---
title: HB 171. Crimes and offenses; obscenity; repeal and replace Code Section 16-12-80
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb171
cite_as: HB 171, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb171
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb171.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb171/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69648
date: 2026-03-27
status: engrossed
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 836
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb171.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 171
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-26
last_action: Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute
sponsors:
  - Brad Thomas
  - Todd Jones
  - Sandy Donatucci
  - Leesa Hagan
  - John Carson
  - Carter Barrett
  - Shawn Still
text_version: Comm Sub
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB171/2025
upstream_id: 1947679
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - artificial intelligence law
  - child exploitation
  - sex offender registry
  - criminal sentencing
  - obscenity law
---

# HB 171. Crimes and offenses; obscenity; repeal and replace Code Section 16-12-80

## Text

The Senate Committee on Rules offered the following
substitute to HB 171:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To Part 2 of Article 3 of Chapter 12 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to offenses related to minors generally, so as to prohibit distribution of AI generated
material harmful to minors; to provide for a penalty and probation; to amend Article 1 of
Chapter 10 of Title 17 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to procedure for
sentencing and imposition of punishment, so as to provide for sentencing of defendants who
utilize artificial intelligence in the commission of certain offenses; to provide for enhanced
sentencing and notices of intention to seek enhanced sentencing; to amend Code Section
42-1-12 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the state sexual offender
registry, so as to include the offense of distribution of computer generated obscene material
depicting a child in the category of criminal offenses against a victim who is a minor; to
provide for definitions; to provide for a short title; to provide for related matters; to provide
for an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Ensuring Accountability for Illegal AI
Activities Act."
SECTION 2.
Part 2 of Article 3 of Chapter 12 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to offenses related to minors generally, is amended by adding a new Code section
to read as follows:
<ins>"16-12-100.6.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Artificial intelligence system' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code
Section 17-10-23.
(2) 'Harmful to minors' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section
16-12-100.1.
(3) 'Minor' means any individual under the age of 18 years.
(4) 'Visual depiction' shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section
16-12-100.2.
(b) A person commits the offense of distribution of AI generated material harmful to
minors when he or she knowingly creates, distributes, solicits, or possesses with intent to
distribute a visual depiction of any kind that is harmful to a minor, including an electronic
image, electronic video, drawing, sculpture, or painting, that was generated using an
artificial intelligence system.
(c) A person who commits the offense of distribution of AI generated material harmful to
minors shall be guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by
imprisonment for not less than one year nor more than 15 years.
(d) It shall not be a required element of an offense under this Code section that the image
of a minor in such depiction is of a minor who actually exists.
(e) If the sentence imposed under this Code section is probated, in whole or in part, by the
sentencing court, as a condition of such probation, the sentencing court shall have the
discretion to impose any or all of the requirements set forth in subsection (b) of Code
Section 42-8-35.
</ins>
<ins>(f) The provisions of subsection (b) of this Code section shall not apply to:
(1) The activities of law enforcement and prosecution agencies in the investigation and
prosecution of criminal offenses;
(2) Legitimate medical, scientific, or educational activities; or
(3) Any person who creates or possesses a visual depiction showing only himself or
herself engaged in sexually explicit conduct.
(g) Any person who violates subsection (b) of this Code section shall be guilty of a
misdemeanor if:
(1) The minor depicted was at least 14 years of age at the time the visual depiction was
created;
(2) The visual depiction was created with the permission of the minor depicted; and
(3) The defendant was 18 years of age or younger at the time of the offense and
(A) The defendant's violation of subsection (b) of this Code section did not involve the
distribution of such visual depiction to another person; or
(B) In the court's discretion, and when the prosecuting attorney and the defendant have
agreed, if the defendant's violation of subsection (b) of this Code section involved the
distribution of such visual depiction to another person but such distribution was not for
the purpose of:
(i) Harassing, intimidating, or embarrassing the minor depicted; or
(ii) For any commercial purpose.
(h) A person is subject to prosecution in this state pursuant to Code Section 17-2-1,
relating to jurisdiction over crimes and persons charged with commission of crimes
generally, for any conduct made unlawful by this Code section which the person engages
in while:
(1) Either within or outside of this state if, by such conduct, the person commits a
violation of this Code section which involves a minor who resides in this state or another
person believed by such person to be a minor residing in this state; or
</ins>
<ins>(2) Within this state if, by such conduct, the person commits a violation of this Code
section which involves a minor who resides within or outside this state or another person
believed by such person to be a minor residing within or outside this state.
(i) Any violation of this Code section shall constitute a separate offense."
</ins> SECTION 3.
Article 1 of Chapter 10 of Title 17 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
procedure for sentencing and imposition of punishment, is amended by adding a new Code
section to read as follows:
<ins>"17-10-23.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Artificial intelligence system' means an engineered or machine based system that
emulates the capability of a person to receive audio, visual, text, or any other form of
information and use such information to emulate a human cognitive process, including,
but not limited to, learning, generalizing, reasoning, planning, predicting, acting, or
communicating; provided, however, that artificial intelligence systems may vary in the
