HB1439: HB1439 Georgia Surveillance Pricing Act; enact

Right now Georgia law does not stop retailers from using personal data collected through cameras, sensors, or loyalty apps to charge different customers different prices for the same product. This bill amends the state's Fair Business Practices Act (O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393) to make that practice, called surveillance pricing, illegal for large retail food establishments, generally stores of at least 15,000 square feet that primarily sell food for off-site consumption, or larger stores that devote at least 10 percent of floor space to food sales. The bill allows exceptions for standard discounts tied to occupation, age, military service, student status, purchase history, or loyalty programs. It also lets stores use electronic shelf labels to change prices during the day, but only if the price applies to everyone equally, is not based on protected traits like race or pregnancy status, does not raise prices on essential goods like milk, bread, or diapers more than once a day, and posts a clear daily maximum price. Violations count as unfair or deceptive practices, enforceable by the Attorney General or through private lawsuits.

• Adds a new Code section (10-1-393.22) banning retail food establishments from adjusting prices for individual shoppers based on their personal data.
• Defines 'surveillance pricing' broadly to include price changes made using electronic surveillance tools such as cameras, biometric monitoring, or facial recognition, or through electronic shelf labels.
• Creates exceptions allowing discounts based on occupation, age, military service, student status, purchase history, or loyalty programs.
• Limits stores using electronic shelf labels to one price increase per day on essential commodities like milk, bread, eggs, baby formula, and over-the-counter medicine.
• Requires stores using electronic shelf labels to post a clear daily maximum price for each item shown on the display.
• Makes violations an unfair or deceptive practice enforceable by the Attorney General or through a private lawsuit under existing consumer protection law.

Large grocery stores and other retail food establishments over roughly 15,000 to 85,000 square feet, along with their customers, are directly affected. The bill also touches the Attorney General's office, which would enforce the new rule, and consumers who could sue stores privately for violations.

If enacted, Georgia shoppers at large food retailers could no longer be charged different prices based on data collected about them, such as browsing habits or biometric scans, except in specific allowed cases like loyalty discounts. Stores using digital price tags would face new daily limits on raising prices for staple goods.

• Section 1 names the bill the 'Georgia Surveillance Pricing Act.'
• Section 2 lays out legislative findings on the risks of algorithm-based and data-driven pricing to consumers and jobs.
• Section 3 adds a failure to comply with the new Code section as an example of an unfair or deceptive practice under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.
• Section 4 creates O.C.G.A. § 10-1-393.22, defining terms like 'electronic shelf label,' 'personal data,' 'protected class data,' 'essential commodity,' and 'retail food establishment,' and setting the core ban and its exceptions.
• Section 4 sets specific rules for electronic shelf labels, including equal pricing for all customers, a one-price-change-per-day limit on essential commodities, and a posted daily maximum price.
• Section 4 states that violations are enforceable by the Attorney General under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-397 or through a private lawsuit under O.C.G.A. § 10-1-399.
• Section 5 repeals conflicting laws.

1. 2026-02-26House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-02-25House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-24House Hopper (House)

• Samuel Park (D, HD-107)Primary sponsor
• Dewey McClain (D, HD-109)
• Gabriel Sanchez (D, HD-042)
• Mekyah McQueen (D, HD-061)
• Stacey Evans (D, HD-057)
• Sheila Jones (D, HD-060)

• consumer protection
• grocery pricing
• data privacy
• retail regulation
• surveillance pricing