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ACCA's Legislation for 2010 Session
Click here for a complete list of House Committees and their members. Click here for a complete list of Senate Committees and their members.
ENACTED LEGISLATION
HB62 by Rep. Wood
Government Tags and Registration
Current law requires that state and local governments pay automobile tag and registration fees equal to the actual cost of producing the tag as determined by the Department of Revenue. This bill would provide that governmental entities not pay more than the fees charged for standard passenger vehicles, decreasing the cost paid by state and local governments.
STATUS: Awaiting signature of Gov. Riley.
HB159 by Rep. Johnson
Release of 9-1-1 Audio Tapes
County government and 9-1-1 districts are extremely concerned about the unprotected release of emotionally-charged 9-1-1 calls and the effect on 9-1-1 callers and their family. This bill provides that 9-1-1 audio tapes will only be released by court order, but that 9-1-1 records related to a 9-1-1 call will be available for public inspection. The requirement for court order would not apply to law enforcement investigating an incident related to the 9-1-1 call. An amendment has been offered in committee to remove the original language agreed to by the trial lawyers association and replaced with the language circulated to AAND members.
STATUS: Signed by Gov. Riley. Act. No. 2010-502
SB195 by Sen. T. Little
Litter Enforcement
Alabama has a strong criminal littering statute with stiff penalties for litter violations. However, the enforcement of this law is severely lacking, in part because law enforcement does not have adequate interest and/or resources for issuing citations. This bill would amend Alabama law to authorize the county license inspector or solid waste officer to enforce Alabama’s litter laws and to issue citations against violators of those laws, allowing another avenue of enforcement.
STATUS: Signed by Gov. Riley. Act No. 2010-260
SB232 by Sen. Denton
Transportation of Bodies for Autopsy
There is currently no clear procedure in the law addressing the duty and cost of transporting bodies to state forensic laboratories for autopsy. This bill would provide that the entity handling an investigation necessitating an autopsy shall be responsible for the cost of storage and transportation of the body to and from the forensic laboratory that will perform the autopsy.
STATUS: Signed by Gov. Riley. Act No. 2010-542
HB146 by Rep. Laird
Board of Adjustment Appeals
County governmental entities frequently file claims with the Board of Adjustments when a state agency denies a claim for reimbursement of expenses, but there are currently no procedures for approval or denial. This bill would provide that the Board of Adjustment shall approve a county claim unless the state agency which denied the claim has administrative procedures for reimbursement including deadlines and has properly applied those procedures.
STATUS: Awaiting signature of Gov. Riley.
OTHER ACCA BILLS INTRODUCED IN 2010
HB162 by Rep. Lindsey
SB132 by Sen. Sanders
Age and Disability Exemptions
This bill would clarify that an age or disability exemption from ad valorem taxes only applies to persons with taxable income of $7,500 or less and make clear that, in the event a person eligible for an exemption due to age or disability owns the property jointly with a person or persons not eligible for the exemption, the exemption shall only apply to his or her proportionate share of the homestead.
STATUS: The bill did not pass this session.
HB353 by Rep. Lindsey
Equalization of ABC Taxes
Under existing law, the ABC Board collects an additional 2% state sales tax on all sales. This bill would provide that the additional state sales tax amount would be .5% in counties and municipalities that do not have a local sales tax or have a lower sales tax rate. The bill is estimated to increase sales tax receipts to counties by $2,200,000 annually. The increased taxes will be received by counties that have sales tax rates of greater than .5%.
STATUS: The bill did not pass this session.
HB383 by Rep. J. Williams
Shared Cost of Collection
Currently, the county assumes all cost associated with the collection of ad valorem taxes. This bill would amend Alabama law on ad valorem tax collection to apportion the costs of collection between all non-education entities entitled to a portion of the proceeds of the tax.
STATUS: The bill did not pass this session.
HB501 by Rep. Ford
SB229 by Sen. Marsh
Pay-As-You-Go Road Funding Program
This bill would authorize a county commission, by vote of a majority of the commission, to hold a local referendum for approval to impose a temporary local gas tax to pay for specified local road and bridge projects. The referendum would only be held in conjunction with a primary or general election. If approved, the tax could be renewed every five years with public approval in a subsequent local referendum on renewal.
STATUS: The bill did not pass this session.
HB548 by Rep. D. Newton
County Appeal Bonds
This bill would ensure that a county can take an appeal from any judgment in a case in which it is a party without having to execute any bond for the appeal.
STATUS: The bill did not pass this session.
SB88 by Sen. Coleman
Local Constitutional Amendment Election
Current law requires a statewide vote on a proposed local constitutional amendment if there is one dissenting vote in either chamber of the Legislature. This bill proposes a constitutional amendment to change this process to require a statewide vote on a local amendment only in the event that there are 15 or more dissenting votes in the House of Representatives and five or more dissenting votes in the Senate.
STATUS: The bill did not pass this session.
The real-time status of all ACCA, Danger and local bills can be found by going to acca-online.org and following the steps under Legislative News. Please make copies of this report for all county officials and employees. And remember, the ACCA staff will update the Association's web site with the latest information on the activities in Montgomery.
Questions? Please contact the ACCA staff at (334) 263-7594.
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