Estes lone abstention on education budget

MONTGOMERY - Marion County Rep. Tracy Estes, R-Winfield, was the lone legislator to abstain from approving the Fiscal Year 2020 Education Trust Fund (ETF) budget.
The Alabama House of Representatives took its final vote on the ETF on Friday, May 31. The budget passed 102-0.
The House District 17 representative told the Journal Record that his abstention was due to him not being provided information regarding Bevill State Community College (BSCC)-Hamilton Campus as requested.
More than a year after BSCC attempted to cut workforce programs at the Hamilton Campus, Estes said he still has concerns about the campus’ management. MONTGOMERY - Marion County Rep. Tracy Estes, R-Winfield, was the lone legislator to abstain from approving the Fiscal Year 2020 Education Trust Fund (ETF) budget. The Alabama House of Representatives took its final vote on the ETF on Friday, May 31. The budget passed 102-0. The House District 17 representative told the Journal Record that his abstention was due to him not being provided information regarding Bevill State Community College (BSCC)-Hamilton Campus as requested. More than a year after BSCC attempted to cut workforce programs at the Hamilton Campus, Estes said he still has concerns about the campus’ management. “This campus is an economic development tool for Marion County and a critical education source for all of our residents,” Estes said. “I could not tell my constituents I voted for this without getting assurances of protections for the Hamilton Campus.” Estes said he spoke with ETF House sponsor Bill Poole, R-Tuscaloosa, leading up to a vote on the budget, expressing his support and informing him that he was requesting expense reports from the Alabama Community College System (ACCS), the BSCC system and the Bevill State-Hamilton Campus. Estes said that he wanted to see the reports to assure expenditures were not being trimmed at the Hamilton Campus. Former House District 18 Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow, D-Red Bay, wrote similar letters to Bevill State last year and was never provided with detailed information. According to Estes, a representative from the two-year college visited him in his office at a later date with a half-page summary of budget information from the ACCS, but detailed expense reports were not included. He was told it would be difficult to get the reports according to his request. Estes said he then made a written request to the two-year college system, asking for detailed information. He sent copies of that request to Poole and House leadership. If provided with the information, Estes wrote that he would be open to a meeting where the numbers could be explained. The Winfield representative said he met with House Speaker Mac McCutcheon, R-Monrovia, explaining the situation he was dealing with and saying that he would be fully supportive of the ETF budget should he get the information requested. Estes said the McCutcheon told him, “Vote your district.” Estes stressed his support for the education budget, noting that it is set at $7.1 billion--$500 million more than the previous year’s allocations. He also praised the budget for its 4% teacher raise in addition to the 2.5% pay raise they received last year. The ETF was also given $26.8 million for Pre-K and a 9% increase to the community college system. However, the information requested by Estes was not provided prior to the House vote. “I’m disappointed that I was not provided with the public information,” Estes said. Estes said he does confidence the information he requested will ever be provided to him.