Georgia
Georgia operates a medical-only "low THC oil" program and has not legalized adult-use cannabis. The Haleigh's Hope Act, signed in 2015, legalized patient possession of low THC oil; Georgia's Hope Act (House Bill 324), signed in 2019, created in-state production and dispensing, and the first licensed dispensary sales occurred on April 28, 2023. Senate Bill 220, signed May 12, 2026, expanded the program: it added qualifying conditions, replaced the prior 5-percent-by-weight THC cap with a 1,200-milligram-per-container and 12,000-milligram total possession limit, and authorized vaporization for registered patients age 21 and over. Production is capped by statute at six licenses — two Class 1 and four Class 2 — and the Class 2 licenses were finalized on May 7, 2025. The state has issued 19 dispensing licenses, and roughly 56 independent pharmacies are registered to dispense low THC oil, making Georgia the first state to allow pharmacy dispensing of cannabis products. The Low THC Oil Registry recorded 33,309 active patients as of July 2025. Smokable flower remains prohibited. Georgia publishes no low-THC-oil sales or tax-revenue figures, so the size of the market cannot be quantified from public records.
Licensing & Market
Georgia caps production at six licenses by statute — two Class 1 producers permitted up to 100,000 square feet of indoor cultivation and four Class 2 producers permitted up to 50,000 square feet (House Bill 324); the Class 2 licenses were finalized on May 7, 2025. The six producers are vertically integrated, cultivating, manufacturing, and operating dispensaries. The state has issued 19 dispensing licenses; separately, roughly 56 independent pharmacies are registered to dispense low THC oil, making Georgia the first state to allow pharmacy dispensing of cannabis products. There are 0.17 GMCC-licensed dispensaries per 100,000 residents, a figure that excludes the registered pharmacies. The Commission does not publish operating counts for producers or dispensaries, so activation rates and operating cultivation density cannot be stated from public records; on an awarded basis the six production licenses work out to 0.54 per million residents. Vertical integration is permitted with restrictions, and licenses are transferable with Commission approval through a $1,000 change fee. Whether the program imposes a hard owner-residency requirement is not confirmed in the public record. Georgia publishes no statewide registry of jurisdictions that allow or prohibit dispensing sites, and the seed-to-sale tracking vendor is not confirmed in a primary public source. The Class 1 production application fee is $25,000 and the annual renewal fee is $100,000; the Class 2 application fee is $5,000. The dispensing application fee is $5,000, and the annual dispensing renewal fee ranges from $25,000 to $40,000 by county tier.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Cultivator licenses awarded | 6 | [5] |
| Cultivator licenses operational | Not available in the public record | — |
| Cultivator activation rate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Operating cultivators per million | Not available in the public record | — |
| Retail licenses awarded | 19 | [6] |
| Retail licenses operational | Not available in the public record | — |
| Retail activation rate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Dispensaries per 100k | 0.17 | [7] |
| Vertical integration | allowed with restrictions | [8] |
| License caps exist | Yes | [9] |
| Licenses transferable | Yes | [10] |
| Residency required | Not available in the public record | — |
| Residency duration (months) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Municipalities allowing | Not available in the public record | — |
| Municipalities total | Not available in the public record | — |
| Municipal opt-in rate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Track-and-trace system | Not available in the public record | — |
| Cultivator application fee | $25,000 | [11] |
| Cultivator annual fee | $100,000 | [12] |
| Retail application fee | $5,000 | [13] |
| Retail annual fee | $25,000 | [14] |
Consumer Rules
Georgia permits a restricted set of product forms. Smoking and combustion of cannabis flower are prohibited, and no raw smokable flower or whole-plant products are allowed; the legal forms are low THC oil and oil-derived products such as oils, tinctures, capsules, lozenges, and topicals. Senate Bill 220, signed May 12, 2026, authorized vaporization for registered patients age 21 and over while barring vapor use in public places. Products are capped at 1,200 milligrams of THC per container, with a 12,000-milligram total possession limit, replacing the prior 5-percent-by-weight THC cap (O.C.G.A. § 16-12-191). Home cultivation is prohibited for all persons, including registered patients. Delivery is not legal; dispensing is in person only. Georgia has no on-site consumption-venue category.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Home grow allowed | No | [15] |
