---
title: SB 571. Online Internet Safety; age verification to access gambling content on the internet; require
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/sb571
cite_as: SB 571, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb571
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb571.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb571/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73570
date: 2026-02-25
status: introduced
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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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 95
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb571.md?full=1
bill_number: SB 571
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: Senate
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-02-24
last_action: Senate Read and Referred
sponsors:
- Shawn Still
- Jason Anavitarte
- John Albers
- Kay Kirkpatrick
- Clint Dixon
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/SB571/2025
upstream_id: 2123520
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- online gambling
- age verification
- internet safety
- sports betting
- consumer protection
---
# SB 571. Online Internet Safety; age verification to access gambling content on the internet; require
## Text
Senate Bill 571
By: Senators Still of the 48th, Anavitarte of the 31st, Albers of the 56th, Kirkpatrick of the
32nd and Dixon of the 45th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Chapter 5 of Title 39 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to online
internet safety, so as to require age verification to access gambling content on the internet;
to provide for a private right of action; to provide for enforcement by the Attorney General;
to provide for exceptions; to provide for definitions; 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 5 of Title 39 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to online internet
safety, is amended by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"39-5-6.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Casino style gaming' means any wagering of a stake of monetary value in the
expectation of a prize of monetary value, subject to a future and uncertain occurrence
related to games of chance, including, but not limited to, slot machines, dice, and card
games.
(2) 'Commercial entity' means a corporation, limited liability company, partnership,
limited partnership, sole proprietorship, or other legally recognized entity.
(3) 'Digitized identification card' means a data file available on a mobile device with
connectivity to the internet that contains all of the data elements visible on the face and
back of a driver's license or identification card that displays the current status of such
license or identification card as being valid, expired, canceled, suspended, revoked,
active, or inactive.
(4) 'Minor' means any individual under 18 years of age.
(5) 'News-gathering organization' means:
(A) An employee of a newspaper, news publication, or news source, printed or
published on an online or mobile platform, while operating as an employee of an
organization who can provide documentation of employment with the newspaper, news
publication, or news source; or
(B) An employee of a radio broadcast station, television broadcast station, cable
television operator, or wire service while operating as an employee of an organization
who can provide documentation of employment with the station or operator.
(6) 'Online gambling' means participation in any type of sports betting, prediction market
trading, or casino style gaming, whether physical or virtual, which is conducted over the
Internet, and utilizes United States currency or a currency system of payment allowing
the player to exchange such currency for any prize, award, cash, cash equivalent, or a
chance to win any prize, award, cash, or cash equivalents.
(7) 'Prediction market trading' means the trading of contracts or shares based on the
outcomes of unknown future events.
(8) 'Reasonable age verification' means to confirm that a person seeking to access
gambling content is at least 18 years of age.
(9) 'Sports betting' means any wagering of a stake of monetary value in the expectation
of a prize of monetary value, subject to a future and uncertain occurrence related to a
sports competition.
(10) 'Substantial portion' means more than 33.33 percent of total material on a website
that meets the definition of online gambling.
(b) Before allowing access to a website that contains a substantial portion of online
gambling content, a commercial entity shall use a reasonable age verification method,
which may include, but not be limited to:
(1) The submission of a digitized identification card, including a digital copy of a driver's
license;
(2) The submission of government issued identification; or
(3) Any commercially reasonable age verification method that meets or exceeds an
Identity Assurance Level 2 standard, as defined by the National Institute of Standards and
Technology.
(c)(1) A commercial entity that hosts or operates gambling content on a website that
contains a substantial portion of gambling content is liable if the such entity fails to
perform reasonable age verification of the individual attempting to access such content.
(2) A commercial entity that violates this Code section is liable to an individual for
damages resulting from a minor accessing gambling content, including court costs and
reasonable attorney's fees as ordered by the court.
(3) A commercial entity that violates this Code section shall be subject to a fine of up to
$10,000.00 for each violation, the amount of which shall be determined by the superior
court in the county in which any affected minor resides. The Attorney General or
solicitor general or district attorney having jurisdiction shall institute proceedings to
impose such fine within one year of the violation. The issuance of a fine under this
paragraph shall not preclude any right of action.
