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Dozens of community members stopped by The Anchor on Thursday morning for a cup of coffee, refreshments and a presentation from Aaron Roper, City of Selma Tax Collector, during a “60-Minute Coffee” event.

The event, hosted by the Selma and Dallas County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Information, provided Roper an opportunity to update the community on the progress of the transition of tax collection from the city to the county.

Roper said for the most recent tax season, the city was able to collect 100% of the property taxes due in Selma, issue over 3,500 businesses licenses and collect $9.9 million in sales tax.

“We’re going to finish strong this year,” Roper said of the sales tax collection. “We’re going to finish a little bit better than $13 million.”

Roper walked the event attendees through how a prospective business owner would apply for a business license and touted the ability to apply for a business license online 24/7 at www.selma-al.gov.

“We’ve made it so easy that you can purely go online and get that,” he said. “You can apply for a business license, pay for it and have it issued without even having a conversation.”

One key step in the process for business owners whose see customers face-to-face to provide services is for them to ensure the space used for the business meets all building inspection prerequisites.

Roper said for business owners to be mindful when they’re given a courtesy inspection as it’s the inspector’s way of giving them a practice test so they’ll know what needs to be fixed prior to any official inspection. Any issues would be need to be resolved before an official inspection occurs.

He cited consulting services as an example of a business that wouldn’t need to pass a building inspection since those businesses typically don’t deal with its customers in-person.

Roper cautioned prospective business owners to ensure they’re zoned properly if they’re going to start a business within their own home.

For more information on how to apply for a business license, visit www.selma-al.gov/business-licenses/ for a comprehensive breakdown of steps involved and agencies waiting to assist in bringing new businesses to the Queen City of the South.