Confederate Monuments May Be Protected Under State Bill

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) – As some cities make the decision to shed Confederate monuments, some Alabama lawmakers want to prohibit those removals unless legislators say it is OK.

The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee on Tuesday will hold a public hearing on the bill titled the “Alabama Heritage Protection Act.”

The bill would ban the removal of any historic monument, marker or school name from public property unless a waiver is obtained from the Legislative Council, a committee of lawmakers.

Local governments would face a $100,000 fine if they remove an object without a waiver.

The bill doesn’t specify Confederate symbols, but comes after controversy about their display.

The city of Birmingham has explored removing a Confederate memorial from a park. Gov. Robert Bentley last year removed four Confederate flags from the Alabama Capitol.