The Historical Context for the Alabama State Ethics Commission has been posted from the Records Disposition Authority (RDA) approved by the State Records Commission on October 18, 2023. The RDA establishes disposition requirements by designating records as either temporary records which may be destroyed after a specified retention period, or permanent records, which must be preserved in perpetuity. The complete RDAs for close to 175 agencies can be found on the Alabama Department of Archives and History website.
The advent of the 1960s saw waves of concern over the ethical behavior of elected officials and public employees. In 1963, Governor George C. Wallace, Jr. mentioned the need for ethics reform in his legislative address, lamenting “the demoralizing effects of political plundering, loose ethics, waste and extravagance in the administration of Alabama’s state government.”[1] Also in 1963, Senate Pro Tempore George Hawkins sponsored and passed a bill banning government officials from appointing relatives to state jobs.[2] This anti-nepotism legislation was one of the first of its kind in the nation and, according to Hawkins, was “an important step towards eliminating the evils of favoritism and conflict-of-interest” within state government.[3]
In 1969, the Legislature created the Joint Interim Committee on Legislative and Lobbying Ethics with Act 1969-1028. Lawmakers tasked the committee with conducting research and proposing legislation to address the lack of comprehensive state ethics laws.[4] The creation of this committee coincided with the expulsion of a State Senator over attempted bribery.[5]
However, creating the Interim Committee did not satisfy Governor Albert Brewer’s desire for reform, prompting Executive Order 132, which outlined a code of ethics for state officials and employees and created an Alabama Ethics Commission.[6] Under the direction and supervision of ten appointed Commissioners, the agency enforced ethical requirements, investigated potential violations, researched and recommended legislation, and rendered advisory opinions.[7] Even after the Commission’s creation, Governor Brewer still wanted comprehensive ethics reform legislation, in part, to bolster the Commission and to “give it some permanence,” in his words.[8]
Both the Brewer and Wallace administrations supported new legislation, but despite the introduction and debate of several bills during the following years, an act establishing ethical standards and creating an independent Ethics Commission did not pass until 1973.[9] That year, Alabama Act 1973-1056 established the five-member State Ethics Commission and outlined the agency’s responsibilities. The law requires candidates for elected state office, state elected officials, and certain state employees to file statements of economic interest.
*Note: A statement of economic interests includes information on an individual and their family’s employment, income, business interests, real estate investments, debt, and other financial data. The law also bars state employees and board or commission members from receiving or requesting a thing of value from lobbyists, principals, and subordinates of lobbyists and using their office for personal gain.
The law also required lobbyists to register with the Ethics Commission and to file activity reports after each legislative session documenting the types of legislation lobbied upon, as well as any financial transactions related to lobbying. The original act also required reporters and editorial writers covering Alabama politics or government to file statements of economic interests and receive approval from the Ethic Commission before accessing legislative committees, governmental press conferences, and other locations. However, a federal court later struck down this act’s section, ruling that reporters “have a First Amendment right of access to the news.”[10]
Legislators tried to dismantle the Ethics Commission and its power almost immediately. In 1975, the Alabama Senate created the Joint Interim Committee to Study the State Ethics Act. The Legislature charged the Committee with recommending potential revisions to the Ethics Act because “this Act was not well thought out but was passed in haste, and… resulting ambiguities and inequities in this Act have caused much confusion and have prompted many objections,” highlighting the need for a serious reconsideration of the existing ethics law.[11]
Despite attempts to weaken or abolish the Ethics Commission in 1975, only moderate revisions were made to the legislation.[12] Act 1975-130 expanded the scope of government employees subject to its provisions, including public officials and employees in county and municipal governments earning over $15,000. The same Act removed the overturned language that previously placed members of the press under the Ethics Commission’s purview.
In 1977, the Ethics Commission barely survived a vote to abolish the agency under Sunset Review Laws.[13] Two years later, legislators removed the Commission’s ability to investigate anonymous complaints with Act 1979-460, even though an anonymous tip led to the dismissal and conviction of State Treasurer Melba Till Allen.[14] Although the 1970s proved an eventful decade for the State Ethics Commission, the agency would not face significant legislative changes again until the mid-1990s.
