 |
President's Message - Spring Issue 2003
"Limited" Home Rule Proposed
to Governor
The first executive
order signed by Governor Bob Riley during his administration
created the Alabama Citizens' Constitution Commission.
The Governor charged the Commission with the responsibility
of drafting suggested revisions to the Alabama Constitution
of 1901.
Governor Riley asked the Commission
to address the following areas: (1) the best method to
provide limited home rule to county governments, (2) the
appropriateness and proper method for recompiling our
current Constitution, (3) the excessive earmarking in
state budgets while ensuring full funding of education,
(4) the expansion of the governor's veto power to include
line-items as a budgetary management tool, and (5) the
appropriateness of a super-majority vote of the Legislature
to impose new taxes as part of overall tax reform.
The Commission was divided
into five committees, each one assigned to address the
five areas. Two Alabama county commissioners were appointed
by the Governor to serve on the Commission - Stanley Batemon
from St. Clair County and Mark Culver from Houston County.
Commissioner Batemon was a member of the Home Rule Committee
and Commissioner Culver was a member of the Super Majority
Committee. Both men did an outstanding job in representing
the interest of county governments.
The Commission began its work
in late January 2003 and submitted a final report to Governor
Riley on March 27.
While the Association of County Commissions
of Alabama had an interest in all the areas addressed
by the Commission, the subject of Home Rule for county
governments was at the top of the list. The Governor's
charge to the Commission with regard to Home Rule was
as follows:
The best method by which to provide limited home rule
to Alabama counties in a manner that will be available
to any county, but imposed on none, and that will allow
constitution- al government to be more efficient and responsive
to the needs of its people by giving the power to address
zoning, economic development, fire and police protection
to local officials. The Commission shall be limited in
its recommenda- tion in this area by the general principal
that any extension of home rule must not allow the local
imposition of taxes without a direct vote of the people.
The first difficulty faced by the Commission, and more
specifically the Home Rule Committee, was interpreting
the Governor's charge. Considerable time was devoted to
determining how far the Commission could go or could not
go in expanding the authority of county governments. The
Home Rule Committee proceeded on the premise of developing
a recommendation aimed at providing "limited"
home rule for counties.
In its final report to the Governor, the
Commission recommended a proposed constitutional amendment
to grant a form of limited home rule for counties. That
proposed amendment is printed below.
The full report is now in the hands of Governor
Riley. Upon receiving the report, the Governor indicated
that his staff would review it and most likely proceed
quickly to have implementing legislation introduced during
the 2003 regular session of the Alabama Legislature.
The Association's Board of Directors
will review the entire report, especially the home rule
component, and develop appropriate positions. The Board
will be especially interested in hearing comments from
the members of the Association.
PROPOSED AMENDMENT
"Section 1. Optional Supplemental
County Governmental Powers. Subject to the referendum
provisions hereof, counties in the State may exercise,
in addition to all governmental powers they may at the
time of the ratification of this amendment possess or
have vested in them, the optional supplemental county
governmental powers hereinafter provided for. The Legislature
may enact general laws providing for the exercise of said
optional supplemental county governmental powers.
Section 2. Referendum Elections Required
for the Exercise of Optional Supplemental County Governmental
Powers. Any county in the State may, in accordance
with the provisions hereof, adopt and exercise any or
all of the optional supplemental county governmental powers
hereinafter specified through the affirmative vote of
the qualified electors of the county voting in a referendum
election held on the question of whether such optional
supplemental county governmental powers shall be exercised.
Such referendum elections shall be conducted in accordance
with the election laws of the State, provided that any
such election may, however, be held only in conjunction
with a general election held in the State not less than
three months following (a) the affirmative vote of the
majority of the members of the governing body of the county
in favor of a resolution proposing the authorization of
the exercise of one or more of the sets of optional supplemental
county governmental powers hereinafter provided for and
as hereinafter specified, or (b) the filing with the county
governing body at a regular meeting thereof of a petition
requesting the authorization of the exercise of one or
more of the sets of optional supplemental county governmental
powers hereinafter provided for and as hereinafter specified
and containing the verified signatures of at least twenty
percent (20%) of the total number of qualified electors
of the county who cast a ballot in the then immediately
preceding gubernatorial election held in the State.
Upon the favorable vote of the qualified
electors of the county at any referendum election held
as provided in this section, such set or sets of optional
supplemental county governmental powers thereby authorized
for the county shall take effect and the powers thereunder
shall become exercisable on and after the October 1 next
following the date of such election.
Any county authorized to exercise any optional
supplemental county governmental powers hereunder may
thereafter be authorized to exercise a different or additional
set or sets of optional supplemental county governmental
powers as described herein, or repeal an authorization
of the exercise of any such set or sets of powers, in
like manner as that described above for the authorization
of the exercise of such powers. In no event, however,
shall any referendum election on the question of the authorization
of the exercise of any set or sets of optional supplemental
county governmental powers as herein provided for, or
on the question of the repeal of any thereof, be called
or held in any county except (i) upon adoption of a resolution
by the governing body of the county or the filing therewith
of a petition as described above in the regard to the
authorization of the exercise of optional supplemental
county governmental powers and (ii) in conjunction with
a general election held in the State.
Section 3. Optional Sets of Supplemental County Governmental
Powers. In addition to all other powers that it may
have under the laws and Constitution of this State, any
county may exercise, not inconsistent with the laws of
this State and any such rules and regulations as may be
adopted pursuant thereto, any or all of the following
sets of optional supplemental county governmental powers
as such county may be authorized to do pursuant to the
provision of this amendment as hereinabove provided.
