Obtaining ABC Licenses

Alcohol Beverage Control Licenses (ABC) are controlled licenses and must be approved by the City Council of the City of Opelika. There is an application process, a review process and a legislative approval process that must be satisfactorily completed before the license can be purchased. Once the City Council approves the license for the applicant, the applicant may purchase the license. Alcohol Beverage Licenses expire on December 31. The licensee must renew the license on or before January 15 or must cease to sell alcohol beverages.

Steps in Obtaining Alcohol Beverage License

1. Apply at the State of Alabama Alcohol Control Board office at:
   3350 Skyway Drive
   Auburn, AL 36830
   Their telephone number is 334-826-1137. They are open from 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on state paid holidays. You will be required to pay a fee.
2. Obtain a City of Opelika application at the Revenue Office at the City Hall building on the main floor. The telephone number is 334-705-5162. The office is open from 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except on city paid holidays. You will not be required to pay an application fee.
3. Obtain an Alabama Bureau of Investigation (ABI) Background Investigation form. Fill out this form and send it to the address on the form. You must obtain a separate form for each owner, partner, director or officer of the corporation or business. You must include $25 with each application for investigation.
4. After the ABI returns your background investigation(s), bring them and your application to the Revenue Department. All paperwork will then be reviewed for accuracy and clarity. Applications not properly filled in will not be accepted. Any conviction information on the City application must match the conviction information on the background investigation and on the State application.
5. When an applicant has submitted a correct application (including conviction information) and the State has sent a copy of the State application to the City, then a folder will be made out of all of the information. The folder will then be passed along to the Zoning Official, the Building Inspector, the Fire Inspector, the State Health Department (if applicable), the Engineering Official and the Police Chief. When these department heads have signed off that the existing or proposed business meets all of the criteria necessary to obtain the license for which the applicant is applying, the folder will be sent to the City Clerk to have the application placed on the next available agenda to be voted on by the City Council. All applications to be placed on the agenda must reach the City Clerk by noon on Thursday preceding the Tuesday meeting. The council meets at the Municipal Court Building on the first and third Tuesdays of each month at 6 p.m. (Central Time).
6. The City Council will vote on the approval or disapproval of the application. The applicant may attend the council meeting but attendance is not required.
7. Upon approval of the application by the council, the applicant may on the next business day purchase the license at the Revenue Department at the City Hall building. The City sends the State application back to the local ABC office with the City Clerk's signature certifying that the application has been approved by the City Council of the City of Opelika. It is then the responsibility of the applicant to purchase the State license from the local office of the State Alcohol Beverage Control Board.