County, municipalities stand together in SSUT fight

CONTRIBUTED BY CHAMBERS COUNTY

CHAMBERS COUNTY — Chambers County officials attended the Alabama County Commission Association’s (ACCA) legislative conference on Nov. 20 in Prattville. City Councilmen joined County Commissioners and staff for this conference.

One of the focus items at the conference was the legislation and litigation involving the Simplified Sellers Use Tax (S.S.U.T.). The litigation involves a lawsuit filed by the city of Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa City School and City of Mountain Brook against Alabama Department of Revenue Commissioner Vernon Barnett. County Attorney Skip McCoy, at the Nov. 17, Chambers County Commission meeting, presented a resolution for Chambers County to intervene in this Montgomery County lawsuit in support of the Department of Revenue’s position. The city of Lanett and city of Valley have also agreed to join the county by intervening. The lawsuit involves larger cities seeking to take a bigger percentage of the S.S.U.T. tax to the detriment of counties and smaller cities. The joinder by Chambers County and its cities continues to demonstrate the ability of all entities to work together for the common good of our local citizens.