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contact:
name: General legislative contact
sentence_name: general legislative contact
members_file: data/alabama/2025.csv
tips: ""
notes: {}
reps:
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldl:"
click_tag: their-sldl
no_rep_note: state House of Representatives
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state representative is
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldu:"
click_tag: their-sldu
no_rep_note: state Senate
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state senator is
sb101:
name: "Senate Bill 101/House Bill 267 (Age of Medical Consent)"
sentence_name: SB101/HB267
members_file: data/alabama/2025.csv
notes: {}
tips: |
<h2>Talking points and tips</h2>
<p>SB101, SB58, and HB267 require written opt-in permission from parents for minors to receive medical care or counseling services. They are clearly meant to block youth from receiving reproductive health or gender affirming care without parental consent, but its consequences would be much farther reaching than intended. Here are some tips for calling legislators:</p>
<ul class="incremental">
<li>Please call <strong>your state Senator</strong> and tell them
that you oppose Senate Bill 101 and Senate Bill 58. And call <strong>your House rep</strong> and tell them that you oppose House Bill 267.</li>
<li>At this stage, and generally when talking to Republican legislators,
it will be more effective to talk about how the legislature has more
important priorities, and that the bill is poorly written, has
unintended consequences, and may drive business away from the state —
rather than directly talking about the impacts on transgender people.
See the talking points below for some ideas.</li>
<li>Don’t be discouraged if you reach voicemail — leave a message. Every
call counts.</li>
<li>It may be difficult, but be direct and polite. If it helps, you can
write down what you want to say beforehand.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you already know what the bill is about and what you want to talk
about, <a id="reps">skip these tips</a>. Otherwise, <strong>skim
these bullet points, pick a few that resonate with you, and be prepared
to expand on them if necessary.</strong></p>
<p>Here are some talking points that may be helpful. <strong>In states with similar laws...</strong></p>
<ul>
<li><strong>...schools are afraid to offer first aid without permission slips.</strong>
<ul>
<li>The legislature might then blame the schools for malicious compliance. However, this bill would in fact prohibit giving even basic first aid to a child at school, much less calling an ambulance if a child broke a leg on the playground, without first contacting the child's parent.</li>
<li>There is an exception for life-threatening care, but not for first aid.</li>
<li>The default for this statute should be opt-out, rather than opt-in. Parents worried about their rights can fill out the form, and all of us who forget to fill it out don't have to rush over from work to put our bleeding kids in our cars.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>...children in unstable living situations, such as those with absent or incarcerated parents, have difficulty getting any medical care at all.</strong><ul>
<li>Even if someone else, perhaps a grandparent, were to be appointed guardian, this would take time. In the case of serious but not immediately life threatening medical issues which yet require timely treatment, this delay could be deadly. This bill would put such children's lives at risk.</li>
</ul></li>
<li><strong>...children of abusers are not able to meet confidentially with a medical or mental health provider.</strong><ul>
<li>They would first need permission from their abuser to get an appointment.</li>
<li>If they obtained an appointment and discussed their abuse with the provider, their abuser would have the right to see the medical records. There are legitimate reasons why children need confidentiality.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
<a id="reps"></a>
reps:
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldl:"
click_tag: their-sldl
no_rep_note: state House of Representatives
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state representative is
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldu:"
click_tag: their-sldu
no_rep_note: state Senate
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state senator is
hb107:
redirect: { web: "https://altrac.works" }
sb79:
redirect: { web: "https://altrac.works" }
hb67:
name: "House Bill 67 (Drag ban + trans kids at sleepaway camps)"
sentence_name: HB67
members_file: data/alabama/2025.csv
tips: |
<h2>Talking points and tips</h2>
<p><strong>House Bill 67</strong> could punish innocent transgender Alabamians simply for being present at a library. The bill’s main goal is to ban drag performances, but it is written such that transgender people would also be impacted. It also bans transgender youth from sleepaway camps.</p>
<ul class="incremental">
<li>Please call <strong>your state senator</strong> and tell them
that you oppose HB67.
</li>
<li>At this stage, and generally when talking to Republican legislators,
it will be more effective to talk about how the legislature has more
important priorities, and that the bill is poorly written, has
unintended consequences, and may drive business away from the state —
rather than directly talking about the impacts on transgender people.