| Home grow plant limit | Not available in the public record | — |
| Possession limit (oz) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Delivery legal | No | [16] |
| Delivery operational | No | [17] |
| Consumption lounges legal | No | [18] |
| Consumption lounges count | 0 | [19] |
| Purchase limit, flower (oz) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Purchase limit, concentrate (g) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Purchase limit, edibles (mg) | Not available in the public record | — |
| All product forms legal | No | [20] |
| Restricted product forms | Smoking/combustion of cannabis flower is prohibited; no raw smokable flower and no whole-plant adult-use products. Only 'low THC oil' and derived forms (oils, tinctures, capsules, lozenges, topicals); SB 220 (signed May 12, 2026) authorized vaporization for registered patients age 21+ but bars vapor use in public places. Products are capped at 1,200 mg THC per container and a 12,000 mg total possession limit (SB 220), replacing the prior 5%-by-weight THC cap. | [21] |
Taxation
Georgia imposes no cannabis-specific excise tax. Low THC oil is taxed as ordinary retail under the state's general sales and use tax (O.C.G.A. Title 48, Chapter 8): the state sales tax rate is 4 percent, with local option sales taxes applied on top. Low THC oil is not tax-exempt, and there is no separate medical rate. No cannabis-specific tax has been adopted or changed since the program began. Georgia does not break out low-THC-oil sales tax revenue in any public report, so cannabis tax revenue and per-resident tax revenue cannot be quantified from public records.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Excise tax | Not available in the public record | — |
| Excise tax type | none | [22] |
| Sales tax | 4% | [23] |
| Wholesale tax | Not available in the public record | — |
| Potency tax exists | No | [24] |
| Potency tax, flower | Not available in the public record | — |
| Potency tax, concentrate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Potency tax, edibles | Not available in the public record | — |
| Local tax (max) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Local tax (typical) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Total effective rate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Medical tax exempt | No | [25] |
| Medical tax rate | 4% | [26] |
| Annual tax revenue | Not available in the public record | — |
| Tax revenue per capita | Not available in the public record | — |
| Tax changed since legalization | No | [27] |
| Tax direction | unchanged | [28] |
Operator Data
Georgia publishes no public sales figures for the low THC oil program; neither the Access to Medical Cannabis Commission nor the Department of Public Health reports dispensary or pharmacy revenue, so total market sales and sales per resident cannot be stated from public records. Production is capped at six licenses, which is both the current and the high-water count; no producer license has been surrendered or revoked according to available sources, so no license-attrition series exists. Smokable flower is prohibited, so there is no wholesale or retail flower market to price. The state publishes no wholesale price index, and operator margins and wholesale price trends cannot be quantified from public records.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Wholesale flower ($/lb) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Wholesale flower period | Not available in the public record | — |
| Wholesale trend | Not available in the public record | — |
| Wholesale price compression | Not available in the public record | — |
| Retail flower ($/oz) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Operator margin | Not available in the public record | — |
| Total market sales | Not available in the public record | — |
| Adult-use sales | Not available in the public record | — |
| Per-capita sales | Not available in the public record | — |
| YoY sales growth | Not available in the public record | — |
| License attrition (count) | Not available in the public record | — |
| License attrition | Not available in the public record | — |
| Peak cultivation licenses | 6 | [29] |
| Current cultivation licenses | 6 | [30] |
Consumer Data
The Low THC Oil Registry recorded 33,309 active patients as of July 2025. Georgia publishes no public sales total, so cannabis spending per resident cannot be stated from public records. There are 0.17 GMCC-licensed dispensaries per 100,000 residents; including the roughly 56 registered pharmacies that dispense low THC oil raises effective access to about 0.67 dispensing locations per 100,000 residents. Georgia publishes no estimate of legal-market capture — the share of consumption met by licensed sellers versus the unregulated market — and no retail price trend, so neither can be stated from public sources.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Per-capita sales | Not available in the public record | — |
