State of the State

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley says the state has 25 to 30 percent less money to provide basic services, but he vows not to raise taxes.

Delivering his state of the state address, Governor Bentley is calling on lawmakers to invest in workforce development and career tech programs. "We will also provide an aggressive jobs agenda as a top priority in this legislative session that will give our economic recruiters new tools to grow jobs in Alabama", said Bentley.

He talked about protecting The Departments of Public Safety, Human Resources, and Corrections, but he wants to streamline licensing procedures. "I will propose legislation that consolidates a number of state agencies..we will modernize outdated systems within our state government by taking advantage of the latest technology to save 100 million dollars over the next ten years", said Bentley.

Though the governor didn't spell out which agencies he would combine, he did talk abut selling bonds..essentially borrowing money to fix roads and bridges. Bentley said, "We have the ability to finance a major infrastructure program and we will work with local leaders to identify what roads need repair and we will get them fixed as soon as possible".

As expected, Governor Bentley promoted charter schools something the state's teachers' union is strongly against.

The governor is calling on a dollar for dollar tax credit for teachers who spend money on their classrooms.