--- title: HB 491. Game and fish; remove an exception for use of air guns to hunt wildlife collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb491 cite_as: HB 491, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb491 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb491.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb491/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70415 date: 2025-05-14 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb490.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb492.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 1705 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb491.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 491 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-14 last_action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 sponsors: - Johnny Chastain - Trey Rhodes - Jutt Howard - Danny Mathis - Jason Ridley - John Corbett - Drew Echols text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB491/2025 upstream_id: 1974431 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - hunting laws - air guns - fishing regulations - catfish - Savannah River --- # HB 491. Game and fish; remove an exception for use of air guns to hunt wildlife ## Text 25 HB 491/AP House Bill 491 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representatives Chastain of the 7th, Rhodes of the 124th, Howard of the 71st, Mathis of the 133rd, Ridley of the 6th, and others A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Article 1 of Chapter 3 and Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 27 of the Official Code1 of Georgia Annotated, relating to hunting and noncommercial fishing, respectively, so as to2 modify an exception for the use of air guns to hunt wildlife; to revise provisions concerning3 the taking of catfish by bow and arrow; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting4 laws; and for other purposes.5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:6 SECTION 1.7 Article 1 of Chapter 3 of Title 27 of the Official Code of Geor gia Annotated, relating to8 hunting, is amended in Code Section 27-3-4, relating to legal weapons for hunting wildlife9 generally, use of silencers and suppressors prohibited, and penalty for violations, by revising10 paragraph (9) of subsection (a) as follows:11 "(9) For purposes of this subsection, the term 'air gun' means any pistol, handgun, or12 shoulder-held device, each of not less than 0.30 caliber, or ai r bow that propels a13 projectile in the form of a slug, shot, or arrow equipped with a broadhead utilizing14 unignited compressed air or gas. Air guns are legal weapons for hunting big game only15 during primitive weapon hunts, primitive weapon seasons, and fi rearm seasons. This16 H. B. 491 - 1 - 25 HB 491/AP paragraph shall stand repealed effective July 1, 2025 2030, unless continued in effect by17 the General Assembly prior to that date. At its 2025 2030 regular session, the General18 Assembly shall review this paragraph to determine whether it sh ould be continued in19 effect."20 SECTION 2.21 Article 2 of Chapter 4 of Title 27 of the Official Code of Geor gia Annotated, relating to22 noncommercial fishing, is amended in Code Section 27-4-34, relating to fishing with bow23 and arrow, by revising subsection (d) as follows:24 "(d) It shall be unlawful to take channel catfish and flathead any catfish anywhere in the25 Savannah River, including its tributaries and impoundments with in the Savannah River26 Basin, species from the waters of this state by means of bow and arrow, except under the27 following conditions:28 (1) Each person using a bow and arrow shall have on his or her person a valid state29 resident or nonresident fishing license;30 (2) All arrows used pursuant to this subsection must be equipped with barbs or contain31 devices on the point to act as a harpoon for recovering fish and must be attached to the32 person or bow by a rope, line, or cord sufficient for recoverin g the arrow and channel33 catfish or flathead catfish;34 (3) Arrows with poisonous or exploding heads are illegal;35 (4) It shall be unlawful to discharge arrows into waters neare r than 150 feet to anyone36 engaged in any other means of recreation; and37 (5) The taking of channel catfish and flathead a n y catfish in the Savannah River,38 including its tributaries and impoundments within the Savannah River Basin, species39 from the waters of this state by bow and arrow shall be legal at any time of the day and40 at night by the use of a light."41 H. B. 491 - 2 - 25 HB 491/AP SECTION 3.42 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.43 H. B. 491 - 3 - ## 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. House Bill 491 extends how long air guns stay legal for hunting big game in Georgia and rewrites the rules for catching catfish with a bow and arrow in the Savannah River Basin. ### Plain-language summary Georgia law lets hunters use certain air guns (powered by compressed air or gas rather than gunpowder) to hunt big game during primitive weapon and firearm seasons, but that permission was set to automatically expire, or 'sunset,' on July 1, 2025 unless the General Assembly voted to keep it. House Bill 491 pushes that expiration date back to July 1, 2030, meaning the legislature will not need to revisit the air gun rule again until then. The bill also rewrites the state's rules on taking catfish with a bow and arrow. Previously, the ban and its exceptions applied statewide to channel catfish and flathead catfish specifically. The bill narrows the geographic scope to the Savannah River, its tributaries, and impoundments within the Savannah River Basin, but broadens the covered species to any catfish. The existing safety conditions, such as requiring a fishing license, barbed arrow tips, and a 150-foot distance from other recreational users, still apply. ### What it does - Extends the automatic expiration ('sunset') date for the air gun hunting exception in O.C.G.A. § 27-3-4 from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2030. - Requires the General Assembly to review the air gun exception again at its 2030 session instead of 2025 to decide whether to keep it. - Narrows the catfish bow-and-arrow rules in O.C.G.A. § 27-4-34 from applying statewide to applying specifically within the Savannah River, its tributaries, and impoundments in the Savannah River Basin. - Broadens the catfish species covered by those bow-and-arrow rules from just channel catfish and flathead catfish to any catfish species. - Keeps existing conditions for bow-and-arrow catfishing, including a valid fishing license, barbed or harpoon-style arrow points, and a ban on shooting arrows within 150 feet of other recreational users. ### Who it affects Hunters who use air-powered rifles, pistols, or crossbows for big game hunting, anglers who fish for catfish with bow and arrow in the Savannah River Basin, and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, which enforces hunting and fishing rules statewide. ### Why it matters Hunters can keep using air guns for big game through 2030 without a new law being required sooner. Anglers who bow-fish for catfish will see the rules apply specifically to the Savannah River Basin rather than statewide, and those rules will now cover all catfish species instead of just two. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 27-3-4(a)(9), moving the sunset date for the air gun hunting exception from July 1, 2025 to July 1, 2030. - Section 1 also shifts the General Assembly's mandatory review of the air gun rule from its 2025 session to its 2030 session. - Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 27-4-34(d), limiting the catfish bow-and-arrow provisions to the Savannah River, its tributaries, and impoundments within the Savannah River Basin. - Section 2 expands the species covered by these bow-and-arrow rules from channel catfish and flathead catfish specifically to any catfish. - Section 2 keeps the existing conditions: a valid fishing license, barbed or harpoon-style arrow points with retrieval lines, a ban on poisonous or exploding arrowheads, a 150-foot buffer from other recreational users, and permission to fish by bow and arrow day or night using a light. - Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-14) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 (2025-05-14) - Sponsors: Johnny Chastain, Trey Rhodes, Jutt Howard, Danny Mathis, Jason Ridley, John Corbett, Drew Echols - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70415 > The history, votes, and amendments (1,705 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb491.md?full=1