The Lynch et. al. vs. Alabama lawsuit is one of the more serious issues facing Alabama's forest industry today.

On March 13, a class-action lawsuit was filed in Federal District Court in Huntsville on behalf of a group of school children from Sumter and Lawrence counties alleging that Alabama’s property tax revenues fail to adequately fund K-12 public schools and that this shortfall unconstitutionally shortchanges black public school students. The plaintiffs argue that the State’s method of funding public schools flows from “racially discriminatory” property taxes provided for in both the 1901 Constitution and in later amendments.

In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs ask the federal court to:
1. Eliminate all of Alabama’s existing limitations on property tax rates,
2. Do away with differential assessment,
3. Remove all of the maximum tax or “lid” provisions that limit the total amount of property taxes that may be collected, and
4. Eliminate a number of constitutionally provided-for tax exemptions, such as those that exempt property held for religious or charitable purposes.

If the plaintiffs are successful, forest land would be assessed at 100% of full market value NOT 10% of current use value. This means taxes on forest land would be 1000% of what they are today due to the elimination of differential assessment PLUS any increase due to loss of current use valuation. If a landowner has property in Shelby, Madison, Baldwin, or any other county near a rapidly growing metropolitan area, this could mean going from $490 / acre to $5000 - $10,000 / acre.

This lawsuit, as filed, could have a severe impact on Alabama's forestry community. That's why the Alabama Forestry Association is in the process of building a coalition of like-minded groups and individuals. We also want to keep our community informed at all times.

Below is brief synopsis of the lawsuit along with downloadable copies of all of the legal filings. We will keep you updated on the lawsuit through our bi-weekly newsletter, AFA Newsroom. Click here to sign up to receive it, along with any e-mail alerts.