# Georgia HB 582: Georgia Survivor Justice Act; enact Georgia HB 582, Georgia Survivor Justice Act; enact, is a 2025-2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by James Burchett (Republican), Stan Gunter (Republican), Soo Hong (Republican) and 3 others; status signed, last action 2025-07-01 (Effective Date) (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB582-2025-2026 - As of: 2026-10-12 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: Georgia HB 582 - State: Georgia - Session: 2025-2026 Regular Session - Title: Georgia Survivor Justice Act; enact - Status: signed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2025-02-21 - Last action: 2025-07-01, Effective Date - Sponsors: James Burchett (Republican), Stan Gunter (Republican), Soo Hong (Republican), Kimberly New (Republican), Matt Reeves (Republican), Tyler Paul Smith (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Judiciary Non-Civil, Judiciary, General Bill - Touches household money: no - Roll calls: 3 (383 yes, 3 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 7 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Lower sentences for qualifying abuse survivors: benefit, high. Defendants qualify for alternative sentences by proving it is more likely than not that abuse significantly contributed to the crime. Covered abuse includes family violence, dating violence, and child abuse. Courts also must use alternative sentences when they serve justice and society's welfare, w… - Sentence review for incarcerated abuse survivors: benefit, high. People serving sentences can seek survivor-related review for offenses committed before July 1, 2025, or with evidence absent from any sentencing hearing's record. Filing alone does not guarantee relief; courts must reduce sentences when the law's alternative-sentencing criteria are established. Th… - Privacy protections for survivor justice dialogues: benefit, medium. The law generally protects communications and actions before, during, and after victim-centered practices and victim-offender dialogues. It also protects the fact that a process was planned or held, along with covered participants, facilitators, and records. Covered information cannot generally be… - Stronger defenses for abuse and coercion: benefit, medium. Defendants charged under Georgia's crimes-against-persons chapter can offer abuse evidence to support a defense that force was immediately necessary. The evidence must concern family violence, dating violence, or child abuse by the alleged victim. It can include past abuse, help-seeking, medical ca… - Required oath wording for Georgia officers: benefit, low. Beginning July 1, 2025, peace officers taking office oaths must use the wording set by Georgia law. Sheriffs and sworn deputies taking oaths on or after that date must use their applicable statutory oath. The peace officer oath commits officers to faithfully and impartially uphold Georgia law and t… - Fewer oath-violation charges against public officers: cost, low. Willful, intentional oath violations by public officers carry one to five years in prison. Georgia limits this prosecution to violations based on a felony or a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature. Peace officers can face this charge only for violating the specified statutory oaths for peace… - Dialogue facilitators gain protection from lawsuits: mixed, low. Facilitators generally cannot be held liable for civil damages for conduct during victim-centered practices or victim-offender dialogues. This protects facilitators but limits participants' ability to recover damages. Protection does not cover gross negligence with malice or willful disregard for a… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: James Burchett (Republican), House - Sponsor: Stan Gunter (Republican), House - Sponsor: Soo Hong (Republican), House - Sponsor: Kimberly New (Republican), House - Sponsor: Matt Reeves (Republican), House - Sponsor: Tyler Paul Smith (Republican), House - Cosponsor: Bo Hatchett (Republican), Senate ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-04-04 | House | Agree to Senate Substitute | pass | 164 | 0 | 5 | | 2025-04-02 | Senate | PASSAGE BY SUBSTITUTE | pass | 53 | 1 | 1 | | 2025-03-06 | House | PASSAGE | pass | 166 | 2 | 5 | ## Actions (16) - 2025-07-01: Effective Date - 2025-05-12: House Date Signed by Governor (House) - 2025-05-12: Act 131 - 2025-04-10: House Sent to Governor (House) - 2025-04-04: House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub (House) - 2025-04-02: Senate Third Read (Senate) - 2025-04-02: Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate) - 2025-03-28: Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (Senate) - 2025-03-28: Senate Read Second Time (Senate) - 2025-03-10: Senate Read and Referred (Senate) - 2025-03-06: House Third Readers (House) - 2025-03-06: House Passed/Adopted By Substitute (House) - 2025-03-04: House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House) - 2025-02-26: House Second Readers (House) - 2025-02-24: House First Readers (House) - 2025-02-21: House Hopper (House) ## Bill text - HB 582/AP* (v11): [PDF](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/239314) ## Related bills - SB 160: Reckless Stunt Driving; a motor vehicle involved in a second offense of reckless stunt driving; replace the forfeiture penalty (signed) - SB 384: Motor Vehicle; optional five-year motor vehicle registration and revalidation for certain motor vehicles; provide (signed) - SB 76: License Plates; specialty license plate benefitting the Georgia Veterans Service Foundation; establish (signed) - SB 406: "Georgia Property Owners' Bill of Rights Act"; enact (signed) - HB 1391: Specialty license plates; honor public safety officers; establish (signed) - HB 1344: Georgia Insurance Affordability and Claims Integrity Act; enact (signed) ## Sources - [HB 582/AP* (v11) (PDF)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/239314) ## Related - [SB 160: Reckless Stunt Driving; a motor vehicle involved in a second offense of reckles…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB160-2025-2026) - [SB 384: Motor Vehicle; optional five-year motor vehicle registration and revalidation f…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB384-2025-2026) - [SB 76: License Plates; specialty license plate benefitting the Georgia Veterans Servic…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB76-2025-2026) - [SB 406: "Georgia Property Owners' Bill of Rights Act"; enact](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB406-2025-2026) - [HB 1391: Specialty license plates; honor public safety officers; establish](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1391-2025-2026) - [HB 1344: Georgia Insurance Affordability and Claims Integrity Act; enact](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1344-2025-2026) - [Georgia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/georgia/bills) - [Georgia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/georgia) - [All state legislation](https://policyrisk.com/state-bills) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB582-2025-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).