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Alabama Amendment 7, Local Economic and Industrial Development Bonds and Financing Amendment (2022)
| Alabama Amendment 7 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 8, 2022 | |
| Topic State and local government budgets, spending and finance | |
Status Approved | |
| Type Constitutional amendment | Origin State legislature |
Amendment 7, the Local Economic and Industrial Development Bonds and Financing Amendment, was on the ballot in Alabama as a legislatively referred constitutional amendment on November 8, 2022. It was approved.
A "yes" vote supported changing the requirements for counties and municipalities to provide for financing economic and industrial development through the use of public funds, issuing bonds, and leasing property or lending bonds to a private entity, including exempting local governments from seeking voter approval for issuing bonds unless the bond issue includes a repayment provision such as a tax increase. |
A "no" vote opposed changing the requirements for counties and municipalities to provide for financing economic and industrial development through the use of public funds, issuing bonds, and leasing property or lending bonds to a private entity and maintaining that local governments must obtain voter approval to issue bonds. |
Election results
|
Alabama Amendment 7 |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
834,734 | 75.41% | ||
| No | 272,159 | 24.59% | ||
Overview
What did this amendment do?
Under the provisions of Amendment 772 of the Alabama Constitution, as of 2022, counties and municipalities were authorized to lend or grant public funds or things of value to an individual, public entitity, or private entity "for the purpose of promoting the economic and industrial development of the county or the municipality." Under Amendment 772, the county or municipality must adopt a resolution determining that the funds would serve a public purpose and must publish a notice of the proposed action in the largest circulating newspaper in the county or municipality for at least seven days.[1]
Amendment 7 retained counties' and municipalities' existing authority to provide for financing economic and industrial development through lending credit, granting public funds, issuing bonds, leasing property, or lending bonds to a private entity. The measure removed the requirement that the newspaper publication be among the largest circulating newspapers, and instead allowed the publication to be made in any newspaper in the jurisdiction. The amendment also ratified all actions and agreements by counties and municipalities made under Amendment 772 unless they are subject to pending lawsuits.[1]
Under the provisions of Section 222 of the state constitution going into the election, local governments were required to receive voter approval to issue bonds. Under the 2022 ballot measure, local governments were made exempt from this provision unless the bond issue also has a repayment provision such as a tax increase.[1]
How did this measure get on the ballot?
- See also: Path to the ballot
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.[1]
The House unanimously approved the bill in a vote of 101-0 on March 17, 2022, with one member absent. The Senate approved an amended version of the bill on April 6, in a vote of 33-0 with two members absent. The House concurred with the Senate's amendments and approved the bill on April 7 in a vote of 100-0 with one member absent and one member not voting.[1]
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[1][2]
| “ | Proposing an amendment to revise Amendment 772 to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, as amended, to specify that all counties and municipalities may exercise the authority and powers granted by Amendment 772 to provide for economic and industrial development; to permit notice for Amendment 772 projects to be published in any newspaper in circulation in the county or municipality; and to ratify all actions and agreements of any county or municipality done under Amendment 772 unless subject to pending judicial proceedings on the date of adoption of this amendment. (Proposed by Act 2022-286)
( ) Yes ( ) No[3] |
” |
Ballot summary
The Alabama Fair Ballot Commission wrote the following ballot statement:[4]
|
Constitutional changes
- See also: Amendment 772
The measure amended Amendment 772 of the Alabama Constitution. The following struck-through text was deleted and underlined text was added.[1]
Note: Hover over the text and scroll to see the full text.
Promotion of Economic and Industrial Development by County Commission.
(a) The governing body of any county, and the governing body of any municipality located therein, for which a local constitutional amendment has not been adopted authorizing any of the following, a county or municipality shall have full and continuing power to do any of the following:
(1) Use public funds to purchase, lease, or otherwise acquire real property, buildings, plants, factories, facilities, machinery, and equipment of any kind, or to utilize the properties heretofore purchased or otherwise acquired on or before the adoption of this amendment, and to improve and develop the properties for use as sites for industry of any kind or as industrial park projects, including, but not limited to, grading and the construction of roads, drainage, sewers, sewage and waste disposal systems, parking areas, and utilities to serve the sites or projects.
(2) Lease, sell, grant, exchange, or otherwise convey, on terms approved by the governing body of the county or the municipality, as applicable, all or any part of any real property, buildings, plants, factories, facilities, machinery, and equipment of any kind or industrial park project to any individual, firm, corporation, or other business entity, public or private, including any industrial development board or other public corporation or authority heretofore or hereafter created by the county or the municipality before or after adoption of this amendment, for the purpose of constructing, developing, equipping, and operating industrial, commercial, research, or service facilities of any kind.
