The Southern Poverty Law Center, SPLC, issued a letter to Winston County Attorney Jeff Mobley on Friday demanding the county drop all criminal cases against residents for falling behind on their garbage collection bills. The letter argues that the county’s debt collection practices violate state and federal laws while also infringing on the protected rights of county residents.
According to SPLC, Winston County residents who are unable to pay their garbage bills are sent a collection letter demanding full payment be made within 10 days. Failure to pay after 10 days then results in an arrest warrant, possible incarceration, and a $300 bond in addition to the unpaid bill. Over 60 residents have been arrested and prosecuted in such cases over the last four years alone.
The center is currently representing five Winston County residents who have been threatened with arrest and prosecution for failing to pay their garbage bills on time.
“We ask the County to immediately terminate all active criminal court cases for ‘failure to participate’ in garbage service, including any currently pending against our clients; remit any fines and fees owed in those cases; and cease instituting criminal proceedings for nonpayment of garbage fees,” SPLC’s attorneys wrote in their letter. “Moreover, because these violations are part of an ongoing pattern and practice in Winston County, we request an opportunity to meet with County officials on or before September 18, 2026, to discuss how the County intends to remedy its unlawful practices.”
The letter goes on to allege that Winston County “wields the threat of criminal punishment as a tool to pressure residents into paying fees, regardless of whether they can afford to pay” in an effort to “close the Sanitation Office’s budget deficit and to fund County programs like Assign-A-Highway.”
SPLC notes that the use and threat of criminal prosecution to collect civil debt is illegal under Alabama law and that the Alabama Supreme Court has previously ruled that it is “an unconstitutional exercise of power for district attorneys to” prosecute people “for the purpose of debt collection.” The attorneys argue that this precedent has been upheld repeatedly in several decisions issued by courts across Alabama.
Additionally, the letter suggests that Winston County’s billing notices violate procedural due process by failing to notify residents as to how they can dispute their bills before pursuing arrest and prosecution due to nonpayment.
“Winston County does not suspend garbage services for nonpayment: it relies on arrest and prosecution as a collection mechanism. But customers’ interests in their liberty are as great—and likely greater—than their interests in continued garbage service…Winston County must afford residents reasonable notice about how a customer can contest a garbage bill and an opportunity to be heard about why that bill may be incorrect before suspending services or arresting him or her,” the letter states.
Ultimately, SPLC’s letter demands that the county: end all ongoing and future criminal prosecution of residents for “failure to participate” in garbage service; remit any fines and fees owed by residents previously prosecuted and sentenced for failing to pay their garbage bills; amend billing notices to inform residents on how they can dispute their utility bills and the options available to customers financially struggling to pay them; and permit partial payments and offer formal payment plans to residents who have low or irregular incomes.
“SPLC’s goal is to ensure that no one is denied essential solid waste services or prosecuted simply because they cannot afford a garbage bill,” the letter concludes. “We look forward to hearing from you on or before September 18, 2026, about the constitutional and statutory violations described above and how they will be remedied.”
SPLC’s efforts in Winston County follow the center’s long tradition of advocacy on behalf of individuals facing unlawful prosecution because they cannot pay utility debt. The center has previously succeeded in establishing moratoria on the prosecution of unpaid bills in various Alabama municipalities and has earned the remittance of outstanding fines and costs for those unable to pay their utility bills.
