May. 07, 2025

It's National Tourism Day.

And that's great, it really is. But when is National Locals Day? Somebody's out there waiting tables, fixing highways, driving beer trucks and pulling over drunk drivers so the rest of us can be happy tourists.

So this National Tourism Day, here's to the tourist-town folks who are just staying home and getting it done.

Thanks for reading,

Ike

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The Alabama Legislature has given final approval to a bill that would regulate and tax the sale of the gummies, drinks, vapes and other products with psychoactive chemicals derived from hemp, reports AL.com's Mike Cason.

It passed the Alabama Senate 19-13.

Hemp is a legal form of the marijuana plant. The chemicals do include THC and CBD.

State Sen. Tim Melson, a Florence Republican, handled the bill in the Senate. Supporters complained that the products sold in the stores were unsafe and unregulated.

Regulatory control falls under the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, which will license manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers. Manufacturers and wholesalers will pay a 7% tax on gross sales. That revenue will be divided among the city, county and state.

The bill restricts serving sizes and requires the products to be in child-resistant containers and not have packaging that appeals to minors.

If Gov. Kay Ivey signs the bill into law, it will take effect Jan. 1.

A longtime Mobile TV meteorologist has passed away, reports AL.com's Heather Gann.

John Edd Thompson was at WALA FOX10 for 32 years before retiring in 2009. That's enough Gulf Coast history to span hurricanes Frederic, Ivan and Katrina.

He lost his Dauphin Island home to Katrina -- and he said he found out it had been destroyed while viewing aerial photos while on the air.

He said "Basically, since we were on the air I just kind of gulped and kept going."

You know a pro when you see one.

FOX10 also credited him as a "driving force" behind the Frank Brown songwriters festival in Gulf Shores.

John Edd Thompson was 82 years old.

Demolition is underway on Oak Mountain Amphitheater in Pelham, reports AL.com's Patrick Darrington.

Music bands and artists have been playing and jamming and picking there since 1986.

The City of Pelham, which bought the amphitheater and surrounding 43 acres for $5.3 million, has big plans for the site. It wants to use the property to grow the town's arts and entertainment district. That includes retail and dining and entertainment spots in hopes of bringing in some tourism.

The amphitheater's previous owner was Live Nation Entertainment. Live Nation pulled out of Pelham and is set to open the brand-new Coca Cola Amphitheater in Birmingham. Comedian Matt Rife will work the venue June 22. Then there will be a run of four music acts in five days from June 24-28: Dave Matthews Band, Def Leppard, Thomas Rhett and Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit.

The STAR ID deadline is upon us, reports AL.com's Heather Gann. That means, starting today, your Alabama driver license doesn't clear you to board a commercial flight unless it has that gold star in the upper-left corner.

If you don't have one, there are other IDs that TSA will accept. Those include an up-to-date passport, Department of Defense ID, Permanent resident card and several others.

For now, officials are saying that if your photo ID isn't compliant, you still might to be able to make your flight but that it will likely involve "enhanced screening."

As fun as that sounds, we recommend acquiring your STAR ID as soon as possible and avoid the swabbings and pat-downs. Apply at an ALEA Driver License exam office. You'll need four documents to verify your identity, date of birth, Social Security number and home address.

However you're trying to board, just make sure you hit the TSA's web page and know exactly what you need before you go.

“Coach Saban and Trump’s eleventh-hour talks of executive orders and other meddling are just more unneeded self-involvement. College athletes are spearheading historic changes and benefitting massively from NIL deals. They don’t need this unmerited interference from a coach only seeking to protect the system that made him tens of millions.”

Steve Berman of the law firm Hagens Berman, which represents players in a pending $2.78 billion settlement over the NCAA's denying player endorsement deals going back to 2016.

2%

That'll be the state sales tax on food items if the governor signs a bill that received final passage Tuesday. That would mean the state has cut its portion of the sales tax on food in half since 2023.

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