Every week during the legislative session, the Alabama Education Association (AEA) sends its members The Capitol Pulse, highlighting its priorities and informing them about pending, filed and moving legislation impacting teachers.
On April 2, State Rep. Ernie Yarbrough (R-Trinity) filed House Bill 666 (HB666), which would end payroll deductions for public teachers’ unions and eliminate opt-out windows for other unions that continue to use the service. However, the bill was not mentioned in the “Introduced this Week” section of its April 3 newsletter.
The AEA was informed about the bill within hours of its filing and just minutes after it was posted online on Thursday, April 2, when 1819 News sent a copy requesting comment. Though the AEA has declined the opportunity to comment or clarify its position, others have come out in support of the legislation.
Stephanie Smith, president and CEO of the Alabama Policy Institute (API), told 1819 News in a written statement, “For too long, the State of Alabama has acted as the de facto bookkeeper for private organizations and labor unions. The filing of HB666 is a long-overdue victory for the principles of limited government and the fundamental rights of Alabama’s hardworking public employees. By prohibiting the use of taxpayer-funded payroll systems to collect labor organization dues, HB666 correctly identifies that the government’s role is to serve the public, not to facilitate the financial growth of private political entities. It is time to get the state out of the ‘dues collection’ business.”
The AEA has cited the “opt-out” window in Section 36-1-4.4 as a barrier to employee rights.
“This 10-day trap is not about efficiency; it is about ensuring a steady stream of revenue for certain organizations, often at the expense of employees who had changed their minds or no longer feel represented,” Smith continued. “HB666 ends this practice by allowing employees to revoke their membership at any time, for any reason, without being forced to jump through unnecessary bureaucratic hoops.”
In 2025, API released a report highlighting the AEA’s financial dependence on the NEA. According to that report, the AEA received $29.76 million from the NEA between 2015 and 2024. These NEA transfers accounted for an average of 17.45% of AEA’s total annual revenue, reaching over 20% in 2017 and remaining above 15% in all but one year. In 2024, NEA support made up 15.17% of AEA revenue.
“The Alabama Policy Institute has always stood for the idea that government should be lean, transparent, and neutral. Using state resources to process union dues is a clear violation of these principles,” Smith elaborated, explaining, “Private organizations should be responsible for their own billing and relationship management with their members, just like any other entity in a free market.”
In addition to support from API, the bill also received praise from the Freedom Foundation, one of the nation’s premier organizations supporting public sector employees. The Freedom Foundation has been at the forefront of advancing public-sector worker rights across the country, supporting similar legislation in states including Florida, Oklahoma, Arizona, Idaho and Wyoming.
“Government should not be in the business of collecting union membership dues, especially those so overtly engaged in political activities. If employees choose to join a union, they can and should pay their dues directly, as they would with any other private organization,” said Rusty Brown, special projects director at the Freedom Foundation. “Instead, current law keeps teachers trapped, paying dues automatically out of every paycheck to a union they may not wish to support or be a part of. To make matters worse, they are given only a tiny 10-day window each year to opt out. No American should be compelled to remain in any organization against their will, much less if it forcibly takes money out of their pockets. This window wasn’t designed to protect workers; it was designed to keep them trapped. We’re proud to stand with Rep. Yarbrough in changing that.”
Yarbrough told 1819 News in an interview that while the clock has run out on this legislative session, he expects to file the bill to start the conversation so it can be brought up and passed next year.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email aprylmarie.fogel@1819news.com
Source: 1819news.com