(d)(1) When a commercial entity or third party performs a reasonable age verification,
the commercial entity shall not retain any identifying information after access to the
content has been granted.
(2) A commercial entity that is found to have knowingly retained identifying information
of an individual after access to the content has been granted is liable to such individual
for damages resulting from retaining such identifying information, including court costs
and reasonable attorney's fees as ordered by the court.
(e) This Code section shall not:
(1) Apply to a news or public interest broadcast, website video, report, or event;
(2) Affect the rights of a news-gathering organization; or
(3) Apply to cloud service providers.
(f) An internet service provider and any affiliate, subsidiary, or search engine shall not be
considered to have violated this Code section solely by providing access or connection to
or from a website or to other information or content on the internet or on a facility, system,
or network that is not under such internet service provider's control, to the extent the
internet service provider is not responsible for the creation of the content or the
communication that constitutes material that is harmful to minors."
SECTION 2.
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 require websites with substantial gambling content, including online sports betting and casino-style games, to verify users are at least 18 before granting access.
### Plain-language summary
Georgia law currently does not require websites offering online gambling to check a visitor's age before letting them in. This bill adds a new section to the state's online internet safety law requiring any commercial entity operating a website where more than one-third of the content involves online gambling, sports betting, prediction market trading, or casino-style games, to use a reasonable age verification method before granting access.
Acceptable verification methods include a digital driver's license, other government-issued ID, or any method meeting a federal identity assurance standard. Companies cannot keep identifying information once access is granted. Violators face civil lawsuits from affected individuals, including attorney's fees, plus fines up to $10,000 per violation pursued by the Attorney General, solicitor general, or district attorney. The bill exempts news organizations and internet service providers that merely carry the content.
### What it does
- Requires commercial entities to verify that a user is at least 18 years old before allowing access to a website where more than 33.33 percent of content is online gambling, sports betting, or casino-style gaming.
- Creates a private right of action letting individuals sue companies for damages, court costs, and attorney's fees if a minor accesses gambling content without proper age verification.
- Allows the Attorney General, solicitor general, or district attorney to seek fines of up to $10,000 per violation in superior court.
- Bans companies from retaining a user's identifying information after age verification is complete and access is granted, with liability for knowingly keeping it.
- Exempts news-gathering organizations, news or public interest broadcasts, cloud service providers, and internet service providers that don't control the content.
### Who it affects
Online gambling and sports betting operators, prediction market platforms, and other commercial websites hosting substantial gambling content; minors and parents concerned about underage access; news organizations and internet service providers, who are exempted; and the Attorney General's office and local prosecutors, who would enforce the law.
### Why it matters
If enacted, Georgians running or using gambling-related websites would face new identity checks before accessing such content, and companies that skip verification or keep users' personal data too long could face lawsuits or state fines, changing how these sites operate day to day.
### Key provisions
- New Code section 39-5-6(a) defines key terms including 'online gambling,' 'casino style gaming,' 'sports betting,' 'prediction market trading,' and 'substantial portion' (more than 33.33 percent of a site's content).
- Subsection (b) requires reasonable age verification methods such as a digitized ID, government ID, or a method meeting NIST Identity Assurance Level 2 before granting access to qualifying gambling websites.
- Subsection (c) makes companies liable for damages, attorney's fees, and fines up to $10,000 per violation for failing to verify age, enforced by the Attorney General or local prosecutors within one year of the violation.
- Subsection (d) bars companies from retaining identifying information after verification and creates liability for knowingly retaining it.
- Subsection (e) exempts news broadcasts, news-gathering organizations, and cloud service providers from the requirements.
- Subsection (f) shields internet service providers from liability when they merely provide access to content they do not control.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2026-02-24)
- Last action: Senate Read and Referred (2026-02-25)
- Sponsors: Shawn Still, Jason Anavitarte, John Albers, Kay Kirkpatrick, Clint Dixon
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73570
> The history, votes, and amendments (95 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/sb571.md?full=1