Alabama State Victories
The following NFIB victories will make a real difference for your business.
Recent NFIB/Alabama victories:
Lowered unemployment taxes
NFIB/Alabama's 12,000 members lobbied to change the formula used for calculating unemployment taxes from 1/24 to 1/26, saving Alabama businesses approximately $10 million annually.
Passed eminent domain legislation to protect property owners
NFIB members lobbied for the passage of legislation to protect their property from being declared "blighted" and taken under eminent domain. This new law states that the granting of power for eminent domain to acquire property that is not blighted cannot be done without the consent of the property owner.
Successfully fought for legislation to create a statewide uniform municipal business license system, saving business owners time and money
NFIB members lobbied for the passage of this legislation for six years. The statewide uniform municipal business license system establishes a uniform statewide set of classifications for businesses so they are classified and taxed the same in each municipality. Among other provisions, there will be a fixed rate ($100) annual delivery license for businesses that deliver and install their products. The law limits the number of business licenses a business owner must purchase each year and reduces the amount of paperwork a business owner must file annually.
Defeated the repeal of the federal income tax deduction, saving taxpayers $432 million annually
NFIB members again lobbied to defeat the repeal of the federal income tax deduction. Currently, Alabamians are permitted to deduct from their state income taxes the amount they pay in federal taxes. Savings to Alabama taxpayers is $432 million annually.
Defeated every proposed health-care mandates, keeping insurance costs down
Again, NFIB/Alabama members worked to defeat bills that would have required small and independent employers to provide full insurance coverage for conditions such as diabetes. If passed, this would have been costly to small businesses and caused more people to lose basic coverage.
2002: Attorney General Bill Pryor issued an opinion allowing major insurance companies to once again write insurance in Alabama. More choices in the market will help make health insurance more accessible and affordable. NFIB Alabama continues to stand firm against new legislation that would increase the costs of health insurance.
2002: Taxes will continue to be the big issue as state government cries for more money. NFIB will fight to make sure that small-business owners are not saddled with new tax burdens. And we'll try to make sure there is some real "reform" included in tax reform discussions -- less paperwork, simpler filing, and elimination of such burdensome taxes.
2001: The greatest victory for your business is the election of fair-minded judges to the state Supreme Court and the Court of Civil Appeals. The Court of Civil Appeals is where all workers' compensation cases are heard; the Supreme Court determines the business climate in our state. Fair courts should diminish frivolous lawsuits, make affordable liability insurance available to your business and keep the threat of lawsuits from hanging over your head.
2000: NFIB worked to stop the creation of a political taxpayer-funded "arbitration study commission" whose main purpose would have been bashing judicial candidates accused of being too "pro-business." The greatest victory for Alabama small-business owners in 2000 was the election of a fair-minded judiciary including five state Supreme Court justices and three judges to the Court of Civil Appeals, where all workers' compensation cases are resolved.
1999: NFIB, as a key player in the Alabama Civil Justice Reform Committee, finally celebrated a victory over lawsuit abuse with the passage of three important bills: a cap on punitive damages, an end to "venue shopping" and "drive-by certification" in class action lawsuits.
1998: NFIB worked for the passage of Sales Tax Simplification legislation. Alabama's sales tax collection process remains unwieldy and complex, but business owners now have some uniformity in forms and audit and appeals procedures, a lower filing threshold and published sales/use tax rates for cities and counties.
1997: NFIB worked for an increase in bad check charges. Starting with a $20 charge in 1997, charges are increasing each year to a $30 charge in 2003.
1996: NFIB worked for an increase in the limit of small claims court, doubling the limit from $1500 to $3000, offering small-business owners faster, less expensive and less intimidating resolution to small claims.
