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HB134 • 2026

Lamar County; disposition of personal property; process revised, online auctions authorized, public notice requirement revised

Lamar County; disposition of personal property; process revised, online auctions authorized, public notice requirement revised

Enacted

This bill passed the Legislature and reached final enactment based on the latest official action.

Sponsor
Estes
Last action
2026-02-03
Official status
Enacted
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official bill text contains a typographical error on Page 2, line 36-37 stating 'advertised for four consecutive weeks' immediately after mentioning 'two consecutive weeks'. The summary relies on the context that online auctions have no ad requirement and in-person auctions likely follow standard notice periods, but the exact week count for in-person auctions is ambiguous due to this text error.

Lamar County Rules for Selling Property and Online Auctions

This law changes how Lamar County sells its property by allowing one annual auction, either in person or online, while removing the newspaper advertisement requirement specifically for online auctions.

What This Bill Does

  • Requires most county-owned items to be sold through sealed bids with public advertising in newspapers.
  • Allows the county commission to hold one annual auction per year, either in person or online, instead of using sealed bids.
  • Removes the requirement for newspaper advertisements if the county chooses to sell property at an online auction.
  • Mandates that a list of items available for auction be kept in the offices of the county commission.
  • States that money from these sales must go into the specific district fund or the general county fund.

Who It Names or Affects

  • The Lamar County Commission
  • People who want to buy property owned by Lamar County

Terms To Know

Sealed bids
A process where buyers submit written offers that are kept secret until a set time when they are opened publicly.
Tangible personal property
Physical items owned by the county, such as equipment or furniture, that can be touched and moved.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This law only applies to Lamar County.
  • The specific date when this law becomes active is June 1, 2026.

Bill History

  1. 2026-02-03 House

    Enacted

  2. 2026-01-27 Senate

    Signature Requested

  3. 2026-01-27 House

    Delivered to Governor

  4. 2026-01-22 Senate

    Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass - Adopted Roll Call 113 (Yeas 32, Nays 0)

  5. 2026-01-22 Senate

    Third Reading in Second House (Yeas 32, Nays 0)

  6. 2026-01-22 House

    Enrolled

  7. 2026-01-22 House

    Ready to Enroll

  8. 2026-01-21 Senate

    Read for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar

  9. 2026-01-21 Senate

    Reported Out of Committee Second House

  10. 2026-01-20 House

    Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass - Adopted Roll Call 21 (Yeas 6, Nays 0)

  11. 2026-01-20 House

    Third Reading in House of Origin (Yeas 46, Nays 0)

  12. 2026-01-20 Senate

    Pending Committee Action in Second House

  13. 2026-01-20 Senate

    Read for the first time and referred to the Senate Committee on Local Legislation

  14. 2026-01-15 House

    Read for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar

  15. 2026-01-15 House

    Reported Out of Committee House of Origin

  16. 2026-01-13 House

    Pending Committee Action in House of Origin

  17. 2026-01-13 House

    Read for the first time and referred to the House Committee on Local Legislation

Official Summary Text

Lamar County; disposition of personal property; process revised, online auctions authorized, public notice requirement revised

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
HB134 ENROLLED
Page 0
HB134
4UQE63I-2
By Representative Estes (N & P)
RFD: Local Legislation
First Read: 13-Jan-26
PFD: 07-Jan-26
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HB134 Enrolled
Page 1
PFD: 07-Jan-26
Enrolled, An Act,
Relating to Lamar County; to amend Section 45-38-71.01,
Code of Alabama 1975; to revise the process for personal
property auctions by the county commission; to remove any
publication requirement for the disposition of county property
via online auction; and to make nonsubstantive, technical
revisions to update existing code to current language style.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Section 45-38-71.01, Code of Alabama 1975,
is amended to read as follows:
"§45-38-71.01
(a) This section shall only apply in Lamar County.
(b)(1) All contracts for the sale or disposal of real
property , or tangible personal property , equipment, or other
items owned by or under the control of the county commission
shall be let by free and open competitive sealed bids. The
chair of the county commission shall certify to the
description and condition of the property, shall give
jurisdiction in writing for the disposal of the property,
shall estimate the value of the property, and shall keep the
certification as a part of the permanent record of the
commission. Tangible personal property , equipment, or other
items owned by or under the control of the county commission
which have has trade-in value may be offered as a credit
against the cost of property purchased in accordance with the
Alabama Competitive Bid Law Article 3 of Chapter 16 of Title
41.
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HB134 Enrolled
Page 2
41.
(2) Every proposal to make a sale covered by this
section shall be publicly advertised for four two consecutive
weeks in a newspaper of countywide circulation and advertised
one time in a newspaper of statewide circulation not less than
seven days in advance of the date fixed for closing the
receipt of bids. The advertisements shall state a description
of the property to be sold along with the date, time, and
place of opening of the sealed bids.
(c) All bids shall be publicly opened and all bidders
shall be entitled to be present at the bid opening in person
or by representative. Any agreement or collusion among bidders
or prospective bidders or any other person in restraint of
freedom of competition, by any agreement to bid at a fixed
price or to refrain from bidding, shall render the bids of the
bidders void and shall cause such bidders to be disqualified
from submitting further bids on the sale. Any disclosure prior
to opening the sealed bids or the terms of a bid shall render
the proceedings void.
(d) In lieu of the bidding procedures provided in
subsections (b) and (c), tangible personal property ,
equipment, or other items owned by or under the control of the
county commission may be sold at a public auction , whether in
person or online, by public bidding once a year . The county
shall publicly advertise for two consecutive weeks in advance
the date, time, and location of the auction shall be publicly
advertised for four consecutive weeks in advance of the
auction . If the auction is online, the county is not required
to publicly advertise the auction. A list of the items to be
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HB134 Enrolled
Page 3
to publicly advertise the auction. A list of the items to be
auctioned shall be available in the offices of the county
commission.
(e) All proceeds from the sale or other disposition of
the property under this section shall be deposited in the fund
of the district owning the property or the general fund of the
county, if the property was owned by the county.
(f) Anyone who knowingly violates this section shall be
guilty of a Class B felony and upon conviction shall be fined
up to fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000) and may be imprisoned
in the state penitentiary for up to seven years.
(g)(f) Any taxpayer of the area within the jurisdiction
of the county and any bona fide unsuccessful bidder on a
particular contract may bring a civil action in the
appropriate court to enjoin execution of any contract entered
into in violation of this section."
Section 2. This act shall become effective on June 1,
2026.
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HB134 Enrolled
Page 4
2026.
________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Representatives
________________________________________________
President and Presiding Officer of the Senate
House of Representatives
I hereby certify that the within Act originated in and
was passed by the House 20-Jan-26.
John Treadwell
Clerk
Senate 22-Jan-26 Passed
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