Alabama Trust Fund

A permanent trust for Alabama’s future.

Overview

The Alabama Trust Fund was established to preserve and invest revenues derived from offshore oil and gas resources. As an irrevocable, permanent trust, it supports long-term financial stability for the state through disciplined investment and governance. The Trust Fund is managed by a board of directors responsible for oversight, investment policy, and financial reporting.

Discovery of natural gas in Mobile Bay in 1978 led to active drilling and development of the large gas reserves below Alabama’s coastal waters. The State received bids totaling $449 million in 1981 for the rights to develop offshore tracts. In 1982, voters approved the creation of the Alabama Heritage Trust Fund (AHTF) with the revenues from this first sale of drilling rights. The AHTF income was used to finance a $520 million bond issue for capital outlay projects. On August 14, 1984, the state received more than $347 million from leases awarded on offshore tracts.

In 1985, the voters of the state approved Amendment 450 creating the Alabama Trust Fund (ATF) as an irrevocable, permanent trust fund. The ATF was established to capture future revenues from sales of offshore drilling rights and from royalties on the resulting gas production.  This amendment also terminated the Heritage Trust Fund in 2001 with all trust capital transferred to the ATF. The initial corpus of the ATF was $333,583,680. In December 2001, the Heritage Trust Fund transferred $467,002,694 in trust capital to the ATF.

The trust fund initially received as principal 99 percent of all oil and gas capital payments paid to the State, with the remaining one percent to the Department of Conservation-Lands Division. Several subsequent amendments have modified this.

Contact Us

Executive Office of the Treasurer

600 Dexter Avenue, Room S-106
Montgomery, Alabama 36104
334-242-7501

Amendments and Acts Summary of the Alabama Trust Fund

Amendment 450 – passed in 1985

  • Created the Alabama Trust Fund as an irrevocable, permanent trust fund
  • Terminated the Heritage Trust Fund in 2001 and transferred trust capital to the ATF

Amendment 488 – passed in 1988

  • Allowed the Heritage Trust Fund and the Alabama Trust Fund to invest in such kinds of investments as allowed by law for the Retirement Systems of Alabama
  • Allowed that capital gains from the sales of investments shall become part of trust fund capital

Amendment 543 – passed in 1993

  • Created the Forever Wild Land Trust for the purpose of acquiring, maintaining and protecting unique land and water areas within the State
  • Redirected the percentage of ATF income currently being retained by the ATF to be distributed to the Forever Wild Land Trust

Amendment 666 – passed in 2000

  • Redistributed 35% of Oil and Gas Capital Payments
  • Created the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund and the Alabama Capital Improvement Trust Fund
  • Allows for the transfer of up to 75% of the realized and unrealized capital gains on sales of investments other than fixed income to the general fund
  • Directed that the Secretary-Treasurer of the Retirement Systems of Alabama shall be the initial manager of 50% of the Alabama Trust Fund assets

Amendment 709 – passed in 2002

  • Created the Education Trust Fund Rainy Day Account

Amendment 803 – passed in 2008

  • Repealed Amendment 709
  • Re-established the Education Trust Fund Rainy Day Account
  • Created the General Fund Rainy Day Account

Amendment 856 – passed in 2012

  • Provided new procedure for ATF distributions
  • Provided distributions from the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund
  • Transferred $145,796,943 annually to the General Fund for FY 13, FY 14 and FY 15
  • Repealed laws in conflict with the amendment

Amendment 887 – passed in 2014

  • Increased the total amount of bonding authority granted under Amendment 666
  • Provided for additional payments from the ATF to fund any bond issued
  • Provided for the use of the proceeds for plans, construction and maintenance of Alabama National Guard armories

Section 11-66, Code of Alabama – passed in 1986

  • Created the Municipal Government Capital Improvement Fund
  • Allowed at such time that ATF trust income equaled or exceeded $60 million in the preceding fiscal year the General Fund must pay 10% to this fund to be distributed by the State Comptroller

Section 11-29, Code of Alabama – passed in 1986

  • Created the County Government Capital Improvement Fund
  • Allowed at such time that ATF trust income equaled or exceeded $60 million in the preceding fiscal year the General Fund must pay 10% to this fund to be distributed by the State Comptroller
AMENDMENT 856 RATIFIED: Distributions from Alabama Trust Fund; distributions from County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund. 

 Section 1. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this constitution, beginning with the state’s 2012-2013 fiscal year, the following distributions shall be made annually from the Alabama Trust Fund in lieu of any other distributions of trust income, realized capital gains, or unrealized capital gains provided by law: 

(1) An amount equal to thirty-three percent (33%) of the oil and gas capital payments paid into the Alabama Trust Fund for the fiscal year ending one year prior to the beginning of the fiscal year for which the distribution is being made plus five percent (5%) of the average market value of invested assets of the Alabama Trust Fund as of the end of the three fiscal years ending one, two, and three years prior to the beginning of the fiscal year for which the distribution is being made shall be distributed as follows: 

a. Ten percent (10%) of the amount distributed shall be paid to the County Government Capital Improvement Fund and shall be distributed pursuant to Section 11-29-6, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended. 

