Georgia CommonsHB 342: Crimes and offenses; access to medical cannabis; repeal certain advertising restrictions on licensees
Comm Sub version, the latest LegiScan holds · Last action April 4, 2025 · Introduced
The text as LegiScan holds it, read from the PDF the legislature publishes with its margin line numbers, running heads, and page footers removed. Line breaks are joined into paragraphs here; no word is changed.
Underlined words are what the bill adds to current law and struck-through words are what it removes, as the printed bill shows them.
The House Committee on Regulated Industries offers the following substitute to HB 342:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 9 of Chapter 12 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to access to medical cannabis, so as to repeal certain advertising restrictions on licensees; to provide for rules and regulations; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 9 of Chapter 12 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to access to medical cannabis, is amended by revising Code Section 16-12-215, relating to limitation on locations, advertising or marketing prohibited, and information available to physicians, as follows:
"16-12-215.
(a) No licensee shall operate in any location, whether for cultivation, harvesting, and processing of marijuana or for processing, manufacturing, packaging, or distributing low THC oil or products, within a 3,000 foot radius of a covered entity, measured from property boundary to property boundary. No dispensing licensee may operate in any location within a 1,000 foot radius of a covered entity, measured from property boundary to property boundary. Notwithstanding the provisions of this subsection, local governments may, via use of existing zoning powers otherwise provided by law, allow dispensing licensees only to locate in places other than those provided in this subsection so long as such modification is needed to allow retail outlets to be established to service registered patients residing within such local jurisdiction. As used in this subsection, the term 'covered entity' means a public or private school; an early care and education program as defined in Code Section 20-1A-2; or a church, synagogue, or other place of public religious worship, in existence prior to the date of licensure of such licensee by the commission or State Board of Pharmacy.
(b)(1) Licensees No licensee shall be permitted to advertise or market low THC oil or products to registered patients or and the public; provided, however, that a licensee shall be authorized to provide information regarding its low THC oil and products directly to physicians in accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated by the commission pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection.
(2) The commission shall promulgate rules and regulations governing the advertising or marketing of low THC oil or products by licensees to ensure that such marketing or advertising:
(A) Does not include medical claims that are unsupported by reliable scientific evidence; and
(B) Is not otherwise harmful to the public."
SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.