A bill to expand Alabama law on legal immunity for police officers will pass or die on Wednesday, the final day of the legislative session.

HB202 by Rep. Rex Reynolds, a former Huntsville police chief, is a priority for Gov. Kay Ivey and Republican leaders in the House of Representatives.

It is among the bills that could come up in the Senate on the 30th and final day of the annual session.

Other bills that could pass on the last day would:

• Rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America for state agency purposes.
• Create a scholarship program for children of law enforcement officers.
• Expand restrictions on discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools.
• Make it a crime – human smuggling – to knowingly bring an illegal immigrant into the state with some exceptions, such as for charitable purposes or medical reasons.

Dozens of local bills, those affecting only one county, are also pending on the last day of the session.

Senate President Pro Tem Garlan Gudger, R-Cullman, said local bills would be the priority on the final day but said the police immunity bill could be on the Senate agenda.

“There’s going to probably be some talk about that,” Gudger said when asked about the last day after the Senate adjourned last week. “We’re trying to figure out if that’s going to be on there.”

“As of right now, the local legislation is my main priority, because all politics is local and we want to make sure that we try to take care of our members here and the members in the House,” Gudger said.

HB202 would rewrite the state law on police immunity from criminal prosecutions and from civil lawsuits.

The bill sparked disagreements in public hearings and when the House passed the bill after a three-hour debate in March.

Reynolds and other supporters of the legislation say the legal protections are needed at a time when cities are struggling to hire and retain cops because of concerns that they will be accused of wrongdoing for split-second decisions that sometimes involve life and death.

“To back the blue, we will provide law enforcement with enhanced legal protections that allow them to carry out their duties courageously and effectively – without fear of Monday morning quarterbacking in the courts,” Ivey said during her State of the State address in February.

The bill revises the state law governing use of force by police in making arrests and other circumstances, and says use of force, including deadly force, is justified for actions that fall within the discretionary authority of police and that do not violate constitutional rights.

Democratic lawmakers have opposed the bill and said it would undermine public trust and make it harder to hold bad actors accountable.

Read more: Alabama police immunity bill a ‘green light for Black folks to get killed,’ lawmaker says