MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Alabama House of Representatives adjourned for the year on Thursday evening without considering a controversial bill to force the Montgomery Police Department to increase its staffing ranks or risk a state takeover.
Senate Bill 289, sponsored by Sen. Will Barfoot, R-Pike Road, would have given law enforcement agencies serving Class 3 municipalities five years to employ at least 1.9 full-time officers for every 1,000 residents in the city.
Huntsville and Montgomery are the only two Class 3 municipalities in Alabama. Huntsville already meets the staffing requirements in the bill.
If departments did not meet the quota within five years, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency could have taken over “operational oversight” of the department. That takeover would last until one year after the department met the personnel benchmark.
Barfoot’s bill was last on the House’s special order calendar for Thursday, but the chamber did not bring the bill to the floor for discussion.
Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter said there simply wasn’t enough time to get through the bill in the lower chamber.
“We couldn’t get it out. We didn’t have enough time to be honest with you because it was going to be filibustered the whole way through,” Ledbetter, R-Rainsville, told reporters. “I hate to cloture on the last day, I mean sometimes we have to do that, but at the end of the day it just wasn’t possible and we could see that.”
Ledbetter said he didn’t know if the legislation had the votes necessary to pass in the House.
Barfoot said he was disappointed the bill didn’t make it across the finish line.
“I’m disappointed for the citizens of Montgomery and those who come and visit here and shop here and work here, and I’m disappointed for the men and women of Montgomery Police Department who risk their life every day,” Barfoot told ADN.
Barfoot said he didn’t know that his bill wasn’t going to make it to the floor Thursday.
“I was glad to see it on the calendar. I know it was last on there, but it’s always a little concerning when it’s last on the calendar,” Barfoot said. “Truth of the matter, I can see value in that. If you think something’s going to be really controversial, try to work through the whole calendar and let that be the last thing that happens. It wasn’t, and it didn’t happen that way.”
Democrats in the Legislature and Montgomery city and police officials have stood in fierce opposition to the bill since it was introduced in mid-February.
City officials and religious leaders held a press conference last week in opposition to the bill. They called the legislation an unfunded mandate and unfair state takeover.
Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed said the city did not ask the Legislature for help in increasing MPD’s staffing.
“Partnerships can work when done correctly. Takeovers do not, punishment does not and that’s what Senate Bill 298 sets out to do,” Reed said. “I’m not sure who’s behind it. I’m not sure what the motivation is, but what I am sure is that they cannot be focused on public safety by only highlighting Montgomery when the state itself does not reach its own requirements that’s in this bill, when surrounding communities do not reach the requirements that are included in this bill.”
The Senate passed the bill along party lines last week after the Republican supermajority clotured debate from Democrats.
Throughout the process, Barfoot has said the bill would have helped to improve public safety in the Capital City.
Barfoot said people in Montgomery “are tired of turning on the news and hearing about the violence.”
“We’re tired of having the thefts that are occurring,” he said. “We’re tired of having the robberies, the home invasions. And believe me, that is across Montgomery. So that is the motivation (for the bill).”
Barfoot also said that getting police staffing numbers from the city is nearly impossible. He estimates the Montgomery Police Department is nearly 200 officers short. Alabama Daily News has requested staffing information from the city twice since February and has not received a response.
He said he’s not sure if he’ll bring the bill back next session if reelected.
“My sincere hope is that the Montgomery leadership does everything they can get an adequate number of police in place,” Barfoot said. “I guess they’ve got time to show what they intend to do, but we’ll see. The issue is not going to go away unless the police department is adequately staffed.”
Thursday was the final day of the legislative session.