(a) The privilege assessments imposed by this article shall be due and payable in monthly installments to the department on or before the twentieth day of the month next succeeding the month in which the assessment accrues, and shall, when collected, be paid by the department into the State Treasury. Payment by United States mail will be timely if mailed in accordance with Section 40-1-45. When so paid into the State Treasury, all such privilege assessments shall be deposited to the credit of the Alabama Health Care Trust Fund or any successor fund administered by or on behalf of the Alabama Medicaid Agency.

(b) The receipts from the privilege assessments levied in this article shall be solely available for appropriation by the Alabama Legislature to the Alabama Medicaid Agency for use by the agency in accomplishing the purposes of this article. Provided, however, for the first fiscal year in which this article is effective, to defray its expenses including salaries and costs of operation incident to the collection of this privilege assessment, there is hereby appropriated to the department and shall be deducted as a first charge thereon, an amount not to exceed one percent of the revenues collected pursuant to this article. Such amount of money as shall be appropriated for each succeeding fiscal year by the Legislature to the department with which to pay the salaries, the cost of operation and the management of the department shall be deducted, as a first charge thereon, from the privilege assessments collected under and pursuant to this article. Provided, however, the expenditure of the sum so appropriated shall be budgeted and allotted pursuant to Article 4 of Chapter 4 of Title 41, and limited to the amount appropriated to defray the expenses of operating the department for each fiscal year, incident to the collection of this privilege assessment.