BIRMINGHAM, AL (WAFF) - A Roman Catholic broadcasting network based in Irondale is suing the Obama administration over its new policy on birth control funding.

EWTN Global Catholic Network filed suit Thursday in Birmingham over the rules. Network president Michael Warsaw said in a statement that the lawsuit is meant to defend Catholics and others from being forced to fund contraception.

[Click here to read lawsuit (PDF)]

Most employers and insurers have to cover birth control free of charge under the nation's new health care law. The administration recently announced that church-related institutions like charities, colleges and hospitals must comply after a one-year grace period.

The decision sparked an outcry from conservative Republicans and religious groups.

A delegation of Democratic members of Congress is set to visit Alabama to hold a hearing on the state's tough new law targeting illegal immigration.

The group of 11 lawmakers plans to hold an ad hoc committee hearing Monday afternoon at Birmingham City Hall.

Mayor William Bell, Jefferson County Sheriff Mike Hale and Birmingham school superintendent Craig Witherspoon are among the officials set to address the congressional delegation. Immigrant rights advocates and illegal immigrants are also set to speak.

U.S. Rep.

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) -

Chanting "no courage, no change" and holding protest signs, activists are stepping up their protests against Alabama's new law clamping down on illegal immigration.

A dozen illegal immigrants planned an act of civil disobedience on Tuesday afternoon at the Alabama Capitol in Montgomery.

Parents and young people are set to deliver a letter to state legislators asking them to tone down their rhetoric over the law.