See the talking points below for some ideas.</li>
<li>Don’t be discouraged if you reach voicemail — leave a message. Every
call counts.</li>
<li>It may be difficult, but be direct and polite. If it helps, you can
write down what you want to say beforehand.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you already know what the bill is about and what you want to talk
about, <a href="#reps">skip these tips</a>. Otherwise, <strong>skim
these bullet points, pick a few that resonate with you, and be prepared
to expand on them if necessary.</strong></p>
<p>Here are some talking points that may be helpful:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>HB67 violates the single-subject rule laid out in the
Alabama Constitution by containing two completely distinct
parts.</strong>
<ul>
<li>The first part bans “drag” in libraries, and the second
part bans trans kids from sleepaway camps. <strong>These are not
sufficiently related to pass a single-subject test.</strong><br />
</li>
</ul></li><li><strong>Who is going to enforce this bill? How will it be enforced? How much will it cost?</strong> These questions aren't addressed in this bill.</li><li>Representative Stadthagen stated that the bill would only “impact the people it needs to go after.” <strong>This statement implies a clear intent to have the law enforced in an unequal manner</strong>, which opens up legal challenges based on the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution.</li>
<li><strong>The bill’s sponsor says the goal of this bill is banning
“drag performances” in libraries, but it’s worded so
vaguely that it would have far-reaching consequences.</strong><br />
</li>
<li><strong>The definition of what drag looks like is immensely broad
and vague.</strong>
<ul>
<li>It encompasses anything that a bad actor would want it to
mean.<br />
</li>
<li>Under this definition, if someone doesn’t conform to another
person’s taste in clothing, they could argue that that person is in
violation of this law.
<ul>
<li>In extremely bad-faith cases, men wearing kilts and women wearing
pants could qualify as “drag.” This is clearly not the intention of the
bill.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
</ul></li>
<li>Drag is defined as a “performance,” but it never specifies what
qualifies as a performance.<br />
</li>
<li>The way it’s written, <strong>girls couldn’t play male roles in high
school theater where there are usually not usually not enough boys to
fill the male roles.</strong>
<ul>
<li>Classic plays and musicals where cross dressing is part of the plot
would no longer be performable.<br />
</li>
</ul></li><li>The Legislature voted in 2023 that <strong>"parents have a fundamental right to direct the education, upbringing, care, and control of their children”</strong> (Act 2023-555). However, this bill would violate the rights of parents who allow their children to wear whatever they want to wear and express their gender however they want. We can’t pick and choose which parents have these rights.</li>
<li>Teachers and students shouldn’t have to be paranoid that they’re
breaking whatever law the Alabama state legislature drums up —
<strong>they should instead be able to enjoy the freedom of speech and
expression that’s guaranteed to them in the US
Constitution.</strong><br />
</li>
<li>If this is a matter of “protecting children,” why is this bill aimed only at public school libraries and public libraries? There is clearly a push to reshape public institutions to meet only a certain demographic’s desires, not any real concern for all children across the state.</li>
<li>Do we really need state officials policing how people dress in
public libraries?
<ul>
<li>Can women wear pants or suits without being accused of “performing”
masculine “gender identity”?<br />
</li>
<li>This is a slippery slope of our elected officials pushing a personal
agenda without any bases and restricting freedom of speech and
expression.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li>Would leave school boards and the state open to lawsuits, which
would cost taxpayers.<br />
</li>
<li>This is another bill in search of a problem. It is only there to
further alienate anyone who looks different without any basis to do
so.</li>
</ul>
notes: {}
reps:
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldu:"
click_tag: their-sldu
no_rep_note: state Senate
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state senator is
hb4:
name: "House Bill 4 (Jail Librarians / \"Gender-Oriented Conduct\")"
sentence_name: HB4
members_file: data/alabama/2025.csv
tips: |
<em>This campaign is a collaborative effort between <a href="https://allmylinks.com/attherootcollective">At The Root Collective</a> and ALTRAC.</em>
<h2 id="talking-points-and-tips">Talking points and tips</h2>
<p>We are one week into the 2025 Alabama Legislative session and already
have multiple discriminatory and unconstitutional bills we are pushing
back against. Today we are asking you to tell your State House
Representative to <strong>VOTE NO on HB4</strong>, an anti-trans,
anti-education, anti-worker bill. Beyond its violations of 1st Amendment
Rights of all Alabamians and the repercussions it will have on workers
in public schools and libraries, it will also criminalize transgender
