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Williams here live on the right side studios for
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the triple dipper for the day I'm calling a
big fat money we got some big fat money
and big fat money comes with big fat problems
sometimes and sometimes it comes with big fat spending
request well I saw an article this morning you
know our state legislature we talked about it last
week is in they wanted a regular session and
then immediately were called into a special session paused
the regular and they are now in special session
for the purpose of spending roughly $1.06 billion in Apa
relief money that's Covid relief money basically from the
federal government most of the allocations have been requested
by the executive branch I saw an article this
morning on 18 19 news that state centered to
Chris Elliott who's been on the show several times
he had some concerns about whether they should pass
basically the governor spending request as is and I
thought you know what I want to hear about
this I want to get state senator Chris Elliott
on here and so that further do having served
now since 20 18 representing district 3 2 down
yonder in Baldwin County let me welcome state center
to Chris Elliott to the to the line Senator
how are you doing I'm doing fine thanks for
having me absolutely thank you for making time I know
you guys are busy and and what little precious
time you have when you're in session to do
your actual civilian job is is good so thank you
for making time you got it hey listen I
saw your article on 18 19 I believe it
was comments that you had made while you were
on Jeff Pors show who comes on my show
all the time down on FM talk 1 0
6 5 so let me let me ask you
the perception that we have is that the current
piece of legislation being considered is really just written
for the executive branch by the executive branch but
you have some concerns too tell me about it well I think
that perception is unfortunately probably correct in the end
for the other reason you know I offer is
evidence of that the speed at which this is
progressing right here's the plan go pass it and
we'll all be home in time for supper and
and with what seems to be feel very very
few if any types of a type of debate
conversation or amendment in the house I expect to
build it's past the house of representatives tomorrow and
it's out of committee there was only one descending vote
in committee good conservative our auto Mooney I know
you know well who who had some serious questions
about it and they kind of smiled at him
in past Bill and I expect that to happen
on the house for tomorrow and then they'll come
to the Senate where I think you do have
some senators who are very interested in doing what
they're supposed to do which is legislative which is
questioning which is trying to decide is this giant
expenditure of over $1 billion inside of a week or
two here and just a few you know five legislative
days or so is that necessarily a good thing
and without any amendment from the from the legislature
without any input from the people that know that
we represent and I one say I don't think that's a
good idea I think we have to slow this down
I think we ought to take some time I
think we oughta ask you a good idea to
give $400 million to eat after we've already given them
$225 million I think we need to look critically at
how that first transfer of money has been spent
I mean I think we need to look at
additional broadband money and say hey and we actually
connected anybody to the Internet with the first you
know a couple hundred dollars we put out there
and if not then do we need to follow
that with another couple hundred million dollars what we
know is it a good idea to give $100 million
to an association the hospital association not saying hospitals
observe that you got the association that you're gonna
give $100 million to man I know about you but
there are lots of small businesses and and a
restaurant tours and others that had a hard time
during Covid are we always given you $100 million to
the restaurant in hospitality association distributed to their member
so there's a lot of questions I think a lot of us have
and they're gonna appear to be an appetite to
to answer or even entertain those questions at least not
from what I've seen so far I hope is
next floor this week as we get again at
leadership will be a little bit more understanding that
we've got some members that have some questions and
and and if we don't get reasonable answers to
them then you know other options there as you
will not to see if we can slow down
but let me jump in and say just the
other night I had the opportunity to be around
a number of your colleagues and apparently your sentiments
are shared by others in the Senate body and
and so yeah I mean it's it's amazing to
me that $1 billion can fly through the legislature in
a matter of days and there's a certain number
of days it has to take you know you know
that I'm talking for the audience 's benefit right
now there's a certain number of days it has to
take and whether they're taking the minimum amount of
time there's literally and rated a lot of things have to start
at the house when they're financially related but the
Senate is supposed to be the deliberative body the
Senate is where things do slow down and I
am very hopeful y'all are gonna come cause I
mean you're right senator I mean it's Lord broadband
we are throwing money at broadband and broadband is
important but broadband has been getting trenches of money
in the last few years and I don't know
that we seen a great deal of connectivity yet
and then you got sewer and water which a lot of
times is us bailing out people who have managed
their local systems very poorly and we're gonna bail
them out with our money do you see any
opportunity amount let me switch gears a little bit
do you see any opportunity for tax relief because
our attorney general did fight for and win the
opportunity to use our money for tax relief if
you want to I will tell you I think