forms of information they can receive and in the human cognitive processes they can
emulate.
(2) 'Designated offense' means:
(A) Stalking in violation of Code Section 16-5-90;
(B) Aggravated stalking in violation of Code Section 16-5-91;
(C) Exploitation of a disabled adult, elder person, or resident in violation of Code
Section 16-5-102;
(D) Enticing a child for indecent purposes in violation of Code Section 16-6-5;
(E) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Article 1 of Chapter 8 of
Title 16;
</ins>
<ins>(F) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Article 3 of Chapter 8 of
Title 16;
(G) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Article 5 of Chapter 8 of
Title 16;
(H) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Chapter 9 of Title 16;
(I) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Chapter 10 of Title 16;
(J) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Chapter 11 of Title 16;
(K) Any misdemeanor or felony offense provided for in Chapter 12 of Title 16; and
(L) Fraudulent election interference in violation of Code Section 21-2-604.
(3) 'Used an artificial intelligence system' means to be the proximate cause of an artificial
intelligence system receiving an input or providing an output.
(b) Subject to the notice requirement provided in subsection (c) of this Code section and
in enhancement of the penalty imposed, if the trier of fact determines beyond a reasonable
doubt that the defendant knowingly and intentionally used an artificial intelligence system
in the commission of a designated offense, the judge imposing sentence shall:
(1) If the designated offense for which the defendant was convicted is a misdemeanor,
impose a sentence of confinement for a period of not less than six nor more than 12
months and a fine not to exceed $5,000.00; or
(2) If the designated offense for which the defendant was convicted is a felony, impose
a sentence of imprisonment for a period of not less than two years and a fine of not less
than $5,000.00; provided, however, that, if such designated offense is subject to a
minimum sentence of imprisonment for two years or more, the judge shall impose a
sentence of imprisonment for not less than such minimum sentence plus one year and a
fine of not less than $5,000.00.
(c) At any time after the filing of an indictment or accusation, but not later than the
arraignment, the state shall notify the defendant of its intention to seek the enhanced
penalty or penalties authorized by subsection (b) of this Code section. Such notice shall
</ins>
<ins>be in writing and shall allege the specific factor or factors authorizing an enhanced
sentence in the case pursuant to this Code section.
(d) The judge shall state when he or she imposes the sentence the amount of the
enhancement of the sentence based on the application of subsection (b) of this Code
section."
</ins> SECTION 4.
Code Section 42-1-12 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the state sexual
offender registry, is amended by revising paragraph (9) of subsection (a) as follows:
"(9)(A) 'Criminal offense against a victim who is a minor' with respect to convictions
occurring on or before June 30, 2001, means any criminal offense under Title 16 or any
offense under federal law or the laws of another state or territory of the United States
which consists of:
(i) Kidnapping of a minor, except by a parent;
(ii) False imprisonment of a minor, except by a parent;
(iii) Criminal sexual conduct toward a minor;
(iv) Solicitation of a minor to engage in sexual conduct;
(v) Use of a minor in a sexual performance;
(vi) Solicitation of a minor to practice prostitution; or
(vii) Any conviction resulting from an underlying sexual offense against a victim
who is a minor.
(B) 'Criminal offense against a victim who is a minor' with respect to convictions
occurring <del>after</del> <ins>between</ins> June 30, 2001, <ins>and June 30, 2026,</ins> means any criminal offense
under Title 16 or any offense under federal law or the laws of another state or territory
of the United States which consists of:
(i) Kidnapping of a minor, except by a parent;
(ii) False imprisonment of a minor, except by a parent;
(iii) Criminal sexual conduct toward a minor;
(iv) Solicitation of a minor to engage in sexual conduct;
(v) Use of a minor in a sexual performance;
(vi) Solicitation of a minor to practice prostitution;
(vii) Use of a minor to engage in any sexually explicit conduct to produce any visual
medium depicting such conduct;
(viii) Creating, publishing, selling, distributing, or possessing any material depicting
a minor or a portion of a minor's body engaged in sexually explicit conduct;
(ix) Transmitting, making, selling, buying, or disseminating by means of a computer
any descriptive or identifying information regarding a <del>child</del> <ins>minor</ins> for the purpose of
offering or soliciting sexual conduct of or with a <del>child</del> <ins>minor</ins> or the visual depicting
of such conduct;
(x) Conspiracy to transport, ship, receive, or distribute visual depictions of minors
engaged in sexually explicit conduct; or
(xi) Any conduct which, by its nature, is a sexual offense against a victim who is a
minor.
<ins>(C) 'Criminal offense against a victim who is a minor' with respect to convictions
occurring after June 30, 2026, means any criminal offense under Title 16 or any offense
under federal law or the laws of another state or territory of the United States which
consists of:
(i) Kidnapping of a minor, except by a parent;
(ii) False imprisonment of a minor, except by a parent;
(iii) Criminal sexual conduct toward a minor;
(iv) Solicitation of a minor to engage in sexual conduct;
(v) Use of a minor in a sexual performance;
(vi) Solicitation of a minor to practice prostitution;
</ins>
<ins>(vii) Use of a minor to engage in any sexually explicit conduct to produce any visual
medium depicting such conduct;
(viii) Creating, publishing, selling, distributing, or possessing any material depicting
a minor or a portion of a minor's body engaged in sexually explicit conduct;
(ix) Transmitting, making, selling, buying, or disseminating by means of a computer
any descriptive or identifying information regarding a minor for the purpose of
offering or soliciting sexual conduct of or with a minor or the visual depicting of such
conduct;
(x) Conspiracy to transport, ship, receive, or distribute visual depictions of minors
engaged in sexually explicit conduct;
(xi) Distribution of computer generated obscene material depicting a minor in
violation of Code Section 16-12-80; or
(xii) Any conduct which, by its nature, is a sexual offense against a victim who is a
minor.
(C)(D)</ins> For purposes of this paragraph, a conviction for a misdemeanor shall not be
considered a criminal offense against a victim who is a minor, and conduct which is
adjudicated in juvenile court shall not be considered a criminal offense against a victim
who is a minor."
SECTION 5.
This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2026.
SECTION 6.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.

