Governors Press Clips

March 24, 2016

AP: Alabama legislature approves General Fund budget
By MELISSA BROWN
Published: Yesterday

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - The Alabama legislature on Wednesday gave final approval to a
General Fund budget that Gov. Robert Bentley has vowed to veto over what he says is
inadequate Medicaid funding.

Senators voted 20-13 in favor of the $1.85 billion budget, which allocates $700 million to
Medicaid. Bentley has said that is $85 million less than what is needed to adequately fund the
state's Medicaid program. Legislators say they can't further fund Medicaid without cannibalizing
other state programs.

"You've got to live within the means, and that's what we're doing," Senate President Pro Tem Del
Marsh said Wednesday.

On Monday, Bentley called the current budget "unacceptable," and said he would call a special
session if lawmakers override his veto, which would enact the spending plan with a majority vote
of both legislature chambers.

Sen. Rodger Smitherman, D-Birmingham, voted against the budget Wednesday, saying he takes
issue with spending on construction projects when the legislature won't fully fund Medicaid.

"We need to have a commitment and moratorium against spending any dime on brick and mortar
projects until we adequately fund the projects that affect people," Smitherman said.

Bentley on Monday said a lottery might be the only way to raise funds for the Medicaid shortfall.
He said he believes voters would overwhelmingly approve a lottery if given the chance.

Several lottery bills have been floated during the 2016 session, including one that would allow
participation in multistate games. None has made it to a floor vote.

House Speaker Mike Hubbard said he personally opposes any lottery legislation and he's
doubtful any lottery bills will pass this session.

"I don't think it's good public policy when we depend on revenues based off of a scam on the
people of the state," Hubbard said.

2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

AL.com: Alabama Senate approves General Fund; sent to governor

Mike Cason
March 23, 2016 at 2:19 PM, updated March 23, 2016 at 6:50 PM

The Alabama Senate passed the General Fund budget this afternoon.

The bill has now been sent to go to Gov. Robert Bentley, who has said he will veto it.

The Senate voted 20-13 to concur with the budget passed last week by House of Representatives.

The plan calls for spending $1.85 billion from the General Fund, including $700 million for
Medicaid.

Bentley had requested $785 million for Medicaid and said he would veto a budget that did not
meet that request.

The Legislature could override the governor's veto with a majority vote in both houses and enact
the budget without his signature.

Overall, the budget would increase General Fund spending by $91 million, or 5 percent over this
year.

The $700 million for Medicaid would be a $15 million increase over this year.

The budget also includes:

-- $97 million for the state court system, up 5 percent over this year.

-- $412 million for the Department of Corrections, up 3 percent

-- $32 million for the Department of Public Health, up 45 percent

-- $61 million for the Department of Human Resources, up 4 percent

-- $45 million for the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the same as this year

-- $109 million for the Department of Mental Health, up 2 percent

-- $46 million for the Board of Pardons and Paroles, up 20 percent

Most other agencies would receive amounts close to what they received this year.

The Legislature is taking next week off for spring break. Lawmakers will return on April 5.
This story was corrected at 2:47 p.m. to delete statement that bill was already sent to governor.

Montgomery Advertiser: General Fund goes to Bentley; Medicaid

issues remain
Brian Lyman
7:37 p.m. CDT March 23, 2016

The Alabama Legislature Wednesday gave final approval to a $1.8 billion General Fund budget,
sending it to Gov. Robert Bentley.

Theyll likely see it again.

The Senate Tuesday voted 20 to 13 to concur in the House version of the budget, which level-
funds most state agencies but gives the Alabama Medicaid Agency $85 million less than what
the agency says it needs to maintain current services, which would allow it to begin
implementation of a managed-care model for the program aimed at easing costs.

The budget does not provide a raise for state employees but boosts the states share of their
insurance coverage from $825 per employee per month to $850. That could ease potential
increases to employees out-of-pocket costs next year.

Gov. Robert Bentley has said a budget with less than a $100 million boost for Medicaid would
bring his veto and a special session. The House-passed version of the budget raised the agencys
allocation from $685 million level-funding to $700 million. But legislators, who would likely
override a Bentley veto, have said that they want to draw a line on Medicaid, which consumes
about 38 percent of the General Fund budget.

"Its not fair to the state employees, its not fair to the taxpayers to continue to cannibalize
money from the troopers from mental health from DHR from every other area of state
government because all of the money of the increases is going to Medicaid," House Speaker
Mike Hubbard, R-Auburn, said Wednesday evening.