and gender nonconforming community members for daring to exist in these
public spaces. We are calling on you to call or write <strong>your House
Representative</strong> and tell them why you want them to VOTE NO on
HB4 using the talking points below. If you have time, please also call <strong>your state Senator</strong>, but be mindful that this bill has not been introduced in the Senate yet.</p>
<ul>
<li>At this stage, and generally when talking to Republican legislators,
it will be more effective to talk about how the legislature has more
important priorities, and that the bill is poorly written, has
unintended consequences, and may drive business away from the state. See
the talking points below for some ideas.<br />
</li>
<li>Don’t be discouraged if you reach voicemail — leave a message. Every
call counts.<br />
</li>
<li>It may be difficult, but be direct and polite. If it helps, you can
write down what you want to say beforehand.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you already know what the bill is about and what you want to talk
about, <a href="#reps">skip these tips</a>. Otherwise, <strong>skim
these bullet points, pick a few that resonate with you, and be prepared
to expand on them if necessary.</strong></p>
<h3 id="hb4-is-vague-and-redundant">HB4 is Vague and Redundant</h3>
<ul>
<li>HB4 is redundant.The Alabama Public LIbrary Service Board has
already changed the administrative code to remove “sexually explicit and
other materials deemed inappropriate for children and youth” from the
children’s and young adult sections of all public libraries in the
state.<br />
</li>
<li>HB4 expands the definition of “sexual conduct” within the state
obscenity code to include “Gender oriented conduct” and “exaggerated or
provocative clothing” defining both as criminal behavior, but only in
public libraries and schools. Can the state legally apply two different
definitions to the same term?<br />
</li>
<li>The terms “gender oriented conduct” and “exaggerated or provocative
clothing” are vague and would put everyone at risk of being criminally
charged just for being in the library. Although the bill clearly targets
transgender people and drag performers, the vagueness of the bill would
even open the door for a patron to report a cisgender woman for wearing
a shirt they think is too revealing or a cisgender man for wearing nail
polish.</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="consequences-of-hb4">Consequences of HB4</h3>
<ul>
<li>HB4 applies to all areas of public schools, not just school
libraries. How would it affect activities such as cheerleading, dance
programs, theater performances, art exhibitions, sports teams, and
uniforms/costuming for all of these? HB4 targets girls and women,
transgender students and their families, and anyone who is gender
non-confirming in public schools.<br />
</li>
<li>HB4’s expansion of the definition of “sexual conduct” would lead to
either a ban on all LGBTQ+ library materials and programs regardless of
their sexual content or the creation of age restricted sections in all
Alabama public libraries. In small and/or rural libraries, creating age
restricted sections could be logistically impossible. This could lead
entire libraries to become age restricted, keeping minors out
completely.</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="hb4-violates-my-constitutional-rights">HB4 Violates My
Constitutional Rights!</h3>
<ul>
<li>The US District Court for the Western District of Arkansas just
declared that <a
href="https://arktimes.com/arkansas-blog/2024/12/23/arkansas-book-censorship-law-ruled-unconstitutional">Arkansas’s
similar bill (Arkansas Act 372)</a> is unconstitutional, overbroad, and
void for vagueness.<br />
</li>
<li>HB4 could lead to libraries’ overcorrecting on what books they
shelve or what programs they put on in order to protect themselves from
the threat of criminal prosecution. This will violate the First
Amendment rights of patrons.<br />
</li>
<li>HB4 violates the 14th Amendment right to freedom of expression by
prohibiting “gender oriented conduct” and “exaggerated or provocative
clothing.”<br />
</li>
<li>This bill violates the 14th Amendment right to equal protection
under the law. If this bill is targeting “drag queen story hour” for its
“gender oriented conduct”, but not cis-gendered storytelling events that
also have “gender oriented conduct” such as princess storytime, then the
bill would not be applied equally to all those who read to children in
storyhours across our libraries.</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="hb4-will-place-extensive-financial-burden-on-taxpayers">HB4 Will
Place Extensive Financial Burden on Taxpayers</h3>
<ul>
<li>HB4 will impose significant financial costs to public libraries,
schools, municipalities, and taxpayers across the state.<br />
</li>
<li>Libraries and school districts will have to increase their insurance
to cover criminal liability. Who will fund those increased costs?<br />
</li>
<li>City councils and county commissions will be expected to foot the
bill for additional law enforcement costs.<br />
</li>
<li>HB4 will inevitably lead to costly lawsuits against the state or
