The Hale County Commission on Sept. 26 approved a resolution throwing its support behind Alabama’s Simplified Seller Use Tax (SSUT) and urging lawmakers to oppose any changes that would disrupt the program or call its constitutionality into question.
In the resolution, commissioners describe SSUT as an “efficient, constitutional, and operationally effective” way for the state to collect use taxes on online purchases made by Alabama consumers. The program, created in 2015, functions under guidance affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2018 South Dakota v. Wayfair decision, which allows states to require remote sellers with a “substantial nexus” to collect and remit taxes even without a physical presence.
Commissioners noted that SSUT has generated more than $4.2 billion since its inception for the Alabama General Fund, the Education Trust Fund, and for city and county governments statewide. The resolution also affirms the county’s support for continuing to distribute the county portion of SSUT revenues by population among the state’s 67 counties.
The commission’s statement comes amid public criticism of the program by some mayors elsewhere in the state. Hale County’s resolution argues that altering or undermining SSUT would jeopardize essential revenue for all levels of government and that individual counties and municipalities lack independent authority to compel online retailers to collect taxes from consumers.
