---
title: SB 294. Distilled Spirits; sale of consumable hemp products by retail dealers in distilled spirits; authorize
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/sb294
cite_as: SB 294, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb294
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb294.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb294/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70928
date: 2025-02-28
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-12
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: 95
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb294.md?full=1
bill_number: SB 294
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: Senate
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-27
last_action: Senate Read and Referred
sponsors:
- Carden Summers
- Brian Strickland
- Brandon Beach
- Harold Jones
- Kim Jackson
- Lee Anderson
- Mike Hodges
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB294/2025
upstream_id: 1987858
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- hemp products
- alcohol retail licensing
- distilled spirits law
- Georgia Hemp Farming Act
---
# SB 294. Distilled Spirits; sale of consumable hemp products by retail dealers in distilled spirits; authorize
## Text
Senate Bill 294
By: Senators Summers of the 13th, Strickland of the 42nd, Beach of the 21st, Jones II of the
22nd, Jackson of the 41st and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 4 of Title 3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to distilled
spirits, so as to authorize the sale of consumable hemp products by retail dealers in distilled
spirits; to provide for a definition; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws;
and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 4 of Title 3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to distilled spirits,
is amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"3-4-4.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term 'consumable hemp product' and 'retail
consumable hemp establishment license' shall have the same meanings as set forth in Code
Section 2-23-3.
(b) Nothing in this chapter nor any rules and regulations promulgated by the commissioner
pursuant to this chapter shall prohibit a licensed retail dealer in distilled spirits from
obtaining a retail consumable hemp establishment license and, upon obtaining such license,
selling or offering for sale consumable hemp products to consumers in accordance with the
provisions of Chapter 23 of Title 2, the 'Georgia Hemp Farming Act,' and the rules and
regulations promulgated by the Department of Agriculture pursuant to said chapter. The
sale or offering for sale of consumable hemp products to consumers by a licensed retail
dealer in distilled spirits shall be governed and regulated exclusively by the provisions of
said chapter and the rules and regulations promulgated by the Department of Agriculture
pursuant to said chapter."
SECTION 3.
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 bill would let retail stores licensed to sell distilled spirits also sell consumable hemp products, such as certain hemp derived beverages or edibles, if they get a separate hemp retail license.
### Plain-language summary
Under current Georgia law, retail dealers in distilled spirits operate under rules in Chapter 4 of Title 3 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated. This bill adds a new section to that chapter clarifying that nothing in the distilled spirits law, or the rules written to enforce it, stops a licensed liquor retailer from also getting a retail consumable hemp establishment license.
Once a distilled spirits retailer obtains that separate hemp license, the bill says the sale of consumable hemp products at that store would be governed entirely by the Georgia Hemp Farming Act (Chapter 23 of Title 2) and the Department of Agriculture's rules under that law, not by alcohol regulations. The bill borrows its definitions of 'consumable hemp product' and 'retail consumable hemp establishment license' directly from existing hemp law. It also repeals any conflicting laws.
### What it does
- Adds a new Code section (O.C.G.A. § 3-4-4) allowing licensed distilled spirits retailers to also hold a retail consumable hemp establishment license.
- Clarifies that distilled spirits laws and related regulations cannot be used to block a liquor retailer from selling consumable hemp products.
- Specifies that once a liquor retailer gets the hemp license, its hemp product sales are regulated only under the Georgia Hemp Farming Act and Department of Agriculture rules, not alcohol law.
- Adopts the existing definitions of 'consumable hemp product' and 'retail consumable hemp establishment license' from Georgia's hemp law (O.C.G.A. § 2-23-3).
- Repeals any existing laws that conflict with this new provision.
### Who it affects
Retail stores currently licensed to sell distilled spirits, such as liquor stores, would be directly affected because they could now also apply for a hemp retail license. The Department of Agriculture, which regulates hemp product sales, and state alcohol regulators overseeing distilled spirits retailers are also implicated.
### Why it matters
If enacted, liquor stores across Georgia could add consumable hemp products, like hemp derived beverages or edibles, to their shelves without needing separate approval under alcohol law, potentially expanding where Georgians can buy these products and simplifying licensing for retailers who want to sell both.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds a new Code section, O.C.G.A. § 3-4-4, to Chapter 4 of Title 3, the chapter governing distilled spirits retailers.
- Subsection (a) borrows definitions for 'consumable hemp product' and 'retail consumable hemp establishment license' from O.C.G.A. § 2-23-3, part of the Georgia Hemp Farming Act.
- Subsection (b) states that distilled spirits laws and rules cannot prohibit a licensed liquor retailer from obtaining a hemp retail license and selling consumable hemp products.
- Subsection (b) further specifies that once licensed, hemp product sales by the liquor retailer are governed exclusively by the Georgia Hemp Farming Act and Department of Agriculture rules.
- Section 3 repeals all laws in conflict with the Act.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-27)
- Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2025-02-28)
- Sponsors: Carden Summers, Brian Strickland, Brandon Beach, Harold Jones, Kim Jackson, Lee Anderson, Mike Hodges
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70928
> The history, votes, and amendments (95 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb294.md?full=1