| Dispensaries per 100k | 0.17 | [7] |
| Legal market capture | Not available in the public record | — |
| Legal capture source | Not available in the public record | — |
| Retail price trend | Not available in the public record | — |
Equity Programs
Georgia's cannabis program contains no social-equity component: there is no equity license category, no equity fund, no income criterion, and no community-reinvestment mechanism tied to the program. The state does not publish minority- or women-owned shares of cannabis licensees. Georgia provides petition-based record restriction for certain cannabis convictions under Senate Bill 288, the "Second Chance Law," effective January 1, 2021, which permits sealing of up to two misdemeanor convictions four years after sentence completion, subject to a judicial balancing test. Record restriction is not automatic, and the state publishes no cannabis-specific count of records restricted.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Equity program exists | No | [32] |
| Equity program type | Not available in the public record | — |
| Equity licenses awarded | Not available in the public record | — |
| Equity licenses operational | Not available in the public record | — |
| Equity activation rate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Equity fund exists | No | [33] |
| Equity fund size | Not available in the public record | — |
| Equity fund disbursed | Not available in the public record | — |
| Equity fund disbursement rate | Not available in the public record | — |
| Minority ownership | Not available in the public record | — |
| Women ownership | Not available in the public record | — |
| Community reinvestment | Not available in the public record | — |
| Expungement exists | Yes | [34] |
| Expungement automatic | No | [35] |
| Expungements processed | Not available in the public record | — |
| Income cap for equity | Not available in the public record | — |
Enforcement
Georgia's Hope Act requires producers to test low THC oil through Commission-approved independent laboratories across six categories: cannabinoid potency, foreign matter, microbial contaminants, pesticides, heavy metals, and residual solvents. The Hope Act and Commission rules also require a seed-to-sale tracking system, but the statewide tracking vendor is not confirmed in a primary public source. Beyond the testing requirement, the operational metrics of enforcement — inspection counts, enforcement actions against licensees, unlicensed-market enforcement actions, regulatory budget and staffing, per-batch testing cost, product recalls, and the fine schedule — are not available in the public record. This is not because enforcement does not occur, but because the regulator does not report these figures in a form that can be sourced for a public reference.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Track-and-trace system | Not available in the public record | — |
| Inspections per year | Not available in the public record | — |
| Enforcement actions (licensees) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Unlicensed-market enforcement actions | Not available in the public record | — |
| Regulatory budget | Not available in the public record | — |
| Regulatory staff | Not available in the public record | — |
| Mandatory testing analytes | 6 | [36] |
| Testing cost per batch | Not available in the public record | — |
| Product recalls per year | Not available in the public record | — |
| Fine schedule (min) | Not available in the public record | — |
| Fine schedule (max) | Not available in the public record | — |
Penalties & Criminal Law
Georgia has not legalized adult-use cannabis, and its recreational cannabis penalties are unchanged; the medical low-THC-oil program has only expanded since 2015. Possession of one ounce (28.35 grams) or less is a misdemeanor carrying up to 12 months and a fine up to $1,000 (O.C.G.A. § 16-13-2(b)). Possession of more than one ounce is a felony carrying one to ten years (O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j)(1)). Unlicensed cultivation, manufacture, and sale are felonies: amounts up to 10 pounds carry one to ten years, while more than 10 pounds is trafficking under O.C.G.A. § 16-13-31, with mandatory minimums of five, seven, and fifteen years and fines of $100,000, $250,000, and $1,000,000 across the weight tiers. Georgia sets no per se THC blood limit for impaired driving — the state's "any amount" provision was struck down in Love v. State (1999) — and now relies on an impairment standard. Eligible cannabis convictions are subject to petition-based, non-automatic record restriction. Post-legalization arrest figures are not asserted here: Georgia has no adult-use law to mark a "post-legalization" period, and the only available arrest series is secondary federal data that the source describes as an undercount, preserved in the underlying time-series rather than stated as a figure. A 2020 analysis of 2018 arrest data reported that Black Georgians were roughly three times as likely as white Georgians to be arrested for cannabis possession.