Georgia CommonsSenate · Engrossed · 2025-2026 Regular Session
SB 604: Crimes and Offenses; the Attorney General concurrent jurisdiction with district attorneys to conduct criminal prosecutions of violent crimes, illegal immigration offenses, and fentanyl offenses; provide
Last action March 19, 2026 · House Committee Favorably Reported
A Georgia Senate bill would let the Attorney General step in ahead of other appointees when a district attorney is disqualified from a case, and would let district attorneys ask for the Attorney General's help prosecuting murder, armed robbery, drug trafficking, and other serious crimes.
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 Engrossed version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
Under current Georgia law, when a district attorney's office is disqualified from a case because of a conflict of interest, the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council appoints a replacement, which could be another district attorney, a solicitor-general, a retired prosecutor, or a Department of Law attorney. This bill changes that process by requiring the council's executive director to first notify the Attorney General and give the Attorney General the option to take the case (or assign a Department of Law attorney to it) before considering anyone else, except when a district attorney voluntarily steps aside for one of the crimes listed in the bill. The bill also creates a new Georgia law, O.C.G.A. section 16-1-13, letting any district attorney request the Attorney General's help prosecuting specific serious crimes: murder, armed robbery, kidnapping, rape, aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, aggravated sexual battery, drug trafficking, offenses involving illegal aliens, and racketeering (RICO) violations. The law would take effect as soon as the Governor signs it and would apply to prosecutions started on or after that date.
What the bill does
- Requires the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council to notify the Attorney General and offer the Attorney General first option when a district attorney is disqualified from a case, before other appointees are considered.
- Creates an exception to that priority when a district attorney voluntarily recuses from one of the specific crimes listed in the new law.
- Adds a new Georgia law (O.C.G.A. section 16-1-13) letting district attorneys request the Attorney General's assistance prosecuting a defined list of serious crimes.
- Lists ten categories of crimes eligible for Attorney General assistance, including murder, armed robbery, kidnapping, rape, drug trafficking, illegal immigration offenses, and racketeering (RICO).
- Sets the law to take effect immediately upon the Governor's signature and apply to prosecutions started on or after that date.
Who it affects
District attorneys and their offices across Georgia, the Attorney General and the Department of Law, the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of the State of Georgia, and defendants charged with the listed serious crimes such as murder, rape, drug trafficking, and racketeering.
Why it matters
The bill gives the Attorney General a bigger role in local criminal cases, either by stepping in when a district attorney is disqualified or by helping prosecute serious crimes at a district attorney's request. This could shift how conflict-of-interest cases and major prosecutions are handled statewide.
Key provisions
- Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. section 15-18-5 so the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council must notify the Attorney General first when a district attorney is disqualified, giving the Attorney General priority to take the case over other possible appointees.
- Section 1 exempts cases where a district attorney voluntarily recuses for a crime listed in the new Code section 16-1-13 from that Attorney General priority requirement.
- Section 2 creates new Code section 16-1-13, allowing a district attorney to request Attorney General assistance in prosecuting ten listed categories of crimes, including murder, armed robbery, rape, drug trafficking, illegal alien offenses, and racketeering.
- Section 3 sets the effective date as the date the Governor signs the bill or it becomes law without a signature, applying to prosecutions initiated on or after that date.
- Section 4 repeals any existing laws that conflict with the bill.
From the bill
“the executive director shall first notify the Attorney General of the disqualification of a district attorney and shall give the Attorney General the option of having the Attorney General or an attorney employed by the Department of Law appointed to engage in a prosecution prior to any other attorney”
“a district attorney may request the assistance of the Attorney General in the prosecution of:”
Discussed in meetings (10)
The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.
Senate Rules Committee, March 5, 2026
From 0:57:07 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 604 would allow local district attorneys to request help from the attorney general's office in prosecuting certain crimes. No substantive questions followed. The committee unanimously included the bill in the floor-calendar package.
Senate floor session, March 6, 2026 (legislative day 28, part 1)
From 8:07:40 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the bill's status history (Senate Tabled)
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 604 would let district attorneys request help from the attorney general with serious violent crimes, drug trafficking, immigration-related prosecutions and racketeering cases. The sponsor argued that the Department of Law could help offices facing staff shortages and backlogs. The sponsor also described giving the attorney general the first opportunity to take over when a district attorney is disqualified or withdraws from a case. An amendment's author supported additional resources but proposed keeping the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council's existing assignment process first when a prosecutor voluntarily withdraws, rather than is disqualified for misconduct. Two members questioned whether that distinction could encourage strategic withdrawals or delay cases, citing the Ahmaud Arbery prosecution. The amendment's author argued that routine withdrawals and case swaps generally work through the council and promised to continue refining the language. The sponsor then withdrew opposition to the amendment. The Senate adopted it without objection, adopted the amended committee substitute and passed the bill, 47 to 2.
House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee, March 18, 2026
From 0:29:15 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 604 would allow district attorneys lacking staff or resources to request prosecution assistance from the attorney general for specified violent crimes and other offenses. The sponsor emphasized that the bill was not intended to take cases away from local prosecutors. The sponsor also said it would give the attorney general the first opportunity to handle cases when a local prosecutor is disqualified. If the attorney general declined, the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council would seek another local prosecutor. Citing difficulties finding replacement prosecutors in past cases, the sponsor said the attorney general’s office had 150 attorneys available. A committee member asked whether this restored an earlier process. The sponsor said that was the information provided during Senate consideration, but acknowledged not personally checking the earlier law. No public witnesses testified on the bill. After initially waiting for enough members to vote, the committee approved it without amendments by voice vote, with one opposing vote recorded by the chair.
House Rules Committee, March 23, 2026
From 0:25:05 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel
Summary by Georgia Commons: The sponsor said SB 604 would allow the Attorney General's office, upon request, to assist local district attorneys with prosecutions involving certain violent crimes, drug trafficking, sex trafficking and gangs. No questions or calendar decision followed.
- Read aloud: Senate floor session, February 26, 2026 (legislative day 25), 0:24:32
- Read aloud: Senate floor session, March 3, 2026 (legislative day 26), 0:32:10
- Read aloud: Senate floor session, March 4, 2026 (legislative day 27), 0:52:00
- Read aloud: House floor session, March 9, 2026 (legislative day 29), 1:04:23
- Read aloud: House floor session, March 10, 2026 (legislative day 30), 0:48:00
- Read aloud: House floor session, March 19, 2026 (legislative day 34), 0:36:01
Status timeline
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
- Senate Third Read (Senate)
- Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
- Senate Tabled (Senate)
- Senate Read Second Time (Senate)
Show full history (11 actions)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- Senate Hopper (Senate)
Sponsors
- Bill Cowsert (R, SD-46)
- Greg Dolezal (R, SD-27)
- Steve Gooch (R, SD-51)
- Tyler Paul Smith (R, HD-18)
Votes
- Senate voteMarch 6, 2026
47 yea, 2 nay (1 not voting, 5 excused)
Topics
- criminal prosecution
- Attorney General powers
- district attorneys
- violent crime
- drug trafficking