Bill Passes Senate Calling For Votes On Tuscaloosa Tax Hikes

TUSCALOOSA, AL — A bill sponsored by an area lawmaker has passed the state senate and could see an amendment to the state constitution requiring majority support in a referendum vote for municipalities in Tuscaloosa County before any future sales or use tax increases.

SB 222, sponsored by Sen. Gerald Allen, a Republican from Tuscaloosa, will now move on the House of Representatives for consideration. If approved by the House, the amendment will be voted on by the people of Tuscaloosa County during the next general election.

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“Tuscaloosa County residents should have a say in whether or not their taxes are raised,” Allen said Thursday following the senate vote. “I believe that any attempt to raise broad-based taxes should have a review process that includes public hearings, clarification of where the tax proceeds will go, and a vote of the people.”

Tuscaloosa Patch reported in February that the five-page Senate bill, if passed into law, would apply solely to municipalities located within Tuscaloosa County and require a public vote at least three months after any proposed tax increase by a governing body. The amendment would also require a public hearing be held no less than 30 days prior to the date of the referendum by the county commissioner in each district of the Tuscaloosa County Commission.

Read: Bill Calls For Referendum Vote Before Future Tuscaloosa Tax Hikes

“Good government means being a sensible overseer of taxpayer dollars,” he said “If government officials need more taxpayer money, they should have to give reason as to why.”

As it stands, Tuscaloosa County has its two largest cities, Tuscaloosa and Northport, along with the towns of Brookwood, Coaling, Coker, Lake View, and large parts of Vance and Woodstock, both of which have city limits slightly overlapping into Bibb County.

While Northport Mayor Bobby Herndon told Patch he would support the amendment when the bill was introduced in February, Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox said the city is in alignment with the Alabama League of Municipalities in the belief that local decisions should be with the leaders closest to the people.

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