Legislation introduced this week could push sales tax for all goods except food to as high as 11 percent in many areas of the state. SB227 was introduced in the same week the governor created a task force with a…
The House County and Municipal Government Committee carried over legislation to cap the penalty for failure to purchase a business delivery license. Currently, municipalities must allow any business delivering into the city that has no other physical presence within the…
The Alabama Retail Association will have a seat on a task force Gov. Robert Bentley created Tuesday, Feb. 21, to “analyze and make recommendations regarding Alabama’s sales taxes on groceries.” In a news conference, the governor said his goal for…
In its second week, the Alabama Legislature began moving legislation in earnest, including several bills of concern to retailers. Shifting the state’s August sales tax holiday to July could be debated soon in either chamber (HB132 / SB136). A bill…
Legislation authorizing wine and beer tastings inside grocery stores that have off-premises consumption licenses and at least $2 million in total annual sales await consideration by both House and Senate committees. HB134 by Rep. David Faulkner, R-Birmingham, is one of…
The coolers at Capitol’s Rosemont Gardens in Montgomery are packed full of beautiful, fresh blooms, including nearly 3,000 red roses. “Valentine’s Day is definitely a rose holiday,” says Manager Jerry Thrash. “We always run out of red roses.” While Valentine’s Day…
The Alabama Legislature gaveled in its 2017 regular session Tuesday with such weighty issues as prison reform, redistricting and finding money for Medicaid needing attention. More than 350 bills have been introduced so far, including ones calling on retailers to have…
Alabamians spent more than $11.43 billion during the months of November and December 2016, making it the strongest holiday buying season on record for the state. Taxed holiday sales in our state totaled $11,431,561,431.08, a jump of 4.77 percent over 2015 holiday…
Alabama’s political party caucuses this week introduced their legislative agendas for 2017. Alabama Retail is monitoring a Democratic proposal to require unitary combined reporting (SB67) and a Republican bill to make Medicaid fraud a Class C felony (SB85). The combined…
In First Month, More Than $5 Million in Taxes Collected from Major Remote Online-Only Sellers Alabama’s 2016 holiday sales are on track to exceed expectations. The Alabama Department of Revenue released its November sales tax numbers in early January,…