AU Graduate Lobbying for the State
Most college graduates hope to make the world in which they live better somehow by the time they are established. Some live up to this. Some do not. Others like Scott McMillan not only help make their community better, but also their state and the place they got their start.
Scott McMillan is the Senior Legislative Affairs Manager for the governor of Alabama. His job mostly consists of lobbying with the Alabama Senate, which has 35 members, and the House of Representatives, which has 105. In total, he works with 140 of the state’s top government officials, not to mention the governor, Bob Riley.
“I’m the liaison between the governor and the Alabama Legislature,� McMillan said. “I lobby the Legislature on behalf of the governor on initiatives he is in favor of or trying to defeat.�
McMillan, 38, entered the lobbying business just like his father who does the same for different businesses across the country. Originally from Little Rock, Ark., McMillan still works in the town he was raised in since he was two, Montgomery.
“Since most of my family and friends are here in Montgomery, there is no where else I’d rather be,� McMillan said. “Some people might want to move away from the place they have roots, but being able to do exactly what I want and be with my loved ones at the same time couldn’t work out better for me.�
After graduating from high school, he ended up at Auburn. McMillan graduated in 1993 with a major in public administration and a minor in political science. The skills and knowledge he received here have been vital to maintaining his career in politics. Since Auburn gave him a great deal, McMillan is glad he can give back to the university and the state of Alabama as a whole through his public service in the Riley administration.
“Auburn truly is a great university and I am proud to call it my own,� he said. “Being able to help Auburn out financially by working towards benefitting the Alabama Education Trust Fund is my way of repaying this school.�
During Gov. Riley’s first term in office in 2002, the Alabama Education Trust Fund appropriated more than $201 million dollars to Auburn University, according to the Alabama Department of Finance’s Executive Budget Office. That number has now grown to more than $334 million. The governor plays a major role in deciding where the funds should be sent across the state.
“Our main legislative constitutional requirement is to submit to the Legislature a balanced budget,� McMillan explained. “Being that Auburn is a state funded four-year institution, it is the governor’s job to lay the foundation for funding for the university through the Education Trust Fund.�
McMillan said that since Gov. Riley has been in office, the Education Trust Fund has grown from 4.2 billion dollars to more than 6 billion dollars, an increase of over 50%.
“I enjoy being part of a business-like administration that values education and understands the importance of the economic decisions we all need to make knowledgeably,� he said.
Being good at and happy with what you do and making a difference at the same time is difficult to come by in some careers. McMillan was lucky enough to find it all. This Auburn graduate is not only making a name for himself, but helping his Auburn tigers out, too.
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