2023 FHCNA Newsletter

If you have any calls or concerns regarding fair housing rights within Northern Alabama, please call our office at (205) 324-0111 or come see us at 1820 7th Avenue N., Suite 110 Birmingham, AL 35203

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A Note from the Executive Director

Greetings!

The Fair Housing Center of Northern Alabama (FHCNA) has been very busy. In addition to assisting victims of housing discrimination, we have provided training to a number of housing authorities in our service area and multi-family management companies. To highlight a few other activities, we provide fair housing information to participants of Neighborhood Housing Services and the Birmingham Urban League’s first-time homebuyers monthly seminars. FHCNA presented on a panel sponsored by the Huntsville Board of Realtors during Fair Housing Month. I was interviewed on WBRC-Chanel 6 News and have also participated in radio interviews. FHCNA was a contributor to the Turkey Classic Give-away sponsored by Cumulus Media. We have continued our fair housing billboard displays in most of our 29 counties service area. The Latino News continues to reach more than 75% of our service area.

April is National Fair Housing Month, and the center sponsored its Annual Fair Housing Month Seminar and Luncheon at the beautiful Birmingham Botanical Gardens. Sessions relative to issues such as appraisal bias, reasonable accommodations, affirmatively furthering fair housing and other general fair housing topics were covered. Our speakers represented the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Justice, Governor’s Office on Disability Rights, Department of Community Development, Huntsville, Alabama, the National Fair Housing Alliance and two experts on appraisal bias, Ira Goldstein from Policy Solutions at Reinvestment Fund and Rachel Meadows, Director of Policy and Legislation, City of Philadelphia. The Fair Housing Education and Outreach Specialist presented awards to the top three students who participated in our fair housing poster contest. They attended Hatton High School in Town Creek, Alabama, and Meek High School in Arley, Alabama. There was a total of 51 virtual poster entries, just under 4,000 votes, and over 40,000 views of the online contest.

Additional activities have included a presentation to One Roof members, attendance at the Birmingham Realtist Association activities, and the Building Alabama Reinvestment Conference. FHCNA is represented on several local boards ensuring we take an active part in community activities. I am privileged to serve on the Board of Trustees for the Alabama Center for Real Estate at the University of Alabama, and also serve on the board of the Consumer Financial Education Foundation of America. I am pleased to say that I have also been elected to serve another term on the Board of Directors of the National Fair Housing Alliance, Washington, DC.

We take pride in our community services in our efforts to affirmatively further fair housing, however, we accomplish our goals when we resolve acts of housing discrimination. Keeping families in their homes despite the efforts of landlords to illegally evict them based upon discrimination, informing landlords of their discriminatory acts when they deny reasonable accommodation requests to qualified persons, denying occupancy to families with children that are otherwise qualified, denying occupancy to persons with criminal backgrounds regardless of type of crime and number of years since incarceration, evicting women who have been impacted by domestic violence regardless of the circumstances, refusing to change policies that would address source of income, these are all examples of discriminatory acts that negatively impact our communities. We work to resolve these issues daily.

To support our work, we conduct tests to uncover acts of discrimination. Our testers conducted 58 race-based tests, 2 disability and 1 familial status test. Of that total, 20 were rental, 21 sales, 7 lending and 10 design and construction tests.  2 tests were based on rental complaints and 2 on reasonable accommodation complaints. We investigated 39 complaints by Blacks or African Americans, 12 by whites, 1 Hispanic, 2 who identified as other and 19 disability complaints. These numbers only reflect individual complaints and do not include the numbers of people or households impacted. This also does not include the hundreds of landlord/tenant calls and complaints we have received and the numerous referrals we make to other agencies.

This has been a busy year and a successful one. Several of our complainants received monetary settlements, housing units were opened, company policies changed, reasonable accommodation requests granted, evictions stopped, and numerous other solutions achieved.

If you are interested in assisting us in the eradication of housing discrimination and would like more information about our program, please visit us or call the center. We will provide printed materials or speak with you. We distributed more than 10,000 fair housing brochures in English and Spanish and will provide Braille upon request. If your organization or company is interested in a fair housing presentation or training, give us a call. Our services to the general public are free.            

