In 2025, the Levin Center conducted a study of all 50 states to examine how legislatures ensure government programs work effectively for citizens. Factors such as legislative oversight committees, routine engagement with executive agencies, collection of casework data, digital transparency tools, and user-centered policy evaluation were of particular importance. The full report can be found here.
State Summary #
It is difficult to assess the extent to which oversight — much less people-centered oversight — is happening in Alabama because of a lack of clear documentation like meeting minutes or reports. An outside group makes certain committee recordings and transcripts available online, and some of those hearings do include public testimony from individuals affected by programs (as in a 2023 meeting of the Joint Prison Oversight Committee). Still, the Legislature does not provide individual webpages for committees, and it is difficult to find archived material on committee meetings.
There is some evidence of executive agencies’ collecting performance data, although the state’s open data portals are primarily concerned with financial statements and geospatial data rather than general performance data.
