Members of the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Board increased its bailment fee on Thursday from 72 cents to $1 per case.
A bailment fee is paid by liquor producers to the ABC Board when their products are held in an ABC warehouse.
The ABC Board is currently constructing a new, larger central warehouse and office facility.
Alabama’s bailment fee is currently 72 cents per case. ABC Board administrator Curtis Stewart originally proposed increasing the fee over three years to $1 in 2026, $1.25 in 2027, and $1.50 in 2028. However, the proposal was pared down to just one increase to $1 at the ABC Board meeting on Thursday. However, more requested increases are likely in the coming years.
Stewart has said increasing the fee is necessary to offset the costs of building the new warehouse.
Alabama is one of 17 remaining alcoholic beverage control states in the United States.
Lawmakers contacted by 1819 News on Thursday slammed the new fee increase.
State Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur), who has introduced multiple bills to privatize the state’s ABC stores, said, “I’ve tried numerous times, but the Montgomery special interests are able to stop it every time. I hope a Gov. Tuberville administration will strongly look at privatization of ABC operations. First retail stores, then wholesale operations. The government has no business competing against private mom and pop stores.”
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) is running for governor in 2026 instead of seeking reelection to the Senate.
“Most states have already done this, but Alabama clings to the past, costing taxpayers more money all the while, like the bailment fee passed today,” Orr said. “Ask yourself, if we were designing state government today, would we decide to set up subsidized government businesses competing against the private sector? Do we need to set up government pharmacies next, since they sell controlled substances? It’s no different from the socialist mayor candidate, Mamdani, in New York City wanting to set up subsidized grocery stores. It’s time for a change to the status quo.”
State Sen. Greg Albritton (R-Atmore), General Fund committee chairman, said his reaction to the new fee hike was “not favorable.”
“He’s raising the rates, but he’s also cutting the amount coming to the General Fund,” Albritton said. “I’m unhappy.”
State Sen. Chris Elliott (R-Josephine) said, “I’m not confident they had the authority to act in the manner that they did. Taxing authority rests with the Legislature.”
“If they want to mess around, they’ve made a bunch of legislators mad by acting in the manner that they did. They may end up seeing their fees set not by them but by the Legislature. It’s a dangerous game they’re playing,” Elliott said. “It’s worth noting all of these people work for the governor. They’re either appointees of the governor or cabinet secretaries of the governor. These people work for the governor. She just raised fees, raised taxes.”
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