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Fair Housing in the News

HUD Issues Memo Clarifying

Recommended Practices Regarding

Persons with Criminal Backgrounds

In the summer of 2022, HUD issued a memo authored by Demetria McCain, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, which gives guidance about best practices for applying Fair Housing protections to people with criminal backgrounds.

Although people with conviction histories are not considered a 'protected class,' the disproportionate impact of the legal system on Black and Latino people and people with disabilities means that HUD recognizes criminal background screenings may violate the Fair Housing Act. Using an overly broad or unfair screening process to people with a criminal history is often a major impediment to them obtaining housing - a critical step to successful reentry.

The number of people in this category is staggering. According to FBI statistics, 70 million people in our country have criminal backgrounds - that's roughly 1 in 3 people. For clarity, not all of that number have been convicted of a crime. That distinction is an example of how people might be unfairly excluded from housing options since people are often automatically disqualified because of their experience with the carceral system even if their arrest did not result in a conviction.

To make matters worse, according to the DOJ, "More than 650,000 ex-offenders are released from prison every year, and studies show that approximately two-thirds will likely be rearrested within three years of release." Helping these folks find stable housing will go a long way to reversing this trend and HUD's new guidelines are a good start.

For more information click the link to HUD's memorandum and/or the digital toolkit called, "Fair Housing for People with Criminal Records" put together by The Fair Housing Center for Rights & Research a not-for-profit fair housing agency that promotes equal housing opportunities and positive race relations in Northeast Ohio.

Lila Hackett    

News You Can Use - May 19, 2022

Mental Health Awareness Day is TODAY, May 19 

• Nearly 40 community partners will join the City of Birmingham, Nurture of Alabama and BWell Bhm in Linn Park on Friday, May 19 for Mental Health Day, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. This email contains flyers about the event and a resource guide, which has a list of vendors and speakers. 

• Counselors, partners and mental health specialists will help people with questions on grief support; practicing work-life balance, coping with trauma, addressing addiction, importance of self-care, helping loved ones with their own mental health and more. 

• There will also be:  

• Cherie May Edwards of Work In Progress will offer confidential depression screenings attendees can do on their cell phones. Once you’ve finished the survey, you can consult with Edwards on next steps.  

• Free chair massages  

• Free blood pressure checks and mental health wellness suggestions at the Brownstone Clinic table   

• Deep breathing exercises with Jamella Stroud  

• Low-impact exercises with fitness instructor Christine Law (These type exercises can be done in work clothes.) 

• Line dancing with the Sixth Avenue Sliders at 1 p.m.  

• Yoga  

• UAB will be collecting survey data from caregivers of children, ages 11 to 16 years old. This is an optional survey. (See Cheer flyer for details.) 

• The Birmingham Public Library’s book mobile  

• Free hand sanitizer, gloves and masks, while supplies last, at the city’s HR table  

• The Live HealthSmartAL Mobile Market will have fresh produce and pantry staples to help support good nutrition, prevention and wellness from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. 

• A visit around 12:30 p.m. from the Birmingham Bulls Hockey mascot, Toro.  

• The following food trucks are slated to participate on May 19 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.:   

• Terrific Treatz 

• Kuntri Kitchen 

• Fat Charles 

• Jolly Cakes 

• Nawlins Style Po Boys 

• Hollywood Grille 

• Lil Bougie 

• Cake’s Southern Fried Eats 

• Lemonade Junkeez 

• Lily and Daisy Bakery 

• Snowie Shaved Ice 

• Ice Junkie  

• The Recipe 

• Susta’s Food Truck 

• Coco Crabs 

• Not Ya Average Leaf 

• Treats So Sweet  

• Aww Shucks 

• Travis  

Plan to attend the Birmingham Police Department’s Car Show 

• Come see modern, vintage and tribute police cars. Saturday, May 20, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at 1st Ave. South between 14th and 16th Streets in front of Railroad Park. See the attached flyer for details. 

