a decent new governing document would face a blitz of attacks before voters got a chance to weigh in on it.

The challenges are many.

But think about what we could gain.

The pieties about property tax caps in Montgomery belie the fact that they serve wealthy landowners, particularly those who make their money cutting down trees. Low property taxes are good for them. They’re terrible for rural communities with small tax bases and limited commercial development. Their schools struggle to operate with low or nonexistent local revenue.

So give those local governments and the people who elect them the power to run things. The ability to decide what education should look like in their neighborhoods.

Maybe those governments will raise taxes. Maybe voters will punish them for that.

Or maybe they’ll be happy to see their children’s teachers get the resources they need to educate their students. In both cases, it will be living, breathing Alabamians making those choices. Not dead planters from the Edwardian era.

But let’s think bigger.

A 1956 constitutional amendment passed amid white hysteria over Brown v. Board of Education said there is no right to a public education in our state. That language needs to go, if only to force our government to fund schools.

Our Legislature has spent the last few years doing everything to make voting hard. Outlawing drop boxes. Banning private money to support election operations (without allocating funding to make up for that). Criminalizing forms of absentee ballot assistance.

A new constitution should include an affirmative right to vote, similar to what scholar Rick Hasen has suggested, one that prevents legislators from making the exercise of your constitutional rights an intimidating ordeal.

There’s more. Make it harder for the Legislature to override a gubernatorial veto. Abolish the anti-democratic budget isolation amendment, which effectively requires bills to get 60% of the vote (not a simple majority) to pass. Turn the state judiciary from elections to appointments.

Will this make Alabama a utopia? Of course not. Systemic racism and poverty can only be addressed by political will, whatever framework of government you have.

But empowering people to address those problems will help us develop solutions.

And best of all, it won’t make us wait on the whims of a part-time Legislature that all too often takes its cues from a small group of elites.

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Second Report from Joint Effort with PARCA – The Government Closest to the People?

Previously, ACCR announced a joint effort with the Public Affairs Council of Alabama (PARCA) to create a series of reports on how Alabama’s Constitution impacts the lives of its citizens. We are excited to announce the publication of the second of these reports, The Government Closest to the People? The Statehouse,  The Courthouse, and City Hall.  This report can be found at: https://parcalabama.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/The-Government-Closest-to-the-People.pdfthe-government-closest-to-the-people/

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First Report from Joint Effort with PARCA – How Alabama Democracy Compares

Previously, ACCR announced a joint effort with the Public Affairs Council of Alabama (PARCA) to create a series of reports on how Alabama’s Constitution impacts the lives of its citizens. We are excited to announce the publication of the first of these reports, How Alabama Democracy Compares. This report can be found at How Alabama Democracy Compares – Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (parcalabama.org)

News organizations have taken note of the report and have written articles about it. Here are two of them:

From AL.com: Where Alabama rates when it comes to ‘democracy,’ according to a new report – al.com

From Alabama Political Reporter: https://www.alreporter.com/2024/06/11/parca-alabamas-democracy-progresses-but-challenges-remain/

 

Here is a summary of this report:

Introduction The report examines the development of democratic practices in Alabama and compares them with other states. It highlights areas for potential reform to enhance voter participation and competitiveness in elections.

Historical Context

  • Alabama’s 1819 Constitution initially embraced democratic participation by granting voting rights to white males without property or religious requirements.
  • The 1901 Constitution aimed to disfranchise Black people and poor White people, centralizing power in the legislature.

Current State of Democracy in Alabama

  • Alabama ranks low in voter participation, with only 37% turnout in the 2022 general elections.
  • Public opinion indicates a lack of trust in government responsiveness, with over 50% of respondents feeling their voices are not heard in Montgomery.

High Cost of Voting

  • Alabama imposes high costs on voting compared to other states, ranking 46th in ease of voting.
  • Barriers include no early in-person voting, restrictive absentee voting requirements, and a lack of automatic voter registration.

Voter Registration

  • Alabama’s voter registration rate is below the national average.
  • The state has improved registration accessibility but does not offer automatic registration like 25 other states.

Making Voting Easier

  • Alabama does not allow early in-person voting, unlike 46 other states.
  • It also has restrictive absentee voting rules, requiring specific excuses and witness signatures.

