PARCA—the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama— works to inform and improve state and local government in Alabama through independent, objective, nonpartisan research. We pursue this work to improve the lives of all Alabamians. This is the legacy given to us by our founder, Governor Albert Brewer.

Independent, objective, nonpartisan research requires speaking the truth and calling a thing by its name.

The killings of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and Rayshard Brooks are a series of brutal acts that have gripped our nation’s consciousness and remind us of the racial motivations of segregation, hate, and discrimination. Sadly, this is nothing new. These Americans are among the most recent to join the tragic company of those who have died because of the color of their skin. This is the legacy of systemic racism, injustice, and inequality. This must change.  

Refusing to see, or worse yet, tolerating racism, injustice, and inequality must end. Responding to racism, injustice, and inequality with silence must end. Policies, intentional or otherwise, that sustain racism, injustice, and inequality must change. Until we see these changes, the promise of liberty and justice for all remains hollow. 

PARCA is committed to doing its part to effect such change. In this spirit:

We condemn attitudes, actions, and policies that sustain racism, injustice, and inequality.

We affirm demands for justice, equality, and fairness for African Americans. These are inalienable rights, not policies to debate.  

We support the right to peaceful protests and condemn all acts of violence. 

We invite all people of goodwill to engage in honest self-reflection, to seek a better understanding of the history of African Americans in Alabama and the United States, and to work toward opportunities for reconciliation.

We implore policymakers and leaders at all levels to seek honest information and hear diverse voices to identify and enact policies that will combat systemic racism.

We remain committed to our cause and mission with a renewed sense of responsibility to these concerns.

We continue to produce independent, objective, and nonpartisan research, equipping citizens and leaders with facts that empower, enlighten, and promote mutual understanding.

We reaffirm PARCA’s fundamental premise: Alabama—and the nation—can always do better.

We stand ready to do our part.

The PARCA Roundtable Class of 2020 was announced in late December. The PARCA Roundtable is a member-based organization of young, civic and business leaders interested in broadening their understanding of state and local government in conjunction with the work of the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama.

The group meets quarterly to discuss a variety of state and community issues in an effort to increase the involvement of its members in seeking solutions to the state’s problems.

New members of the Roundtable are:

Cliff Bell, CBRE Group

Megan Bell, Shipt

JaTaune Bosby, ACLU of Alabama

Will Bryant, Quantalytix, Inc.

Becky Carpenter, Corporate Realty

Whitney Dachelet, Samford University, Cumberland School of Law

Blair Goodgame, St. Clair County Economic Development Council

Matt Hinshaw, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings

Chris McCauley, Tech Alabama

Lydia Messina, Protective Life Corporation

Stephen Pudner, Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz

Christianna Rudder, McKinney Capital

Jack West, EnPower Solutions

Whitney Wright, Athena Collective

“Each year, we receive nominations and applications from some of the best and brightest young civic minds in Alabama, featuring a wide array of backgrounds, industry, and expertise,” says 2019 Roundtable Chair Lee Ann Petty. “We are pleased to welcome our new Roundtable members, and we look forward to an exciting 2020 as we learn more about issues affecting Alabama and support PARCA’s mission of seeking solutions for the betterment of our state and local governments.”

Members are chosen through a nomination process from past and current members as well as the PARCA Board of Directors, based on their demonstration of leadership both professionally and in their community.

Join us for an uproarious night of musical political satire with The Capitol Steps, benefiting the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 27 AT 7:30 P.M. AT BIRMINGHAM’S HISTORIC LYRIC THEATRE

Reserve your seats here!

At PARCA, working to inform and improve government in Alabama is serious work—and we’ve been doing it for almost 30 years. But sometimes you just need to laugh.

Cue The Capitol Steps!

The Capitol Steps have elevated political satire to an art form. Before The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and features on NBC, CBS, ABC, PBS and NPR, this Washington, DC-based comedy troupe gave audiences laugh cramps with their bipartisan lampooning. The Capitol Steps began in 1981 as a group of Senate staffers who set out to satirize their employers, and haven’t let up with their hilarious skits and musical comedy. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Republican or Democrat, neither side is safe from the group that puts the “MOCK” in Democracy!

