Jefferson County, Alabama
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Jefferson County, Alabama | |
| Map | |
 Location in the state of Alabama |
|
 Alabama's location in the USA |
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| Statistics | |
| Founded | December 13, 1819 |
|---|---|
| Seat | Birmingham |
| Area - Total - Land - Water |
2,911 km² (1,124 mi²) 2,882 km² (1,113 mi²) 29 km² (11 mi²), 1.00% |
| Population - (2000) - Density |
662,047 595/sq mi (230/km²) |
| Website: www.jeffcointouch.com | |
Jefferson County is the most densely populated county in the U.S. state of Alabama, the county seat being Birmingham. As of 2000 U.S. Census, the population of Jefferson County was 662,047. Jefferson County is the most populated and principal county in the Greater Birmingham area.
Contents |
[edit] History
Jefferson County was established on December 13, 1819 by the Alabama legislature. It was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson. The county is located in the north-central portion of the state, on the southern extension of the Appalachians, in the center of the iron, coal and limestone belt of the South. Jefferson County is bordered by Blount, Bibb, St. Clair, Shelby, Tuscaloosa, and Walker counties. It encompasses 1,119 square miles. The county seat was at Carrollsville from 1819-21, at Elyton from 1821-73, and since 1873 has been at Birmingham, which was named for England's iron and steel center in Warwickshire.
[edit] Government and Law
Jefferson County is one of the few counties in Alabama that has a limited-form of home rule government. This limited ability of home rule allows the county to be able to land use zoning, maintenance sewer system and roads, garbage disposal, and to enforce taxation (except property taxes). The county is governed by a five-member commission with legislative and executive duties. The Commissioners are elected by a vote of the district that they represent instead of an "at large" election as was done in the past. Each individual county commissioner represents one of the five individual districts in the county. By commission vote they are given executive responsibilities for the departments that fall under the categories of Roads and Transportation and Community Development, Environmental Services, Health and Human Services, Technology and Land Development, or Finance and General services. The commission elects its own President, who chairs commission meetings and has additional executive duties. The current commission President is Bettye Fine Collins.
Jefferson County is served by the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department. The Sheriff is chosen in an "at large" election. The current sheriff of Jefferson County is Mike Hale. The department fields about 175 officers who patrol the unincorporated areas of the county and municipalities that do not have their own police. They maintain jails in Birmingham and Bessemer that house inmates awaiting trial and serving sentences.
The judicial system of Jefferson County is unique within the state because there are two judicial courthouses in the county. This came about when the state legislature made preparations to split off a portion of Jefferson county to create a new county with Bessemer as its county seat. The idea was dropped but the additional courthouse and parallel positions remain. The main courthouse is in Birmingham and the second, known as the courthouse annex, is located in Bessemer. There are elected officials who maintain offices in the annex such as the Assistant Tax Collector, Assistance Tax Assessor, and Assistant District Attorney.
[edit] Taxation
Jefferson County has a 1¢ sales tax on each dollar on anything from groceries to clothing items. In January 2005, a controversial addition 1% educational sales tax for the funding of construction of education facilities came into effect. This controversial tax was approved with a 3-2 vote by the County Commission in October 2004. Commissioners Gary White and Bettye Fine Collins voted against the tax; while Larry Langford, Sheila Smoot, and Mary Buckelew voted in favor. This additional 1¢ has led county municipalities like Fairfield to have sales tax rates as high as 10¢ on the dollar while other municipalities and incorporated communities saw an increase in their total sales tax rate from 8% to 9%. The educational sales tax as well as the county's limited ability to self-govern has been the subject of an attempted repeal by the Alabama State Legislature during the 2005 regular legislative session though the repeal of either (particular self-government) is highly unlikely. It should be noted that the state of Alabama sales tax is 4% and Jefferson County's is 2% in total. Municipal sales taxes go as high as 4%.
[edit] Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,911 km² (1,124 mi²). 2,882 km² (1,113 mi²) of it is land and 29 km² (11 mi²) of it (1.00%) is water.
[edit] Major Highways
Interstate 20
Interstate 59
Interstate 65
Interstate 459
U.S. Highway 11
U.S. Highway 31
U.S. Highway 78
U.S. Highway 280
U.S. Highway 411
State Route 5
State Route 75
State Route 79
State Route 150
State Route 269
Jefferson County will be the eastern terminus for 
Interstate 22 when completed.
[edit] Adjacent Counties
- Blount County (north)
- St. Clair County (northeast)
- Shelby County (southeast)
- Bibb County (south)
- Tuscaloosa County (southwest)
- Walker County (northwest)
[edit] Demographics
As of the census² of 2000, there were 662,047 people, 263,265 households, and 175,861 families residing in the county. The population density was 230/km² (595/mi²). There were 288,162 housing units at an average density of 100/km² (259/mi²). The racial makeup of the county was 58.10% White, 39.36% Black or African American, 0.21% Native American, 0.90% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 0.59% from other races, and 0.80% from two or more races. 1.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 263,265 households out of which 30.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.10% were married couples living together, 17.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.20% were non-families. 28.70% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.04.
In the county the population was spread out with 24.80% under the age of 18, 9.60% from 18 to 24, 29.70% from 25 to 44, 22.30% from 45 to 64, and 13.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,868, and the median income for a family was $45,951. Males had a median income of $35,954 versus $26,631 for females. The per capita income for the county was $20,892. About 11.60% of families and 14.80% of the population were below the poverty line, including 20.20% of those under age 18 and 12.70% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Cities and towns
- Adamsville
- Argo (part - part of Argo is in St. Clair County)
- Bessemer
- Birmingham (part - part of Birmingham is in Shelby County)
- Brighton
- Brookside
- Cahaba Heights
- Cardiff
- Center Point
- Chalkville
- Clay
- Concord
- County Line (part - part of County Line is in Blount County)
- Edgewater
- Fairfield
- Forestdale
- Fultondale
- Gardendale
- Grayson Valley
- Graysville
- Helena (part - part of Helena is in Shelby County)
- Homewood
- Hoover (part - part of Hoover is in Shelby County)
- Hueytown
- Irondale
- Kimberly
- Leeds (part - part of Leeds is in Shelby County and part is in St. Clair County)
- Lipscomb
- Maytown
- McDonald Chapel
- Midfield
- Minor
- Morris
- Mount Olive
- Mountain Brook
- Mulga
- North Johns
- Pinson
- Pleasant Grove
- Rock Creek
- Sumiton (part - part of Sumiton is in Walker County)
- Sylvan Springs
- Tarrant
- Trafford
- Trussville (part - part of Trussville is in St. Clair County)
- Vestavia Hills (part - part of Vestavia Hills is in Shelby County)
- Warrior (part - part of Warrior is in Blount County)
- West Jefferson
[edit] Education
Except for cities that have established their own local school districts, all parts of Jefferson County outside of the city limits of Birmingham are served by Jefferson County Board of Education. Parts within Birmingham are served by Birmingham City Schools. Other cities in the county that have established their own school systems are Bessemer, Fairfield, Midfield, Trussville, Homewood, Leeds, Hoover, Vestavia, Tarrant, and Mountain Brook.
[edit] External links
- Official Website of Jefferson County
- Jefferson County Department of Health
- Jefferson County Department of Education
- Jefferson County Library System
- Jefferson County Sheriff's Department
