The House and Senate worked through three legislative days this week, with several bills of note receiving favorable reports in their respective committees:
SB245 by Sen. Sam Givhan – to revise the Alabama Nonprofit Corporation Law – received a favorable report in the Senate Judiciary Committee.
HB77 by Rep. Danny Garrett – to reduce red tape for more than 3,000 small businesses in Alabama – received a favorable report in the Senate Finance and Taxation Education Committee.
SB314 by Sen. Rodger Smitherman and HB378 by Rep. Chip Brown – to provide for the creation of brownfield redevelopment districts – received favorable reports in the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee.
SB292 by Sen. Dan Roberts – to streamline the process for contractors purchasing supplies and materials on certain projects – received a favorable report in the House Ways and Means Education Committee.
SB159 by Sen. Clay Scofield and HB249 by Rep. David Faulkner – to offer additional protections for civil lawsuits against road builders – received favorable reports in the House Transportation, Utilities and Infrastructure Committee.
The House passed legislation on Wednesday that would significantly increase shipping activity throughout Alabama by modifying existing tax incentives for companies who ship goods out of Alabama ports.
Last week, the House passed HB378 to provide for the creation of brownfield redevelopment districts to further provide for the remediation and ultimate reuse of brownfields. The bill received unanimous, bipartisan support on the House floor and was reported favorably out of the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee this week. The Senate companion, SB314, also received a favorable report in the Senate Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development Committee.
The House and Senate have worked through 23 legislative days this session. The legislature will convene on Tuesday for another three-day work week.
This week, Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro) joined the Business Council of Alabama (BCA) as the guest speaker at the Government Affairs Briefing. Leader Singleton applauded the business community for its role in successfully passing premier economic incentives legislation and highlighted the importance of continuing to invest in efforts that will further strengthen Alabama’s business climate.
Sen. Singleton stressed the significance of Alabama’s ability to attract and retain new businesses across the state and training and developing skilled workers to fill jobs. He discussed the state’s ability to remain economically stable despite challenges brought upon by the pandemic.
Singleton also provided his analysis on the surplus in the state budgets and how he believes those funds should be expended. He emphasized investing in communities across all four corners of the state to advance existing and new industry.
The Tuesday morning briefings are streamed live on BCA’s Facebook page each week during the legislative session. Alabama House Rules Committee Chairman Joe Lovvorn will join as our next guest speaker on Tuesday, May 9.
BCA connected with Lt. Governor Will Ainsworth to discuss his office’s top priority — workforce development initiatives in Alabama. His team is focused on preparing Alabama’s future workforce for 21st century jobs within the state.
Career coaches play a crucial role in high schooler’s next steps, and will continue to expand their impact with $6 million now allocated to their funding in the Education Budget. Alabama is a national leader in the aerospace, technology, and cybersecurity industries, and Lt. Governor Ainsworth, among other business leaders in the state, is actively working to attract and retain employees in these industries.
HB77
Sponsor: Rep. Danny Garrett (R-Trussville)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in House; favorable report in Senate Finance & Taxation Education Committee
Additional Information: Under current law, every business in Alabama that generates a monthly average of $5,000 or more in sales tax must make estimated monthly tax payments the following year. This bill raises the threshold to $20,000, which would reduce “red tape” for more than 3,000 small businesses in the state.
SB159/HB249
Sponsor: Sen. Clay Scofield (R-Guntersville)/Rep. David Faulkner (R-Mountain Brook)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in Senate; favorable report in House Transportation, Utilities & Infrastructure Committee
Additional Information: This bill offers additional protections for civil lawsuits against road builders in Alabama.
HB217
Sponsor: Rep. Anthony Daniels (D-Huntsville)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in House; pending action in Senate Finance & Taxation Education Committee
Additional Information: This bill removes the state income tax on overtime pay for Alabama workers.
HB273
Sponsor: Rep. Jamie Kiel (R-Russellville)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in House; pending action in Senate Finance & Taxation Education Committee
Additional Information: This bill expands tax deduction for health insurance premiums paid for employees who report no more than $75,000 of adjusted gross income ($150,000 if filing jointly) on their individual tax returns and work for qualifying employer with fewer than 50 employees. It allows qualifying employees and employers to deduct 100% of the amount paid for health insurance premiums in connection with an employer provided health insurance plan. Additionally, it provides support to small businesses and facilitates their provision of health insurance.
SB273
Sponsor: Sen. Garlan Gudger (R-Cullman)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Pending action in Senate Finance & Taxation Education Committee
Additional Information: This bill creates the employer tax credit and child care facility tax credit to incentivize employers to fund child care for their employees and provide for more readily available, affordable, high-quality child care.
SB292
Sponsor: Rep. Dan Roberts (R-Mountain Brook)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in Senate; favorable report in House Ways & Means Education Committee
Additional Information: This bill cuts red tape for nonprofits, charities, and other tax-exempt entities by streamlining the process for contractors to purchase supplies and materials to be used on construction projects for those entities. It does not create any new tax exemptions; it simply expands the current process already utilized by government entities and their contractors.
