John Rogers, a longtime Democrat in the Alabama House of Representatives, has officially resigned from his elected office after pleading guilty to federal felony charges last week.

Rogers resigned in a letter that his lawyer sent to House Speaker Nathaniel Ledbetter on Friday. Clay Redden, spokesman for the House, shared the letter with AL.com today.

In the letter, Rogers, said his resignation was effective two days earlier, on March 15 – the same day he pleaded guilty in a kickback scheme to misuse public money intended for Jefferson County nonprofits. Rogers, 83, represented parts of Birmingham for more than 40 years.

“I, John Westley Rogers, Jr., hereby resign as State Representative for House District 52,” he said in the one-page letter. Rogers did not include any other comments.

He is the second Democratic lawmaker from Jefferson County to resign in the scandal. Last year, former Rep. Fred Plump stepped down after pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of obstruction of justice.

Rogers directed about $400,000 from the Jefferson County Community Service fund to the Piper Davis Youth Baseball League, a nonprofit run by Plump, between 2019 and 2023, per his plea agreement. Plump kicked about $200,000 of that funding back to Rogers and Rogers’ longtime assistant, Varrie Johnson Kindall, per the agreement.

Then, Rogers and Kindall carried out another kickback scheme involving money intended for an unnamed nonprofit in 2019. That group received $10,000 from the fund, and its founder gave $1,800 back to Rogers and Kindall as an “administration fee,” per Rogers’ plea agreement. Rogers previously identified the founder as George Stewart, who leads the American Gospel Quartet Convention.

Last week, a spokesperson for Gov. Kay Ivey’s office told AL.com that they’re working toward a special election announcement to fill Rogers’ seat.

Rogers pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice on Wednesday. He’s also agreed to pay nearly $200,000 to the Jefferson County Community Service Fund as restitution. A federal grand jury first indicted him in September.

Both Rogers’ and Plump’s sentencing dates are scheduled for July 26 in Birmingham before U.S. District Judge L. Scott Coogler.