HB341 Alabama 2023 Session

Summary

Primary Sponsor

Parker MooreRepresentative

Republican

Session

Regular Session 2023

Title

Relating to Morgan County; to amend Section 45-52-233.02, Code of Alabama 1975, to further provide for the maintenance of abandoned and stolen personal property by the sheriff; to add Sections 45-52-233.04 through 45-52-233.09, inclusive, to the Code of Alabama 1975, to authorize the sheriff to sell certain abandoned, stolen, and unclaimed property at public auction; to provide for the auction and for the disposition of proceeds; to authorize the sheriff to sell or destroy certain, stolen, or unclaimed firearms; and to make nonsubstantive, technical revisions to update the existing code language to current style.

Summary

HB341 lets the Morgan County Sheriff sell abandoned, stolen, and unclaimed property (including firearms) at public auction after six months, with specific rules on records, notices, and how proceeds are used.

What This Bill Does

The bill expands the sheriff's ability to maintain and auction recovered property that has been unclaimed for six months. It lays out how property and firearms are stored, when items can be sold (including a faster sale for perishable items), how buyers are notified, and how owners can redeem or reclaim their property before sale. It also specifies how auction proceeds are handled, with funds going to the sheriff's office for law enforcement use after expenses. Firearms have special handling, including records, sale only to licensed dealers, and potential destruction if unclaimed.

Who It Affects

• Property owners whose abandoned or stolen items are recovered by the Morgan County Sheriff's Office: they may redeem items before sale by paying recovery, storage, and publication costs, and perishable items may be sold without notice with proceeds held for a period to allow claim.
• Gun dealers and firearm owners: firearms are specially tracked, may be sold only to licensed gun dealers, and the sheriff can destroy unclaimed firearms; dealers must be notified of sales and bids are handled to ensure proper transfer.

Key Provisions

• Authorizes the Sheriff of Morgan County to sell abandoned, stolen, and unclaimed property at public auction after six months of unclaimed status, with mandatory records and public notice.
• Adds sections detailing special handling for firearms, including keeping records, selling only to licensed dealers, notification procedures, and possible destruction of unclaimed firearms.
• Allows for perishable property to be sold without notice if owner cannot be located, with six months to claim proceeds; proceeds are allocated after costs, with non-perishable property proceeds going to the sheriff's fund.
• Requires notice of auctions (publication or posting), allows owner redemption prior to sale by paying costs, and deposits sale proceeds into a sheriff's fund for law enforcement use.

AI-generated summary using openai/gpt-5-nano on Feb 22, 2026. May contain errors — refer to the official bill text for accuracy.

Subjects

Morgan County, sheriff, to provide for sale of unclaimed property