HB293
Sponsor: Rep. Chip Brown (R-Mobile)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in House
Additional Information: This bill revises the structure of the amount of credits that may be claimed and expands the credit to allow port users to claim a jobs tax credit if the user increases their cargo base volume.
HB378/SB314
Sponsor: Rep. Chip Brown (R-Mobile)/Sen. Rodger Smitherman (D-Birmingham)
BCA Position: Support
Status: Passed in House; favorable report in Senate Fiscal Responsibility & Economic Development Committee
Additional Information: This bill provides for the creation of brownfield redevelopment districts to further provide for the remediation and ultimate reuse of brownfields.
HB270
Sponsor: Rep. Shane Stringer (R-Citronelle)
BCA Position: Oppose
Status: Carried over in House Ports, Waterways & Intermodal Transit Committee
Additional Information: This bill prohibits the establishment or expansion of junkyards in certain circumstances.
HB188
Sponsor: Rep. Chip Brown (R-Mobile)
BCA Position: In Review
Status: Pending action on House floor
Additional Information: This bill prohibits the consideration of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria when awarding a public contract and requires a responsible bidder, as a condition of being awarded a public contract, to certify, under penalty of perjury, that its employees will not be subject to a personal ESG rating as a basis of hiring, firing, or evaluation.
HB267/SB245
Sponsor: Rep. Tim Wadsworth (R-Arley)/Sen. Sam Givhan (R-Huntsville)
BCA Position: In Review
Status: Pending action on House floor; pending action on Senate floor
Additional Information: This bill revises the Alabama Nonprofit Corporation Law. Changes to nonprofit corporation laws, like those proposed in this bill, can impact various aspects of nonprofit organizations, including their formation, governance structure, board responsibilities, financial reporting requirements, and other operational procedures.
HB298
Sponsor: Rep. Chris Sells (R-Greenville)
BCA Position: In Review
Status: Passed in House; referred to Senate Fiscal Responsibility & Economic Development Committee
Additional Information: This bill requires all smartphones and tablets sold in Alabama to have an adult content filter enabled upon purchase, with violations constituting a civil penalty of up to $50,000 for the device’s manufacturer.
SB299/HB443
Sponsor: Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur)/Rep. Danny Garrett (R-Trussville)
BCA Position: In Review
Status: Passed in Senate; pending action on House floor
Additional Information: This bill establishes sunset dates for tax incentive programs, establishes future sunset dates for extended tax incentive programs, and provides required guidelines for all new incentive legislation.
SB220/HB367
Sponsor: Sen. Tom Butler (R-Madison); Rep. Phillip Rigsby (R-Huntsville)
BCA Position: Monitor
Status: Pending action on Senate floor; pending action in House Insurance Committee
Additional Information: This bill allows a pharmacist to refuse service to a customer if the pharmacist believes the reimbursement they would receive for a drug is insufficient. It also permits a pharmacist to recommend a customer switch to a different, more costly drug that the pharmacist would make more profit on — ultimately costing the health plan and customer more money.
SB257
Sponsor: Sen. Andrew Jones (R-Centre)
BCA Position: Monitor
Status: Introduced and referred to Senate Finance & Taxation Education Committee
Additional Information: This bill gradually cuts the state’s 4% sales tax on most grocery items to 2%. The tax reduction would be paused if overall tax revenue growth in the Education Trust Fund fell below 2%.
SB261
Sponsor: Sen. Dan Roberts (R-Mountain Brook)
BCA Position: Monitor
Status: Passed in Senate
Additional Information: This bill prohibits a governmental entity from entering a public contract with certain companies or businesses that engage in the economic boycott of businesses in certain sectors and industries; that fail to meet or commit to meet certain environmental standards; that fail to meet or commit to meet certain corporate governance criteria; or that fail to facilitate certain activities.
HB389/SB328
Sponsor: Rep. Rex Reynolds (R-Huntsville)/Sen. Garlan Gudger (R-Cullman)
BCA Position: Monitor
Status: Carried over at the call of the chair in House; favorable report in Senate Fiscal Responsibility & Economic Development Committee
Additional Information: This bill adds a surcharge of 98 cents per month to all mobile communication in the state to fund the 988 Crisis System of Care.
Capitol Briefing Legislative Update The legislature returned for its fifth week of session with a productive three-day work week. Several of Governor Kay Ivey’s key legislative priorities moved forward, including
Capitol Briefing Legislative Update The Alabama Senate is still considering two bills that would directly affect businesses by imposing a $10.64 fee on every prescription filled statewide. The proposed bills
Capitol Briefing An Update from the House The House voted to approve the establishment of the Alabama Veterans Resource Center, providing support for over 400,000 veterans in Alabama. The bill
