HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – Alabama’s new grocery tax holiday starts May 1 and runs through the end of June.

For the first time since sales tax was created in 1939, shoppers in the state will not pay state tax on groceries.

House Bill 527 became law in early April. For the next three years, Alabamians will get two months without the 2 percent grocery tax.

State representative Mike Shaw added the holiday to the bill that Huntsville representative James Lomax sponsored.

According to the USDA, the average family of four spends around $1,000 a month on groceries. Without the 2 percent tax, that family would save around $40 by the end of the two-month holiday.

“One thing I hear from my constituents all the time is, when are we going to get rid of the grocery tax?” Shaw said. “Because we’re doing it in an incremental way, every step doesn’t sound like a lot. But when you add the 2 percent, we’ve already cut and the 2 percent of the grocery tax holiday, it’s going to be a significant chunk of cash in people’s pockets over time.”

The grocery tax has already been slashed in half since 2023.

Shopper Kelli Taylor said any break helps.

“Last month I could fill my vehicle up for 60 bucks. Last week, it was 93 dollars, so everything’s going up,” Taylor said. “So, to me, any break is a welcomed break, and 2 percent is a lot more than 0 percent, so I’ll take it,” Taylor said.

Alabama is one of only eight states that still has a grocery tax. Shaw said lawmakers will keep pushing toward eliminating it entirely.

An important part is making sure the Education Trust Fund (ETF) can handle it, which has lost millions of dollars of grocery tax funding since the cuts.

The holiday only applies to the state tax. Local city and county sales taxes on food remain in effect.

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Alabama AI officer Aaron Wright began work Monday April 27 as the state’s first Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer, a newly created position housed within the Alabama Office of Information Technology.

Wright, who has more than 25 years of experience in health care and state government technology, most recently served as AOIT’s director of application development. He also led the Data Management and Ownership working group within the governor’s Generative AI Task Force.

Wright said in a statement that AI adoption across state agencies has already been underway through informal coordination, and the new role is designed to build on that foundation.

“AI is no longer a future technology; it is here now,” Wright said. “It has become integrated into existing tool sets, and people are using AI tools and platforms throughout their day to enhance and streamline their work.”

He described the position as collaborative rather than regulatory.

“The CAIO position is not intended to be a gatekeeper or a blocker of innovation for Alabama’s agencies,” Wright said, calling it “an advocate, a facilitator, and, when needed, a voice of caution” as agencies adopt AI tools.

Secretary of Information Technology Daniel Urquhart said Wright’s background “positions Alabama to thoughtfully and effectively harness artificial intelligence in ways that can improve outcomes for our agencies and the people we serve.”

Wright said his first priority is creating a shared environment for agencies to compare notes on AI adoption, and that early projects include an AI chatbot for the OIT website.

“Residents should see government services that are simpler, faster and more reliable,” Wright said, including “shorter wait times, more intuitive digital experiences, and better access to information when and where they need it.”

Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].

Alabama faces a summer of intense heat, high humidity, and occasional strong storms, with El Niño influencing shifts across the Southeast weather pattern.