In his first State of the State address since returning to gubernatorial office in 1995, Governor Fob James stated that strengthening the state’s ethics law was at the top of his legislative agenda.[15] Alabama Act 1995-194 introduced comprehensive reforms, including requirements that state officials wait at least two years after leaving office before becoming a lobbyist and that individuals filing ethics complaints have “personal knowledge” of the issue addressed in the complaint. Additionally, among other changes, the Act allowed the Ethics Commission to initiate investigations proactively rather than only examining complaints submitted to the Commission, set the statute of limitations on ethics law violations to four years, and empowered the Commission to fine individuals for minor infractions. The law’s passage was not without controversy, however, with the exclusion of specific economic filing requirements for any “coach of an athletic team of any four-year institution of higher education.”[16]
Between 1995 and 2010, only minor revisions were made to the state ethics law. However, after campaigning partially on ethics reform, state Republican lawmakers took control of the Legislature for the first time in a century, gaining majorities in both the House and Senate.[17] With a new political majority in both chambers, outgoing Governor Bob Riley called a special session in December 2010 focused on ethics reform. The Legislature passed seven bills during the special session, including laws that banned money transfers between political action committees and banned state employees from serving in the Legislature.[18]
Three laws that passed during the December 2010 special session directly impacted the Ethics Commission’s work and responsibilities. Act 2010-762 expanded the definition of lobbying to include trying to influence the executive, judicial, or legislative branch members, required ethics filings to be submittable and searchable electronically, and made ethics training mandatory for all lobbyists, and certain public officials and public employees. Legislators also passed Act 2010-763, which focused on the membership requirements and appointment of Commissioners, gave the Commission subpoena power, and changed procedures for complaints and investigations. Finally, Act 2010-764 defined principals and limited lobbyists’ spending on meals for officials to $150 annually.
Over the following decade, lawmakers changed the state ethics laws nearly every year. In 2011, lawmakers passed three ethics-related bills, including Act 2011-632, which provided that public officials and employees cannot receive anything “for the purpose of corruptly influencing official action,” and Act 2011-674, which required candidates and public officials or their spouses who work for the state or the federal government or have a state or federal contract to file a disclosure. In 2012, the Legislature defined the value of a “de minimis” gift as $25 and increased the income threshold for employees required to file a statement of economic interest.[19] Acts 2013-172 and 2014-71 dealt with disclosing any personally identifying information filed in statements of economic interest. In 2015, the Legislature decreased fees associated with filing violations and put some components of the Fair Campaign Practices Act within the purview of the Ethics Commission, including the responsibility of issuing opinions on complying with the FCPA.[20]
The Legislature continued to make minor changes to the law, including Act 2016-128, which allowed retired government employees to contract with their former office in limited circumstances. Two years later, Act 2018-515 adjusted the definition of a minor violation from a financial gain of $250 to one of $1,500, increased the ceiling for fees imposed for minor violations to $6,000, and defined “minor violation.” Act 2018-541 made changes to confidentiality provisions related to economic incentives and enumerated which economic development activities constitute lobbying. Also in 2018, the Legislature created the Code of Ethics Reform and Clarification Commission because “the multiple piecemeal amendments over the last 40-plus years… created an environment where reasonable individuals can sometimes disagree on what is permitted.”[21]
However, the Legislature amended the ethics law with two additional acts the following year. Act 2019-52 further clarified the definition of economic development professionals to exempt them from certain lobbyist disclosure filing requirements. Act 2019-529 gave candidates five additional days to file their statements of economic interest. Most recently, as of this writing, Act 2023-543 required the Ethics Commission to disclose “any statement, evidence, or information received from the complainant, witnesses, or other individuals or discovered in the course of the investigation.” The Act also amended whistle-blower protections after those protections were addressed in Craft v. McCoy.[22]
The Alabama Ethics Commission promotes honesty and transparency in public servants and a government committed to serving its citizens. Ethics Commission staff educate government officials and the public on the ethical standards for public office and, when necessary, investigate violations of this code. The Commission prides itself on upholding the core of its mission: to ensure that “there is public confidence in the integrity of government.”[23]
[1] “Message of Governor George C. Wallace to Joint Session of the Alabama Legislature at Regular Session, May 7, 1963” Alabama Laws (and Joint Resolutions) of the Legislature of Alabama Vol. 1, May 7, 1963.
[2] Alabama Act 1963-588.
[3] “Hawkins explains anti-nepotism law,” Birmingham News, September 21, 1963.
[4] Alabama Act 1969-1028.
[5] James Bennett, “McCarley Expelled By State Senate,” Birmingham Post-Herald, August 21, 1969.
[6] James Bennett, “Brewer’s Ethics Commission Dulls GOP Sword,” Birmingham Post-Herald, September 16, 1969.
[7] Alabama Executive Order 132.
[8] James Bennett, “Brewer’s Ethics Commission Dulls GOP Sword,” Birmingham Post-Herald, September 16, 1969.
[9] “Message of Governor George C. Wallace to Joint Session of the Alabama Legislature Second Special Session,” Alabama Laws (and Joint Resolutions) of the Legislature of Alabama Vol. 5, November 15, 1971; Claude Duncan, “Senators Approve Teethy Ethics Bill,” Alabama Journal, February 2, 1972.
[10] Randall Harber, “State won’t appeal ruling on right to gather news,” Birmingham News, January 19, 1974.
