The Alabama Senate approved legislation that would establish a constitutional amendment proclaiming Alabama a "Right-to-Work" state. Senate Bill 41 by Senator Gerald Dial (R-Lineville) passed the Senate on Thursday on a 21-10 vote. Although Alabama is already a right to work state, Senator Dial explained his measure would make it harder for future legislatures to remove the business friendly atmosphere Alabama enjoys. The bill now moves to the House for consideration. If passed and signed by the Governor, the constitutional amendment would go to voters during the next general election.

When financing a land development project, investors typically want to have some assurance that there is a demand for the proposed lots prior to agreeing to provide the financing. In most instances, this comes in the form of agreements for the take-down of lots in the proposed subdivision by individual builders. These agreements provide the investor with peace of mind that a specific number of the proposed lots will be sold at completion thus guaranteeing a return on investment. Due to recent court cases, these agreements are now questionably unenforceable.

At the direction of its senior officers, the HBAA has been working to find a way to clarify Alabama law to ensure that these types of agreements can continue to exist. With the changed face of banking and investor financing, the ability to guarantee certain lot sales based on pre-development contracts is more important than ever. Facing looming lot shortages in the next few years, it is an issue that needs to be addressed sooner than later.

The HBAA is working with Jesse Evans, attorney with Haskell, Slaughter, to develop language to address the issue, while preserving the integrity of Alabama's subdivision laws. County and Municipal concerns typically focus on pre-sale situations where buyers are potentially left owning a lot in an undeveloped subdivision with no utilities, infrastructure, or right of way access.

The HBAA will be meeting with representatives of the League of Municipalities and the County Commissioners Association to work on the language and get a bill ready for introduction in the coming weeks.

A proposed Constitutional Amendment to prohibit local governments from charging a business license tax on residential real estate on a per unit basis was scheduled for consideration by the House this week. As is occasionally the case, HB 257, sponsored by Representative Barry Moore (R-Enterprise), failed to come up for a vote due to simmering tensions over unrelated legislation. Lingering anger over passage of the School Flexibility Act led to a slowdown in both chambers this week.

Senate Bill 217, by Senator Vivian Figures (D-Mobile), companion legislation to HB 257, was given a favorable report in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.