Check out the Birmingham Cashflow Convo 

• Attend a financial literacy course and get an opportunity to become an entrepreneur. This is a free event and open to the public. Hosted by Brian Beane, a multimillionaire and investor. Saturday, May 20 at 9029 4th Ave. South. See attached for details. 

Learn more about People Saving Places 

• It’s Historic Preservation Month. Join the City of Birmingham's Department of Planning, Engineering, and Permits for a series of activities. All events start at 12 noon. 

• Historic Preservation Education Lecture Series 

• Tuesday, May 23: Historic Preservation Tax Incentives, Boutwell Auditorium 

• Tuesday, May 30: Birmingham's New Adaptive Reuse Incentive for Historic Buildings, Birmingham Public Library, Arrington Auditorium (Enter through main library, 3rd floor skywalk) 

• For more information, please contact Hannah Garmon, Historic Preservation Manager, at 205-254-2424 or Hannah.Garmon@birminghamal.gov. You can also reach Karla Calvert, Urban Design Administrator, at 205-254-2479 or Karla.Calvert@birminghamal.gov. 

Community feedback needed 

• Come out to the Birmingham Family Fun Center Community Engagement Session. Share your feedback. Wednesday, May 24 at 6 p.m. at Birmingham CrossPlex. See attached. 

Get helpful life tips at weekly lunch and learn series 

• Birmingham Credit Union is hosting the following May events each week from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Lunch is provided. It’s free for members and $10 for non-members.  

• How to Navigate Your Credit Union, Wednesday, May 24 

• How to Navigate Family Court, Wednesday, May 31 

• The events will be held at 2725 35th Ave. North. See the attached flyers for details.   

Experience Community Conversations with the McWane Center 

• Come out to a free community conversations event that is open to any individual high school-aged through adult who wants to participate in conversations about community health and barriers to crucial health screenings. Tuesday, May 23 at 6 p.m. Dinner will be served. See attached flyer for details.  

Upcoming events at Arlington House food events coming soon 

• The Arlington Historic House has a series of upcoming food events starting Thursday, May 25. Enjoy Thursdays at Arlington, Fish Fry Fridays and Soul Food Saturdays. Check out the attached flyer for details.  

• An Interactive Ghost Hunt and Paranormal Investigation is taking place at Arlington House this Saturday night, May 20 at 7 p.m. with Southern Ghost Girls! For further details and tickets, go to https://southernghostgirls.com/events.  

• Please find attached a flyer for Arlington’s upcoming grab-and-go food events (just call (205) 780-5656 to order) – and a photograph of their t-shirts which are now available at $25 for short sleeve and $30 for long sleeve! 

Southern Museum of Flight hosts free family fun day 

• Enjoy food trucks, games, an antique car show cruise in and more at the Southern Museum of Flight. Saturday, June 3 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information, see the attached flyer. 

Birmingham youth are invited to gather for a summit 

• Back to the Basics: A Youth Summit is Saturday, June 3 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Legion Field. There will be peer panels, employment opportunities, food trucks and more. See the attached flyer for details.  
   

It's time for the fishing rodeo 

• Come out to the fishing rodeo on Saturday, June 10 from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. at East Lake Park. There will be lots of fish, vendors, food trucks, free live bait, and giveaways. See attached flyer for more details.  

Stay updated regarding the Forging Justice 60th Commemoration 

• All year long, the City of Birmingham is commemorating the heroic acts of our citizens during the 1963 civil and human rights campaign. May is themed “Daring to Dream” and focuses on children and youth of the movement. There are free May posters on the first floor of City Hall. Check out this calendar for details regarding upcoming events: birminghamal.gov/forging justice. 

End-Of-Year Fiscal Inventory coming; be prepared for closures  

• Please note upcoming closings for Purchasing warehouses and Equipment Management 

• Central Stores Warehouse Closed: Friday, June 9 at 11 a.m. & Monday, June 12 - Tuesday, June 13. Make sure all department material needs and requisitions are entered into the system no later than Thursday, June 8 to ensure orders are filled, pulled and ready for pickup before 11 a.m. on Friday, June 9. You will be notified via phone or e-mail when your order is ready so make plans to pick up ordered items. The warehouse will re-open Wednesday, June 14 at 7 a.m.  

