House passes Governor Ivey's takeover of the veterans' board legislation

March 6, 2025 – MONTGOMERY, AL. – The Alabama House of Representatives passed Governor Kay Ivey's (R) hostile takeover of the Alabama department of Veterans Affairs legislation with little discussion.

Senate Bill 67 (SB67) was sponsored by State Representative Andrew Jones (R-Centre) and carried in the House by State Representative Ed Oliver (R-Dadeville).

The Alabama Department of Veterans Affairs was created by veterans following World War II and for seventy years has been a nonpartisan agency controlled by the veterans service organizations. SB67 changes all of that.

The legislation grew out of a dispute between the former Commissioner of Veterans Affairs - retired Admiral Kent Davis - and Mental Health Commissioner Kim Boswell over the distribution of one-time federal American Rescue Plan Act funds to combat the problem of Veterans Affairs. That administrative turf war led to Davis filing an ethics complaint against Boswell, that being leaked, and Gov. Ivey demanding that the Board fire Davis. When the Board bucked Ivey on the issue, Ivey fired Davis anyway (likely illegally), and vowed to seek vengeance and total domination of the veterans board. SB67 was drawn up by the governor's office as a tool to bring yet another state agency under the autocratic control of the governor.

The original legislation by the Governor's office would have replaced the 17 member board with a nine member board handpicked by the Governor, with one pick allocated to the Speaker of the House and one chosen by the Senate President Pro Tem. The Senate balked at that restored the original board; but kept Ivey's provisions that the Governor hand pick the Commissioner of the department and weaken the board to that of an advisory function. Previously the Board picked the Commissioner and directed the affairs of the Board.

Hundreds of veterans descended on the Legislature to lobby against the highly unpopular bill; but ultimately a historically weak Alabama State Legislature caved to the Governor's command and passed the Governor's state of the state top priority legislation.

The House passed SB67 on Thursday in just ten minutes time. The legislation was extremely controversial so a bipartisan group of legislators, led by House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels (D-Huntsville) voted no on SB67. Surprisingly, there was little floor opposition. Only one member, Rep. Juandalynn Givan (D-Birmingham) exercised her right to speak against the bill; although by Alabama House rules every member can speak up to ten minutes on any bill for any reason. If opponents had exercised that nuclear option, it would have taken a minimum of 390 minutes or a cloture petition (that likely would have failed) to cut off debate and pass SB67.

That the opposition did not exercise that option is likely because Democratic priorities – including a ban on Glock switch devices on handguns (also a Kay Ivey priority piece of legislation that also was passed) was also on Thursday's calendar.

Daniels and the Democrats almost certainly had agreed to some deal to allow SB67 to pass so that the House Republicans would allow some of their bills to pass. Republicans who voted against, likely were scared of retaliation from House leadership if they had spoken out.

Ivey did not get everything that she wanted in the bill that passed out of the House; but she got most of it – much like controversial bills like the megaprisons legislation and the gas tax increase in previous years.

Retired Colonel John Eidsmoe said. "The State Board of Veteran Affairs is composed of veterans nominated by each of six veterans' organizations. The substitute bill preserves some of this structure, but it utterly strips the Board of all real authority and makes it into a mere figurehead board of advisors."

"In no less than 39 places throughout the bill, the Board is stripped of power," Eidsmoe said. "In some places, this is done by striking "Board" and inserting "Governor," "Commissioner," or "Department" instead. In sections that currently require the "approval" of the Board, the word "approval" is stricken, and words substituted like "in consultation with," "advising" the Board, "recommendation" of the Board, or similar language. The Governor, the Commissioner, or the Department are free to ignore the Board's advice, recommendation, or consultation. If this bill becomes law, the Board will be nothing but a rubber stamp."

SB67 now goes to the Alabama Senate for their consideration of House changes to the bill.