MONTGOMERY, Ala., February 26, 2021 — The association’s top legislative priority, the Elderly and Vulnerable Adult Financial Protection Act, has passed the Legislature and is headed to Gov. Kay Ivey’s desk!
Senate Bill 181 gives financial institutions the discretion to refuse or delay a financial transaction whenever elder financial abuse is suspected. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Shay Shelnutt (R-Trussville), unanimously passed the Senate two weeks ago and was on the agenda of the House Financial Services Committee this past Tuesday. Thanks to committee chairman Rep. Chris Blackshear (R-Phenix City), the bill passed unanimously out of committee. Two days later, Blackshear was able to pass the bill out of the full House of Representatives, again with a unanimous vote. This is the second year that Shelnutt and Blackshear have carried this legislation, and whether in committee or on the floor, there was never a “No” vote cast against the bill. Special thanks to these sponsors for their hard work and dedication to this important piece of legislation. Thanks also to Sen. Jabo Waggoner (R-Vestavia Hills) and Rep. Steve McMillan (R-Bay Minette) for selecting the bill to be on the Senate and House floor calendars.
The bill becomes law upon Gov. Ivey’s signature.
In other news, many expected that Sen. Del Marsh’s (R-Anniston) comprehensive gaming bill would take centerstage this week, but Marsh announced on Tuesday that he was taking an additional two weeks to work out some of the details with the bill. This likely is a sign that some legislators want more clarity on how many casinos would become operable under Marsh’s plan and where those casinos would locate. To be clear, debate on this bill is far from over.
In addition, Sen. Tim Melson (R-Huntsville) once again passed his law legalizing medical cannabis out of the Senate. After only about ten minutes of debate, the bill passed the upper chamber on a 21-10 vote. This is not the first time Senators had approved the bill, and the bill is expected to once again face a rocky path in the House of Representatives.
Bills of importance to the banking industry include the following:
HB147 by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Chris Blackshear (R-Phenix City) and SB181 by Senate Banking and Insurance Committee Chairman Shay Shelnutt (R-Trussville) is the Elderly and Vulnerable Adult Financial Protection Act of 2021. These bills give financial institutions full discretion to refuse or delay a financial transaction whenever financial abuse of an elderly or vulnerable adult customer is reasonably expected. Introduced last year, these bills garnered unanimous support in both chambers, but were unable to pass into law after the session abruptly ended because of COVID-19. Senate Bill 181 was unanimously supported by the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday and the full House on Thursday. It now goes to Gov. Ivey’s desk for her signature, whereupon it will become law.
HB196 by Rep. Matt Simpson (R-Daphne) and SB35 by Sen. Greg Albritton (R-Atmore) makes technical changes to the Alabama Uniform Trust Decanting Act, a law passed in 2019 that provides a method for reforming or modernizing an irrevocable trust. Both bills were passed this week by the House Financial Services Committee, putting the Senate bill one vote away from the governor’s desk.
HB216 by Rep. Craig Lipscomb (R-Gadsden) is the Alabama Consumer Privacy Act, a law giving consumers various rights related to the collection of personal information by businesses. Modeled after a California law, the legislation imposes onerous burdens on businesses of all types, including financial institutions. The association had a meeting with the sponsor earlier this week outlining concerns about the bill, and the sponsor assured us that he did not plan to pursue the legislation.
HB293 by Rep. David Faulkner (R-Mountain Brook) is the Qualified Dispositions in Trust Act, which would authorize the creation of self-settled trusts in Alabama. Drafted by the Alabama Law Institute, this bill could theoretically expand opportunities for financial institutions providing trust-related services. On the other hand, this bill could provide debtors with an additional option of shielding assets from creditors. An amendment drafted by the association was incorporated to the bill in committee this week, setting it up for a House floor vote soon.
HB457 by Rep. Chris Pringle (R-Mobile) expands the Alabama Residential Mortgage Satisfaction Act to include mortgages securing commercial agricultural properties. This is the second year Pringle has introduced this legislation. The bill defines “commercial agricultural properties” as property located in this state that is used primarily for the growing of plants, trees, or animals primarily for a for-profit business and not for recreational purposes.
HB470 by Rep. Andy Whitt (R-Harvest) and SB275 by Sen. Sam Givhan (R-Huntsville) would allow documents to be remotely notarized under certain conditions. Drafted by a coalition of trade groups including the association, the Alabama Association of Realtors, and the Alabama Land Title Association, this bill codifies the “Remote Ink Notarization” provisions of Gov. Ivey’s Emergency Executive Orders. In short, it sets up guidelines that would allow a notary public to witness the signature of a document using videoconferencing platforms.
Through nine legislative days, Representatives and Senators have introduced 745 bills – 470 in the House and 275 in the Senate – and 125 resolutions. As of this writing, 20 have been signed into law.
The regular session can include no more than 30 legislative days and must end on or before May 17.
The House and Senate will return to Montgomery for the 10th legislative day on March 2.
Capitol Notes/State House Update will be published each week during the regular legislative session and at other times as necessary. Capitol Notes is written by Jason Isbell, an attorney in the Governmental Solutions practice group at Maynard Cooper & Gale, Alabama’s largest law firm. Along with his colleagues at the firm, Jason is a governmental affairs consultant for the association. Jason can be reached at jisbell@maynardcooper.com or at (334) 782-1219.