• Maintenance Warehouse (Coke Building) Closed: Wednesday, June 14 at 11 a.m. – Friday, June 16. Make sure all department material needs and requisitions are entered into the system no later than Tuesday, June 13 to ensure orders are filled, pulled and ready for pickup before 11 a.m. on Wednesday, June 14. You will be notified via phone or e-mail when your order is ready so make plans to pick up ordered items. The warehouse will re-open on Tuesday, June 20 at 7 a.m. 

• Purchasing Storeroom (Office Supplies & Paper) Closed: Tuesday, June 20. Make sure all department material needs and requisitions are entered into the system no later than Thursday, June 15 to ensure orders are filled, pulled and ready for pickup or delivery before 2 p.m. on Friday, June 16. The warehouse will re-open on Wednesday, June 21 at 8 a.m.  

• Equipment Management – Garage Closed: Monday, June 26 – Tuesday, June 27 until 1 p.m. Make sure your departmental needs are taken care of prior to Friday, June 23rd to ensure you are not without fuel.  

• The last day to enter Print Shop and warehouse requisitions in the current fiscal year is Wednesday, May 31. 

Submit your news to marie.sutton@birminghamal.gov. 

White House IGA Newsletter 2/19

New Data Show 8.2 Million Fewer Americans Struggling with Medical Debt Under the Biden-⁠Harris Administration

The Administration’s work to strengthen the Affordable Care Act along with new consumer protections lead to continued progress reducing the burden of medical debt.

This week, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a new report that shows that the number of Americans with medical debt on their credit reports fell by 8.2 million from the first quarter of 2020 to the first quarter of 2022. This week's report is consistent with a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that found that the number of Americans who are part of families having trouble paying their medical bills declined by 5.5 million between 2020 and 2021. One driver of these declines is the significant increase in the number of insured Americans over this period, a result of the President’s strategy of protecting and strengthening the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and lowering health care costs. The decline also reflects continued actions by the CFPB to highlight problems with inaccurate reporting of debt in collections and put the industry on notice to correct their behavior.

The new data also underscore the importance of the Biden-Harris Administration’s government-wide initiative to reduce the burden of medical debt. Following the Vice President’s April 2022 announcement, medical debt was directly relieved for many low-income Americans. And, informed by research showing that medical debt is not a reliable predictor of financial health, federal agencies are working to eliminate the use of medical debt to assess creditworthiness for participation in government lending programs.

These reductions in medical debt will provide real benefits to many Americans. Reducing medical debt directly impacts household finances by improving credit scores and access to credit. And research shows that households that have their medical debt relieved see improvements in access to medical care, and in physical and mental health outcomes. Since medical debt is disproportionally held among low-income communities, reductions in the burden of medical debt helps advance financial and health equity.

The CFPB report also shows that medical debt still accounts for more than 50% of debt in collections tradelines, exceeding the number of debt in collections tradelines from all other sources combined, including credit cards, personal loans, utilities, and phone bills. Getting sick or taking care of loved ones should not mean financial hardship for American families. That is why the Administration has—and will continue—to take action to ease the burden of medical debt and protect consumers from predatory collection practices.

Full Fact Sheet on Reducing the Burden of Medical Debt 

This week, the Biden-Harris Administration announced its latest set of actions aimed at creating a convenient, reliable and Made-in-America electric vehicle (EV) charging network so that the great American road trip can be electrified.  These steps will help the United States meet President Biden’s ambitious goals to confront the climate crisis, by building a national network of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers along America’s highways and in our communities and have EVs make up at least 50% of new car sales by 2030, all while advancing an industrial strategy to continue to build-out the domestic EV and EV charging industry. The path to net-zero emissions by 2050 is creating good-paying manufacturing and installation jobs on the way.   