(3) Lend its credit to, or grant public funds and things of value in aid of, or to, any individual, firm, corporation, or other business entity, public or private, for the purpose of promoting the economic and industrial development of the county or the municipality.
(4) Become indebted and issue bonds, warrants which may be payable from funds to be realized in future years, notes, or other obligations, or evidences of indebtedness to a an aggregate outstanding principal amount not exceeding an equal amount to 50 percent of the assessed value of taxable property therein as determined for state taxation, in order to secure funds for the purchase, construction, lease, or acquisition of any of the property described in subdivision (1), or to be used in furtherance of any of the other powers or authorities granted in this amendment. The obligations or evidences of indebtedness may be issued upon the full faith and credit of the county or any municipality or may be limited as to the source of their payment.
(b)The recital in any bonds, warrants, notes, or other obligations, or evidences of indebtedness that they were issued pursuant to this amendment, or that they were issued to provide funds to be used in furtherance of any power or authority herein authorized shall be conclusive, and no purchaser or holder thereof need inquire further. The bonds, warrants, notes, or other obligations or evidences of indebtedness issued hereunder shall not be considered do not constitute an indebtedness of the county or any municipality for the purpose of determining the borrowing capacity of the county or municipality under this Constitution.
(b)(c) In carrying out the purpose of this amendment, neither the county nor any municipality located therein a county or a municipality shall not be subject to Section 93 or 94 of this Constitution. Each public corporation heretofore Section 93 or 94 of this Constitution, nor shall a county or municipality be required to comply with the provisions of Section 222 of this Constitution, unless issuing general obligation bond instruments establishing a requirement for repayment. Each public corporation created by the county or by any municipality located therein on or before the adoption of this amendment, including specifically any industrial development board incorporated under Article 4 of Chapter 54 of Title 11 of the Code of Alabama 1975, and any industrial development authority incorporated or reincorporated under Chapter 92A of Title 11 of the Code of Alabama 1975, and the Shoals Economic Development Authority enacted under Act No. 95-512, 1995 Regular Session, are validated and the powers granted to the board or authority under its respective enabling legislation are validated notwithstanding any other provision of law or of this Constitution. The powers granted by this amendment may be exercised as an exclusive alternative to, or cumulative with, and in no way restrictive of, powers otherwise granted by this Constitution or any law to the county, or to any municipality, or to any agency, board, or authority created pursuant to the laws of this state.
(c)(d) Neither the county nor any municipality located therein shall lend its credit to, or grant any public funds or thing of value to, or in aid of, any private entity under the authority of this amendment unless prior thereto to doing so, both of the following are satisfied:
(1) The action proposed to be taken by the county or municipality is approved at a public meeting of the governing body of the county or municipality, as the case may be, by a resolution containing a determination by the governing body that the expenditure of public funds for the purpose specified will serve a valid and sufficient public purpose, notwithstanding any incidental benefit accruing to any private entity or entities.
(2) At least seven days prior to the public meeting, a notice is published in the newspaper having the largest circulationa newspaper in circulation in the county or municipality, as the case may be, describing in reasonable detail the action proposed to be taken, a description of the public benefits sought to be achieved by the action, and identifying each individual, firm, corporation, or other business entity to whom, or for whose benefit, the county or the municipality proposes to lend its credit or grant public funds or thing of value.
(e) For purposes of the foregoing, any sale, lease, or other disposition of property for a price equal to the its fair market value thereof shall not constitute the lending of credit or a grant of public funds or thing of value in aid of a private entity.
(f)Nothing in this amendment shall authorize the county commission to own or operate a cable television system.
(d)(g) Any action taken, or agreement made, under Amendment 772 by any county or municipality prior to the date this amendment is ratified and confirmed in all respects as of that date, except to the extent that its validity is being challenged in appropriate judicial proceedings in any court of competent jurisdiction on the date this amendment is ratified. This amendment These amendatory provisions shall have prospective application only. Any local constitutional amendments previously adopted and any local law enacted pursuant to such amendment shall remain in full force and effect.[3]
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 25, and the FRE is -8. The word count for the ballot title is 85.
Support
Supporters
Officials
- State Rep. Jeff Sorrells (R)
If you are aware of any supporters or supporting arguments, please send an email with a link to editor@ballotpedia.org.
