Alabama Municipal Electric Authority; director compensation revised
HB160 amends Section 11-50A-6 of the Code of Alabama to change the compensation rules for the Alabama Municipal Electric Authority’s board of directors and board chair. Under the bill, the board may, at its discretion, pay directors a fee of up to $1,750 per month in which the member actually attends a meeting, and the chair may be paid up to $2,000 per month in which the chair actually attends a meeting. The bill also preserves reimbursement for actual expenses and keeps the existing framework that board members serve without compensation unless the board authorizes fees.
The measure does not alter the Authority’s core powers or contracting structure, but it updates the statute governing board governance, meeting procedures, vacancies, and compensation language. It also adds/retains a requirement that the board membership be inclusive and reflect the racial, gender, geographical, urban/rural, and economic diversity of the state. The act is set to take effect on January 1, 2026.
HB160 would amend the Alabama Municipal Electric Authority statute in Title 11 to increase the maximum director fees that may be authorized by the board for attending meetings, raising the cap for regular directors from $600 per meeting in the older language to $1,750 per month in which a meeting is attended, and for the chair from $2,000 per month in which a meeting is attended. The bill affects the Authority’s board members and chair directly, while leaving the Authority’s election structure, quorum rules, vacancy procedures, and auditing requirements largely intact. It would become part of the governing law for the Authority upon its effective date of January 1, 2026.
The bill appears to have been broadly supported and noncontroversial in the House. It passed the House of Origin and third reading with unanimous or near-unanimous support, with no recorded nays in the available vote history. The absence of committee transcript opposition and the successful passage as amended suggest general agreement that the compensation update was acceptable.
The main substantive issue in HB160 is compensation for the Authority’s board and chair, since the bill increases the amount that may be paid at the board’s discretion. Potential concerns would center on public spending, director pay, and whether the higher fee levels are justified for a municipal electric authority board. The bill also retains language requiring inclusive board membership reflecting racial, gender, geographic, urban/rural, and economic diversity, but no recorded discussion in the provided materials indicates that this was a point of dispute.