MONTGOMERY — In 1992, sprinter Derek Redmond qualified for the Olympics with the fastest time in his heat. But when he was close to finishing up his race, Redmond tore his hamstring.
But he didn't quit the race. In one of the most memorable Olympic moments in history, Redmond hobbled to the finish line.
Gov. Robert Bentley, in his annual State of the State Address on Tuesday night, said Alabama can be like Redmond.
"We will finish the race," Bentley said, after using Redmond's race and other athletic events as metaphors throughout his speech.
Despite setbacks, he said, Alabama can become an even greater state.
On Tuesday, Bentley called for new prisons, increased mental health spending, more appropriations for the state's pre-K system and more efforts to mitigate the opioid epidemic in Alabama.
Bentley's calls were part of his Great State 2019 plan, which aims at bettering the lives of Alabamians through improvements to infrastructure, education, health care and criminal justice.
Many of his plans were not new, though.
Last year, Bentley first introduced his plan to build four new "mega prisons" financed with an $800 million bond.
The prisons would replace 14 of Alabama's 17 aging correctional facilities. Three of the prisons would hold upward of 3,500 male inmates. The fourth prison would be a smaller women's prison, which would replace the Julia Tutwiler correctional facility.
“Alabama is about to embark on a complete transformation of the State’s prison system,” Bentley said Tuesday, which was also the start of the 2017 Regular Legislative Session. “The Alabama Prison Transformation Initiative transforms Alabama’s prison system into a national model for the 21st century.”
The prisons are needed, Bentley said, because the State's current prisons are "crumbling" and the extreme costs associated with maintaining them are preventing the state from funding rehabilitation programs to reduce recidivism rates.
In addition to the prisons' bad shape, they're also overcrowded. Alabama's prisons are holding near twice their capacity. Many are at 190 percent capacity.
Bentley's plan, which would cost a total of $1.5 billion after interest payments, would only alleviate a small portion of the overcrowding. He hopes to reduce the overcrowding to 120 percent of capacity.
"We cannot afford to wait any longer to solve this lingering, difficult and deadly problem," Bentley said after citing the death of Corrections Officer Kenneth Bettis, who was killed in a stabbing last summer at Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, as a prime example of the “boiling” tensions and understaffing in Alabama’s prisons.
A bill that would authorize the plan failed during last year's legislative session, but a new version of the bill was filed this morning by Sen. Cam Ward.
Ward and Department of Corrections Commission Jeff Dunn, who originally designed the plan, believe that the new prisons will reduce costs and overcrowding and create a safer environment for both prison workers and prisoners alike.
"If Alabama can put man on the moon, we can build new prisons," Bentley said.
The Senate Judiciary Committee, chaired by Ward, will address the prison reform bill next week and then it will head to the full Senate and then the House.
In addition to the prison bill, which is at the top of the governor's agenda, Bentley also proposed a new infusion of $20 million into the state's pre-kindergarten initiative.
The new money, Bentley hopes, will allow for the continued success of the program, which he said is a model across the nation.
"In study after study, a four-year-old enrolled in one of our high-quality first-class pre-K programs misses fewer school days," he said. "They are much less likely to be retained or held back in higher grades and, most importantly, they are ready for kindergarten."
Rep. Joe Lovvorn, R-Auburn, said the program has been beneficial for Auburn and hopes that the Legislature can find the funds to give the program more money.
"I'm eager to see more of the plan," Lovvorn said. "It is something that is on the priority list. We do have a lot of asks for appropriations coming into the session. I look forward to setting priorities and improving the program any way we can."
Bentley's speech ranged from touting the state's success in recruiting new business like Airbus and General Electric to addressing concerns about the possible repeal of the Affordable Care Act and its effects on the state.
It was Bentley's longest State of the State Address to date, lasting over an hour. He will give one more address next year before his term ends in 2019.
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