Wade on Birmingham

Vote 2012: The cashless society

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Alabama goes broke

A select handful of Alabamians will go to the polls Tuesday to cast but a single vote.

Wade on Birmingham - Vote 2012The Legislature has a special election on Tuesday to allow voters to decide whether $437 million dollars should be transferred from the Alabama Trust Fund to the General Fund during the next 3 years. The money would cover a shortfall in the state’s operating budget for services such as prisons, courts and Medicaid.

The special election will cost $3 million. Voter turnout is expected to be extremely low.

Should the measure fail, Gov. Bentley has vowed to stand by his no taxes pledge, meaning severe cuts — up to 10 percent — across the board. The trust fund manages royalties from natural gas wells off the coast of Alabama. Its board has not taken a position on the vote.

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Update Sept. 18: Measure passes by 2-to-1 margin.

Update Sept. 22: Voter turnout was around 22 percent. | Surprise: Passage seen as a win for Gov. Bentley.

Are you voting for or against the amendment? Tell us why in the comments.

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More Vote 2012 coverage.

2 Yips for “Vote 2012: The cashless society”

  1. John
    Monday, September 17, 2012, 3:25 pm
    1

    I’m going to vote for it, for completely selfish reasons. I work in academia, and so does my wife. I want both of us to be able to keep our jobs. I see this special election as a good thing, since as it is, people who care about the issue will come out and vote, hopefully for it. People who are disinterested won’t. If it was part of the general election, then a lot more people who really don’t care one way or the other might vote against it, just to be contrary.

  2. Wade on Birmingham » Vote 2012: To the polls in October
    Friday, October 5, 2012, 7:02 am
    2

    […] Also see:Vote 2012: Alabama primary runoff election resultsVote 2012: The cashless societyVote 2012: A fistful of newspaper endorsementsVote 2012: Municipal elections on TuesdayVote 2012: […]

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