Medicaid eligibility is strict, and more than half of those who were eligible for the program last
June were age 17 or younger. Childless adults almost never qualify, and parents of children who
do usually have to make 18 percent of the poverty level -- $2,867 a year for a family of two to
receive benefits.

Despite the limits, more than 1 million Alabamians about 21.5 percent of the state population
qualified for Medicaid last June. Medicaid also plays a critical role in keep the states primary
care providers and rural hospital functioning.

The Medicaid Agency has warned that cuts to the program could endanger existing services and
also prevent the implementation of regional care organizations (RCOs), aimed at providing better
case management for Medicaid recipients and preventative services that, over time, could slow
the growth of costs in the program.

We are asking for an $800 million bond issue to build new prisons, and we cant find the money
to fully fund Medicaid, said Senate Minority Leader Quinton Ross, D-Montgomery, who voted
against the budget. You almost could include the money for Medicaid in the bond issue to prop
it up.

The Legislature approved $166 million in new revenue for the General Fund last year. The
money was less than what Bentley and House leadership first sought, did not include all the
revenue the House approved, and came after three legislative sessions over six months. Marsh
and other legislative leaders have said the Republican-controlled Legislature is not interested in
revisiting the revenue issue.

Medicaid is a problem, (but) how are you going to solve it? Senate President Pro Tem Del
Marsh, R-Anniston, said. If you cant deal with additional tax revenue, then youve got to live
within the means and thats what were doing.

Proposals to establish a state lottery, a popular hypothetical funding source, appear to have
stalled. Democrats have pushed for a lottery for years as a means to fix revenue problems, but
House Minority Leader Craig Ford, D-Gadsden, said he wanted to see a full gambling bill to
address the issue.

"The lottery bill wont solve the problems right now," he said. "If you bring a lottery bill, you
need casino-type gaming with it."

Hubbard said the support for such a bill was lacking, pointing to a fantasy sports bill that ran into
fierce opposition earlier in the session.

"You can imagine what would happen if we brought a real gambling bill," he said. "I dont think
the votes are there."

At least one Republican suggested he would consider revenue to help out the General Fund
budget. Sen. Dick Brewbaker, R-Montgomery, voted for the budget but said he would support a
good revenue bill from the House of Representatives to help Medicaid, expressing concern
about the state losing providers.

The idea of doctors leaving the state isnt just rhetoric, he said. I think were already there.

The vote on the budget fell mainly along party lines. Republican Sens. Rusty Glover of Mobile;
Jimmy Holley of Elba; Jim McClendon of Springville and Paul Sanford of Huntsville voted
against the budget, joining eight Democrats and independent Harri Anne Smith of Slocomb. All
the affirmative votes came from Republicans.

AL.com: Alabama Senate delays vote on governor's prisons bill

Mike Cason
March 23, 2016 at 11:43 AM, updated March 23, 2016 at 2:26 PM

Gov. Robert Bentley's plan to build four new prisons using an $800 million bond issue and to
close most of the existing prisons was discussed briefly in the Alabama Senate this morning.
Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh moved to carry the bill over, or delay action on it, after
some Democratic senators indicated they had major concerns about it.

The governor and Prison Commissioner Jeff Dunn say the plan is the best way to fix Alabama's
decades-old problem of overcrowded, understaffed prisons.

The bill could return to the Senate floor for discussion later. It was approved by a Senate
committee last week and cleared a procedural hurdle on the floor today by a 24-8 vote.

Sen. Hank Sanders, D-Selma, said he was concerned that the plan did not reduce the prison
population, but added prison capacity.

'This bill ultimately increases prison beds," Sanders said. "And I know that if prison beds are
provided, they will be filled, based upon our long history."

Alabama has about 24,000 inmates in prisons designed for about 13,000.

The governor's plan calls for building three new regional men's prison and a new women's
prison. All but two of the existing major men's prisons would close, as would Tutwiler Prison for
Women.

Overall, the plan would increase capacity by about 3,000 beds.

The plan, coupled with sentencing reforms approved last year, would reduce the prison
occupation rate to 125 percent over five years, according to DOC.

Prison Commissioner Dunn said the modern designed facilities would allow more emphasis on
rehabilitation and vocational programs than the current prisons, where he said those efforts take a
backseat to security concerns.

