Bentley signs bill allowing small Alabama towns to continue selling alcohol

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March 12, 2015

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Just in the nick of time, the Alabama Senate passed, and Governor Bentley signed, two laws that will allow the dozens of the state’s small cities that voted to go “wet” in the last 6 years to continue selling alcohol.

A State Supreme Court ruling last month said small cities with populations of at least 1,000 in dry counties who had voted to allow alcohol sales since the threshold was lowered in 2009, were doing so unlawfully because the law’s exclusion of Blount, Randolph, and Clay counties violated the Equal Protection Clause.

Today would have been the last day of a grace period before the Alabama Beverage Control Board (ABC) would have begun shutting down businesses in the affected cities.

The first bill ratified the elections in those cities, and the second rewrote the 2009 law so it no longer contained the problematic county exclusions.

The bills, sponsored by Rep. Jimmy Martin (R- Clanton) were the first two laws signed in the 2015 session.

Several Montgomery insiders said they’d never seen a piece of non-local legislation move through the process so quickly. The bills made it through the committee process without a hiccup, and were passed unanimously by both houses.

Governor Bentley signed the bills as soon as they made it to his desk.

Ed Lowe, the city manager for Oneonta, a city of around 6,900 in Blount County, told Yellowhammer Thursday that he was ecstatic to hear the news that the Governor had signed the bill.

“It gives our business owners that have purchased licenses some closure to this issue to where they can continue doing business and not be worried about an interruption in alcohol sales,” Lowe said. “It gives us a very very important tool in our economic development arsenal. We know for a fact that it’s a major consideration for business.”

Lowe told Yellowhammer that the city has seen its tax revenue increase 14.5% since the city first allowed alcohol sales last summer.

Cities like Oneonta could soon see that number go even higher as businesses and restaurants who had held off on seeking a license to sell begin working with their municipalities.

Mr. Lowe said he, and officials from other cities in Oneonta’s position are thankful the state legislature and Governor acted so quickly.