Title 16, Chapter 10, Section 2
( 16-10-2)
(a) A person commits the offense of bribery when: (1) He or she gives or offers to give to any person acting for or
on behalf of the state or any political subdivision thereof, or of
any agency of either, any benefit, reward, or consideration to
which he or she is not entitled with the purpose of influencing
him or her in the performance of any act related to the functions
of his or her office or employment; or (2) A public official, elected or appointed, or an employee of
this state or any agency, authority, or entity of the state, or
any county or municipality or any agency, authority, or entity
thereof, directly or indirectly solicits, receives, accepts, or
agrees to receive a thing of value by inducing the reasonable
belief that the giving of the thing will influence his or her
performance or failure to perform any official action. A thing of
value shall not include: (A) Food or beverage consumed at a single meal or event; (B) Legitimate salary, benefits, fees, commissions, or expenses
associated with a recipient's nonpublic business, employment,
trade, or profession; (C) An award, plaque, certificate, memento, or similar item
given in recognition of the recipient's civic, charitable,
political, professional, or public service; (D) Food, beverages, and registration at group events to which all members of an agency, as defined in paragraph (1) of subsection (a) of Code Section 21-5-30.2, are invited. An agency shall include the Georgia House of Representatives, the Georgia Senate, committees and subcommittees of such bodies, and the governing body of each political subdivision of this state; (E) Actual and reasonable expenses for food, beverages, travel,
lodging, and registration for a meeting which are provided to
permit participation or speaking at the meeting; (F) A commercially reasonable loan made in the ordinary course
of business; (G) Any gift with a value less than $100.00; (H) Promotional items generally distributed to the general
public or to public officers; (I) A gift from a member of the public officer's immediate
family; or (J) Food, beverage, or expenses afforded public officers,
members of their immediate families, or others that are
associated with normal and customary business or social
functions or activities; provided, however, that receiving, accepting, or agreeing to
receive anything not enumerated in subparagraphs (A) through (J)
of this paragraph shall not create the presumption that the
offense of bribery has been committed. (b) A person convicted of the offense of bribery shall be punished
by a fine of not more than $5,000.00 or by imprisonment for not less
than one nor more than 20 years, or both. |