Prisoner uprisings at Holman Correctional Facility and recurrent violence at others have drawn
more attention to the need for prison reforms.

Montgomery Advertiser: VictoryLand, GreeneTrack bills approved

by committees

Brian Lyman, 5:30 p.m. CDT March 23, 2016

Legislative committees Wednesday approved bills aimed at giving two state casinos a stronger
legal shield.

The bills, sponsored by Rep. A.J. McCampbell, D-Demopolis and Sen. Billy Beasley, D-
Clayton, would clarify that Greenetrack in Greene County and VictoryLand in Macon County
would be able to operate electronic bingo machines, the pivot of the seesaw battle over gambling
that consumed the state for over six years.

The Greenetrack bill, a constitutional amendment, would also create a gaming commission to
regulate gambling in the county, and provide for distribution of Greenetrack revenues.

Supporters of both bills said they wanted to protect industries in areas that have difficulties
attracting jobs. McCampbell told the House Economic Development and Tourism Committee
Wednesday morning that he also wanted to codify Gov. Robert Bentleys policy, announced last
year, of leaving gambling enforcement to local authorities.

The move, combined with a memo from Attorney General Luther Strange earlier in the year,
signaled that the state would back off legal efforts to drive the casinos out of business.But
McCampbell said he wanted to make the policy law.

The governor has now said hes going to abide by the law as it is written, he said Wednesday
morning. But he only has three years left. So we want to ensure the only industry in Greene
County isnt shut down.

Both bills are also partial responses to the Poarch Band of Creek Indians use of electronic bingo.
The Poarch Band, which operates casinos in Atmore, Montgomery, and Wetumpka, operates
under federal law which allows the operation of Class II games, including bingo, without a state
compact.

Beasleys legislation, affecting VictoryLand in Macon County would confirm that bingo may
be played on any electronic machine or electronic device authorized by the National Indian
Gaming Commission pursuant to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act . . . and which is operated
by any Native American tribe in Alabama.

The Senate Tourism and Marketing Committee passed the bill in less than 45 seconds
Wednesday morning.

Beasley said the bill would strengthen the existing amendment allow bingo in Macon County
and said it was a needed to help the area recover from the closing of VictoryLand, which has yet
to reopen.

They were deprived of over 2,000 jobs in Macon County and surrounding counties, Beasley
said. Its had a devastating effect on Macon County.

The only opposition to either bill came from Joe Godfrey, executive director of the Alabama
Citizens Action Program (ALCAP), a social conservative group that opposes gambling. Godfrey
told the House committee that the wages to pay casino workers came from people losing money
at the casinos.

I would love to see us develop the Black Belt counties and bring real industry, he said.
Gambling is not a real industry. This is a joke. Its smoke and mirrors.
McCampbell said he favored further economic development, but said there were immediate
needs in the county.

I have people that live in Greene County right now that are traveling to Tuscaloosa and
Birmingham and other places just to get a job, he said.

McCampbells bill moves onto further consideration by the full House. If approved by the
Legislature, voters in Greene County would decide the measure in the fall. Beasleys legislation,
if it passes the Legislature, would need Bentleys signature.

AL.com: Constitutional amendment would declare that life begins at

conception
Mike Cason
March 23, 2016 at 12:58 PM, updated March 23, 2016 at 3:08 PM

A proposed constitutional amendment that would declare that life begins at conception was
debated in an Alabama House committee during a public hearing this morning.

The Health Committee took no vote on the bill after five people spoke in favor of it, not counting
the sponsor, and one spoke in opposition.

Rep. Ed Henry, R-Decatur, the sponsor, said science is clear that life begins at the moment of
fertilization.

"Human life is unique. Each one is different. And at the very moment when conception occurs,
that is where that unique being begins," Henry told the committee.

Tom Ford, pastor at Grace Baptist Church, said the purpose of the legislation is to end abortion.

"We state the obvious, that the baby in the womb is a person. And to take that innocent life is
murder," Ford said.

Brock Boone, an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, called the
measure an attack on women and said it would have far-reaching consequences.

For example, Boone said it would eliminate any abortion exceptions for rape or incest and would
make it a crime to use some forms of contraception, including birth control pills.

For Henry's bill to become law, it would have to be approved by three-fifths of the members of
the House and Senate and be approved by voters.

Alabama and national politics.

