---
title: SB 547. Offenses of Pimping and Pandering; modify the penalties
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/sb547
cite_as: SB 547, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb547
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb547.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb547/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73482
date: 2026-05-06
status: passed
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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next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb548.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 1035
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb547.md?full=1
bill_number: SB 547
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: Senate
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-06
last_action: Effective Date 2026-07-01
sponsors:
- Brian Strickland
- Randy Robertson
- Bo Hatchett
- Timothy Bearden
- Ricky Williams
- John Albers
- Tyler Smith
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB547/2025
upstream_id: 2121449
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- pimping and pandering law
- criminal penalties
- human trafficking related offenses
- Georgia criminal code
---
# SB 547. Offenses of Pimping and Pandering; modify the penalties
## Text
Senate Bill 547
By: Senators Strickland of the 42nd, Robertson of the 29th, Hatchett of the 50th, Bearden of
the 30th, Williams of the 25th and others
AS PASSED
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 16-6-13 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
penalties for violating Code Sections 16-6-9 through 16-6-12, so as to modify the penalties
for the offenses of pimping and pandering; to provide that all such offenses shall be
punishable as felony offenses; to provide for related matters; to provide an effective date and
for applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Code Section 16-6-13 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to penalties for
violating Code Sections 16-6-9 through 16-6-12, is amended by revising subsection (a) as
follows:
"(a) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (b) of this Code section, a A person
convicted of violating:
(1) Code Section 16-6-10 shall be punished as for a misdemeanor of a high and
aggravated nature, and at the sole discretion of the judge, all but 24 hours of any term of
imprisonment imposed may be suspended, stayed, or probated;
(2) Code Section 16-6-9 shall be punished as for a misdemeanor;
(3) Code Section 16-6-11 for a:
(A) First offense shall be punished as for a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated
nature, and at the sole discretion of the judge, all but 72 hours of any term of
imprisonment imposed may be suspended, stayed, or probated; and
(B) Second or subsequent offense shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by
a term of imprisonment of not less than one year nor more than ten years; or
(4) Code Section 16-6-12 for a:
(A) First offense shall be punished as for a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated
nature, and at the sole discretion of the judge, all but 72 hours of any term of
imprisonment imposed may be suspended, stayed, or probated; and
(B) Second or subsequent offense shall be guilty of a felony and shall be punished by
a term of imprisonment of not less than one year nor more than ten years."
SECTION 2.
This Act shall become effective on July 1, 2026, and shall apply to all offenses committed
on or after such date.
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 make certain pimping and pandering offenses felonies for every offense, ending the current rule that let a first offense be treated as a lesser misdemeanor.
### Plain-language summary
Under current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 16-6-13), penalties for violations of the pimping and pandering statutes (Code Sections 16-6-9 through 16-6-12) vary. Violations of Code Section 16-6-11 and Code Section 16-6-12 currently allow a first offense to be punished as a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature, with only a second or later offense treated as a felony carrying one to ten years in prison.
This bill removes that first-offense misdemeanor option. It rewrites the penalty section so that any conviction under Code Section 16-6-11 or 16-6-12, first offense or not, is a felony punishable by one to ten years in prison. Violations of Code Section 16-6-10 remain a high and aggravated misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum of 24 hours, and violations of Code Section 16-6-9 remain a plain misdemeanor, both unchanged. The changes take effect July 1, 2026, and apply only to offenses committed on or after that date.
### What it does
- Removes the current rule that let a first offense under Code Section 16-6-11 or 16-6-12 be punished as a misdemeanor instead of a felony.
- Makes every conviction under Code Section 16-6-11 or 16-6-12 a felony, punishable by one to ten years in prison, regardless of whether it is a first offense.
- Leaves the penalty for Code Section 16-6-10 unchanged: a high and aggravated misdemeanor with a mandatory minimum 24-hour sentence that a judge may otherwise suspend or probate.
- Leaves the penalty for Code Section 16-6-9 unchanged as a standard misdemeanor.
- Sets the changes to take effect July 1, 2026, applying only to offenses committed on or after that date.
### Who it affects
People charged or convicted under Georgia's pimping and pandering statutes (O.C.G.A. §§ 16-6-9 through 16-6-12), prosecutors and judges handling these cases, and defense attorneys, since sentencing options and mandatory minimums for repeat versus first-time offenders under Code Sections 16-6-11 and 16-6-12 would change.
### Why it matters
A person charged for the first time under Code Section 16-6-11 or 16-6-12 would no longer face a possible misdemeanor outcome; they would face a felony conviction and one to ten years in prison from the first offense, changing both potential prison time and the long-term record consequences of a felony conviction.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 16-6-13(a) to remove the prior exception referencing subsection (b) and to eliminate the first-offense misdemeanor tier for Code Sections 16-6-11 and 16-6-12.
- Section 1 keeps Code Section 16-6-10 punishable as a high and aggravated misdemeanor with a mandatory 24-hour minimum that a judge may suspend, stay, or probate at their discretion.
- Section 1 keeps Code Section 16-6-9 punishable as a standard misdemeanor.
- Section 1 makes any violation of Code Section 16-6-11 or 16-6-12 a felony punishable by one to ten years in prison, with no distinction for first offenses.
- Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applying only to offenses committed on or after that date.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Passed (2026-05-06)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-07-01 (2026-05-06)
- Sponsors: Brian Strickland, Randy Robertson, Bo Hatchett, Timothy Bearden, Ricky Williams, John Albers, Tyler Smith
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73482
> The history, votes, and amendments (1,035 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb547.md?full=1