Who is running for Tax Collector, Jefferson County in 2026?

Jefferson County Tax Collector

J.T. Smallwood has been Jefferson County Tax Collector since first winning the office in November 2002, and he won reelection in 2020¹²³. A lifelong county resident, he holds a bachelor's degree from UAB and a law degree from the Birmingham School of Law and previously worked as a law firm administrator and on the Jefferson County Family Court staff¹². He is unopposed on the November 3, 2026 ballot⁴.

• Jefferson County Tax Collector, since his election in November 2002; reelected in 2020¹²³
• Smallwood Law Firm, 1995 to 1999; Jefferson County Family Court staff, 1999 to 2002; former law firm administrator and instructor in law and ethics¹²
• Ran for Jefferson County Commission District 4 in 2018 and lost to Joe Knight²
• B.S., University of Alabama at Birmingham; studies at Samford University; J.D., Birmingham School of Law, 1992¹²
• Elected countywide in November 2002¹² and reelected in November 2020, when no opponent appeared on the ballot and the only other votes were write-ins³. Unopposed in 2026⁴.
• Public discipline: The Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, in its report on the Office of Tax Collector for July 1, 2017 through July 8, 2022 (filed March 29, 2024), found the office did not comply with the Office of Tax Officials Minimum Accounting Requirements for maintaining accurate cashbooks and monthly bank reconciliations, a finding it said was also reported in its 2011 and 2017 examinations⁵⁶.