Riley vetoes TVA disbursement bills

MONTGOMERY -- Gov. Bob Riley has vetoed three bills that would have diverted hundreds of thousands of dollars to partisan political committees to dispense within northwest Alabama communities.

Riley, on the last day of the legislative session Thursday, vetoed bills that would have diverted an additional 3 percent in Tennessee Valley Authority in lieu of tax money to Colbert, Lauderdale and Lawrence counties.

Instead of going to the county governments, the legislation would have created local committees, which were to be appointed by legislators. The committee would then distribute the money.

House members from across the Tennessee Valley attempted to create similar committees to distribute the money that TVA pays the state instead of taxes. A law in 2006 diverted an additional 3 percent from the state's cut to TVA counties.

Colbert County is set to receive $241,751, Lauderdale County $207,564, and Lawrence County $84,939, according to the Legislative Fiscal Office.

State Rep. Tammy Irons, D-Florence, said the money is important.

"That meant about $200,000 for my county for my volunteer fire departments and senior centers,'' she said.

Irons said she'll begin advertising the failed bill again to ensure it can be introduced in a special legislative session that she expects this year.

She said she doesn't know what happens to the TVA money next fiscal year but believes it stays in county budgets.

Some Republicans opposed the committees because they would have allowed partisan appointees to determine where the money would go. Riley's office said the money should go to local governments that best know how to spend it.

"This proposed legislation attempts to establish a fund that could be used purely for political purposes by members of the Community Development Commission,'' Riley's veto messages said. "The appropriate expenditure of these funds should be under the authority and control of local governmental officials who can most appropriately prioritize local needs.''

Riley vetoed a similar bill for DeKalb County, but the House and Senate overrode Riley's veto on Thursday.

DeKalb County's cut of the $3.2 million is estimated at $118,047.

The Alabama Legislative Information System Online didn't show the vetoed status of the Shoals bills, but the House Clerk's office said they were vetoed and died in the House basket when the Legislature adjourned Thursday.

Dana Beyerle can be reached at (334) 264-6605 or dtb12345@aol.com.