## Summaries written by Georgia Commons

The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.

A Georgia Senate substitute for HB 171 would make it a felony to create or distribute AI-generated sexual images of minors, add prison-sentence enhancements for using artificial intelligence in certain crimes, and add the new offense to the state's sex offender registry list.

### Plain-language summary

Georgia law already bans obscene material depicting real children, but this bill adds a new crime specifically for AI-generated content. It creates a new law, called the "Ensuring Accountability for Illegal AI Activities Act," making it a felony to knowingly create, distribute, solicit, or possess with intent to distribute AI-generated images, drawings, or videos that are sexually harmful to minors, even if the depicted child does not actually exist. The felony carries 1 to 15 years in prison, though a narrower misdemeanor applies in specific teen-to-teen situations.
The bill also creates a new sentencing law that adds extra prison time and fines when someone uses artificial intelligence to commit certain other crimes, such as stalking, enticing a child, or various sex offenses, if prosecutors give advance notice and a jury or judge finds AI was knowingly used. Finally, it updates Georgia's sex offender registry law so that, starting for convictions after June 30, 2026, this new AI-related offense counts as a crime against a minor victim. The law would take effect July 1, 2026.

### What it does

- Creates a new felony, distribution of AI generated material harmful to minors, punishable by 1 to 15 years in prison, under a new Code Section 16-12-100.6.
- Applies the new felony even when the minor shown in the AI-generated image does not actually exist, removing that as a legal defense.
- Exempts law enforcement investigations, legitimate medical or scientific/educational activities, and self-created images of oneself from prosecution.
- Allows a misdemeanor charge instead of a felony in narrow cases involving minors close in age who created and shared the image without harmful or commercial intent.
- Adds a new sentencing enhancement law (O.C.G.A. 17-10-23) that increases prison time and fines for people who knowingly use AI to commit crimes like stalking, child enticement, or various sex and drug offenses.
- Updates the state sex offender registry law (O.C.G.A. 42-1-12) so that, for convictions after June 30, 2026, this new AI-image offense counts as a crime against a minor victim.

### Who it affects

The bill affects anyone who creates, shares, or possesses AI-generated sexual images of minors, including minors themselves in limited circumstances, as well as prosecutors and judges handling these cases, people convicted of other listed crimes (like stalking or child enticement) who used AI in the offense, and people subject to Georgia's sex offender registry.

### Why it matters

Georgians would face new felony charges, up to 15 years in prison, for AI-generated child sexual imagery even when no real child is depicted, closing a gap current obscenity law may not cover. People convicted of using AI tools to commit other crimes could also face longer sentences and larger fines.

### Key provisions

- Section 2 creates O.C.G.A. 16-12-100.6, criminalizing creation, distribution, solicitation, or possession with intent to distribute AI-generated visual depictions harmful to minors, punishable by 1 to 15 years in prison.
- Section 2 exempts law enforcement, legitimate medical/scientific/educational activities, and self-depictions from the felony, and allows misdemeanor treatment for certain close-in-age teen cases without harassment or commercial motive.
- Section 2 establishes jurisdiction over the offense whether the offender or the minor victim is inside or outside Georgia.
- Section 3 creates O.C.G.A. 17-10-23, adding mandatory sentence enhancements (extra prison time and fines of at least $5,000) when a defendant is found to have knowingly used an AI system to commit a list of designated offenses, including stalking, elder exploitation, and various Title 16 crimes.
- Section 3 requires prosecutors to give written notice before arraignment if they intend to seek the AI-related sentencing enhancement.
- Section 4 amends O.C.G.A. 42-1-12 so that, for convictions after June 30, 2026, distribution of computer generated obscene material depicting a minor is added to the list of offenses that make someone subject to the sex offender registry.
- Section 5 sets the effective date of the Act as July 1, 2026.

## Status

- Status: Engrossed (2025-02-26)
- Last action: Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (2026-03-27)
- Sponsors: Brad Thomas, Todd Jones, Sandy Donatucci, Leesa Hagan, John Carson, Carter Barrett, Shawn Still
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69648

> The history, votes, and amendments (836 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb171.md?full=1