Alabama Amendment 6, Authorize Certain Cities to Use Special Property Tax Revenue to Pay for Capital Improvements Directly Amendment (2022)
| Alabama Amendment 6 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 8, 2022 | |
| Topic State and local government budgets, spending and finance | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
Alabama Amendment 6, the Authorize Certain Cities to Use Special Property Tax Revenue to Pay for Capital Improvements Directly Amendment, was on the ballot in Alabama as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 8, 2022. It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported allowing certain cities that were previously authorized to levy a special property tax to pay for bonds or other forms of debt to also use the tax revenue to pay for capital improvements directly on a pay-as-you-go basis. |
A "no" vote opposed allowing certain cities to use bond tax revenue to pay for capital improvements directly. |
Election results
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Alabama Amendment 6 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
676,579 | 60.70% | ||
| No | 437,997 | 39.30% | ||
Overview
What did this amendment do?
Amendment 6 allowed certain cities that were previously authorized to levy a special property tax to pay for bonds or other forms of debt to also use the tax revenue to pay for capital improvements directly on a pay-as-you-go basis. The amendment allowed the cities to use such revenue to pay the principal and interest on bonds or other securities being used to finance or refinance the costs of the improvements. It also validated any past use of such property tax revenue directly for capital improvements.[1][2]
How did this measure get on the ballot?
- See also: Path to the ballot
In Alabama, a constitutional amendment must be passed by a 60 percent vote in each house of the state legislature during one legislative session.
The measure was sponsored by Republican Representative Mike Ball. The House unanimously approved the amendment on February 4, 2021. The Senate unanimously approved the amendment on April 29, 2021. At the time of the election, Alabama had a Republican state government trifecta. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers. At the time of the vote, Republicans held a 76-28 majority in the Alabama House of Representatives and a 27-8 majority in the Alabama State Senate.
Text of the measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[1][3]
| “ | Proposing an amendment to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, each municipality authorized under Amendment No. 8 to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, now appearing Section 216.01 of the Recompiled Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, to levy and collect the ad valorem tax pursuant to Amendment No. 8 for the purpose of paying bonds and the interest thereon, and may also levy and collect such ad valorem tax and utilize such funds for capital improvements on a pay-as-you-go basis at a rate not exceeding the rate then lawfully permitted for the municipality to directly pay the costs of public capital improvements, as well as to pay the principal and interest on bonds, warrants, or other securities issued to finance or refinance the costs of the improvements; and to ratify, validate, and confirm the levy and collection of such tax levied and collected for any of these purposes prior to the ratification of this amendment. (Proposed by Act 2021-327)
( ) Yes ( ) No[4] |
” |
Ballot summary
The Alabama Fair Ballot Commission wrote the following ballot statement:[5]
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Constitutional changes
- See also: Alabama Constitution
The measure amended the state constitution. The following underlined text was added.[1]
Each municipality authorized to levy and collect the special ad valorem tax authorized in Amendment No. 8 to the Constitution of Alabama 1901, now appearing as Section 216.01 of the Recompiled Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, for the payment of bonds and the interest thereon, may levy and collect such ad valorem tax at a rate not exceeding the millage rate then lawfully permitted to be levied and collected by the municipality to directly pay the costs of public capital improvements, as well as to pay the principal of and interest on bonds, warrants, or other securities issued to finance or refinance the costs of the improvements; and any levy and collection of such ad valorem tax for these purposes by the municipality prior to the ratification of this amendment is hereby ratified, validated, and confirmed. [4]
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2022
Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
The FKGL for the ballot title is grade level 26, and the FRE is 4. The word count for the ballot title is 156.
Support
Supporters
Officials
- State Rep. Mike Ball (R)
Opposition
If you are aware of any opponents or opposing arguments, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.
Campaign finance
| Cash Contributions | In-Kind Contributions | Total Contributions | Cash Expenditures | Total Expenditures | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Support | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Oppose | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Total | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Ballotpedia has not identified political action committees registered to support or oppose this measure. If you are aware of one, please email editor@ballotpedia.org.
