AL HB539

Municipalities, counties, and public industrial authorities would be limited to granting abatements of only the non-state portion of eligible taxes on private industrial property, removing their current authority to abate state taxes directly

Abatement of state taxes would require a written request to the Secretary of Commerce, including proposed taxes to be abated, duration, and fiscal analysis of tax loss and revenue impact

Secretary of Commerce must review requests to determine if projects meet return-on-investment criteria and confirm whether the company has defaulted on any economic incentive agreements in the past 10 years

Governor approval is required for any abatement of state taxes, following recommendation by the Secretary of Commerce, with notice of approval or disapproval sent to local authorities within 30 days

Effective date: October 1, 2026