Competitive Elections

  • Alabama’s electoral competitiveness is low due to gerrymandering and straight-ticket voting.
  • The dominance of one party and racial polarization contribute to low voter turnout in general elections.

Encouraging Participation

  • Other states have adopted measures like independent redistricting commissions, top-two primaries, and ranked-choice voting to enhance competitiveness and participation.
  • Alabama lacks direct democracy mechanisms like initiatives and referendums, limiting citizen involvement in legislative changes.

Conclusion

  • Alabama’s new constitution removed discriminatory provisions but still describes voting as a “privilege” rather than a right.
  • For a more vibrant democracy, Alabama could adopt practices from other states to ease voting, increase competitiveness, and allow for greater citizen participation in government reforms.
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Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA) Press Release on Feb. 19, 2024

ACCR is excited to announce the launch of a joint project with the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama.  See the details below and please consider helping us fund this important research by donating on our website under the Contributions tab.

The Alabama Constitution Reformed: Is There Still Work to Do?

In 2022, Alabama adopted a “new” constitution, an improved and reorganized version of the Alabama Constitution of 1901. The vote was the culmination of decades of advocacy and was rightly celebrated.

The new Constitution removed the racist and unconstitutional provisions that were relics of the White Supremacist 1901 Constitution.

It reorganized the document, moving relevant statewide amendments into their proper place in the main body of the Constitution, removing duplicative and repealed provisions, and organizing local constitutional amendments by county to the end of the document.

But is the work finished?

Is Alabama free from the shackles of the anti-democratic and pre-modern Constitution of 1901? Or are fundamental flaws still embedded in our Constitutional DNA?

Despite the new Constitution, we remain governed by the basic operating system established by the 1901 Constitution. And that operating system was recognized as obsolete and an obstacle almost as soon as it was adopted.

Alabama Governor Emmet O’Neal, in a 1914 address, observed, “No real or permanent progress is possible in Alabama until the present fundamental law is thoroughly revised and adapted to meet present conditions.”

Have those revisions been made? In this election year, the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA) will examine that question.

PARCA was founded to provide objective, non-ideological research to citizens and leaders, supporting the improvement of state and local governments. PARCA research is intended to help governments function efficiently and effectively in hopes that those governments provide equal treatment and opportunity to the people of Alabama.

As the Constitution is fundamental to the functioning of state and local governments, it has been a central focus of PARCA’s work.

Over the next year, PARCA will issue a series of reports examining Alabama’s current constitutional framework, identifying remaining obstacles to a modern constitution and possible paths forward in areas such as education, economy, healthcare, democracy, liberty & justice, finances, and related areas.

The project is supported, in part, by the Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform (ACCR). Both ACCR and PARCA are nonpartisan organizations, and our members and supporters are Republicans, Democrats, and independents. Former Governor Albert Brewer and former Samford University President Thomas Corts, both deceased, were founding leaders in both organizations.

The mission of ACCR is to educate and advocate for an Alabama Constitution that protects and enhances life for all Alabama citizens. To that end, ACCR has two branches:

  1. A foundation that focuses on educating the public about the Alabama Constitution and underlying issues that affect our citizens.
  2. A nonprofit advocacy organization that works to improve the Constitution.

The foundation is providing support for PARCA’s re-examination of the Alabama Constitution. ACCR’s advocacy organization will use the research to recalibrate its ongoing work on Constitutional reform.

Alabama’s Constitution of 2022 is still, by far, the longest state constitution in the United States, three times as long as the next longest state constitution. Though now better organized, it is still complex and contradictory.

It is not a basic template and statement of principles, which should be the ideal. It more closely resembles a law code, with almost 500 pages worth of amendments that relate to localities rather than to the state as a whole.

Alabama voters have finally removed the most noxious provisions of the Constitution of 1901, which was explicitly formulated to strip the political rights of Black Alabamians, but which also disenfranchised poor whites. Gone are provisions that mandated segregated schools. Deleted are provisions allowing for involuntary servitude for those convicted of crimes. The Constitution now recognizes that females have a right to vote.

But other aspects of the Constitution remain unchanged. Power is still concentrated in the hands of the state Legislature in Montgomery. Should that power be more dispersed? Should citizens be able to initiate change and call for referendums, rights available to citizens in other states? Should more decisions be made by local communities rather than by legislators in Montgomery?

