The Cullman County Legislative Delegation assembled at Stonebridge Farms on Friday, Feb. 14, for its annual State of the State: Legislative Community Luncheon Preview, hosted by the Cullman Area Chamber of Commerce.

Senator Garlan Gudger (R-4th District) was joined alongside Representatives Randall Shedd (R-11th District), Cory Harbison (R-12th District) and Tim Wadsworth (R-14th District) to discuss the state’s legislative session agenda and its possible impact on the residents of Cullman.

“I’ve been in meetings for what feels like my whole life, and sometimes when you walk into a meeting there’s no one there … that’s clearly not the case here,” Gudger told The Cullman Times after the hour-and-a-half long event concluded. “It’s just amazing to be able to walk into this community, because they know that their participation and their voice matters. That’s why hundreds of people, from local elected officials to small business owners, showed up here today. They are who we are accountable to when we are doing our jobs in Montgomery, because they sent us there, so it means a lot that they took the time out of their day to hear from us.”

The significant amount of attendees at this year’s luncheon may have been caused by Gudger’s appearance: He recently stepped into his first year as the leader of the Alabama Senate after being selected as Senate President Pro Tempore by his fellow GOP senators in December 2024.

“Seven months ago I had a bad accident that could have paralyzed me for the rest of my life,” Gudger said. “Because of that accident, my mindset changed on what I could accomplish at the State House with these extra days God has given me. Those senators have entrusted me with the power to cast the vision for where I want to see Alabama go moving forward. Being able to be at this elevated position does mean a lot more responsibilities, so I’m no longer just looking after my district — but all of the districts in the state.”

Gudger said that in this new leadership role he will be constantly on the road with Governor Kay Ivey and Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter. He emphasized that because of this nomadic lifestyle he wanted to bring someone on his staff he could trust with overseeing his district while he was away.

On Wednesday, Feb. 12, Gudger announced that Shedd was hired as his office’s director of constituent affairs. Shedd said that Thursday, Feb. 13, was his last day on the House floor. His resignation officially took into effect this Monday, and he said that a special election will be held to fill the open seat in the State’s House of Representatives.

“When Sen. Gudger, who is now the second most powerful person in the state, told me his vision for the future of Alabama … I knew I wanted to be a part of it,” Shedd said. “When he invited me to be a part of his team I gladly accepted. It’s been a great honor to serve the people of Cullman, but I look forward to working with Gudger in this next chapter of my life. He has great things in plan for Alabama, so I can’t wait to help him out in any way I can.”

Garlan Gudger — Senate President Pro Tempore 

After answering questions on his new position and the addition of Shedd to his staff, Gudger talked about a bill that he is helping spearhead that would initiate stricter laws on the sale of vapes and e-cigarettes.

“Throughout our city, and throughout the whole state, these vape products have taken up everything behind the counter — overgrowing the traditional tobacco products in convenience stores,” Gudger said. “There are no taxes or regulations on these products that utilize packaging and flavors that market toward our youth. This bill regulates the sale of these products, taxes them and makes them have to be registered on a state database to be sold.”

Gudger then went into great detail about the creation of two super prisons in the state to combat the overpopulation of prisons in Alabama that he said are currently at 169 percent capacity.

“The federal government is really putting their thumb on us through lawsuits to correct this issue,” Gudger said. “The one going up in Elmore County is almost finished with Phase I of their construction. The other is going to be in Escambia County. A super prison costs about $1.2 billion, and that does not include the operational cost of that. There’s a bill coming up that will give us extra credit to pay for it all, but it is a huge expenditure.”

Randall Shedd — former representative

Shedd chose not to answer many questions due to his new role, but he did talk about successfully carrying a bill through the House that was aimed at improving Alabama’s workforce.

“A lot of this is just now getting organized, but we are in a much better position now than we were when I first got started,” Shedd said. “I remember back when we had 22 percent unemployment and now it is just reversed. We have continued to improve, we still have a good ways to go, but I know we are going in the right direction.”

Cory Harbison — Representative 

Before Harbison tackled various questions on agenda items for the ongoing legislative session, which officially started Tuesday, Feb. 4, he expressed his respect for Shedd, who he credited for showing him the ropes when he first took office in 2014.

“When I first found out, I didn’t know if I should be happy for him because he upgraded and has done better for himself — or if I should be mad at Garlan for taking him from us in the House,” Harbison humorously said. “It’s been great to work with Randall, I call him Papa and so do my kids. I know he will continue to do great things at this new position.”

Harbinson also swiftly shut down any talk at the luncheon of possibly introducing the lottery to the state in this year’s session.

“Everybody is interested in the lottery and gambling, but from what I have heard so far I’m not sure that’s going to be a topic of discussion in Montgomery this year,” Harbinson said. “That’s something I have been interested in, and I know a lot of people are interested in it as well. I think this will be a tough session, with a lot of changes going on, but we will get through it.”

Tim Wadsworth — representative 

Wadsworth said that this year’s legislative session will have a heavy focus on crime and mental health issues that have impacted the duties of local law enforcement across the state of Alabama.

“These ‘Support the Blue’ laws are very important and I believe that they need to be passed,” Wadsworth said. “A lot of these laws will give them immunity from being attacked for trying to do the right things in their jobs.”

Wadsworth also explained why he did not support The Creating Hope and Opportunity for Our Students’ Education (CHOOSE) Act — which was passed in last year’s legislative session, but will not go into effect until the 2025-2026 school year. The CHOOSE Act Alabama will make refundable income tax credits called Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) available to families in lower income tax brackets, so they can send their children to a school of their choice.

“The reason I didn’t support The CHOOSE Acts was because we don’t have any private schools in Winston County,” Wadsworth, who also represents Winston, Walker and Jefferson County, said. “The funds for The CHOOSE Act will directly affect every county, including the ones who don’t have private schools, which I believe is unfair. I believe the solution to the issue of supporting lower income people or higher income people is to treat everybody the same.”