On Monday, May 13, 2019, Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill announced he is excited that a new online filing tool for businesses to submit filing documentation to the Secretary of State’s Office and the County Probate Judge’s Office is available. This project has been completed in collaboration with Tuscaloosa County Probate Judge Ward “Rob” Robertson, III.
This service is offered at no cost to Alabama’s 67 counties by the Secretary of State’s Office. As additional counties express interest, they will be added to the system at that time.
“We are proud to have Tuscaloosa County as the fifth Alabama county to make this new service available to its citizens,” Merrill said. “By enabling domestic limited liability corporations and domestic for-profit business corporations to be formed online in Tuscaloosa County, Judge Robertson has removed unnecessary red tape for business to thrive in Tuscaloosa County. This service will dramatically reduce the time it takes Alabamians to file those corporate documents in Tuscaloosa County. It is time we joined the 21st century and modernized the services the people of Alabama use each and every day.”
When Merrill was campaigning to be secretary of state, he learned that state filings were delayed more than 30 weeks from the time of receipt. Since taking office the efforts made by Merrill, and his team have removed years of excessive red tape that was constricting the procedure. The most significant change has been a new requirement that all checks must be deposited on the date received in the Office of Secretary of State. These changes to the process allowed staff to reduce the delayed processing time down to same day processing on all business filing documents that are filed with the office.
Tuscaloosa joins Baldwin, Jackson, Montgomery and Elmore counties as counties where this is available.
Merrill said he wants the Secretary of State’s office to move at the speed of business, not at the speed of government.
Merrill is term limited from running for another term as Secretary of State. He previously served in the Alabama House of Representatives.