President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests $7.5 billion in EV charging, $10 billion in clean transportation, and over $7 billion in EV battery components, critical minerals, and materials. These flagship programs complement the Inflation Reduction Act’s landmark support for advanced batteries and new and expanded tax credits for purchases of EVs and to support installations of charging infrastructure, as well as dozens of other federal initiatives designed to drive domestic manufacturing and build a national network of EV charging. The result is that the future of American transportation is on track to be cleaner, safer, more affordable, and more reliable than ever before. This week's announcements are a further demonstration of the President’s successful industrial strategy, ensuring that the clean energy transition is powered by American manufacturing and good-paying union jobs. 

Because of President Biden’s leadership and record federal investment, EV sales have tripled and the number of publicly available charging ports has grown by at least 40% since he took office. There are now more than three million EVs on the road and over 130,000 public chargers across the country. Further accelerating the buildout of a convenient, reliable charging network is critically important to make electric vehicle charging a seamless experience. This week, companies including Tesla, General Motors, EVgo, Pilot, Hertz and bp, among others, are announcing new commitments to expand their networks by thousands of public charging ports in the next two years, using private funds to complement federal dollars and putting the nation’s EV charging goals even closer within reach.  

These announcements build on the well over $100 billion that the private sector has invested in electric vehicle, battery, and EV charging manufacturing in the United States to date. This week's announcements are evidence of the President’s successful industrial strategy, ensuring that federal funds are attracting private investment to ensure the clean energy transition is powered by American manufacturing and good-paying union jobs. Combined with investments in battery manufacturing and tax credits for electric vehicle purchases and charging infrastructure driven by the Inflation Reduction Act, these programs are key to achieving the Administration’s climate goals.

Full Fact Sheet on New Standards and Major Progress for a National Network of Electric Vehicle Chargers

Biden Boom Continues: Another Week of Massive Private Sector Investments in American Manufacturing

This week, we saw more evidence that an American manufacturing boom—thanks to the President’s economic agenda—continues to take hold all across the country.

1. Boeing announced one of the largest orders in the company’s history: a purchase of over 200 aircraft through an agreement between Air India and Boeing valued at $34 billion at list price. The purchase will support over one million American jobs across 44 states, and many of those jobs won’t require a four year degree.

2. Ford announced it will build a $3.5 billion factory in Marshall, Michigan that will employ at least 2,500 workers to make advanced batteries for electric vehicles.

3. Texas Instruments announced it would build a new, $11 billion semiconductor plant in Lehi, Utah. manufacturing in Utah.

These investments—which build on the hundreds of billions of dollars in private investment announced since President Biden took office—will lead to good-paying jobs that American can raise a family on, the revitalization of entire communities that have often been left behind, and America leading the world again in the industries that drive the future.

As President Biden often asks, “Where is it written that the United States of America can’t be the manufacturing capital of the world?”

President Biden Addresses America’s County Officials at the 2023 National Association of Counties (NACo) Legislative Conference

This week, President Biden addressed nearly 2,000 elected and appointed county officials at the 2023 National Association of Counties (NACo) Legislative Conference for the second year in a row. President Biden referenced his roots as a former county official for New Castle County and spoke about his economic plan and the importance of the passage of the American Rescue Plan Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act and the Inflation Reduction Act. He highlighted the $65.1 billion in direct funding from the American Rescue Plan that was allocated to counties, citing Ramsey County in Minnesota, Los Angeles County in California, Travis County in Texas, and Pierce County in Washington as examples of the program’s success.
 
During the President’s remarks, which happened to fall on the five-year anniversary of the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, he also took time to acknowledge the Michigan State University tragedy, once again calling on Congress to enact commonsense gun law reforms.
 
Remarks by President Biden at the National Association of Counties (NACo) Conference
 
The day before, White House ARP Implementation Coordinator Gene Sperling, White House Infrastructure Coordinator Mitch Landrieu, and John Podesta, Senior Advisor to the President for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation, participated in a panel moderated by NACo President Denise Winfrey to discuss the implementation of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP), Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
 
Read NACo’s Press Release about the Panel
 
Other speakers at this year’s NACo Conference included Department of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra, Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President and Director of the White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs.