Seats are available at three levels:

• Balcony – General Admission ($50)
• Floor Level – General Admission ($75)
• Preferred Floor Seating & Pre-Show Reception ($100)

This past Wednesday, May 16^th, PARCA held a 2018 Gubernatorial Candidate Forum at Woodrow Hall in Birmingham. The event was hosted by the PARCA Roundtable, PARCA’s young professionals’ group of 28 to 45-year-old civic and business leaders. It was a great opportunity for Democrat and Republican candidates to come together and express ideas in a nonpartisan environment prior to the June 5th primary election.

Participating candidates included Tommy Battle, Sue Bell Cobb, Scott Dawson, James Fields, Bill Hightower and Walt Maddox.

The forum featured one-on-one conversations with each candidate. The six conversations were led by PARCA Roundtable members Victoria Hollis, Peter Jones, and Kendra Key, young professional civic leaders Anthony Hood and Bridgett King, and WBHM News Director Gigi Douban.

A number of the questions specifically addressed the concerns of young professionals. Candidates were also asked about many of the issues most important to voters, as reported in PARCA’s recent Alabama Priorities. At the end of the event, all six candidates came to the stage for questions from the audience of around 135.

Some of the main ideas expressed throughout the evening focused on education, taxes, workforce development, the correctional system and the state’s image.

A collegiality emerged between the candidates throughout the evening, and for a few moments, there were no political parties, only public servants interested in improving the state of Alabama.

The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama and the PARCA Roundtable will be hosting the PARCA Roundtable Legislative Symposium on June 23, 2017 from 7:30 – 9:30 a.m. at The Harbert Center in downtown Birmingham.

The Symposium will be a review of the 2017 Legislative Session by CEOs of major advocacy organizations in Alabama, including:

• A+ Education Partnership
• Alabama Appleseed Center for Law & Justice
• Alabama Arise
• Alabama Education Association
• Alabama Policy Institute
• Alabama Rivers Alliance
• Business Council of Alabama

The panel will be moderated by Don Dailey, News and Public Affairs Director at Alabama Public Television and Host of Capitol Journal.

Tickets for the breakfast event are $25. Register here today!

We at the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama remember our founder, Governor Albert P. Brewer, who died January 2, 2017, at the age of 88. Gov. Brewer was a lifelong champion of equitable, efficient and effective government for Alabama.

Brewer, who had been elected Lieutenant Governor in 1966, took over as governor in 1968 upon the death of Gov. Lurleen Wallace. In an abbreviated term, Brewer gave the state a tantalizing taste of New South leadership, turning away from confrontational racial politics that had dominated the Wallace years and instead championing reform of state government and the improvement of education.

Brewer established by executive order the first state code of ethics. He declined to fill cabinet positions that had been previously occupied by political operatives. He established a state motor pool, cutting the use of personal vehicles for state business, saving $500,000 a year. He centralized the state’s computer systems saving $1 million.

A former Speaker of the Alabama House of Representatives, Brewer took a hands-on approach to legislating, pushing through one of the most consequential education reform packages ever passed in Alabama. It equalized educational appropriations and raised them by over $100 million, increasing teacher salaries more than 20 percent over two years.  He launched a Constitutional reform effort, established the Alabama Commission on Higher Education, and launched the operations of the state’s Medicaid program.

Despite the dynamism of his administration and the surge of hope and optimism it inspired among his supporters, Brewer was defeated in the 1970 election by George Wallace. Wallace unleashed what is widely considered one of the dirtiest campaigns in American political history against Brewer, featuring overtly racist appeals, altered photos, and false personal attacks on Brewer family members. Brewer’s defeat represents one of the great lost opportunities in Alabama history, according to former Decatur Daily Publisher Barrett Shelton, a lifelong friend of Brewer’s.

“Albert Brewer put a face on Alabama that other people respected, governors around the Southeast,” Shelton said. “Had he been elected governor this would have a different state today, far more advanced than it is today.”

After retiring from politics, Brewer remained committed to improving his native state. As an elder statesman, Brewer was often called upon to chair state government reform commissions, including his most recent service on the Constitutional Revision Commission. This November, voters approved four amendments to the Constitution based on recommendations by Commission. The amendments improved procedures for voting on local constitutional amendments, clarified the impeachment process, granted counties the ability to exercise some limited home rule powers, and replaced outdated language in some articles.

