Montgomery Calls Out SB 298 as Unfunded State Mandate That Threatens Local Public Safety Progress

The City of Montgomery is raising urgent concerns over SB 298, legislation introduced by Senator Will Barfoot, calling it an unfunded mandate that imposes unrealistic standards on the city while ignoring the state's own failure to meet those same benchmarks.

City leaders warn that the bill is not a public safety solution, but a state intervention effort that risks undermining local strategies already delivering historic reductions in violent crime, homicides, and nonfatal shootings.

SB 298 Is the Central Issue

At the heart of this legislation is a rigid staffing mandate requiring Montgomery to maintain 2 officers per 1,000 residents. Based on Montgomery's population, that would mean approximately 400 officers.

City officials say the problem is not simply the number itself. The problem is that the state is attempting to impose a standard on Montgomery that it does not meet in its own law enforcement structure.

A Double Standard in Plain View

Under SB 298, Montgomery would be held to a staffing ratio of 2.0 officers per 1,000 residents. By comparison, Alabama's State Trooper staffing level is approximately 0.1 troopers per 1,000 residents.

That is a gap of roughly 20 times.

City leaders say that contrast exposes the core flaw in the legislation: the state is demanding a public safety threshold from Montgomery that it does not achieve for itself.

"SB 298 is not about public safety - it is about control.

This bill imposes an unfunded mandate on Montgomery that the State of Alabama itself fails to meet by a factor of twenty.

You cannot hold cities to a standard you refuse to meet at the state level.

Our police department is delivering real results - violent crime is down, homicides are down, and our community is safer today than it was just a few years ago.

This legislation doesn't support that progress. It puts it at risk."

- Mayor Steven L. Reed

Will Barfoot's Bill Comes Without the Support Needed to Meet It

The City of Montgomery is calling out Senator Will Barfoot directly for advancing legislation that creates a new mandate without providing the funding, staffing pipeline, or operational support necessary to achieve it.

City leaders argue that if Senator Barfoot is serious about public safety, he should first explain why the state believes it can impose a standard on Montgomery that Alabama itself does not meet.

Officials say SB 298 places the full burden on Montgomery while offering no meaningful state-backed solution to the recruitment and retention realities facing law enforcement agencies across Alabama and the nation.

Montgomery's Results Show Local Strategies Are Working

City officials say the most striking feature of SB 298 is that it targets a city already showing measurable public safety progress.

• Violent has declined 57% over a two-year trend.
• Homicides have fallen 78%.
• Nonfatal shootings are down 40%.

Rather than supporting those gains, city leaders say SB 298 threatens to disrupt the local strategies that helped produce them.

SB 298 Fits a Larger Pattern

The City says SB 298 does not stand alone. Instead, it reflects a broader pattern in which Montgomery is expected to do more while being given fewer tools than peer cities and while carrying broader regional obligations.

Blocked Revenue Tools

Montgomery is prohibited from levying an occupational tax, while peer cities such as Birmingham and Gadsden are allowed to use that revenue tool.

• Montgomery: 0% occupational tax (blocked)
• Birmingham: 1%
• Gadsden: 2%

According to the City's analysis, that policy difference costs Montgomery an estimated $15 million to $20 million annually in potential revenue.

City leaders say this matters in the debate over SB 298 because Montgomery is being told to meet a costly state-imposed standard while being denied the very fiscal tools other cities use to support public services.

Regional Burdens, Local Cost

The City is also being asked to help stabilize Jackson Hospital, a regional asset that serves patients from Montgomery and surrounding counties as well as the broader state government community.

• Proposed City commitment: $25 million
• Estimated hidden cost: $7 million in waived city sales taxes and business license fees over five years
• Regional reach: More than 30% of patients live outside city limits

Officials say this is another example of Montgomery being expected to carry a broader burden while the state simultaneously advances unfunded mandates like SB 298.

Changing Revenue Rules Midstream

City leaders also point to proposed changes in the Simplified Sellers Use Tax distribution formula under SB 347 as part of the same larger pressure.

• 2020 Census population: 200,603
• 2025 estimate: approximately 196,000
• Estimated fiscal hit: more than $100,000 annually in lost online tax revenue

Officials say that means Montgomery could be required to absorb new law enforcement mandates under SB 298 at the same time it faces fresh revenue losses elsewhere.

The City's Position

Montgomery is not asking for special treatment.

The City is asking for consistency, fairness, and partnership.

If the state wants to require more from local governments, city leaders say it should provide the funding, authority, and support necessary to meet those expectations. And if the state is unwilling to hold itself to the same standard it seeks to impose on Montgomery, officials say lawmakers should stop pretending SB 298 is about public safety.

Call for Reconsideration

The City of Montgomery is calling on Senator Will Barfoot and members of the Alabama Legislature to reconsider SB 298 and reject legislation that imposes unfunded mandates, applies standards unevenly, and threatens to disrupt measurable progress in public safety.

City leaders say Montgomery should not be singled out for political intervention when the evidence shows local strategies are working.