Montgomery, AL – Legislation to permit liquor sales in small towns in dry counties died for a short time in the Alabama Senate and then got new life.
Initially Wednesday, the Senate failed to override the governor's veto of the bill. Proponents who wanted an override got 13 votes, and opponents pulled 15 votes.
Then a proponent, Democratic Sen. Lowell Barron of Fyffe, got the Senate to agree 17-9 to reconsider the override issue later. That could be any time before the legislative session ends May 15.
The bill's sponsor, Democratic Rep. Jimmy Martin of Clanton, says there is still hope for the bill.
His bill would allow towns with at least 1,000 people in dry counties to hold referendums to legalize liquor sales. Martin's bill excludes three of Alabama's 26 dry counties.
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