Honorable Wally Burns
AGO 2019-19
No. 2019-019
Alabama Attorney General Opinion
State of Alabama Office of the Attorney General
January 25, 2019
Honorable
Wally Burns
Mayor,
City of Southside
2255
Highway 77 Southside, AL 35907
Municipalities
- Licenses and Permits -Business Licenses - License Tax -
Real Estate Agents, Brokers and Dealers
Pursuant
to section 8(a)(1) of the Local Amendments for Etowah County
of the Recompiled Constitution of Alabama, the Legislature
may, by local law, authorize a municipality in the county to
collect a business license tax from independent contractors
engaged in the business of real estate if their principal
place of business is in that municipality under sections
11-51-90 and 11-51-91 of the Code of Alabama.
Absent
such local legislation, the City of Southside cannot collect
business license tax from such contractors unless they are
salespersons or brokers that have formed a legally
constituted business organization pursuant to section
34-27-36(a)(11) of the Code of Alabama.
Dear
Mayor Burns:
This
opinion of the Attorney General is issued in response to your
request on behalf of the City of Southside.
QUESTIONS
(1)
Whether the City of Southside is authorized to impose
business license tax under section 11-51-90 of the Code of
Alabama on real estate agents as independent contractors who
are associated with a duly licensed realty company with a
principal place of business in the city limits?
(2)
Whether section 8(a)(1) of the Local Amendments for Etowah
County of the Recompiled Constitution of Alabama is an
additional license tax allowing municipalities to fix and
collect such tax on agents acting as independent contractors
under sections 11-51-90 and 11-51-91 of the Code of Alabama
who maintain their principal place of business in the city
limits?
FACTS
AND ANALYSIS
Your
request states that there is a realty company located in the
Southside city limits in Etowah County. You further state...