Chambliss says General Reserve Fund will foster relief, accountability

State Sen. Clyde Chambliss.

The Alabama Senate this week passed a bill sponsored by Sen. Clyde Chambliss (R-Prattville) that would utilize unused appropriations to build an emergency reserve in the state’s General Fund, the budget for all non-education state agencies including Medicaid, the Department of Corrections, and state troopers.

Senate Bill 126, which passed 27-4 and goes to the House of Representatives for consideration, would give 80 percent of unused appropriations back to the agencies they came from and 20 percent would go to the reserve fund to be used for state emergencies and natural disasters not covered by federal aid.