Tuscaloosa Attacks Preemption

Subject matter of handguns reserved to State Legislature; Power of municipality to adopt certain ordinances; concurrent jurisdiction of municipal courts with district courts.

No incorporated municipality shall have the power to enact any ordinance, rule, or regulation which shall tax, restrict, prevent, or in any way affect the possession or ownership of handguns by the citizens of this state. The entire subject matter of handguns is reserved to the State Legislature. This section shall not be construed to limit or restrict the power of a municipality to adopt ordinances which make the violation of a state handgun law a violation of a municipal ordinance to the same extent as other state law violations, or to limit or restrict the power of a municipal court to exercise concurrent jurisdiction with the district court over violations of state handgun laws which may be prosecuted as breaches of a municipal ordinance.

• (Acts 1982, No. 82-442, p. 694, §1; Acts 1994, No. 94-635, p. 1195,

Regulation of gun shows, etc.; authority to bring or settle certain lawsuits reserved to Attorney General.

a) No county or municipal corporation, instrumentality, or political subdivision thereof, by ordinance, resolution, or other enactment, shall regulate in any manner gun shows, the possession, ownership, transport, carrying, transfer, sale, purchase, licensing, registration or use of firearms, ammunition, components of firearms, firearms dealers, or dealers in firearm components.

• (b)(1) Subsection (a) does not affect the authority a municipality has under law to regulate the discharge of firearms within the limits of the municipality or the authority a county has under law enacted prior to August 1, 2000, to regulate the discharge of firearms within the jurisdiction of the county.

• (2) Subsection (a) does not affect the authority of the state, a county, or a municipality to assess, enforce, and collect sales taxes, use taxes, and gross receipts taxes in the nature of sales taxes as defined by Section 40-2A-3(8), on the retail sale of firearms and ammunition or to assess, enforce, and collect business licenses from firearms or ammunition manufacturers, trade associations, distributors, or dealers for the privilege of engaging in business.

• Further, nothing herein shall exempt any business which uses firearms or ammunition in the conduct of its business or any business which leases or sells firearms or ammunition from the provisions of county and municipal planning and zoning laws, as long as the code, ordinance, or regulations are not used to circumvent the intent of subsection (a). [/ist]
  • This section shall not be construed to limit or restrict the power of a municipality to adopt or enforce ordinances which make the violation of a state firearm law a violation of a municipal ordinance to the same extent as other state law violations.
  • (c) The authority to bring or settle any lawsuit in which the state has an exclusive interest or right to recover against any firearm or ammunition manufacturer, trade association, or dealer, and the authority to bring or settle any lawsuit on behalf of any governmental unit created by or pursuant to an act of the Legislature or the Constitution of Alabama of 1901, or any department, agency, or authority thereof, for damages, abatement, injunctive relief, or other equitable relief resulting from or relating to the design, manufacture, marketing, or lawful sale of firearms or ammunition, or both, shall be reserved exclusively to the Attorney General, by and with the consent of the Governor. This section shall not prohibit a county or municipal corporation from bringing an action against a firearms or ammunition manufacturer or dealer for breach of contract or warranty as to firearms or ammunition purchased by the political subdivision or local governmental authority.
  (Act 2000-762, § 1.)