State Senator Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, who serves as chairman of the Senate education budget-writing committee, announced on Thursday that he has filed qualification papers to seek a new term representing District 3, which includes Morgan, Madison and Limestone counties.
“Every decision that I make as a legislator is based upon what is in the best interests of my district and the citizens and communities that I swore an oath to serve,” Orr said. “With a new term in the State Senate, we can continue cutting taxes, improving education, bringing road and bridge projects to our area, and creating even more jobs and opportunities in the heart of the Tennessee Valley.”
As chairman of the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee, Orr is responsible for allocating almost $10 billion in annual funding to Alabama’s K-12 public schools, community colleges and public universities, “which has put record amounts of dollars directly into classrooms and significantly improved eduction outcomes across the state,” Orr’s press release stated.
During his current term, Orr passed historic legislation that provided taxpayers with a state income tax rebate totaling $150 for individuals and $300 for joint filers, and he was the Senate sponsor of a bill that removed the state sales tax from diapers, baby formula, baby bottles, baby wipes, breast pumps and maternity clothing.
“He also supported and played a large role in passage of the largest tax cut in Alabama history, which reduced that state sales tax on groceries by half—lowering it from 4 percent to 2 percent—and authorized city and county governments to remove local sales taxes on food items if they choose,” Orr’s release said.
Orr conceived and pushed to passage the K-12 Capital Grant Program, which distributed $179 million to public schools across Alabama in order to fund construction and renovation projects, security upgrades and deferred maintenance needs.
Among the other pieces of legislation he passed is the Move On When Ready program, which allows qualifying high school junior and seniors to enroll full time at eligible community college, the Powering Growth Act that ensures Alabama’s energy production keeps pace with the growing needs that developing technologies demand, and a measure that terminates retirement benefits for teachers and educators found guilty of committing sex crimes against minors.
Employed as an executive vice president at Cook’s Pest Control in Decatur, he has been named on every Yellowhammer News “Power and Influence” list since the outlet’s creation 15 years ago.
Orr said he is active with numerous local non-profits and charities, and he and his wife, Amy, have two children. They are members of Redeemer Presbyterian Church, where he serves as an elder and adult Sunday school class teacher.
