State to begin reimbursing sheriff’s depts. for lost gun revenue

Alabama will soon begin reimbursing counties for revenue losses from constitutional carry, according to Gov. Kay Ivey.

Ivey said in a statement on Monday that sheriff’s departments in each county will be receiving funds quarterly beginning in the first quarter of 2023, and the amount of funds each county receives is based on revenue that county sheriff’s departments collected on pistol permit fees in 2022.

Under the Local Government Pistol Permit Revenue Loss Fund, Alabama sheriffs need to show a loss of pistol permit funds based on the 2022 figures. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) is making disbursements to the sheriff’s offices based on reports collected by other state agencies.

“ADECA intends to carry out our duties in this matter to ensure that Alabama’s sheriffs’ offices are compensated for their losses based on those shortages provided in the data,” said ADECA director Kenneth Boswell in a statement.

Constitutional carry legislation removing the requirement for Alabamians to acquire a permit to carry a concealed pistol on their person or in their vehicle was signed into law last year. The law included language creating the Local Government Pistol Permit Revenue Loss Fund to help offset revenue losses from removing the concealed carry permit requirement. Alabamians still have the option to get a concealed carry permit if they so choose.

“A couple of core tenets of the Ivey Administration is that we back the blue in the strongest way possible and that we support upholding our citizens’ Second Amendment rights. As we have amended Alabama law to help our gun owners, we also worked to ensure our sheriffs received their critical funds, and I am proud that these grants will do that,” Ivey said in a statement. “The Sheriffs’ Grants will provide them with funding for training, equipment and other needs not provided by county commissions in their annual appropriations. We are proud to support the vital work our sheriffs’ departments do on a daily basis.”

ADECA administers an array of programs supporting law enforcement and traffic safety, economic development, energy conservation, water resource management and recreation development, according to the news release.

In response to the Governor’s press release, the Alabama Sheriff’s Association also issued a release Monday addressing the grant funds.

“The Alabama Sheriffs Association wishes to thank Governor Ivey and the members of the Alabama Legislature for creating this grant program to partially fill the substantial void in our funding created by the passage of the permitless carry bill last year,” the release says, in part. “We look forward to working with the Governor and Alabama’s leaders in the upcoming legislative session to ensure that these funds are permanently allocated and sufficient to restore our ability to fulfill our sworn duty to protect and serve all of Alabama’s citizens.”