Joining the faculty of Samford University’s Cumberland School of Law in 1987, Brewer led the establishment of PARCA, the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama; a good government think tank dedicated to the improvement of Alabama state and local government. Gov. Brewer envisioned that PARCA would become a trusted source of objective information for state and local leaders. He gave his time and passion to make that vision a reality, serving as the PARCA Chairman until 2013 and as Chairman Emeritus until his death.

Gov. Brewer’s death is an enormous loss for the people of Alabama. He was one of the greatest leaders and finest people our state has known. We will miss him and we will honor him by continuing the legacy he left for us.

PARCA’s research reports on education funding, Alabama’s education performance, and plans for its improvement received national recognition by the Governmental Research Association (GRA) at the GRA’s annual conference in Pittsburgh last week.

PARCA received the GRA award for “Outstanding Policy Achievement” on a state government issue for its ongoing work to evaluate the progress of the Alabama’s strategic plan for improving education, Plan 2020. The award was given based on several criteria, including the display of tangible improvements in public policy and/or cost savings resulting from the research and recommendations of a governmental research agency.

PARCA’s research and analysis has helped provide an objective foundation and policy framework for increased investment in key initiatives such as the expansion of the state’s First Class public Pre-K program, for investments in teacher quality, and for more rigorous and thorough assessments of Alabama students’ academic performance.

Senator Arthur Orr, Chairperson of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee remarked on PARCA’s work, “In the Legislature we are constantly bombarded with results-oriented data from special interest groups. I feel confident dealing with the neutral, trustworthy data provided by PARCA. Their work has significantly influenced Alabama’s education policy in a positive manner.”

The award included recognition for three pieces of PARCA’s education research. The first piece was a survey of public opinion published in January 2016 which revealed that Alabama citizens were willing to pay more for education funding. The award also recognized two studies published on Alabama’s education system. Both reports were commissioned and funded by the Business Education Alliance of Alabama.

“The Business and Education Alliance (BEA) has one main goal–To improve public education and build a first class work force for Alabama” said Joe Morton, Ph.D., Chairman and President of BEA. “We immediately turned to PARCA for their expertise and never regretted it.”

Obstacles into Opportunities was published in 2014 and details the steps PARCA identified as necessary for Alabama to meet its goal of a 90% high school graduation rate by 2020, having those graduates prepared for the modern economy. The second report, Teachers Matter, was published in 2015. It examines how to create and retain high quality teachers.

This is the 10^th national award that PARCA has received from the GRA, which was founded in 1914 as the national organization of individuals involved in government research. GRA’s annual awards competition is conducted to “recognize exceptional research on state and local governmental issues performed by staff members of governmental research agencies.”

PARCA’s retired executive director Jim Williams was also honored at the GRA annual conference. He received the 2016 Frederick P. Gruenberg Award. The Gruenberg Award is the highest distinction that the GRA can bestow on individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the field of governmental research during their careers. Jim’s work over the course of his 27-years at PARCA had a substantial impact on Alabama’s governmental practices and policy.

Jim Williams, who has served as PARCA’s executive director since its founding, plans to step down from that position later this year after 27 years of dedicated service. PARCA’s Board of Directors has begun a search for a successor.

 
Williams’ career in public policy research has spanned 43 years. He was recruited by Governor Albert Brewer and Dr. Tom Corts in 1988 to lead PARCA.  Throughout his tenure, Williams has been the cornerstone of the organization’s unmatched reputation for providing objective information and advocating for efficient, effective, transparent and accountable Alabama government.

“We like to think of ourselves as a good government think tank. We provide research that people and political leaders can use to improve public policy and government operations,” Williams said.

While at PARCA, Williams has guided such initiatives as the Alabama SMART Budgeting program and Alabama Student Test Score Analyses. PARCA regularly publishes research on taxes and spending, on state, county and local governments and on public school finances and operations. The staff has won eight national awards given by the Governmental Research Association for research quality.

In 2008, Williams was named as one of the “40 Most Influential Non-Elected Alabamians” in Thicket Magazine, asserting that he “has become one of the most influential policy people in the state. He has the ear of many in Alabama.”

With the announcement of Williams' retirement, the search has begun for PARCA's new Executive Director.

McKinney Capital is supporting PARCA by providing a Talent Acquisition team to guide PARCA's search for a new executive director.  The job posting can be viewed here. The search committee is focused on finding someone with the leadership skills and track record of impact to advance PARCA’s mission of improving government for the people of Alabama.