violation of First Amendment rights like it did in Arkansas and
Missouri.</li>
</ul>
<h3 id="hb4-is-unnecessary">HB4 is Unnecessary</h3>
<ul>
<li>HB4 tries to solve a problem that does not exist. There is no
evidence of harm or of a community need for this bill.<br />
</li>
<li>There is no evidence that any materials in the library or the
presence of “gender oriented conduct” is harmful to minors.</li>
</ul>
<h3
id="hb4-will-have-significant-negative-consequences-for-library-patrons-students-families-and-workers">HB4
will have significant negative consequences for library patrons,
students, families, and workers</h3>
<ul>
<li>In many libraries across the state, materials go through multiple
library staff members before making it to a shelf. When multiple staff
members, as well board members, are involved in a reconsideration
request to review materials for their appropriateness. This bill would
make everyone in that chain criminally liable.<br />
</li>
<li>This bill encourages policing of anyone whose attire does not
conform to someone else’s definition of gender appropriate. and of
anyone wearing clothing someone thinks is too revealing.<br />
</li>
<li>Libraries would have to adopt dress codes for their workers and
patrons.<br />
</li>
<li>Minors could be held criminally liable for “gender oriented conduct”
and “exaggerated or provocative clothing” in public schools and
libraries.<br />
</li>
<li>What is to prevent library workers from being targeted by people
with political or ideological agendas when this law is used against them
as political backlash?</li>
</ul>
<a id="reps"></a>
notes: {}
reps:
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldl:"
click_tag: their-sldl
no_rep_note: state House
rep_note: yes
prelude: Your state House representative is
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldu:"
click_tag: their-sldu
no_rep_note: state Senate
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state senator is
hb244:
name: "House Bill 244 (Don't Say Gay)"
sentence_name: HB244
members_file: data/alabama/2025.csv
notes: {}
reps:
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldu:"
click_tag: their-sldu
no_rep_note: state Senate
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state senator is
tips: |
<h2 id="talking-points-and-tips">Talking points and tips</h2>
<p><strong>House Bill 244</strong> would expand the current prohibition
on discussing queer topics in schools so that it would now restrict
pre-kindergarten all the way through grade 12. It would also ban Pride
insignias in public schools, and it makes the misgendering of trans kids
a <em>legal requirement</em> with which school employees must
comply.</p>
<ul>
<li>Please call <strong>your state senator</strong> and tell them
that you oppose HB244.<br />
</li>
<li>At this stage, and generally when talking to Republican legislators,
it will be more effective to talk about how the legislature has more
important priorities, and that the bill is poorly written, has
unintended consequences, and may drive business away from the state —
rather than directly talking about the impacts on transgender people.
See the talking points below for some ideas.<br />
</li>
<li>Don’t be discouraged if you reach voicemail — leave a message. Every
call counts.<br />
</li>
<li>It may be difficult, but be direct and polite. If it helps, you can
write down what you want to say beforehand.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you already know what the bill is about and what you want to talk
about, <a
href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-1rHYmjn2Eejf9sjhVqz-C0Ut9KkCv28H_cvyfTtXig/edit#reps">skip
these tips</a>. Otherwise, <strong>skim these bullet points, pick a few
that resonate with you, and be prepared to expand on them if
necessary.</strong></p>
<ul><li>In Equality Florida v. DeSantis (2022), Florida was forced to gut their "Don't Say Gay" law, which was comparable to this bill. As well, similar bills have already been ruled unconstitutional in other states, including Tennessee and Texas. <strong>Why should Alabama waste its resources and taxpayer dollars just to become the next state where a "Don't Say Gay" law is struck down?</strong></li>
<li>Senator Butler said that the bill is intended to align with Trump’s executive order 14168. Trump has been indicted for 34 felonies. <strong>Why is Alabama looking to him for legislative leadership?</strong></li>
<li><strong>What effect would this bill have on textbooks, materials,
etc?</strong> Do schools need to throw out textbooks that contain even
the slightest mention of sexual orientation or gender identity?<br />
</li>
<li>The bill is so vague that it prevents discussion about even
heterosexual relationships – <strong>a female teacher who mentions her
husband in the classroom would be breaking the law, if this bill were to
pass</strong>.
<ul>
<li>There’s no need to subject our teachers to this kind of excessive
scrutiny – we should let our teachers spend their time teaching
instead.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li><strong>The bill will harm the state’s health education
programs.</strong>
<ul>
<li>The bill’s vague wording disallows discussion of even heterosexual
relationships, which would be detrimental to sex education.
