House Bill 1303 (COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE)
By: Representatives Kelley of the 16th, Smith of the 18th, Lumsden of the 12th, Fincher of the
23rd, and Panitch of the 51st
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 16-13-30 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
purchase, possession, manufacture, distribution, or sale of controlled substances or marijuana
and penalties, so as to provide for the offense of endangering a child by possession of drugs;
to provide for penalties; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for
other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Code Section 16-13-30 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to purchase,
possession, manufacture, distribution, or sale of controlled substances or marijuana and
penalties, is amended by revising subsection (m) and by adding a new subsection to read as
follows:
"(m) <ins>Any person who violates subsection (a) of this Code section by knowingly and
unlawfully possessing or having under his or her control a controlled substance in Schedule
I, a narcotic drug in Schedule II, or marijuana while in the presence of a child under the age
of 14 years is guilty of the separate offense of endangering a child by possession of drugs.
A violation of this subsection shall not be merged with the offense of violating subsection
</ins>
<ins>(a) of this Code section for the purposes of prosecution and sentencing. A defendant who
is convicted of a violation of this subsection shall be punished in accordance with the
provisions of subsection (d) of Code Section 16-12-1.
(n)</ins> As used in this Code section, the term 'solid substance' means a substance that is not
in a liquid or gas form. Such term shall include tablets, pills, capsules, caplets, powder,
crystal, or any variant of such items."
SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.