Decatur Daily: Rep. Henry: Life begins at conception
By Mary Sell
Posted: Thursday, March 24, 2016 12:10 am

MONTGOMERY Rep. Ed Henry, R-Hartselle, and several supporters lobbied Wednesday for
Henrys bill to let voters decide if personhood begins at the moment of conception.

Its pretty much science, Henry said during a public hearing in the House Health Committee.
The very moment when conception occurs, that is where that unique being begins.
House Bill 300 proposes a constitutional amendment defining the term persons as used in the
Code of Alabama to include any human being from the moment of fertilization or the functional
equivalent thereof, which effectively would ban abortion.

Dr. Jim Belyeu, an obstetrician from Alabaster, said at the public hearing there is no scientific
basis for arguing against the fact life begins at the moment of fertilization.

The mother only provides the egg and the incubator, Belyeu said.

Brock Boone, of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama, said the legislation would do
away with abortions for victims of rape or incest and would limit health care for ill pregnant
women, including those who have cancer.

Rep. John Knight, D-Montgomery, said anti-abortion advocates should be equally committed to
caring for children in need, including through Medicaid funding and social services, as they are
about prohibiting abortion.

Weve got to be passionate about taking care of the children that are here, and I dont see that
same passion, Knight said.

Henry countered he believes it is his role as a Christian to help others through his church.

I do not believe that is the role of government, though, he said. He also said health care is
available to any who need it.

In 2011, a similar proposal to Henrys, called a personhood amendment, was defeated by voters
in Mississippi. North Dakota and Colorado voters rejected similar amendments in 2014.

Measures that define the unborn as a person could conflict with the U.S. Supreme Courts Roe
vs. Wade decision, which prohibits states from outlawing abortion. Several federal courts have
struck down similar provisions.

The committee did not vote on the bill but will at a future meeting. Twelve legislative days
remain in the session.
In other bills:

The House Health Committee gave favorable report to House Bill 157 to establish an Assisted
Suicide Ban Act prohibiting a person or a health care provider from providing aid in dying.
Violating the law would be a Class C felony. That bill now goes to the full House.
The committee gave a favorable report to House Bill 428. It states pregnant women would not
violate the states chemical endangerment laws if they were taking a prescribed controlled
substance or a non-prescription FDA-approved medication recommended by a physician.

Bill sponsor Rep. April Weaver, R-Brierfield, said the bill could apply to a pregnant woman who
may hurt her back in a car wreck and be prescribed pain medications.

In 2006, Alabama lawmakers made it a felony to knowingly, recklessly or intentionally expose a

child to a controlled substance, chemical substance or drug paraphernalia. In 2013, the Alabama
Supreme Court ruled the states chemical endangerment law applies to fetuses.

The committee sent to a subcommittee for further study House Bill 158, the Child Care Provider
Inclusion Act. It would prohibit the state from penalizing child care service providers, including
adoption agencies, because they decline to provide services that conflict with
their religious beliefs.

AP: Alabama 'personhood' proposal would effectively ban abortion

By MELISSA BROWN
Published: Yesterday

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - A proposed Alabama constitutional amendment would legally

define a fetus as a person from the moment of fertilization, effectively banning abortion in the
state.

The House Health Committee on Wednesday debated but did not vote on the amendment.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Ed Henry, R-Decatur, is similar to ballot measures voted down in
Mississippi, Colorado and North Dakota in recent years. The Oklahoma Supreme Court in 2012
ruled a similar amendment unconstitutional.

"To me, science makes it clear that it (life) begins at fertilization," Henry said.

Brock Boone, an American Civil Liberties Union lawyer, called the bill an "attack on women."
Boone said the amendment would ban abortion in cases of rape and incest, and could render
some forms of birth control the "legal equivalent of homicide."

"Proponents of this bill sound less and less concerned about the well-being of embryos and more
and more concerned about hostility toward women," Boone said.
Dr. Jim Belyeu, an OB/GYN who spoke in support of the bill, called a fetus "totally separate"
from the mother.

"The mother only contributes the egg and the incubator," Belyeu said.

Two Democrats on the committee, Rep. John Knight and Rep. Peblin Warren, said they hoped
supporters would show equal concern for other programs that help children.

"I would hope we will be equally as passionate about the 550,000 children on Medicaid," Knight
said. "We've got to be passionate about taking care of the children who are here, and I don't see
that same passion."

If the House and the Senate approve the bill, Alabamians would vote on the amendment in
November.

2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.

