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Read. Follow. Verify.Alabama authorizes Class 1 municipalities to create community land trusts for affordable housing
Last action · April 17, 2026: EnactedSponsor: Neil Rafferty
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What This Bill Does
Alabama authorizes to establish nonprofit community land trusts that acquire and lease real property for affordable housing using s up to 99 years, effective October 1, 2026.
Establishes a new municipal framework allowing local governments to hold land and offer long-term restricted housing options to low- and moderate-income residents while providing property tax exemptions.
- Class 1 municipalities in Alabama refer to cities with a population of 175,000 or more, currently applying primarily to Birmingham. context
- Community land trusts are nonprofit legal entities designed to hold land cooperatively and ensure housing affordability remains permanently tied to the property. context
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Class 1 municipalities
Municipalities are granted the authority to create, regulate, audit, and fund nonprofit community land trusts within their jurisdictions.
Low-income and moderate-income families
Families meeting income thresholds gain access to long-term affordable housing options through 99-year ground leases.
Department of Examiners of Public Accounts
The department is required to conduct annual audits of every community land trust established under this act.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible to lease affordable housing from a community land trust?
What happens if a community land trust loses its nonprofit status?
Are community land trust properties eligible for property tax breaks?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Current status: Became law.
Procedural history
23 actions- Apr 17, 2026HouseEnrolledEnacted
- Apr 7, 2026HouseEnrolledDelivered to Governor
- Apr 7, 2026SenateSignature Requested
- Apr 7, 2026HouseEnrolled
- Apr 7, 2026HouseReady to Enroll
- Apr 7, 2026HouseReady to Enroll
Show 17 earlier actions
- Apr 7, 2026SenateFloorMotion to Read a Third Time and Pass - Adopted Roll Call 1163
- Apr 7, 2026SenateThird Reading in Second House
- Apr 2, 2026SenateRead for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar
- Apr 2, 2026SenateCommitteeReported Out of Committee Second House
- Apr 1, 2026SenateCommitteePending Committee Action in Second House
- Apr 1, 2026SenateIntroducedRead for the first time and referred to the Senate Committee on Jefferson County Legislation
- Mar 31, 2026HouseEngrossed
- Mar 31, 2026HouseFloorMotion to Read a Third Time and Pass as Amended - Adopted Roll Call 1110
- Mar 31, 2026HouseMotion to Adopt - Adopted Roll Call 1109
- Mar 31, 2026HouseRafferty 1st Amendment Offered
- Mar 31, 2026HouseMotion to Adopt - Adopted Roll Call 1108
- Mar 31, 2026HouseCounty and Municipal Government Engrossed Substitute Offered
- Mar 31, 2026HouseThird Reading in House of Origin
- Mar 19, 2026HouseRead for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar
- Mar 18, 2026HouseCommitteeReported Out of Committee House of Origin
- Feb 5, 2026HouseCommitteePending Committee Action in House of Origin
- Feb 5, 2026HouseIntroducedRead for the first time and referred to the House Committee on County and Municipal Government
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Establishment of Municipal Land Trust Framework
The act creates a formal, uniform statutory structure for municipal nonprofit land trusts, detailing board governance, auditing, and taxpayer-funded property tax exemptions.
Connected Entities
Sources
alison.legislature.state.al.us
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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