b. Ten percent (10%) of the amount distributed shall be paid to the Municipal Government Capital Improvement Fund and shall be distributed pursuant to Section 11-66-6, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended. 

c. If the constitutional amendment proposed by Act 2011-315 is ratified, then ten percent (10%) of the amount distributed, but not more than fifteen million dollars ($15,000,000) in any one fiscal year, shall be paid to the Forever Wild Land Trust. This distribution shall continue through the fiscal year ending September 30, 2032, and shall not be made after the end of that fiscal year. If the constitutional amendment proposed by Act 2011-315 is not ratified, then one percent (1%) of the amount distributed, but not more than one million dollars ($1,000,000) in any one fiscal year, shall be paid to the Forever Wild Land Trust Stewardship Account. 

d. One percent (1%) of the amount distributed, but not more than five million dollars ($5,000,000) in any one fiscal year, shall be paid to the Alabama Senior Services Trust Fund. 

e. The remainder of the amount distributed shall be paid to the State General Fund. 

(b) Beginning with the state’s 2012-2013 fiscal year, an amount equal to five percent (5%) of the average market value of invested assets of the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund as of the end of the three fiscal years ending one, two, and three years prior to the beginning of the fiscal year for which the distribution is being made shall be distributed as follows: 

(1) Fifty percent (50%) of the amount distributed shall be paid to the County Government Capital Improvement Fund and shall be distributed pursuant to Section 11-29-6, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended. 

(2) Fifty percent (50%) of the amount distributed shall be paid to the Municipal Government Capital Improvement Fund and shall be distributed pursuant to Section 11-66-6, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended. 

(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of this Section, if market or financial conditions dictate that distributing the entire amounts authorized by this amendment would be detrimental to the preservation of the invested assets of the Alabama Trust Fund, the preservation of the invested assets of the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund, or both, the Board of Trustees of the Alabama Trust Fund in its sole discretion may, by a two-thirds recorded vote of the entire membership of the Board, elect to distribute a smaller percentage of the oil and gas capital payments, a smaller percentage of the average amount of invested assets, or both. The Board shall make this election at least six months prior to the beginning of the fiscal year for which the distributions will be made. 

(d) For purposes of this amendment, “invested assets” means all assets which are invested in accordance with the investment policy statement adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Alabama Trust Fund. Invested assets shall not include investments in land or properties acquired for the Forever Wild Land Trust and vested in the Alabama Trust Fund and shall not include any outstanding and unpaid amounts due to the Education Trust Fund Rainy Day Account or to the General Fund Rainy Day Account. 

Section 2. A County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund Advisory Committee is created. The Committee shall be composed of three members appointed by the Alabama League of Municipalities and three members appointed by the Association of County Commissions of Alabama. The Committee shall serve in an advisory role, and the Board of Trustees of the Alabama Trust Fund shall define the duties of the Committee. 

Section 3. Beginning with the state’s 2012-2013 fiscal year, whenever funds are withdrawn from the Education Trust Fund Rainy Day Account or the General Fund Rainy Day Account, there shall not be any additional transfer of funds into the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund, and investment income earned on amounts repaid to the Education Trust Fund Rainy Day Account and the General Fund Rainy Day Account shall not be distributed to the State General Fund. 

Section 4. Beginning with the state’s 2012-2013 fiscal year and continuing through the state’s 2014-2015 fiscal year, there is hereby transferred $145,796,943 annually to the State General Fund from the Alabama Trust Fund. 

Section 5. All laws or parts of laws in conflict with this amendment are repealed, including, but not limited to: Those portions of Amendments 450, 543, and 666 to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, relating to the distribution of trust income, realized capital gains, and unrealized capital gains; Amendment 668 to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, relating to the distribution of trust income; those portions of Amendment 803 to the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, relating to additional transfers to the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Fund and the distribution of investment income on repayments to the Education Trust Fund and State General Fund Rainy Day Accounts; and Sections 11-66-5 and 11-29-5 of the Code of Alabama 1975, as amended, relating to appropriations of trust income to the County and Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Funds. 

END OF PROPOSED AMENDMENT 

Board of Directors

Kay Ivey
Governor, Chair
Montgomery, AL

Bill Poole
State Finance Director, Vice Chair
Montgomery, AL

Young Boozer
State Treasurer, Secretary
Montgomery, AL

John Hornsby
Birmingham, AL

Daniel Hughes
Montgomery, AL

Alvin Hope
Mobile, AL

Linda Green
Huntsville, AL

Lila McNair
Mobile, AL

John Norris
Birmingham, AL

Board Duties

  • The Trust Fund shall be under the management and control of the board.
  • All powers necessary for the management shall be vested solely in the board.

Board Meeting Materials

County & Municipal Government Capital Improvement Trust Fund (CMT)

In 2012, Alabama voters passed an amendment to allow for more stable and predictable payouts to cities and counties from the CMT Trust Fund, to manage the fund for a total return and to establish the CMT advisory committee. The CMT is managed by the ATF Board.

CMT Advisory Committee

Leigh Dollar
Guntersville, AL

Mike Freeman
Fayette, AL

Dan Harris
Montgomery, AL

Rusty Jessup
Riverdale, AL

Ray Long
Decatur, AL

Ronnie Marks
Athens, AL