[11] Alabama Act 1975-70.
[12] Mike Sherman, “Stewart wants new ethics bill,” Anniston Star, June 25, 1975; Frank Bruer, “Those bills should come rolling now,” Birmingham Post-Herald, August 11, 1975.
[13] Frank Bruer, “Intergovernment unit abolition ok’d,” Birmingham Post-Herald, March 4, 1977.
[14] Scott Shepard, “Legislation said needed to free Ethics Commission, informants,” Montgomery Advertiser, September 16, 1979.
[15] “Governor James’ ‘State of the State’ Speech” Alabama Laws (and Joint Resolutions) of the Legislature of Alabama Vol. 1, April 18, 1995.
[16] “Ethics law gets James’ approval,” Birmingham Post-Herald, June 20, 1995.
[17] Sebastian Kitchen and Markeshia Ricks, “Legislators elect 1st Republican leaders in 100+ years,” Montgomery Advertiser, December 9, 2010.
[18] Sebastian Kitchen and Markeshia Ricks, “Riley: Passed ethics reform bills toughest in nation,” Montgomery Advertiser, December 17, 2010.
[19] Alabama Acts 2012-433 and 2012-509.
[20] Alabama Act 2015-495.
[21] Alabama Act 2018-431.
[22] Craft v. McCoy, 312 So.3d 32 (Ala. 2020).
[23] “About Us,” Alabama Ethics Commission website, accessed August 14, 2023, https://ethics.alabama.gov/about.aspx.
- Representatives of the State Ethics Commission
- Alabama Executive Order 132
- Alabama Acts 1963-588, 1969-1028, 1973-1056, 1975-70, 1975-130, 1979-460, 1995-194, 2010-762, 2010-763, 2010-764, 2011- 259, 2011-632, 2011-674, 2012-433, 2012-509, 2013-172, 2014-71, 2014-440, 2015-495, 2016-128, 2017-364, 2018-431, 2018-515, 2018-541, 2019-52, 2019-529, and 2023-543
- Code of Alabama 1975 § 36-25-1 through § 36-25-30
- Alabama Administrative Code Sections 340-X-1 through 340-X-6
- Alabama Government Manual (2018)
- State Ethics Commission Audit Reports
- State Ethics Commission Records Retention Schedules
- State Ethics Commission Website
- “Message of Governor George C. Wallace to Joint Session of the Alabama Legislature at Regular Session, May 7, 1963.” Alabama Laws (and Joint Resolutions) of the Legislature of Alabama Vol. 1. Montgomery: Brown Printing Company, 1963.
- “Message of Governor George C. Wallace to Joint Session of the Alabama Legislature Second Special Session.” Alabama Laws (and Joint Resolutions) of the Legislature of Alabama Vol. 5. Montgomery: Skinner Printing and Office Supply Co., 1971.
- “Governor James’ ‘State of the State’ Speech” Alabama Laws (and Joint Resolutions) of the Legislature of Alabama Vol. 1. 1995.
- “Ethics law gets James’ approval.” Birmingham Post-Herald. June 20, 1995.
- “Hawkins explains anti-nepotism law,” Birmingham News, September 21, 1963.
- “Annual Report Fiscal Year 2019.” Alabama Ethics Commission. https://ethics.alabama.gov/docs/annualreport/2019AnnualReport.pdf.
- Bennett, James. “McCarley Expelled By State Senate.” Birmingham Post-Herald. August 21, 1969.
- Bennett, James. “Brewer’s Ethics Commission Dulls GOP Sword.” Birmingham Post-Herald. September 16, 1969.
- Bruer, Frank. “Those bills should come rolling now.” Birmingham Post-Herald. August 11, 1975.
- Bruer, Frank. “Intergovernment unit abolition ok’d.” Birmingham Post-Herald. March 4, 1977.
- Duncan, Claude. “Senators Approve Teethy Ethics Bill.” Alabama Journal. February 2, 1972.
- Harber, Randall. “State won’t appeal ruling on right to gather news.” Birmingham News. January 19, 1974.
- Kitchen, Sebastian and Markeshia Ricks. “Legislators elect 1st Republican leaders in 100+ years.” Montgomery Advertiser. December 9, 2010.
- Kitchen, Sebastian and Markeshia Ricks. “Riley: Passed ethics reform bills toughest in nation.” Montgomery Advertiser. December 17, 2010.
- Shepard, Scott. “Legislation said needed to free Ethics Commission, informants.” Montgomery Advertiser. September 16, 1979.
- Sherman, Mike. “Stewart wants new ethics bill.” Anniston Star. June 25, 1975.
- Sumner, James. “Alabama Ethics Commission.” Encyclopedia of Alabama. June 27, 2023. https://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/alabama-ethics-commission.
For the Record 