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Max penalty, unlicensed cultivation | Home/personal cultivation is NOT permitted. Cultivation/manufacture of marijuana is a felony: amounts up to 10 lbs are punishable by 1-10 years (O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j)). More than 10 lbs is 'trafficking in marijuana' under O.C.G.A. § 16-13-31(c) with mandatory minimums: more than 10 to less than 2,000 lbs = min 5 years + $100,000; 2,000 to less than 10,000 lbs = min 7 years + $250,000; 10,000 lbs or more = min 15 years + $1,000,000. | [37] |
| Max penalty, unlicensed sale | Unlicensed sale/distribution of marijuana is a felony: amounts up to 10 lbs are punishable by 1-10 years (O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j)); more than 10 lbs is trafficking under O.C.G.A. § 16-13-31(c), with mandatory minimums of 5/7/15 years and fines of $100,000/$250,000/$1,000,000 by weight tier. Sale of low THC oil outside the licensed program is unlawful. | [38] |
| Felony threshold (grams) | 28.35 | [39] |
| Felony threshold type | possession | [40] |
| Penalty, possession over limit | Possession of more than one ounce (28.35 g) of marijuana is a felony punishable by 1-10 years imprisonment (O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j)(1)). One ounce or less is a misdemeanor: up to 12 months and/or a fine up to $1,000 (O.C.G.A. § 16-13-2(b)). For registered patients, possession of more than the program's 12,000 mg THC limit of low THC oil falls outside the legal-possession protection. | [41] |
| Penalty, public consumption | Public consumption is not separately decriminalized; SB 220 (2026) expressly bars vaporization of medical cannabis in public places. Marijuana itself remains a controlled substance and public possession/use is charged under O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30 / § 16-13-2(b) by quantity. | [42] |
| DUI per se limit (ng) | Not available in the public record | — |
| DUI zero tolerance | No | [43] |
| Penalties increased post-legalization | No | [44] |
| Penalty direction | unchanged | [45] |
| Penalty direction details | Georgia has not legalized adult-use cannabis; recreational marijuana criminal penalties (misdemeanor for 1 oz or less, felony above) are unchanged. The medical low-THC-oil program has only EXPANDED since 2015: Haleigh's Hope Act (2015) legalized patient possession of low-THC oil; HB 324 / Georgia's Hope Act (2019) created in-state production and dispensing; SB 220 (signed May 12, 2026) added qualifying conditions, removed many 'severe/end-stage' gates, replaced the 5% THC cap with a 12,000 mg possession / 1,200 mg-per-container limit, and authorized vaporization for patients 21+. | [46] |
| Post-legalization arrests (annual) | 10459 | [47] |
| Racial disparity ratio | 2.96 | [48] |
| Expungement exists | Yes | [34] |
| Expungement automatic | No | [35] |
Sources
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, Vintage 2024 Population Estimates (NST-EST2024-POP), state of Georgia https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/tables/2020-2024/state/totals/NST-EST2024-POP.xlsx
- ↑ USPS / U.S. Census Bureau standard two-letter abbreviation for Georgia https://www.census.gov/library/reference/code-lists/ansi.html
- ↑ Dashboard compilation date 2026-06-07. Underlying vintages: Census Vintage 2024 population; GMCC fee schedule and dispensary map (map last updated May 14, 2026); FBI UCR/NIBRS arrest data through CY2024; SB 220 signed May 12, 2026.
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau Vintage 2024 Population Estimates (NST-EST2024-POP), Georgia July 1, 2024 = 11,180,878 https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/popest/tables/2020-2024/state/totals/NST-EST2024-POP.xlsx
- ↑ GA Access to Medical Cannabis Commission — six production licenses total: 2 Class 1 (Botanical Sciences LLC, Trulieve GA Inc.; up to 100,000 sq ft indoor) and 4 Class 2 (FFD GA Holdings LLC d/b/a Fine Fettle, TheraTrue Georgia LLC, Natures GA LLC, Treevana Remedy Inc.; up to 50,000 sq ft). Class 2 final licenses awarded May 7, 2025 https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/verify-a-license
- ↑ GA Access to Medical Cannabis Commission — Verify A License database shows 19 total dispensing licenses issued statewide (operators include Trulieve, Botanical Sciences, Fine Fettle, TheraTrue, Treevana). Separately, ~56 independent pharmacies are registered to dispense low THC oil via the GA Board of Pharmacy/DCH — Georgia is the first state to allow pharmacy dispensing https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/verify-a-license
