MONTGOMERY, Alabama -- The Alabama House of Representatives today approved a series of tax-related bills that had topped the GOP's session agenda, including a bill to establish an independent panel to hear tax appeals.
"We made it clear that this was going to be our number one objective, tax relief for the Alabama taxpayer and particularly for small business," Speaker of the House Mike Hubbard said.
One bill would let more small businesses remit sales taxes after the sales are made, instead of sending in estimated payments ahead of time. Another would allow the state to suspend taxes that cost more to collect than they bring in.
All the bills were approved without substantial opposition.They now go to the Alabama Senate for consideration.
The bill dubbed the “Alabama Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights” would create a Tax Appeals Commission to hear appeals, instead of an administrative law judge who works under the state Department of Revenue.
“This bill will ensure that businesses and individual taxpayers choosing to appeal tax assessments are given a level playing field and referees who will remain neutral from the beginning of the process to the end,” bill sponsor Rep. Paul DeMarco, R-Homewood, said.
Brue Ely, a Birmingham lawyer who helped write the bill, said passing it would remove a “a black mark on Alabama's pro-business reputation as far as having an independent tax appeals process.”
The bill would also boost protection for “innocent spouses” and increase the window for filing appeals from 30 to 60 days.
Tom Zoebelein, a certified public accountant, said the 30-day window is too brief to launch an appeal. A notice might go to a wrong address, or it could take time for a person to find an accountant or lawyer to help fight the tax assessment.
Zoebelein said he had a client who was a doctor and eligible for a tax credit for rural doctors because he practiced in a small Alabama town. The department said he was ineligible because he lived in Birmingham three days each week. Zoebelein said the doctor kept a house there so his wife, who was ill, could be near her medical providers.
Zoebeliein said he believed they would have easily won the appeal, but he was contacted too late.
The House also approved bills to:
- Give the Department of Revenue the ability to suspend taxes that cost more to collect than they bring in. Lawmakers said they knew of two taxes that were in that category – a tax on iron ore and the tax stamp on playing cards.
- Establish a shortened online tax form for filing personal property tax returns for small businesses with little property to report.
- Allow more small businesses to pay their sales taxes after collecting the money from the sale, instead of having to make up-front payments that estimate how much they owe. The Senate passed an identical bill today.