Alabama Republicans unveil plan to completely cut the grocery tax – for good

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October 16, 2026

The last 2% of Alabama’s state grocery tax is going to zero.

Alabama Speaker of the House Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) and Senate President Pro Tem Garlan Gudger (R-Cullman) announced Friday at Star Supermarket in Huntsville that full and permanent repeal of the tax will be the first order of business when the Legislature convenes for the 2027 session. Ledbetter said the legislation is drafted and will be filed the moment the gavel hits.

“Tax relief has been a shared priority among the House and Senate GOP during my tenure as Speaker, and I am proud to say our state has more than $1.5 billion in cuts to show for it,” Ledbetter said.

“Since 2023, the grocery tax has been cut in half, and thanks to our fiscally responsible approach to governing, our state’s budgets are strong enough to finally move forward with its full and permanent elimination. I am committed to having the bill on the House floor within the first few weeks of the 2027 Session.”

Alabama taxed groceries at the full 4% state sales tax rate for decades. The Republican supermajority cut it to 3% in September 2023 and to 2% in September 2025, then suspended it outright for May and June of this year.

Alabama is one of nine states still charging a statewide sales tax on food. The 2027 bill takes Alabama off that list.

For a family spending $1,000 a month on groceries, zeroing out the remaining 2% is worth $20 a month and $240 a year. Stacked on the cuts already in place, that family keeps roughly $480 a year it was handing the state in 2022.

“Every Alabama family deserves to keep more of their hard-earned money, especially when it comes to putting food on the table,” Gudger said.

“As elected leaders, we have a responsibility to make life more affordable for the people of our state, and fully eliminating the state grocery tax is one of the most meaningful ways we can deliver real relief to hardworking Alabamians.”

Ellie Taylor, president and CEO of the Alabama Grocers Association, the trade group representing the state’s supermarkets and food retailers, joined the leaders for the announcement.

“Alabama has made tremendous progress in reducing the state grocery tax, and we are grateful to Governor Kay Ivey and the Alabama Legislature for their leadership in making that progress possible,” Taylor said. “But our work is not finished. Food is a necessity, not a luxury, and eliminating the remaining 2% state grocery tax would provide meaningful relief to every Alabama family.”

Members of the Huntsville delegation filled out the lineup: State Rep. Rex Reynolds, who chairs the House General Fund budget committee, State Reps. Phillip Rigsby (R-Harvest) and James Lomax (R-Huntsville) and State Sen. Sam Givhan (R-Huntsville) – all Huntsville Republicans.

Democrats in Montgomery have called grocery tax repeal a party priority for years, however, every point that has actually come off the register was passed by a Republican Legislature and signed by Governor Kay Ivey.

Republican gubernatorial nominee Tommy Tuberville has already cut a TV ad promising to push the tax to zero.

Since 2022, the Legislature has passed more than $1.5 billion in tax cuts, covering the grocery tax, working families, homeowners and businesses. Ledbetter said the grocery tax repeal will be on the House floor within the first few weeks of the session.

Grayson Everett is the editor in chief of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on X @Grayson270.