<ul>
<li>Alabama has the fifth highest rate of teen pregnancy in the nation,
and the sixth highest rate of sexually transmitted diseases.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li>The bill’s moratorium on discussion of gender would disallow the
gendering of reproductive health topics like menstruation — teachers
would have to say “people who menstruate” to avoid mentioning gender
identity.<br />
</li>
<li>We should be acting to educate children on these topics in a
developmentally appropriate way, rather than banning discussion
altogether as this bill does.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li><strong>This bill takes authority away from teachers to discipline
students for bullying.</strong>
<ul>
<li>Under this law, teachers cannot discipline students who harass
others for being gay or trans. This would further contribute to a school
culture in Alabama where some kids are not welcome based on who they
are.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li><strong>It sets the state up for litigation based on employment
discrimination.</strong>
<ul>
<li>The legal implications of HB244 discourage schools from hiring
teachers who are gay or trans.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li><strong>This bill holds charter schools that receive public funding
to a different standard.</strong>
<ul>
<li>Why should charter schools be excluded from this legislation? If
this bill is truly a priority, it ought to be a priority across the
educational landscape.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul>
hb246:
name: "House Bill 246 (Don't Say Gay Jr.)"
sentence_name: HB246
members_file: data/alabama/2025.csv
notes: {}
reps:
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldl:"
click_tag: their-sldl
no_rep_note: state House
rep_note: yes
prelude: Your state House representative is
- ocdid: theirs
ocdid_prefix: "ocd-division/country:us/state:al/sldu:"
click_tag: their-sldu
no_rep_note: state Senate
rep_note: no
prelude: Your state senator is
tips: |
<h2 id="talking-points-and-tips">Talking points and tips</h2>
<p><strong>House Bill 246</strong> would require state educators to
refer to trans students using their legal name (usually deadnaming them)
and pronouns matching their sex assigned at birth.</p>
<ul>
<li>Please call <strong>your rep in the House</strong> and tell them
that you oppose HB246. Call your own senator too, if you have time,
although be mindful that the bill has not been introduced in the Senate
yet.<br />
</li>
<li>At this stage, and generally when talking to Republican legislators,
it will be more effective to talk about how the legislature has more
important priorities, and that the bill is poorly written, has
unintended consequences, and may drive business away from the state —
rather than directly talking about the impacts on transgender people.
See the talking points below for some ideas.<br />
</li>
<li>Don’t be discouraged if you reach voicemail — leave a message. Every
call counts.<br />
</li>
<li>It may be difficult, but be direct and polite. If it helps, you can
write down what you want to say beforehand.</li>
</ul>
<p>If you already know what the bill is about and what you want to talk
about, <a href="#reps">skip these tips</a>. Otherwise, <strong>skim
these bullet points, pick a few that resonate with you, and be prepared
to expand on them if necessary.</strong></p>
<p>Here are some talking points that may be helpful:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>The legislation creates a new civil cause of action for
<em>anyone</em> upset about how <em>anyone</em> in a school is
addressed.</strong> This could be a non-transgender person who has
changed their legal name. This could be a parent who just doesn’t like
the short form of their child’s name their teacher is using, if it’s not
a common diminutive. <strong>It could be a parent upset about how a
totally unrelated child is being addressed.</strong>
<ul>
<li><strong>If a student has legally changed their name, and their
professor calls them by their birth name, the professor would be in
violation of this act and the student would have cause to sue.</strong>
A student or their parent could still plausibly bring a civil action
even if the professor was not aware of the name change.<br />
</li>
<li><strong>This is just another avenue by which teachers are open to
harassment.</strong> Alabama already has a hard time finding teachers to
work in schools. Giving parents and students another legal vehicle to
get teachers fired is not going to attract the talent we need.<br />
</li>
<li><strong>After a successful lawsuit, this will take money away from
state schools, which are already underfunded.</strong> Alabama is <a
href="https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/alabama">#45 in education
nationwide</a>. We literally can’t afford this.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<li><strong>This bill is badly written.</strong>
<ul>
<li>This bill defines “male” and “female” as having “the reproductive
system that at some point produces, transports, and utilizes
[eggs/sperm] for fertilization.” <strong>This bill’s definitions could
be interpreted to mean that nobody is a man or woman unless they have
fathered or mothered a child,</strong> or even that nobody is a woman at
all, since eggs do not fertilize, but rather are themselves
fertilized.<br />
</li>
<li><strong>This bill is unenforceable.</strong> Do we really expect
teachers to know what reproductive systems their students have?
How?<br />
</li>
<li><strong>These definitions are inconsistent with other recently
passed legislation.</strong> This bill uses a different definition of
“female” than SB79, which was recently signed into law.<br />
</li>
</ul></li>
<ul>
<li><strong>This bill holds charter schools that receive public funding
to a different standard.</strong>
<ul>
<li>Why should charter schools be excluded from this legislation? If
this bill is truly a priority, it ought to be a priority across the
educational landscape.</li>
</ul></li>
</ul></ul>