ATLANTA– Georgia on Monday imposed new restrictions on the sale of cannabis products, set some basic standards for rental properties, cut income taxes and required cash bail for dozens of new crimes.
These are some of the many laws passed by the General Assembly earlier this year that went into effect on July 1.
Part of the bail law, which limits the ability of individuals and charity groups to post bail for others, was put on hold on Friday by a federal judge after a lawsuit was filed challenging its constitutionality.
Another law requiring online sites to collect data on high-volume merchants who collect payments in cash or other offline means is also in effect. challenged with a lawsuitbut a federal judge did not immediately block it after a hearing on Friday.
Other laws went into effect when Gov. Brian Kemp signed them, including a measure signed May 1 that forces prison guards to check immigration status of prisoners. That’s already a law in Georgia, but Republican supporters say some guards are ignoring their obligations.
The immigration law was passed after the murder of nursing student Laken Riley on the campus of the University of Georgia. Jose Ibarra, a Venezuelan man, has pleaded not guilty for murder and kidnapping after Riley’s death.
Here’s a look at some of Georgia’s new laws:
An already planned reduction in state income taxes is accelerated below House Bill 1015giving the state a flat income tax rate of 5.39% retroactive to January 1. From that date, Georgia was given a flat income tax rate of 5.49%, passed under a 2022 law that moved away from a series of income brackets that capped at 5.75%.
The income tax rate should fall by 0.1% per year up to 4.99% is reached if state revenues remain stable. The state will lose an estimated $300 million by lowering the rate from 5.49% to 5.39%. That’s on top of the $800 million the state is expected to lose as part of the previous tax cut.
A separate law will reduce the corporate tax rate from 5.75% to 5.39%. Under the bill, the corporate tax rate would continue to decline along with the personal tax rate to 4.99%. The corporate tax cut would cost $176 million in the first full year.
Retailers may only sell hemp products such as CBD to persons 21 years of age and older. Senate Bill 494. Manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers must purchase permits from the state Department of Agriculture. Products can only be sold if they have been tested, with state agriculture officials also overseeing testing labs.
Hemp products must include test results and a warning sticker if they contain THC, the compound in marijuana that causes a high. Officials have said that products they have tested in the past contain illegally high levels of delta-9 THC and that labels do not accurately reflect a product’s ingredients.
The measure bans the sale of hemp products within 500 feet (152 meters) of a K-12 school and prohibits hemp products that look like existing snacks or candy to make them less appealing to children. That could ban hemp-infused brownies, cookies and candies, but experts say gummies and hemp-infused drinks are still legal.
The measure limits how much delta-9 THC a product can contain, with the goal of also eliminating the sale of products containing chemicals that can be converted into THC. Other CBD compounds, such as Delta-8-THC and Delta-10-THC, remain legal in Georgia.
Landlords in Georgia would, for the first time, be legally required to maintain rental properties in a state fit for human habitation. Bill 404The bill also adds air conditioning as a utility that may not be turned off until an eviction notice is filed, along with the existing requirements to provide heat, light and water.
The law requires a landlord to give a tenant three days’ written notice before beginning eviction proceedings if a tenant fails to pay rent or other required fees. An eviction notice must also be posted “conspicuously” on the door of the rental property.
The measure limits the deposit to two months’ rent.
A cash deposit would be required for this 30 additional crimesincluding some crimes, under Senate Bill 63.
The measure undermines changes in 2018 that allowed judges to release most people accused of misdemeanors without bail. Advocates argue that people who leave jail without posting bail are less likely to appear in court, although national studies contradict that claim.
Judges would still have the discretion to set very low bail amounts, but opponents say that is unlikely. They warn the move could land poor defendants in jail, even if they are accused of crimes for which they are unlikely to ever go to prison.
A federal judge on Friday suspended for at least 14 days a portion of the law that would restrict that charitable surety funds or individuals who bail out more than three people a year from jail. Only those who meet the legal requirements to be bail bonds companies can do this.
Opponents filed a lawsuit on June 21, claiming part of the law is unconstitutional.