Senator says new business incentives put Alabama at the ‘forefront of job creation’ nationally

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April 1, 2015

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama Senate Tuesday passed a bill that will overhaul the way the state incentivizes businesses to create jobs in the state. The bill will now return to the House to approve the amendments added by the Senate before it is sent to the Governor’s desk.

The Alabama Jobs Act will allow companies who create more than 50 jobs in the state to receive a tax credit for 3 percent of salaries of employees for 10 years, as well as a 1.5 percent credit for a company’s investment in construction, equipment, or development of an eligible project that creates new jobs.

“This Act puts Alabama in the forefront of job creation and means that companies have a strong incentive to start new jobs projects right here in Alabama,” said Senator Phil Williams, the bill’s sponsor in the Senate. “It will help us attract new companies to our state and combined with other related bills, mean that companies already here are likely to keep their new projects in the state.”

In the past, companies were often given large incentives packages before the first employee was even hired in the state, with the state giving out massive abatements with little or no way to determine if the state recouped the money that was spent attracting the company.

“I and my Senate Republican colleagues are committed to creating a healthy, pro-business climate in our state,” Williams said. “This Act will mean more jobs for Alabamians, and I am proud to sponsor this incentives package.”

The bill, sponsored by Representative Alan Baker in the House, is one of the points on the Senate’s “Paving a Path for the Future” agenda.