The Governor may be calling a special session of the Alabama legislature but lawmakers say this wasn’t the plan. Governor Robert Bentley announced yesterday he would call a special session in Montgomery for Monday. They failed to pass a budget this legislative session. Many lawmakers say they were caught totally off guard. News 5 has confirmed with at least four different lawmakers so far is that there is a different plan Monday.
Both chambers will meet Monday and then recess until August 3rd. State Representative Chris Pringle said the Governor’s call for a special session next week goes against everything Bentley had said in private meetings. The gist of it is the governor told lawmakers they could make summer plans for June and July and he would call them back in late August. The governor is discussing his updated budget proposals just this morning and starting the session Monday gives lawmakers no time to work on it. It’s not clear why Bentley would call a legislative session only to have lawmakers vote to delay it until August.