Alabama still collects less in state and local taxes than virtually any other state through a constitutionally-embedded tax system that falls disproportionately on poor Alabamians. At the same time, low taxes, particularly on property, reflect voters’ preferences. Are there changes voters would support that could increase adequacy and fairness?

Thanks to the Constitution, Alabama still earmarks more revenue than any other state. That limits legislators’ ability to shift revenue toward pressing priorities. On the other hand, voters like earmarks and don’t necessarily trust lawmakers. Is there a way to change the culture of distrust with changes that increase both flexibility and accountability?

Does the Constitution inhibit economic development and mass transportation? Does it promote public safety and justice? Does it adequately promote the general welfare, health, and education?

Alabama’s Constitution should reflect our values. It should promote engagement in our democracy and free and fair elections. It should provide for equality of opportunity and equal treatment under the law. With the adoption of the Constitution of 2022, the people of the state took a step forward, removing obvious anti-democratic and discriminatory provisions left from a darker past.

But does the Constitution reflect the needs and aspirations of Alabamians today? Does it provide us with the outlines of a modern, efficient, effective, and responsive government? Is there still a need for Constitutional reform? We will explore those questions in the months to come.

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Letter to ACCR Membership

Passage of the 2022 Alabama Constitution was a major victory for the state, reorganizing the document and removing racist language. But we all know there is more that must be done to improve this flawed document for the benefit of all Alabamians.

Toward this end, the Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform (ACCR) has engaged the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA) to examine the many ways our constitution impacts the well-being of our citizens. We are planning a series of research briefs that examine the real-world implication of the constitution in areas such as education, the economy, healthcare, democracy, liberty and justice, and the consequences of our tax structure.

We see how our constitution affects us daily in the difficulty it places on local governments, those closest to the citizens, when they simply need to pass laws to govern their communities.  PARCA’s research will define how our constitution impacts the daily lives of Alabama citizens.

ACCR needs an objective, well-researched examination of the constitution in order to proceed with its mission to educate and advocate for an Alabama Constitution that protects and enhances the lives for all Alabama citizens.

We need your help to fund the research with PARCA.

Please consider donating to this effort at https://www.constitutionalreform.org. To make a donation online, select Contributions from the menu and make a donation to the tax deductible ACCR Foundation, or mail a check payable to the

ACCR Foundation

P. O. Box 10746
Birmingham, AL 35202

Sincerely,

ACCR Chair Kristi Thomson

 

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ACCR Receives Charles L. Ray, Jr. Memorial Social Justice Award

On September 8, 2023 Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform (ACCR) received the Charles L. Ray, Jr., Memorial Social Justice Award from Interfaith Mission Service of Huntsville.  ACCR was one of five recipients of the award.  Receiving the award on behalf of ACCR was Kristi Thomson, ACCR Board President.

Alabama Citizens for Constitutional Reform (ACCR) is the force behind constitutional reform in Alabama. A non-profit, grassroots, public interest group dedicated to helping Alabamians draft a new state constitution. Founded in 2000 by journalist and educator Bailey Thomson and his wife Kristi Thomson, many across the state participated and helped in the formation including lawyer Tom Carruthers, Sid McAnnally, the Honorable Jack Edwards, Dr. Thomas Corts, Gov. Albert Brewer, Brunson White, Odessa Woolfolk, Judge Gorman Houston, Professor Wayne Flynt, and others.

Mr. Thomson’s efforts along with those of Gov. Albert Brewer and with the help of the late Dr. Thomas Corts, President of Samford University, resulted in a movement for reform that began in Tuscaloosa with a rally attended by hundreds. ACCR Foundation, and ACCR Inc., grew out of this rally in Tuscaloosa, Ala., on April 7, 2000.  ACCR’s goal is a state constitution that unites, rather than divides Alabama’s people and creates a civic atmosphere in which politics can function for the benefit of all citizens, rather than for a few powerful interests. As part of this effort, ACCR supported the effort to recompile Alabama’s constitution removing racist language and reformatting to make the document more coherent. Voters ratified the reformatted Alabama Constitution in 2022.
The five recipients of Charles L. Ray, Jr., Memorial Social Justice Awards from IMS.  Kristi Thomson of ACCR is on the left.
Kristi Thomson, ACCR President, receives the award on behalf of the ACCR organization.