Ala. Code § 17-6-81 (1975) Fair Ballot Commission; Ballot Statements

• Library: Alabama Statutes
• Edition: 2023
• Currency: Current with legislation from the 2023 Regular and Special Sessions.
• Year: 2023
• Citation: Ala. Code § 17-6-81 (1975)

(a)

(1) There is created the Fair Ballot Commission. The purpose of the commission is to provide to the public a fair and accurate explanation of what a vote for and what a vote against a statewide ballot measure represents.

(2) The commission shall consist of the following 18 members: The Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Secretary of State, or their designees, shall each serve as a member on the commission and shall each appoint to the commission one member who is an attorney licensed in the state and one member who is a private citizen of the state who is not an attorney. The Alabama State University School of Public Policy, the Samford University School of Public Policy, and the Miles College School of Law shall each appoint a member to the commission. Other than the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Secretary of State, or their designees, no public official, as that term is defined in Section 36-25-1(27), shall serve on the commission. The Chair, Vice Chair, and Ranking Minority Member of the House Constitution, Campaigns and Elections Committee and the Chair, Vice Chair, and Ranking Minority Member of the Senate Constitution, Campaign Finance, Ethics, and Elections Committee shall serve as non-voting advisors to the commission.

(3) The appointments shall reflect the geographic, gender, racial, and ethnic diversity of the state with at least one appointed member from each congressional district.

(4) The initial terms of the members appointed by the Governor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Lieutenant Governor shall be for two years while the initial terms of the members appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries and the Secretary of State shall be for four years. After the initial term, each subsequent member shall be appointed to a four-year term. No appointed member of the commission shall serve more than two full consecutive terms.

(5) Members of the commission shall serve without compensation. Members of the commission, except for the Governor, the Lieutenant Governor, the Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Secretary of State, or their designees, shall be reimbursed for travel expenses to commission meetings in Montgomery, Alabama, at the same rate as state employees receive, to be paid from funds provided from the Legislature. The members of the commission who are attorneys shall not be paid any fees other than travel expenses at the same rate as state employees. The Legislative Fiscal Office, the Legislative Reference Service, the Alabama Law Institute, the Clerk of the House of Representatives, and the Secretary of the Senate shall provide clerical assistance to the commission as determined by the chair of the commission.