Background
Capital improvements
Capital improvements are improvements, upgrades, adaptations, or enhancements made to improve the value or structural integrity of a city's property and infrastructure.[6] Cities in Alabama have capital improvement plans (CIP) that include plans for capital improvements to roads, sidewalks, drainage systems, and public works agencies.[7]
Constitutional amendments in Alabama
From 2000 to 2020, 81 constitutional amendments appeared on the statewide ballot in Alabama. Voters approved 64 (79.0%) and rejected 17 (21.0%). The number of amendments on statewide ballots during the even-numbered years between 2000 and 2020 ranged from 4 to 15, and the average number of amendments during this period was 7.8.
| Alabama constitutional amendments, 2000-2020 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total number | Approved | Approved (%) | Defeated | Defeated (%) | Even-year average | Even-year median | Even-year minimum | Even-year maximum | ||
| 81 | 64 | 79.01% | 17 | 20.99% | 7.8 | 6.0 | 4 | 15 | ||
Path to the ballot
- See also: Amending the Alabama Constitution
To put a legislatively referred constitutional amendment before voters, a 60 percent vote vote is required in both the Alabama State Senate and the Alabama House of Representatives.[2]
The House unanimously approved the amendment on February 4, 2021. Four Democratic and two Republican Representatives were absent. The Senate unanimously approved the amendment on April 29, 2021. Two Democratic and three Republican senators were absent. At the time of the vote, Republicans held a 76-28 majority in the Alabama House of Representatives and a 27-8 majority in the Alabama State Senate.[2]
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How to cast a vote
- See also: Voting in Alabama
Click "Show" to learn more about voter registration, identification requirements, and poll times in Alabama.
| How to cast a vote in Alabama | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll timesIn Alabama, polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. According to state law, "All polling places in areas operating on eastern time shall open and close under this section pursuant to eastern time except the county commissions in Chambers County and Lee County may by resolution provide for any polling place to be excluded from this sentence and to be open according to central time."[8] An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[9] Registration requirements
Alabama requires that an applicant be a citizen of the United States who resides in Alabama. A voter must be at least 18 years old on or before Election Day. A citizen cannot have been barred from registering due to a felony conviction and cannot have been declared mentally incompetent by a court.[10] Voters cannot register during the 14-day period preceding an election. According to the Alabama Secretary of State's website:[10]
Automatic registrationAlabama does not practice automatic voter registration. Online registration
Alabama has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website. Same-day registrationAlabama does not allow same-day voter registration. Residency requirementsTo register to vote in Alabama, you must be a resident of the state. State law does not specify a length of time for which you must have been a resident to be eligible. Verification of citizenshipAn Alabama state law, passed in 2011, requires people to provide proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote.[11] However, as of June 2025, the law had not been implemented.[12] In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states cannot require proof of citizenship with federal registration forms. That meant states would need to create a separate registration system for state elections in order to require proof of citizenship. Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill (R) said the following: "That’s an election administration nightmare ... You’d have to have two sets of poll books, one for federal elections and one for state elections, and that just doesn’t make any sense to me."[13] An individual applying to register to vote must attest that they are a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury. All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment.[14] Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. One state, Ohio, requires proof of citizenship only when registering to vote at a Bureau of Motor Vehicles facility. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters. Verifying your registrationThe Alabama Secretary of State's Voter View website allows residents to check their voter registration status online. Voter ID requirementsAlabama requires voters to present photo identification at the polls. The following list of accepted forms of identification was current as of October 2025. Click here for the most current information, sourced directly from the Office of the Alabama Secretary of State.
A voter can obtain a free identification card from the Alabama Secretary of State, a county registrar's office, or a mobile location. The mobile location schedule can be accessed here. | ||||||
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Alabama Legislature, "House Bill 178 enrolled text," accessed May 3, 2021
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Alabama State Legislature, "House Bill 178 Bill Status," accessed April 28, 2021
- ↑ Alabama Secretary of State, "November 2022 general election sample ballot," accessed September 24, 2022
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source. Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content Cite error: Invalid<ref>tag; name "quotedisclaimer" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ Alabama Secretary of State, "Ballot Statement," accessed August 25, 2022
- ↑ Investopedia, "Capital Improvement," accessed August 21, 2021
- ↑ City of Athens, "Capital improvement plan," accessed August 21, 2021
- ↑ Justia, "Alabama Code § 17-9-6," accessed July 20, 2024
- ↑ NAACP Legal Defense Fund, "Alabama Voter Information," accessed July 20, 2024
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Alabama Secretary of State, "Voter Registration General Information," accessed July 20, 2024
- ↑ Alabama Secretary of State, "Election Laws, Section 31-13-28," accessed March 1, 2023
- ↑ Phone conversation between Amée LaTour and Jeff Elrod, supervisor of voter registration with the Alabama Secretary of State office.
- ↑ Pew Trusts, "'Proof of Citizenship' Voting Laws May Surge Under Trump," November 16, 2017
- ↑ Under federal law, the national mail voter registration application (a version of which is in use in all states with voter registration systems) requires applicants to indicate that they are U.S. citizens in order to complete an application to vote in state or federal elections, but does not require voters to provide documentary proof of citizenship. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the application "may require only the minimum amount of information necessary to prevent duplicate voter registrations and permit State officials both to determine the eligibility of the applicant to vote and to administer the voting process."
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