DOTHAN, AL — The repeal of Alabama’s grocery tax, once considered a political long shot, has emerged as a key bipartisan campaign issue for state elections this fall. This shift signals potential changes for residents across the Wiregrass, impacting the cost of everyday necessities and the funding structure for public schools.
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Doug Jones and Republican lieutenant gubernatorial nominee John Wahl have both centered the issue in their campaigns. Last week, Republican gubernatorial nominee Tommy Tuberville, who had largely overlooked the issue during his primary campaign, endorsed its "elimination" in his first general election advertisement, presenting it as an initial step in a broader tax-cutting agenda. However, as of early Friday afternoon, Tuberville’s campaign website did not explicitly include cutting the grocery tax among his stated priorities.
Alabama has levied a tax on groceries since the state’s sales tax was first introduced in 1939. The state remains one of eight nationwide that still imposes a tax on food, and until 2023, it was one of an even smaller number that fully taxed these purchases. Historical efforts to eliminate the tax have been complicated by its substantial financial contribution to the state’s Education Trust Fund (ETF), which funds most public education programs.
According to the Legislative Services Agency, the state sales tax on food is projected to bring $393.5 million to the Education Trust Fund in 2025. Through August of this year, sales tax collections on food totaled $207.6 million. The agency estimates total collections from the grocery tax for the year will reach approximately $230 million, a figure artificially lowered due to a two-month sales tax holiday on food held in May and June. The estimated cost to fully eliminate the remaining 2% state sales tax on food would be approximately $270 million.
From an economic standpoint, Benjamin Meadows, an assistant professor of economics at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), explained that grocery taxes are "effective at raising revenue" because groceries are considered “inelastic goods,” meaning consumer behavior does not change significantly with minor price adjustments. However, anti-poverty advocates have long argued that the tax, which can result in up to 10% of a grocery bill in many parts of the state, disproportionately affects low-income households and exacerbates food insecurity. Meadows noted that individuals with limited means pay a proportionally higher amount of their income towards this tax.
Despite the long-standing challenges, the state has recently taken steps towards reducing the tax. The Republican-controlled Legislature in 2023 reduced the state tax on groceries from 4% to 3%, with a further cut to 2% scheduled for 2025. While local grocery taxes have been frozen, they remain in effect. Republicans have touted these reductions as a measure to combat inflation. Senator Andrew Jones, a Republican from Centre who led efforts to reduce the tax in the Alabama Senate, stated, "the first thing we need to do on a state level is eliminate the rest of the state grocery tax."
Democratic counterparts maintain their consistent support for eliminating the grocery tax. Former Representative John Knight, a Democrat from Montgomery and former chair of the House Ways and Means General Fund committee, championed efforts to reduce the levy for many years. Doug Jones, in an interview Friday, pointed out that Democrats have advocated for elimination "for well over 20 years," adding that Republicans, who have controlled the Legislature for 16 years, "could have done it at any point." Jones’s platform calls for fully eliminating the tax, emphasizing that "there are people in this state that really need the break."
Phillip Ensler, the Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, stated he advocated for eliminating the grocery tax as a member of the House of Representatives and voted for its reduction in both 2023 and 2025. Ensler reported widespread public support, saying, "Everywhere I go in the state...there is overwhelming support to cut it because people are having a hard time." Lieutenant gubernatorial nominees Ensler and Wahl largely agree on this issue, with Wahl expressing concern for "young families just working to put food on the table, seniors on fixed incomes who are having trouble just paying for basic necessities." Chris Sanders, a spokesman for Alabama Arise, an anti-poverty group, welcomed the "widespread, bipartisan support for untaxing groceries," calling it "a human issue, a moral issue."
Looking ahead, Representative Danny Garrett, a Republican from Trussville who chairs the House Ways and Means Education Committee, confirmed on Friday that a bill to eliminate the remaining state portion of the grocery tax has already been drafted. Garrett noted that when the first 50% was eliminated, the intention was to eventually remove the remainder. He believes the state has the "wherewithal to repeal it" based on revenue growth and budget projections, even without a specific provision to replace the lost revenue. Earlier efforts, such as a constitutional amendment to fully eliminate the state grocery tax, passed the Alabama House of Representatives in 2008 but failed to secure the necessary votes in the Senate, both chambers being Democrat-controlled at the time.
Concerns remain about the potential impact on the ETF budget, leading to proposals for alternative revenue sources. Alabama Arise, for example, advocates for eliminating the federal income tax deduction, which Sanders describes as a "highly skewed, highly upside-down tax break that overwhelmingly benefits the wealthy households in our state." Doug Jones, the Democratic gubernatorial nominee, suggested eliminating the CHOOSE Act, which offers tax credits of up to $7,000 per child for non-public school activities, including private school tuition. Jones believes this action could "offset this a good bit."