Montgomery City Council Considering 1% Occupational Tax
At Tuesday’s Montgomery City Council meeting, the Council approved a proposal to form a committee that will study the implementation of a 1% occupational tax.
The committee will begin meeting on January 14th, and will report its findings back to the Mayor and Council on February 4th.
If implemented, any person who works in Montgomery will be subject to a 1 percent occupational tax. Any money given in the form of occupational taxes would be deductible.
City Councillor Glen Pruitt proposed the measure. Pruitt says  the money generated from the tax would go towards increasing salaries for first responders, and funding other projects throughout the city.
Every major city in Alabama already collects occupational taxes. The city of Montgomery collects the least amount of taxes per capita, of any city in the state.
If the tax becomes a reality in the future, it is expected to generate somewhere between 45 and 55 million dollars. That is nearly half of the city of Montgomery’s annual budget.
Pruitt says that if the measure passes, the council will ask the Legislature to reduce grocery taxes in Montgomery, in an effort to regulate the transition into the new tax.