Set 1 Powers. A county authorized to exercise
Set 1 Powers hereunder shall be empowered, (a) the provisions
of Section 94 of this Constitution to the contrary notwithstanding,
to lend its credit or to grant public money or thing of
value in aid of or to any individual, association or corporation,
by issuing bonds or otherwise, for the purpose of promoting
economic development and tourism in the county, and to
exercise such legislative powers and to adopt such resolutions,
orders and ordinances as shall be necessary to carry out
such functions, and (b) any other provision of the Constitution
to the contrary notwithstanding, to provide for public
health and safety services throughout the unincorporated
areas of the county in which and to the extent such services
are not otherwise generally provided by another governmental
authority, and through its governing body to exercise
such legislative powers and to adopt and enforce such
resolutions, orders and ordinances as shall be necessary
to carry out such functions.
Set 2 Powers. A county authorized to exercise
Set 2 Powers hereunder shall be empowered, any other provision
of this Constitution to the contrary notwithstanding,
and except as hereinafter provided, to levy for county
governmental purposes and to set the rates of (a) taxes
on the assessed value of taxable property in the county,
(b) business license and privilege taxes on persons having
sufficient nexus with the county to permit the lawful
imposition of such taxes, (c) sales, use and other excise
taxes on transactions and events occurring in the county,
(d) taxes on incomes earned in or occupations performed
in the county, and (e) taxes on such additional subjects
of taxation as the Legislature may by general law provide
that counties may impose, provided that the imposition
of any taxes to be levied pursuant to the authorization
herein contained or the increase in rate of any thereof
shall not be made or levied except following a public
hearing conducted by the governing body of the county
respecting such imposition or increase and the favorable
vote by a majority of the qualified electors of the county
voting at a referendum election held thereon. The provisions
hereof shall not affect the rates, the validity, the imposition
or the duration of any taxes or fees being lawfully imposed
by any county in the State on the date of the ratification
of the amendment to the Constitution of which this provision
was a part. Any provision hereof to the contrary notwithstanding,
no levy of any ad valorem property tax made by any county
pursuant to an authorization hereunder to exercise Set
2 Powers shall result in the amount of ad valorem taxes
payable to the State and to all counties, municipalities
and other taxing authorities in the State with respect
to any item of taxable property exceeding the limits thereon
provided for in subsection (i) of Section 217 of this
Constitution, as amended.
Set 3 Powers. A county authorized to exercise
Set 3 Powers hereunder shall be empowered any other provisions
of this Constitution to the contrary notwithstanding,
to regulate and control the use of land through zoning
and other similar land use control measures in the unincorporated
areas of the county not otherwise subject to the zoning
powers and land use planning controls of any municipal
corporation exercising such powers in such areas pursuant
to applicable laws, and to exercise, pursuant to such
general laws with respect thereto as the Legislature shall
enact for counties so empowered, such legislative powers
and to adopt such resolutions, orders and ordinances as
shall be necessary to carry out such functions, provided
that (a) if the Legislature shall not, prior to October
1, 2007, enact a general law uniformly governing the exercise
of zoning and land use planning powers by counties, then
the exercise by counties of such powers as herein provided
shall be carried out consistently with such general laws
of the State as are then applicable to municipal corporation
generally, (b) such regulation and control may not commence
in any particular area or portion of the county in which
such powers may be exercised pursuant hereto unless the
commencement of said exercise shall be approved, at a
referendum election held in conjunction with a general
election held in the State and called by the governing
body of the county, by a majority of the qualified electors
voting in such referendum election and residing in the
area or portion of the county in which commencement of
the exercise of such powers is proposed, and (c) in no
event shall any county establishing a planning commission
or other similar body for the administration of county
zoning and land use planning powers pursuant hereto provide
for the membership on such commission or other body other
than of persons residing in the unincorporated areas of
the county.
Any county in the State authorized to exercise
any of the hereinabove described optional supplemental
county governmental powers pursuant to the provisions
hereof shall retain all such powers as it shall otherwise
have pursuant to this Constitution and the laws of this
State, but in the event the authorization of the exercise
by any county of any set or sets of optional supplemental
county governmental power previously authorized pursuant
hereto is subsequently repealed pursuant to the provisions
hereof, the powers of the county with respect to the subject
or subjects of any such optional supplemental county governmental
power so repealed shall thereafter revert to those powers
with respect thereto that the county would then have otherwise
had as if no such set or optional powers had been previously
authorized hereunder, provided that such repeal shall
in no circumstance effect the impairment of any contract
entered into by the county while it was authorized to
exercise such power."
Section 2. Unless otherwise provided by
the Legislature, an election upon the proposed amendment
is ordered to be held on the date of the first statewide
general or special election held in the State after the
expiration of three months from final adjournment of the
session of the Legislature at which the act proposing
the amendment hereinabove proposed is adopted. The election
shall be held in accordance with the provisions of Section
284 and 285 of the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as
amended, and the general election laws of the State.
Section 3. Notice of the election and of
the proposed amendment shall be given by proclamation
of the Governor, which proclamation shall be published
once a week for four successive weeks next preceding the
day appointed for the election in a newspaper in each
county of the State. In every county in which no newspaper
is published, a copy of the notice shall be posted at
each courthouse and post office in such county.
|
|
