HB1230: HB1230 Aviation; prohibit operation of unmanned aircraft systems over a place of incarceration

Georgia law already restricts what inmates can possess and how contraband gets smuggled into jails and prisons. This bill adds a new set of rules aimed specifically at drones, formally called unmanned aircraft systems. It makes it a crime to fly a drone over a place of incarceration, or to use one to photograph or record a jail or prison for the purpose of committing a crime, or to fly one over such a facility from your own property. The bill sets felony prison terms of one to ten years for using a drone to smuggle contraband or violate visitation and communication rules, and five to ten years for illegally recording or flying over a facility to commit a crime. It lets police seize or destroy drones violating these rules and take steps like jamming, hacking, or physically capturing a drone if there is reasonable suspicion it is involved in criminal activity or a threat to public safety. It also updates the state's general drone law (O.C.G.A. § 6-1-4) so its definition of 'unmanned aircraft system' matches the new jail-related provisions, and repeals conflicting laws.

• Makes it illegal to operate a drone above a place of incarceration such as a jail, prison, or detention center.
• Creates felony penalties of one to ten years for using a drone to help smuggle contraband or violate inmate communication rules, and five to ten years for flying over or recording a facility to commit a crime.
• Allows a warden or superintendent to give advance permission to record a facility by drone, which can serve as evidence the flight was not criminal.
• Lets law enforcement officers seize, remove, or destroy drones operated in violation of the law at the owner's expense.
• Authorizes police to detect, track, jam, hack, or physically capture a drone flying over a facility if there is reasonable suspicion of criminal activity or a public safety threat.
• Updates the state's general drone regulation law (O.C.G.A. § 6-1-4) so its definition of 'unmanned aircraft system' matches the new jail-related rules and excludes satellites.

Drone operators and hobbyists, people who fly drones near jails or prisons for any reason, wardens and superintendents of state, federal, local, and privately run correctional facilities, and local law enforcement agencies that would gain new authority to intercept or destroy drones over these sites.

Correctional facilities have used drones to smuggle contraband like phones and drugs to inmates. This bill gives police explicit legal authority to stop drones over jails and prisons, including by jamming or physically capturing them, and sets prison sentences for people caught doing it, changing both enforcement tools and criminal exposure for drone flights near these facilities.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 42-5-18 to add a definition of 'unmanned aircraft system' tied to O.C.G.A. § 6-1-4 and to define 'place of incarceration' broadly to include state, federal, local, and privately run facilities.
• Section 1 makes it unlawful to operate a drone to violate inmate contraband or communication rules, to record a facility to commit a crime, or to fly over a facility, including from one's own property.
• Section 1 sets felony penalties: one to ten years for using a drone to violate contraband or communication rules, and five to ten years for illegal recording or flying over a facility to commit a crime.
• Section 1 allows a warden's prior authorization to serve as evidence of noncriminal intent, but says lack of authorization alone does not prove criminal intent.
• Section 1 declares drones used in violation as contraband subject to seizure, removal, or destruction at the owner's expense, and authorizes mitigation measures like jamming or physical capture when there is reasonable suspicion of criminal activity.
• Section 1 exempts drone operators complying with federal regulations, peace officers on duty, and utility employees acting within their jobs from these restrictions.
• Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 6-1-4 to revise the statewide definition of 'unmanned aircraft system,' clarify that it excludes satellites, and make conforming changes to local preemption and exemption rules for drones near ticketed entertainment events.
• Section 3 repeals all laws in conflict with the Act.

1. 2026-05-05Effective Date 2026-07-01
2. 2026-05-05Act 388
3. 2026-05-05House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-10House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-27Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
6. 2026-03-27Senate Third Read (Senate)
7. 2026-03-27Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
8. 2026-03-27Senate Tabled (Senate)

• Todd Jones (R, HD-025)Primary sponsor
• Brad Thomas (R, HD-021)
• Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
• Bill Hitchens (R, HD-161)
• Eddie Lumsden (R, HD-012)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 3, 2026

   166 yea, 2 nay (1 not voting, 8 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #593

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   26 yea, 22 nay (3 not voting, 3 absent)

   Motion To Table Remaining Legislation On The Rules Calendar: Senate Vote #835

3. PassedSenate voteMarch 27, 2026

   45 yea, 0 nay (4 not voting, 5 absent)

   Passage: Senate Vote #869

• drone laws
• prison and jail security
• criminal penalties
• aviation regulation
• law enforcement authority