fSenator’s office says bill will help businesses in the Black Belt to grow and succeed in changing economy
Gov. Kay Ivey and Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield have created an extensive Game Plan to grow Alabama’s economy. They have put together a non-partisan package of four bills that have been introduced in the Alabama Legislature to help recruit new business and to assist in the expansion of already existing businesses within Alabama.
“There is no doubt that incentives are important in bringing new businesses to Alabama and encouraging them to stay within our borders,” said Senate Minority Leader Bobby Singleton (D-Greensboro).
Sen. Singleton has introduced SB152: The Innovation and Small Business Act, which aims to supercharge growth in Alabama’s innovation economy and support underrepresented businesses and enterprises in rural areas, transforming the state into a hub for technology and innovation.
“As we look to expand Alabama’s economy, we have to include as many people as we possibly can,” Sen. Singleton said. “I am proud to carry this bill, because it will not only bring high-paying jobs to the Black Belt, but it also will provide incentives to support businesses owned by veterans, women, and minorities.”
The plan includes funding for local economic development organizations to apply for site assessment grants, with a sliding scale for the matching funds required in targeted counties. Counties with fewer than 12,000 people will pay $0.25 for every dollar disbursed to them from the grant, while counties with more than 150,000 will pay $1 for every dollar.
“I’m excited that this plan will allow Alabama to be more competitive for larger economic development projects and provide incentives to encourage the creation of new jobs, without increasing taxes,” said Sen. Vivian Davis Figures, (D-Mobile).
Birmingham and Jefferson County have benefited from much growth over the last decade. Still, senators who represent the area are hopeful that these pieces of legislation will help maintain this growth and development. “This is a plan for our future. The intent of the package is for long-term stability,” said Senate Minority Caucus Chair Sen.
Linda Coleman-Madison (D-Birmingham). “We must try to put our state in a posture that we make sure continued economic development for the future is there.”
There are four additional bills in the Game Plan, which are listed below:
- SB164 (Sen. Greg Reed): The Enhancing Alabama’s Economic Progress Act renews the Alabama Jobs Act and the Growing Alabama program and extends their sunset dates to 2028 while adding strategic enhancements to increase their effectiveness. The Jobs Act is the state’s primary incentives platform while Growing Alabama primarily speeds development of shovelready sites.
- SB165 (Sen. Arthur Orr): The Site Evaluation and Economic Development Strategy Act (SEEDS) will allow the State Industrial Development Authority to accelerate the development of industry-ready sites at a time when available sites are scarce and other states are expanding their site programs.
- SB151 (Sen. Garlan Gudger): The Enhancing Transparency Act Enhancing will amend the Jobs Act to require the Alabama Department of Commerce to publish certain incentivized project information on its web site. Transparency around important information related to companies receiving incentives will serve a valid public service and increase confidence in the process.
