Georgia CommonsHB 959: Revenue and taxation; prohibit sale of any flavored consumable vaping product
Last action January 15, 2026 · House Second Readers
A Georgia House bill would ban the sale, distribution, or gift of any flavored vaping product in the state, covering fruit, candy, menthol, and other flavors, with violations treated as a misdemeanor.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Introduced version, the latest LegiScan holds.
In plain language
Georgia currently taxes tobacco and vaping products under Chapter 11 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated but does not ban flavored vapes outright. This bill adds a new Code section making it illegal for any person to give, distribute, sell, offer for sale, or furnish a flavored consumable vaping product anywhere in Georgia. The bill defines a 'characterizing flavor' broadly, covering tastes or odors like fruit, chocolate, vanilla, honey, candy, cocoa, dessert, alcoholic beverage, menthol, mint, wintergreen, herb or spice, or a cooling sensation, but excludes the taste or odor of tobacco itself. Anyone who violates the ban would be guilty of a misdemeanor under Georgia's general misdemeanor punishment law (O.C.G.A. § 16-1-10), and the state commissioner could put on probation, suspend, or revoke any license the violator holds to sell tobacco or vaping products.
What the bill does
- Makes it illegal to give, distribute, sell, offer for sale, or furnish any flavored vaping product in Georgia.
- Defines 'characterizing flavor' to include fruit, chocolate, candy, menthol, mint, and cooling sensations, among others, but not tobacco flavor.
- Sets the penalty for violating the ban as a misdemeanor under Georgia's general misdemeanor sentencing law.
- Allows the state commissioner to place on probation, suspend, or revoke a violator's tobacco and vaping product license.
Who it affects
Vape shops, convenience stores, and other retailers that sell vaping products in Georgia; manufacturers and distributors of flavored vaping liquids; adult vape users who currently buy flavored products; and licensees under Georgia's tobacco and vaping tax law who risk losing their licenses.
Why it matters
If enacted, retailers across Georgia would have to pull all flavored vaping products from shelves or face misdemeanor charges and possible loss of their sales license. Adult consumers who prefer flavored vapes over tobacco-flavored ones would no longer be able to legally buy them in the state.
Key provisions
- Section 1 adds new Code Section 48-11-4.3 to Chapter 11 of Title 48, defining 'characterizing flavor' and 'flavored consumable vapor product.'
- Subsection (b) makes it unlawful to give, distribute, sell, offer for sale, or furnish a flavored consumable vapor product to any person in Georgia.
- Subsection (c) sets the penalty as a misdemeanor under O.C.G.A. § 16-1-10 and authorizes license probation, suspension, or revocation under O.C.G.A. § 48-11-4.
- Section 2 repeals any existing laws that conflict with the new ban.
From the bill
“It shall be unlawful for any person to give, distribute, sell, offer for sale, or furnish to any person a flavored consumable vapor product in this state.”
“Such term shall not include the taste or odor of tobacco.”
Status timeline
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Michelle Au (D, HD-050)
- Ron Stephens (R, HD-164)
- Gerald Greene (R, HD-154)
- Lee Hawkins (R, HD-027)
- Debbie Buckner (D, HD-137)
Topics
- vaping regulation
- tobacco and vaping taxes
- public health
- flavored e-cigarettes
- retail licensing