By Ruth Serven Smith
al.com
(TNS)
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville has said that if elected governor of Alabama, he’d like to cut the state income tax.
While no one likes paying taxes, cutting Alabama’s income tax means having to find another way to pay for schools and teachers.
It’s something easier said than done.
“Stay tuned,” Tuberville told AL.com last week when asked for details about how he might get that accomplished if elected.
Last year, Alabama got $7.5 billion in revenue from corporate and personal income taxes. That money makes up 70% of K-12 funding.
Tuberville has discussed dropping both the state property tax and state income tax, which together make up the majority of the state’s revenues each year.
“I hate taxes,” Tuberville said during a 2025 speech at the Association of County Commissions of Alabama. “I’d love to drop the property tax in the State of Alabama. I’d like to drop the state income tax.”
In other comments, Tuberville has said that cutting taxes is part of a broader vision for growing jobs and bringing companies to Alabama.
State lawmakers would be happy to cut taxes.
The devil will be in the details, though, of how to balance revenue while (potentially) consolidating services or jobs.
Legislative ideas
State Sen. Arthur Orr told AL.com he is working on a proposal to update the state tax code.
“Income tax is the most prominent thing to look at, given the competitive nature around the country,” said Orr, who leads the Education Finance Committee.
“But I also believe it’s important to look at the entire picture too. All of it needs to be on the table.”
Orr said he believes the state should eventually reduce its income tax, which is generally a flat 5%.
“On the other hand, we’ve got a responsibility in Montgomery for our schools,” said Orr, a Republican from Decatur.
He also said he wants to remove the federal income tax deduction, a loophole that reduces collections and primarily benefits wealthy families.
Rep. Mike Shaw, also a Republican, has tried to eliminate Alabama’s grocery tax, which has been lowered in recent years and currently sits at 2%.
“That’s an obvious one,” he said.
He said Alabamians complain about property tax assessments, which have been capped through 2029, and vehicle assessments.
“In general, should we start reducing taxes? Sure,” Shaw said. “Should we look at the income tax? But the big problem is what to do with the Education Trust Fund.”
The personal income tax is the largest revenue source for the Trust Fund, according to Kirk Fulford, with the state Legislative Services Agency.
If Alabama wants to fund K-12 schools and universities at the same level, it would need to find another source for that money.
“Alabama has low property taxes and low taxes in general, and I don’t see a simple way of eliminating the income tax,” said Thomas Spencer, with PARCA, a nonpartisan research organization.
If the state dramatically cut its income tax without raising revenue in other areas, it would have to defund schools or cut most other government services.
“That would mean defunding prisons, the court system, public safety, conservation and natural resources, Medicaid, mental health, public health, etc.,” Spencer said.
Tuberville’s opponent for governor, former Sen. Doug Jones, claimed Tuberville’s tax and economic development goals rely on unpopular efforts like data centers.
“Tuberville’s promise to eliminate both income and property taxes and fund state government from the property taxes he believes will be generated as he forces communities to build data centers is as empty as his promise to donate his Senate salary to veterans,” Jones said.
Other states
States without income tax—such as Tennessee, Florida, Texas—traditionally have high property taxes.
Alabama can’t easily increase its property tax, even if voters wanted to, because the state constitution imposes strict limits on taxation.
These complications haven’t stopped other politicians from advocating for tax cuts.
On talk radio, State Auditor Andrew Sorrell predicted that Alabama’s state income tax will be phased out in the next decade.
“The Alabama state income tax will be eliminated,”Sorrell said on Jeff Poor’s show. “It will begin, I think, in the next quadrant, the next four years.”
In June, John Wahl, the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, said Alabama’s income tax places it at an economic disadvantage among its neighbors.
“Florida doesn’t have a state income tax, Tennessee doesn’t have a state income tax, Mississippi is phasing theirs out, Georgia is phasing theirs out, and if we don’t get started on this, we’re going to be behind the curve,” Wahl said in an interview on talk radio.
“It’s going to put us at an economic disadvantage nationally.”
Photo caption: Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who is running for governor of Alabama (Senator Tommy Tuberville/Facebook)
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