that the opportunity for tax relief probably would have
come in the first challenge of our money to
when we started talking about some revenue replacement funds
and some flexibility there my understanding is that that
that Alabama that we have chosen to use that
that that money for prisons and prison construction and
that we are not able to use the remainder
of the offer of money for tax relief now
that doesn't mean we can't use the $2.7 billion in
surplus for tax relief and will do that I'm
here once we get back into the regular session
but they answer your question directly no I don't
think we can use the offer money for tax
I think I think legally you can the question
is whether you want to and whether you do
it here or do it in the surplus and
in the regular session either way I just encourage
you and I hope that that's gonna wind up
happening I think it's time I think there's never
been a better time but that being said I
noticed also Senator within the the current or the
draft legislation that I had a chance to review
that the the Arp funds going back to the
special session in the Arp funds have a whole
section in there of grants which I assume would
be granted that the executive branch has discretion to
to put out I could see y'all debating the
idea of setting this up where the legislature gets
to help decide who gets a grant or at least
para grant I mean that I think one of
the big rubs for me is not only is
the executive branch wanting all of this money not
only is the executive branch wanting to administer the
grant process they wanna come up with all of
the print all of the parameters for the grant
process as well as well and that puts you
know somebody like me in in a rough spot because
I look at what's happened with the first round
of ATM grants that $225 million not a penny of
which was spent in my district is the fastest
growing one in the entire state with more people
than than anywhere else moving in I mean we've
got 8 000 people a year moving the Baldwin
County and the infrastructure needs that come with that
our significant into your point that's not because of
a poorly managed system it's simply because there are
that many new people using the infrastructure Szczur and
oh by the way generator tax revenue for the
state of Alabama moving here on an annual basis
so the legislature in the first Toronto offer of
money by those funds some go to needy folks
that are in financial need but then another hundred
million should go to these places that can they
can match those grants and draw all these dollars
out and that just unfortunately doesn't seem to be
how Aiden has administered the grant I'm not really
inclined to give them another $400 million without some assurance
is that that's gonna be handled differently well so
in the time that we've had I mean we
can always scratch a service on this but you just
you just labeled between you and I we just
labeled probably five or six things that could take
days of debate if it's done correctly and I
just anyway Senator have you been down there in
y'all shoes I totally respect what you're doing I
know that the money is there we gotta spend
it and and this is a true function of
government and y'all are a coequal branch with the
executive and so I am really hoping that you
guys are gonna have a chance to debate to
debate hard and to make amendments that our substitute
and maybe even better for for the people the
state certainly agree with you feel like I hope
that that's what happens I'm not terribly optimistic but
I hope there's like-minded the Senators that you mentioned
earlier come to Montgomery tomorrow ready and willing to
mix it up a little bit well I do
too I look forward to having you or maybe
some of your compadres back on to report later
so hey man thanks for your time today appreciate
you center you got it thanks Bill that was
the estate standard to Chris Elliott one of the
more conservative members of the of the state Senate
talking about his frustrations with the fact that we
have $1 billion 1 billion with a B B extra
money it's just it's just like you know found
money and they gotta find a place to put
it and I understand that they do that the
frustrating thing is the executive branch has told him
where they want it now it's not uncommon the
governor sends over a budget then the legislature is
the one who has the power of the purse
the legislature has the power of the purse here
too and there's things they can do there's checks
and balances I can put in place there are
perhaps better ways to spend it I look at
it right now and I think you know you
could do some tax relief in here if you
wanted to you could you could say that the
grants that are right now currently allowing the executive
branch does have a checkbook to give money to
who they think is great you could say no
no actually the legislature will decide that or the
very least you will set up a commission in
the legislature will share the role with parties of
the executive branch and then you got on top
of that it's got huge trenches of money for
broadband when does the private sector come in and start
building something how much do we have to pay do
you see government installing your powerlines when do we
see the government getting out of having to pay every
bit of establishing a broadband network and then on
top of that you got massive trenches of money
in this that are proposed for sewer and water
infrastructure most of which is gonna go to poorly
run systems who have sewage coming up in peoples
yards not because the people did something wrong but
because the system has been poorly maintained that's OK
we'll take the money that we got from the
state we'll pay to fix their systems that they
didn't maintain well meanwhile all the ones who did
maintain their system as well are watching them get
money going wow all right there's that we're gonna come
back and talk about it more when we get
back I got big fat money I'm talking about
big fat money that people are fighting over and
doing weird stuff with and we'll talk about it
Phil Williams right side radio y'all stay tuned we
will be right back