Montgomery Advertiser: Alabama House committee considers

personhood amendment
Brian Lyman, 2:34 p.m. CDT March 23, 2016

A House committee Wednesday morning considered a constitutional amendment that would

define the beginning of life at the moment of conception.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Ed Henry, R-Hartselle, defines a person to include any human
being from the moment of fertilization or the functional equivalent thereof. If passed by both
Houses of the Legislature, the measure would go to Alabama voters in November.

As we talk about the stages of life where we go through ... eventually, our life ends, Henry told
the House Health Committee Wednesday morning. But it all begins and we have to determine
where it begins, and to me, science makes it clear that it begins at fertilization.

The language is identical to a 2011 measure put on the Mississippi ballot, defeated amid
concerns about possible ramifications of the bill on birth control and medical treatments of
pregnant women. Voters in North Dakota and Colorado defeated similar amendments in 2014.
Alabama legislators have filed personhood amendments in the past, but they never received final
passage.

Supporters of the Alabama legislation described the bill as anti-abortion legislation and urged its
passage.

Give (voters) a choice so they can have the opportunity to make a decision ... to say all persons,
even those in the womb are human beings, said Tijuanna Adetunjii, a Montgomery pastor and
former candidate for the Alabama House of Representatives.
Dr. Jim Belyeu, an OB/GYN, said there was no scientific basis for arguing against life
beginning at conception.

The baby initiates the process of implantation, he said. Scientifically, pregnancy has been
long recognized at beginning at fertilization, so anything that would prevent implantation would
be considered abortion.

Brock Boone, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, was the only opponent to
speak against the bill. He said the legislation could lead to unintended consequences, including
an end to rape and incest exemptions in abortion laws and possible impacts on the availability of
birth control.

A womans use of many common forms of birth control would be a form of homicide, he said.

Boone said during his remarks that the bill made him ashamed to be from Alabama. Henry,
who called Boone the devil in subsequent remarks to the committee, said we have open
borders and hes free to leave.

Republicans on the committee did not speak to the bill, but committee Democrats suggested that
supporters of the amendment should get behind other programs for children.

I would hope we will be equally as passionate about the 550,000 children on Medicaid, said
Rep. John Knight, D-Montgomery.

The committee did not vote on the amendment Wednesday, but could at a later date.

Montgomery Advertiser: Maxwell experts respond to Brussels

attack
Rebecca Burylo
5:40 p.m. CDT March 23, 2016

As the world reels in shock following the recent suicide-bombings in Brussels that killed 31
people Tuesday, military professors at Maxwell Air Force Base talk about countering terrorist
threats and what the Air Force does to prepare its senior leaders.

Knowledge is power and counter-terrorism and irregular warfare courses at Air University are an
annual required course at the School of Advanced Air and Space Studies.

James Kiras is an assistant professor at SAASS and teaches officers to look at terrorism through
the lens of the area's sociology, politics, history and economics- in this case the Middle East.
The attacks in Belgium's capital at the Maelbeek metro station and 10 other airports were
claimed by the terrorist group, ISIS. In addition to those who died, at least 271 have been
reported wounded from the attacks.

It's the not the first time, ISIS, also known as the State of Islam, has claimed responsibility for
terrorist attacks in Europe. Within the last year, they claimed to have orchestrated the deadly
Paris bombings in November and the attack on a European newspaper in January.

"ISIS and contemporary terrorist groups are on the minds of our students on a daily basis," Kiras
said. "Discussions are spent making sense of contemporary events ... what it does, is it helps give
our students other perspectives about how to solve a problem, and not rush to one conclusion or
solution."

One perspective is looking the geography of the attacks and why they are focused within Europe.

"They are geographically in the proximity of the unrest and there are some social issues in
Europe that prevent migrants from integrating as effectively into society as they do here," Kiras
said.

Not only does Kiras' classes discuss immediate solutions to a terrorist action, they discuss long-
term solutions and how to translate theory into "action on the ground."

Kiras has invited war-fighters who have been a part of air campaigns against ISIS, to talk with
students in an effort to challenge their first conclusions.

"We like to say that one of the things that we try to educate is the mind of strategists and help
prepare students' minds to approach problems in a specific way and avoid the easy answer,"
Kiras said. "This way they can then challenge their subordinates to be the best they can be."

David Sorenson is a professor at Air War College, and is an expert of international affairs. He
discussed the social-climate of the Middle East and that learning about the region's religion of
Islam, its history, politics and economy is critical for airmen to understand the full threat of ISIS.

