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Two Alabama House members from opposing parties have filed similar bills seeking to legalize the medical use of marijuana. With the 2012 session to begin Tuesday, Rep. Patricia Todd, D-Birmingham, is again carrying a bill that would allow qualifying patients to possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana if prescribed by a physician. Meanwhile, Rep. K.L. Brown, R-Jacksonville, a funeral home owner who says his sister used marijuana to control pain before her death from breast cancer 25 years ago, has filed a similar bill…

In this week´s print edition of the Birmingham Business Journal, we ran our annual list of the largest Hispanic-owned businesses in Birmingham. Hispanic Employment Labor Pool Inc. came in No. 1 again this year with 60 employees. But in the course of compiling this list, I heard stories about Hispanic businesses and the struggles they’ve faced in the months after Alabama’s controversial immigration legislation was signed into law. You can read more about those challenges in the story I wrote for this week’s print edition.

Medical real estate is a hot item for some commercial brokerage firms right now, and Birmingham-based Shannon Waltchack LLC is hoping to get a piece of the action. The company recently bought a 10,400-square-foot, class-B medical office building at Shelby Baptist Medical Center from Alabaster Dental Associates for $530,000, or $50.96 per square foot, and plan a $250,000 renovation. The two-story building, which was built in 1980 and renovated in 2003, was originally listed at $800,000. Aliant Bank is financing the deal, which bumps up Shannon Waltchack´s medical portfolio to 150,000 square feet, including the second, 20,000-square-foot office building it already owns at Shelby Baptist…

A lawsuit filed by a former employee claims BBVA Compass failed to give legally required overtime pay to its mortgage banking officers. The lawsuit was filed in Texas on Thursday by Kevin Vaughan, who is being represented by Rowdy Meeks Legal Group LLC and Lee & Braziel LLP, on behalf of himself and all other current and former mortgage banking officers and other similar mortgage origination jobs employed by BBVA Compass since Feb. 2, 2009. In the suit, the plaintiff claims that the Birmingham-based bank paid mortgage banking officers on a commission basis and didn´t pay overtime pay for the hours worked in excess of 40 hours per week…

Yesterday, we reported on the groundbreaking ceremony at the new ballpark in downtown Birmingham. As we reported, it was unveiled at the ceremony that Regions Financial Corp. (NYSE: RF) will sponsor the $64 million park, which will be home to the Birmingham Barons when it opens in 2013. Use the slideshow on the right to check out photos from the event.

Alabama Gives Day, the Feb. 2 event to raise money for Alabama nonprofits, raised more than $743,000 for state organizations, according to the event’s website. More than 8,400 donors and 900 nonprofit organizations participated in the event. According to the website, Birmingham’s Restoration Academy was given the most money ($54,528), followed by Marion Military Institute Foundation Inc. ($12,800) and Ronald McDonald House Charities of Alabama ($11,806).

Ship captains in Mobile are the highest earners among Alabama’s transportation workers. According to a new review of Bureau of Labor Statistics data by On Numbers, ship captains, mates and water vessel pilots earn an average of $87,950 per year. Commercial air pilots in Montgomery ($82,590) and Birmingham ($81,400) are the next highest earners. Transportation inspectors in Birmingham ($78,750) have the fourth highest salaries, followed by air pilots in Mobile ($73,360). You can click here for the full report from On Numbers.

Medical Properties Trust Inc. today said it would offer $200 million in senior shares in another move to finance the planned acquisition of Ernest Health Inc. The Birmingham-based company (NYSE: MPW) said it will offer the notes at an as-yet undisclosed time through its operating partnership, MPT Operating Partnership LP, and a subsidiary, MPT Finance Corp. In addition to the acquisition of Ernest Health, which was announced Jan. 31, the company said the offering would be used for debt repayment, future acquisitions and investments, among other things…

A $15,000, 30-day contract to turn debris from the January 23 tornado into wood chips was approved by the city of Center Point on Thursday. According to the Birmingham News, H & H Line Clearing of Gadsden was awarded the contract at an emergency called meeting. City council members also authorized Mayor Tom Henderson to begin seeking proposals for tornado debris removal.

A $122 million contract to install and sustain Counter-Rocket, Artillery and Mortar (C-RAM) systems at bases in Iraq and Afghanistan has been awarded to Northrop Grumman. According to the Huntsville Times, the contract includes options that could raise the value of the contract to $311 million. Officials said the C-RAM system, which first went into the field more than six years ago, provides early warning of incoming indirect fire.

Republican Governor Rick Snyder wants to attract talented foreigners he sees as crucial to the economy

Eligibility checks of workers under the government’s E-Verify program are hurting small business

Small companies have increased their share of goods sold abroad in the two years since President Obama set a goal to double exports by 2015

More companies are assessing the true cost of outsourcing

Smarting from poor returns in the markets, ultrawealthy individuals plan to increase their investments in small businesses

A TSA inspection helped Julie Macklowe switch careers from hedge fund manager to entrepreneur, selling luxury, travel-friendly toiletry kits

Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) — Demand for business loans increased in the fourth quarter as economic growth accelerated, according to a Federal Reserve survey of senior loan officers at banks. Seventeen of 56 banks reported stronger demand among companies with $50 million in annual sales or more, according to the survey, while six reported weaker demand. Loan demand among small businesses increased by the most in any quarter since 2005. Michael McKee reports on Bloomberg Television’s "Bottom Line."

Smarting from poor returns in the markets, ultrawealthy individuals plan to increase their investments in small businesses

Idan Ofer, chairman of Better Place, a U.S. startup developing charging stations for electric vehicles, discussess the outlook for the electric car market

Mickey Mouse can finally grow that goatee he’s always wanted. Until now, Disney parks and resort employees had been prohibited from growing beards and goatees. Starting Friday they may do so, so long as they’re a quarter-inch or shorter.

This year the end of the holidays probably didn’t bring the usual stress relief; there are still worries about unemployment, a flailing housing market, and a volatile stock market, all of which may be taking a toll on your health.

The New York attorney general sued some of the nation’s biggest banks on Friday, accusing them of unlawful and deceptive practices for relying on a private electronic registry that tracks mortgages.

Micron CEO and chairman Steve Appleton died Friday morning in a small-plane crash in Boise.

The unemployment rate for blacks fell more than 2 percentage points last month to its lowest level since March 2009.

Facebook has finally filed for an IPO, but it likely won’t start trading for months. For those who can’t wait to gamble on the stock market, bookies are accepting bets.

The strong January jobs report may finally put a nail in the QE3 coffin.

Companies are saying the job market is getting better. Workers are saying it’s already kicked into high gear.

Shares of General Motors and Ford surged on Friday following strong data on the U.S. job market.

Facebook has played a big role in the private trading markets that allow eligible investors the chance to snap up shares of hot Internet companies years before they go public.