State Representatives
Bills Sponsored:
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This bill would prevent employers, public places, hospitals or health insurers from discriminating against anti-vaxxers or anti-maskers.
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This bill, if passed, would essentially allow ICE and Alabama law enforcement to work together, require government employees to keep track of and share information relating to the immigration status of any individual “as required for public safety purposes”, allow law enforcement officers to transport illegal immigrants into the custody of the federal government, as well as require quarterly reports by county and city jails regarding “foreign nationals”.
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This bill amended the Alabama Constitution to allow property-owning taxpayers who are 65+ years old to claim a senior property tax exemption in Lawrence County.
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This bill would require voters to register their political party affiliation 60 days before a primary election to be allowed to vote on that party’s ballot in the primary election, and prohibit them from changing their political party until after the general election. Each applicant for voter registration will have to turn in a written application form that would have to be approved by the registrar. This application would also require the applicant to sign an oath to support and defend the constitution of both the United States and Alabama, as well as disavowing affiliation with “any group that advocates the overthrow of the government”. It would also require each political party to publish qualifications for candidates on its website.
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This bill authorized Lawrence County sheriffs to use a credit or debit card when they make approved purchases, as opposed to a check or something.
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This bill changed the administrate timeline for Lawrence County court funding.
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This bill would require anyone who kills a parent or guardian via a drunk driving accident to pay child support for the kid whose parent or guardian died.
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This bill would exempt people who permanently qualify for a military, veteran or gold star family license plate from having to renew their eligibility for said license plate.
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This bill would require employee organizations and professional associations to allow all state employees to revoke their membership at any time and without reason, as well as prohibit membership dues from being deducted from the salary of certain education employees.
Ernie Yarbrough in his own words:
Ernie’s campaign website is clear in his political stances, but very vague in how he intends to achieve the outcomes he wants. The website lists “What I believe” as: 2nd amendment, education, human trafficking, lower taxes, medical freedom, and pro-life. His website does not elaborate further on these points. I don’t think anyone was denying human trafficking exists, is he trying to say he’s for or against human trafficking? It’s so hard to tell with Republicans.
Judging by the news he’s been in this year, I believe him when he says he’s pro-gun, but not so much when he claims to be pro-life. This article in the Alabama Daily News elaborates on how Ernie left a loaded AR-style rifle lying on his bedside table, where his 6 year old son was able to grab it and shoot Ernie’s 13 year old son in the shoulder. “A flesh wound only” according to Representative Yarbrough. Personally, I don’t even like to leave my guns out where my cats could reach them because I care about their safety and would hate for some crazy accident to happen. When my brother had children, he renovated a whole room in his house to store away his guns so his children would never have access to them until they were ready to learn the tenants of gun safety. This guy is, in my opinion, either an irresponsible tool or a bumbling idiot.
Ernie Yarbrough in the bills he’s sponsored:
One major point of contention in the bills sponsored by Ernie is HB541. The short version of this bill is that it would require voters to register their political party 60 days before primary elections and not allow them to switch registered parties until after the general election. However, this does not even come close to explaining everything this bill would entail should it be enacted. It would also require voter registration forms be filled out by hand and mailed into the registrar, and for political parties to list qualifications for candidates on their official website. This sucks. Normal citizens are too busy to be having to request forms from the registrar, fill them out by hand and then mail them back 2 months before a primary election. People barely think about the primaries at all, and making them jump through all these extra hoops will only make it harder for people to vote. Also the application to register to vote would incorporate an oath to support and defend the constitutions of the United States and Alabama alike, as well as a statement in the oath disavowing support or affiliation with any group that advocates overthrowing the government. I don’t know that I support the constitution of Alabama; I haven’t even read it yet. And if voters have to swear an oath to disavow any group that advocates for overthrowing the government, a lot of MAGA supporters will either have to lie on their application or never vote in Alabama again.
The one good bill I can commend Ernie for sponsoring is HB581, which requires anyone who kills the parent of a child in a drunk driving accident to pay child support. All other legislation he’s sponsored in the past year is is, in my opinion, either useless, in poor taste, or unconstitutional. He is a partisan hack and a stain on Alabama.
His potential successor:
Ernie Yarbrough is currently running against two independents: Trent Ford and Angelo Mancuso. Trent Ford of the Yellowhammer party announced the launch of his campaign with a food drive that fed 300-500 people in Moulton, Alabama. He portrays himself as a devout Christian, saying his faith motivates him in everything he does. To him that means he is invested in serving the people of his community, remaining accountable to God and to the voter, and fixing problems facing his community through practical governance. His three main issues he is running on are effective affordability, removing barriers that prevent locals from solving their own problems more efficiently, and promoting better futures for his constituents via implementing career training, modernizing schools, and expanding access to healthcare.
Angelo “Doc” Mancuso is currently running as an independent after being disqualified from the Republican primary, which was then canceled. His campaign website is currently inaccessible, but according to Ballotpedia Doc Mancuso ran as a Democrat in 2014 with his “Doc Mancuso Plan”, which included: Refuse a legislative salary, support a temporary Medicaid expansion program to act as a safety net, funding vocational careers starting in 7th grade, secure funding for virtual libraries, provide tax incentives for new and established businesses that create full time jobs for Alabamans, support term limits on state-elected officials and hold town hall meetings frequently in order to hear citizens’ concerns and suggestions. Doc Mancuso has also written an op ed that I highly suggest reading on Ernie’s proposed HB541, which has apparently been a hot topic of contention among members of Alabama’s GOP.