Biden-⁠Harris Administration Deploys Additional Federal Resources to East Palestine, Ohio

The Biden-Harris Administration has mobilized a robust, multi-agency effort to support the people of East Palestine, Ohio.

Within hours of the Norfolk Southern train derailment, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) deployed a team to East Palestine to support state and local emergency and environmental response efforts. The Department of Transportation (DOT) also arrived on scene to investigate what led to the derailment. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been closely coordinating with the emergency operations center, Ohio Emergency Management Agency, and Federal partners.

As President Biden told Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro soon after the derailment, the Federal Government stands ready to provide any additional federal assistance the states may need. This week, in response to Governor DeWine’s and the Ohio congressional delegation’s request on February 16 for additional federal public health support, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced they are deploying a team of medical personnel and toxicologists to conduct public health testing and assessments. The team will support Federal, state, and local officials already on the ground to evaluate individuals who were exposed or potentially exposed to chemicals and help ensure timely communications to the public.

The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to supporting the people of East Palestine every step of the way, and holding Norfolk Southern accountable. Each Federal agency is playing its unique role in this task.

Full Fact Sheet on Biden-⁠Harris Administration Resources Deployed to East Palestine, Ohio

President Biden Signs Executive Order to Strengthen Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Across the Federal Government

On his first day in office, President Biden signed Executive Order 13985, Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. That Order emphasized the enormous human costs of systemic racism and persistent poverty, and provided a powerful and unprecedented mandate for all federal agencies to launch a whole-of-government approach to equity. Over the past two years, agencies have taken historic steps toward ensuring that federal programs are serving the American people in an equitable and just manner and supporting communities that have been locked out of opportunity. Through the implementation of landmark legislation and historic executive action, the Biden-Harris Administration is working to make real the promise of America for everyone—including rural communities, communities of color, Tribal communities, LGBTQI+ individuals, people with disabilities, women and girls, and communities impacted by persistent poverty.

Despite the meaningful progress that the Biden-Harris Administration has made, the reality is that underserved communities—many of whom have endured generations of discrimination and disinvestment—still confront unacceptable barriers to equal opportunity and the American Dream.  It is imperative that we reject the narrow, cramped view of American opportunity as a zero-sum game. When any segment of society is denied the full promise of America, our entire Nation is held back. But when we lift each other up, we are all lifted up. As the President has said: “Advancing equity is not a one-year project. It’s a generational commitment.”  

To strengthen the federal government’s ability to address the barriers that underserved communities continue to face, today, President Biden signed a new Executive Order, Further Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government. This second Order reaffirms the Administration’s commitment to deliver equity and build an America in which all can participate, prosper, and reach their full potential.

Full Fact Sheet on President Biden's Executive Order to Strengthen Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Across the Federal Government

Councilor Hunter Williams meets with Senator Shelby, presents resolution honoring his years in public service

Press Release 

December 7th, 2022

Today, Councilor Hunter Williams, who chairs the Council's Economic Development and Tourism Committee, met with U.S. Senator Richard Shelby to present him with a resolution that the Birmingham City Council passed in November honoring his storied career and legacy. Senator Shelby has represented the people of Alabama since he was first elected in 1986.

Throughout his time in office, Senator Shelby created appropriations that have had a tremendous impact on the economic development of Birmingham and Central Alabama.

Most recently, Senator Shelby has served as Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. In 2021, Senator Shelby announced he would not be seeking reelection and is now being succeeded by his former Chief of Staff, Katie Britt, who was recently elected to the seat.

Councilor Williams was joined by U.S. Congresswoman Terri Sewell to present the resolution and discuss bipartisan efforts to secure upcoming legislation that will benefit Alabama residents – such as the omnibus bill that Congress is currently negotiating.

“It’s hard to imagine what Birmingham would look like today without Senator Shelby’s vision with regards to major economic development opportunities for the state of Alabama,” Councilor Williams said. “Today’s conversation with Senator Shelby and Congresswoman Sewell proves that bipartisanship is not only possible, but a necessary function of our democracy. Alabama residents want to see results and that requires both sides of the aisle working together, and today I was encouraged by what we were able to accomplish on that front.”