- ↑ CALC: 19 GMCC-licensed dispensaries / (11,180,878 / 100,000) = 0.17 per 100K (excludes ~56 dispensing pharmacies) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/verify-a-license
- ↑ GA Access to Medical Cannabis Commission — the six production licensees are vertically integrated (cultivate, manufacture, and operate dispensaries); separately, independent pharmacies licensed by the GA Board of Pharmacy may dispense low THC oil https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ Georgia's Hope Act (HB 324, 2019) caps production at six licenses (2 Class 1 + 4 Class 2); GMCC has no open production RFP https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/class-1-production
- ↑ GMCC Fee Schedule lists a $1,000 'Change Fee' for production and dispensing licenses, reflecting Commission-approved ownership/control changes (transfers permitted with GMCC approval) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/fee-schedule
- ↑ GMCC Fee Schedule — Class 1 Production License application fee = $25,000 (Class 2 application fee = $5,000) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/fee-schedule
- ↑ GMCC Fee Schedule — Class 1 Production annual renewal fee = $100,000 (Class 2 annual renewal = $50,000); initial Class 1 license fee = $200,000 (Class 2 = $100,000) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/fee-schedule
- ↑ GMCC Fee Schedule — Dispensing License application fee = $5,000 https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/fee-schedule
- ↑ GMCC Fee Schedule — Dispensing License annual renewal fee ranges by county tier: Tier 1 $25,000, Tier 2 $30,000, Tier 3 $35,000, Tier 4 $40,000 (Tier 1 floor recorded) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/fee-schedule
- ↑ Georgia law does not permit home cultivation of cannabis; only state-licensed Class 1/Class 2 producers may grow. GA Access to Medical Cannabis Commission https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ Georgia's medical low THC oil program provides for in-person dispensing by GMCC-licensed dispensaries and registered pharmacies; no statutory retail home-delivery authorization. GA Access to Medical Cannabis Commission https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ No authorized low THC oil home-delivery channel is operating in Georgia https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ Georgia has no on-site consumption venue category; SB 220 (2026) additionally bars vaporization of medical cannabis in public places https://www.mpp.org/states/georgia/
- ↑ No state-licensed consumption-venue category exists in Georgia; count = 0 https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ Georgia prohibits smokable flower and whole-plant products; only 'low THC oil' and derived forms are legal, with vaporization added for patients 21+ under SB 220 (2026). 'Low THC oil' is defined at O.C.G.A. § 16-12-190 (definitions), with possession governed by § 16-12-191 https://dph.georgia.gov/low-thc-oil-registry
- ↑ O.C.G.A. § 16-12-190 defines 'low THC oil' (historically ≤5% THC by weight) and § 16-12-191 governs possession; SB 220 (signed May 12, 2026) replaced the 5%-by-weight THC cap with a 1,200 mg-per-container and 12,000 mg total possession limit, added vaporization for patients 21+ (banned in public), and retained the prohibition on smokable flower/combustion. [SECONDARY] secondary sources conflict on whether raw botanical 'leaf' for dry-herb vaping is now authorized — pending enrolled-bill confirmation https://www.mpp.org/states/georgia/
- ↑ Georgia imposes no cannabis-specific excise tax on low THC oil; only the standard state/local sales and use tax applies under O.C.G.A. Title 48, Chapter 8 (§ 48-8-1 et seq.). There is no cannabis tax provision in Title 16 https://dor.georgia.gov/sales-use-tax
- ↑ Low THC oil is taxed as ordinary retail under Georgia's general sales and use tax (O.C.G.A. Title 48, Chapter 8); the Georgia state sales tax rate is 4% (local option taxes apply on top) https://dor.georgia.gov/sales-use-tax
- ↑ Georgia has no potency-based or cannabis-specific tax tiers; low THC oil is subject only to the general sales/use tax (O.C.G.A. Title 48, Ch. 8) https://dor.georgia.gov/sales-use-tax
- ↑ Low THC oil is NOT exempt from sales tax; the standard 4% state sales/use tax (plus local) applies under O.C.G.A. Title 48, Ch. 8. [SECONDARY] Cannabis CPA Tax Guide corroborates no medical exemption https://dor.georgia.gov/sales-use-tax
- ↑ Standard 4% Georgia state sales/use tax applies to low THC oil (no special medical rate; no exemption); local option taxes apply on top https://dor.georgia.gov/sales-use-tax
- ↑ Georgia has adopted no cannabis-specific tax; low THC oil has always been subject only to the general sales/use tax (O.C.G.A. Title 48, Ch. 8), so there is nothing to change https://dor.georgia.gov/sales-use-tax
- ↑ No cannabis-specific tax exists or has changed; standard sales/use tax treatment is unchanged https://www.mpp.org/states/georgia/
