TAX EXEMPT but not TAX FREE

Baldwin EMC recently announced that the cooperative has completed the payment of more than $3.4 million in taxes to the municipalities within its service area.

The city license tax payments were delivered in person by Baldwin EMC board members and employees in January.

According to Baldwin EMC’s Vice President of Finance and Accounting Alan Schott, the cooperative does carry a not-for-profit, tax-exempt status, but, as Schott says, “tax exempt is not the same as tax free.”

In fact, Baldwin EMC has paid more than $20 million in taxes over the past ten years.

“We actually pay a tax of 3 percent on gross revenue from our members who live in a municipality’s city limits,” Schott explains. “A tax of 1.5 percent is paid on gross revenue from members in most municipalities' police jurisdictions.”

Schott further explains that Baldwin EMC's notfor-profit status means that the cooperative only takes in enough revenue to cover the cost of doing business and to provide an emergency reserve. “If we take in more than we need, it’s refunded to our members,” Schott says.

What:

Gulf Coast Hot Air Balloon Festival

When:

May 4 - 6, 2023

Where:

OWA Amusement Park

Foley, Ala.

For more information: www.gulfcoastballoonfestival.com