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House approves new handicap-parking rule; members debate enforcement and privacy
Summary
The House passed SB94 to limit use of a handicap placard to the person it is issued to — who must be driving or in the vehicle — and to require the Department of Revenue to develop an electronic placard validation system. Members debated enforcement (who can ask), privacy, invisible disabilities and possible racial profiling.
The Alabama House on the special order calendar passed Senate Bill 94 after prolonged floor debate over enforcement procedures and civil-liberty implications.
What the bill does: SB94 amends state law so that a disability placard is valid for handicapped parking only when the person to whom the placard is issued is physically in the vehicle or driving it. The measure tasks the Alabama Department of Revenue with developing an electronic validation system (a barcode or QR code that links to the placard holder’s record) and preserves an enforcement regime that includes progressively larger penalties and community-service requirements for repeat violations.
Key floor exchanges: Representative Pettis, who explained the substitute, said the bill closes a gap where placards appeared to be used by people who were not the placard holders. “If you have a handicap parking permit, the person it's issued to has to be either driving the vehicle or in the vehicle,” Pettis told the chamber.
Opponents and some colleagues raised operational concerns: how police or parking-enforcement personnel would have authority to question drivers or passengers in private parking lots, whether meter readers or sworn officers should perform checks, how invisible disabilities would be treated, and whether routine questioning could escalate or be used in racial profiling. Several members urged clear public guidance and training and requested that the Department of Revenue and law enforcement collaborate on practical steps to reduce conflict.
Implementation and next steps: The bill calls for an electronic placard-check system; lawmakers said that will allow quick validation without repeated intrusive stops. The sponsor named the Department of Revenue as the implementing agency. Supporters said the change will help preserve spaces for eligible people; critics said the state must guard against overbroad policing and protect people with nonapparent disabilities.
Vote: The clerk announced the recorded vote on the floor: the House passed SB94 (clerk tally announced on the floor: 82 yays, 1 nay).
What to watch: agencies' implementation memos and training guidance for local law enforcement and parking enforcement; details of the QR/barcode system and the timeline Department of Revenue provides for rollout and public notice.