- ↑ GMCC — six production licenses is the statutory cap and the peak (2 Class 1 + 4 Class 2) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/class-2-production
- ↑ GMCC — six production licenses currently exist (2 Class 1 + 4 Class 2; Class 2 finalized May 7, 2025) https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/licensing/class-2-production
- ↑ CALC: 19 GMCC-licensed dispensaries / (11,180,878 / 100,000) = 0.17 per 100K https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/patients/dispensaries
- ↑ Georgia's Hope Act (HB 324) and GMCC rules contain no formal social-equity licensing program; the program awards scoring preferences but no dedicated equity license category or fund https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ No dedicated cannabis social-equity fund exists in Georgia https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ Georgia SB 288 ('Second Chance Law,' effective Jan 1, 2021) permits petition-based record restriction/sealing of up to two misdemeanor convictions (including misdemeanor marijuana possession) four years after sentence completion, subject to a judicial balancing test https://www.gjp.org/we-did-it-fast-facts-about-georgias-new-expungement-law/
- ↑ Restriction of marijuana CONVICTIONS under SB 288 is petition-based (not automatic), requiring a court motion and balancing test; only dismissed/acquitted charges are automatically restricted at disposition https://www.gjp.org/we-did-it-fast-facts-about-georgias-new-expungement-law/
- ↑ Georgia's Hope Act (HB 324) requires producers to use GMCC-approved independent labs to test low THC oil for six categories: cannabinoid potency, foreign matter, microbial contaminants, pesticides, heavy metals, and residual solvents https://www.gmcc.ga.gov/faqs
- ↑ O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j) and § 16-13-31 — cultivation/manufacture of marijuana is a felony (10 lbs or less: 1-10 years + up to $5,000; trafficking tiers above 10 lbs carry 5-30 years and fines to $1,000,000) https://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-16/chapter-13/article-2/part-1/section-16-13-30/
- ↑ O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j) and § 16-13-31 — sale/distribution of marijuana is a felony with weight-based trafficking tiers (5-30 years; fines to $1,000,000) https://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-16/chapter-13/article-2/part-1/section-16-13-30/
- ↑ O.C.G.A. § 16-13-2(b) and § 16-13-30(j)(1) — possession of one ounce (28.35 g) or less is a misdemeanor; more than one ounce is a felony https://norml.org/laws/georgia-penalties/
- ↑ O.C.G.A. § 16-13-2(b) / § 16-13-30(j) — the one-ounce threshold applies to possession https://norml.org/laws/georgia-penalties/
- ↑ O.C.G.A. § 16-13-30(j)(1) — possession of more than one ounce of marijuana is a felony (1-10 years); § 16-13-2(b) — one ounce or less is a misdemeanor (up to 12 months and/or $1,000) https://law.justia.com/codes/georgia/title-16/chapter-13/article-2/part-1/section-16-13-30/
- ↑ SB 220 (2026) bars medical-cannabis vaporization in public places; marijuana possession/use is otherwise charged by quantity under O.C.G.A. § 16-13-2(b) / § 16-13-30 https://www.mpp.org/states/georgia/
- ↑ Georgia's per se 'any amount' marijuana-DUI provision (O.C.G.A. § 40-6-391(a)(6)) was struck down in Love v. State, 271 Ga. 398 (1999); prosecutions now require proof of impairment ('less safe to drive') under § 40-6-391(a)(2). No numeric per se THC limit and no enforceable zero-tolerance rule https://norml.org/laws/drugged-driving/georgia-drugged-driving/
- ↑ Georgia has not legalized adult-use; criminal marijuana penalties are unchanged, and the medical program has only expanded (Haleigh's Hope 2015, HB 324 in 2019, SB 220 in 2026) https://www.mpp.org/states/georgia/
- ↑ Recreational marijuana penalties unchanged; medical access expanded https://www.mpp.org/states/georgia/
- ↑ HB 324 (2019) created in-state low THC oil production/dispensing; SB 220 (signed May 12, 2026) expanded qualifying conditions, removed many severity gates, replaced the 5% THC cap with mg-based limits, and authorized vaporization for patients 21+. No criminal penalty was increased https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/medical-cannabis-kemp-signs-sb-220-law
- ↑ [SECONDARY] NORML, 'Georgia Marijuana Arrests,' compiling FBI UCR/NIBRS — 10,459 marijuana arrests in CY2024 (most recent year; likely undercounts due to incomplete NIBRS agency reporting) https://norml.org/marijuana/library/state-marijuana-arrests/georgia-marijuana-arrests/
- ↑ [SECONDARY] ACLU, 'A Tale of Two Countries: Racially Targeted Arrests in the Era of Marijuana Reform' (2020 report, 2018 arrest data) — Black Georgians were 2.96x more likely than white Georgians to be arrested for marijuana possession; ACLU of Georgia framed this as 'almost 3 times.' Underlying primary: FBI/UCR 2018 arrest data https://www.aclu.org/report/tale-two-countries-racially-targeted-arrests-era-marijuana-reform