That and overcoming stereotypes of Islam and Muslims.

Most countries in the Middle East claim ISIS is not following true Islam, Sorenson said. So one
of the things they discuss is using Islam to create counter arguments against ISIS and how to
engage the helps of others.

That leads to building alliances with countries in the area, like Egypt and Turkey who might not
always have the same interests as the United States.

"How should the U.S. deal with the Islamic State and what are other countries already doing
there," Sorenson asked. "Studying this and the region, students will gain insight into how ISIS
affects the region and how we can work with those surrounding countries to try to weaken and
defeat the Islamic State."
In addition, high levels of unemployment, poverty, corruption and misdistribution of income in
areas of the Middle East, create a recruiting ground for ISIS, Sorenson explained. ISIS claims to
help by offering future recruits land, money, a chance to kill and sex slaves, he added.

"Students need to understand the root cause and advise how to combat it and that the cause
springs from a variety of different sources," Sorenson said. "They need to understand Islam itself
to counter the appeal Muslims like in ISIS and other terrorists groups."

The recent attacks in Europe have only added to the fear and uncertainty in the area. That's no
surprise to Mary Hampton, who teaches international security and European studies at Air
Command and Staff College.

"The European Union have been challenged internally by a horrible trend of terrorist
communities that are basically breeding the heart of Europe," Hampton said. "Brussels in
particular is vulnerable because Belgium has not been able to do an effective job of allowing
order in the neighborhoods where these terrorists breed."

These continued attacks by "home-grown terrorists," have made European countries threaten to
reconsider their open-border policy among other union members, Hampton said.

Also, the addition of social media has created a fast-paced environment for ISIS to recruit
members, and move ideas and money around the world.

It also makes them very hard to catch- something today's war-fighters must adapt to.

"The most important thing to get across to students is for them to be agile thinkers, to be
successful leaders in the future and quick-thinking leaders in order to face this turbulent, and
unpredictable international environment," Hampton said.

AL.com: FBI says it destroyed files on former Alabama governor

Connor Sheets
March 23, 2016 at 3:24 PM, updated March 23, 2016 at 6:05 PM

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) says it destroyed records related to former Alabama
Gov. Lurleen Wallace, who occupied the governor's mansion for less than two years in the
1960s.

On Jan. 7, AL.com submitted Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the FBI for its
records on a number of deceased former Alabama governors. Thus far, the bureau has only
responded to a request for records related to former Gov. Lurleen Brigham Burns Wallace, who
rose to prominence as former Gov. George Wallace's wife and first lady.
The FBI told AL.com in a letter dated March 3 that, "records which may have been responsive to
your request were destroyed on June 29, 2007 and July 25, 2007. Since this material could not be
reviewed, it is not known if it was responsive to your request." As such, the FBI was unable to
provide any files related to Lurleen Wallace, though in stating that records were destroyed, the
agency admitted that it at least had files on her until the summer of 2007.

[T]he bottom line is that the FBI gets to trash mountains of historical source material without
adequate oversight

The letter goes on to explain that the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA)
supervises "record retention and disposal," and that it monitors the "FBI Records Retention Plan
and Disposition Schedules."

Lurleen Wallace succeeded her husband in the governorship, being elected Jan. 16, 1967, after
her husband's second term (the Alabama constitution barred him from running for a third term)
came to a close.

Still the only woman to ever serve as governor of Alabama, she occupied that role until she
succumbed to cancer on May 7, 1968. Born in Tuscaloosa on Sept. 19, 1926, Gov. Lurleen
Wallace passed away in Montgomery.

The NARA and the FBI Records Retention Plan have long been criticized for not being
sufficiently protective of important historical documents. Many writers, historians and legal
advocates say that the existing system for record retention allows the FBI to destroy many
potentially important files.

Slate reporter Alex Heard spoke with FOIA experts about the retention plan and NARA in
2008.The plan for retaining records "sounded more like a Records Destruction Plan, since it
allows the FBI to discard roughly 80 percent of its files at any given time," Heard wrote at the
time.

"The FBI would have you believe the plan is a best-of-all-possible-worlds compromise that
preserves the essential and discards only the unworthy. Don't buy it. Though the NARA experts
who helped create the plan tried to come up with a fair, workable system, the bottom line is that
the FBI gets to trash mountains of historical source material without adequate oversight. And
there is nothing the publicwhich owns the records, after allcan do to stop it."