Alabama / State / 2026 Regular Session
Act 2026-574 (HB307) Rewrote the state classified service preference and authorized local and private preferences, from January 1, 2027
Expands and restricts Reaches Guard and reserve veterans and adds spouse points, but no longer names the widow of a disabled veteran for ten points.
Amends Code section 36-26-15 from January 1, 2027: veteran now means anyone honorably discharged from the Guard or a reserve or active component; five points for a veteran, a veteran’s spouse and the spouse of an active duty member; ten points for a compensably disabled veteran and spouse and for the surviving spouse of a member who died in the line of duty. The 1971 text, with five points for an honorably discharged member of five named branches and ten for disabled veterans and certain widows and wives, governs until then. Adds section 11-80-21 for counties and cities and section 25-1-55 for private employers, with a Department of Workforce registry. The Department of Veterans Affairs’ booklet prints the 2027 terms without saying they are not yet in force.
Progress
Path to law: Bill in a two-chamber legislature
- Introduced Done, House
- In committee Done, House Military and Veterans' Affairs, then Senate Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Safety
- Passed one chamber Done, House, as substituted
- Passed both chambers Done, Senate
- Signed by the governor Done,
- In effect Scheduled for
Sponsors
- Rick Rehm
- Jerry Starnes
- Ed Oliver
- Allen Treadaway
- Randy Wood
- Chip Brown
- Rhett Marques
- Ivan Smith
- Kenneth Paschal
- Jeana Ross
- Mark Gidley
- Mack Butler
- Craig Lipscomb
- Patrick Sellers
- Bill Lamb
- Parker Moore
- Margie Wilcox
- Steve Hurst
- Paul W. Lee
- Chris Blackshear
What it touches
- Code of Ala. § 36-26-15
- Code of Ala. § 11-80-21
- Code of Ala. § 25-1-55
Catalog entry