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
Constitutional restrictions on local governments awarding funds to private entities
Section 94
- See also: Section 94 of the Alabama Constitution
This constitutional amendment was supported by the Association of County Commissions of Alabama, which said that a constitutional amendment was needed to allow counties to use the designated ARPA funding for broadband expansion because the state constitution prohibits local governments from using funds to provide a thing of value to a private entity. Section 94 of the Alabama Constitution states, "The legislature shall not have power to authorize any county, city, town, or other subdivision of this state to lend its credit, or to grant public money or thing of value in aid of, or to any individual, association, or corporation whatsoever, or to become a stockholder in any such corporation, association, or company, by issuing bonds or otherwise."
Related 2022 constitutional amendment concerning local government expenditure of federal COVID-19 relief funds
An amendment certified to appear on the 2022 ballot in Alabama was designed to authorize the state or local governments (counties or municipalities) to grant federal award funds or any funds designated for broadband infrastructure by state law to public or private entities to expand or provide for broadband internet infrastructure. Funds granted by a local government to a private entity would need to be approved at a public meeting in the county or municipality.
The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a federal COVID-19 relief funding Act, was signed into law by President Joe Biden on March 11, 2021. The Act provided for $130 billion paid to states for distribution to local governments for specified uses, including for investments in broadband infrastructure.[5]
The Association of County Commissions of Alabama (ACCA) said the amendment was needed to allow counties to use the designated ARPA funding for broadband expansion because Section 94 of the state constitution prohibits local governments from using funds to provide a thing of value to a private entity.[6]
On October 22, 2021, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall (R) issued an opinion considering the question, "Do limitations placed on local governmental entities by the Alabama Constitution, such as sections 94, 68, and 68.01, apply to the funds received by such entities under the American Rescue Plan Act ('ARPA')?"[7]
Marshall found that "the plain terms of section 94 preclude the legislature from authorizing a municipality or county to grant funds directly to a private entity," although a 1994 Alabama Supreme Court (Slawson v. Alabama) ruling held that the section is not violated when a government entity appropriates the funds for a public purpose, meaning it "confers a direct public benefit of a reasonably general character, [i.e] to a significant part of the public, as distinguished from a remote and theoretical benefit."[7]
Amendment 772, Alabama Constitution
Also known as Section 94.01 of the Alabama Constitution, Amendment 772 was adopted through voter approval of Amendment 3 on the 2004 ballot in a vote of 55.47% to 44.53%. The legislature passed the amendment as a way to codify the Supreme Court's ruling in Slawson relating to economic and industrial development. Amendment 772 gave counties and municipalities the authority to "lend its credit to or grant public funds and things of value in aid of or to any individual, firm, corporation, or other business entity, public or private, for the purpose of promoting the economic and industrial development of the county or the municipality."[8]
Under Amendment 772, the county or municipality must adopt a resolution determining that the funds would serve a public purpose and must publish a notice of the proposed action in the largest circulating newspaper in the county or municipality for at least seven days.[8]
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.[1]
The House unanimously approved the bill in a vote of 101-0 on March 17, 2022, with one member absent. The Senate approved an amended version of the bill on April 6, in a vote of 33-0 with two members absent. The House concurred with the Senate's amendments and approved the bill on April 7 in a vote of 100-0 with one member absent and one member not voting.[1]
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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."[9] An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.[10] 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.[11] Voters cannot register during the 14-day period preceding an election. According to the Alabama Secretary of State's website:[11]
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.[12] However, as of June 2025, the law had not been implemented.[13] 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."[14] 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.[15] 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. 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 September 2024. 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. Voters must also provide a copy of valid photo identification when applying for an absentee ballot, with the exception of 1) voters for whom polling locations are inaccessible due to age or disability, and 2) overseas military members.[16][17] | ||||||
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 Alabama State Legislature, "Alabama House Bill 458 (2022)," accessed March 23, 2022
- ↑ Alabama Secretary of State, "November 2022 general election sample ballot," accessed September 24, 2022
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 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
- ↑ Alabama Counties, "Attorney General opinion on use of ARPA funding," accessed March 10, 2022
- ↑ Association of County Commissions of Alabama, "News Release: Broadband Projects Across Ala. Counties Contingent on Support of Legislators, Voters," accessed March 30, 2022
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Alabama Counties, "October 22, 2021 Attorney General Opinion," accessed April 9, 2022
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Alabama Office of the Attorney General, "Guidance for Counties and Municipalities regarding Amendment 772 and COVID-19 relief funding," accessed April 13, 2022
- ↑ Justia, "Alabama Code § 17-9-6," accessed July 20, 2024
- ↑ NAACP Legal Defense Fund, "Alabama Voter Information," accessed July 20, 2024
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 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."
- ↑ Justia, "Alabama Code § 17-10-1," accessed July 22, 2024
- ↑ Alabama Secretary of State, "Absentee Voting Information," accessed July 22, 2024
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