Statewide amendment would allow school system to sell trust land

November 4, 2024 – CARBON HILL, AL - There is one statewide constitutional amendment on the election ballot. This amendment would allow Franklin County School System to sell off a large portion of education trust property that it owns in Walker and Fayette counties in order to raise money for schools.

The 225 acres of land was granted to the state of Alabama over 150 years ago by the federal government for the state to use for education. At the time it was intended for the state to sell timber off the property perennially to produce an income stream for the schools.

Sponsor State Rep. Jamie Kiel (R-Russellville) is hoping that voters vote yes on the amendment which would produce cash for the Franklin County school system.

The "sixteenth section lands" and "indemnity lands" are supposed to be held in trust for future generations; bugt that Congress granted to schools in Alabama in the 1800s. The money that is derived from these lands is dedicated to the "support and maintenance of public schools" in Alabama, according to Fair Ballot Commission explanation of the statewide amendment.

The land that Franklin County owns has been essentially wild and utilized more as animal habitat than anything else – outside of periodic timber harvesting. The construction of I-22 changes that. The sixteenth section lands and indemnity lands in Fayette and Walker counties are near Interstate 22 and Alabama State Route 13, north of the town of Eldridge in western Walker County.

Kiel said that the property could be developed into a truck stop or some other sort of development.

This is a statewide amendment instead of a local Franklin County Amendment because it involves three counties rather than just one.

A "yes" vote would allow Franklin County to sell or lease the land to developers.

A "no" vote would keep the land in its wild state – much as it was when the federal government took it from the Native Americans following Indian removal. The land would continue to be held in trust for future generations to enjoy.

Original reporting by the Alabama Media Group contributed to this report.

https://www.al.com/news/2024/10/alabamas-amendment-1-aims-to-benefit-a-rural-school-system-and-attract-a-buc-ees.html

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