§ 19-3-41.1.Fact sheet for distribution by premarital education providers; requirements
Chapter 3. Marriage Generally · Article 2. License and Ceremony · Last amended 2020 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-3-41.1
Plain-English Summary
This section adds a safety-focused document to Georgia’s marriage process. The Department of Public Health must prepare a fact sheet for public availability and for distribution by premarital education providers. The department must offer it in electronic form, including a version that can be legibly printed as a poster up to 24 by 36 inches.
The fact sheet must cover two areas. First, basic information about the legal rights and responsibilities of the parties to a marriage. Second, information about dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, domestic violence and human trafficking, including the warning signs and behaviors of an abusive partner and the dynamics of domestic violence and other forms of coercive control. It must also give basic information about victims’ rights and the resources available to them, such as website and telephone resources, legal assistance, confidential shelters and civil protective orders. The department shall develop the fact sheet in partnership with the Georgia Commission on Family Violence and, in its discretion, other agencies that serve survivors of dating violence, sexual assault and human trafficking.
The fact sheet ties into premarital education under § 19-3-30.1. When an applicant is 17, that section requires the education to cover the information in this fact sheet, along with instruction on the risks of marrying young. The section was added in 2019 and amended in 2020. Protective orders themselves come from Chapter 13 of this title, on family violence; § 19-13-4 governs protective orders and consent agreements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the premarital fact sheet in Georgia?
It’s a document from the Department of Public Health that explains the legal rights and responsibilities of married people and gives information about dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, domestic violence and human trafficking. It covers the warning signs of an abusive partner, victims’ rights and resources such as website and telephone resources, legal help, confidential shelters and civil protective orders. It’s available to the public and is meant for distribution by premarital education providers.
Do premarital counselors have to give out the domestic violence fact sheet?
The section says the fact sheet is prepared for distribution by premarital education providers, but its duties fall on the Department of Public Health, not directly on the providers. For a 17-year-old applicant, though, § 19-3-30.1 requires the premarital education itself to include the information in the fact sheet, including information on domestic violence and resources for victims.
What warning signs of abuse does the fact sheet cover?
The statute requires the fact sheet to include the warning signs and behaviors of an abusive partner and the dynamics of domestic violence and other forms of coercive control. It doesn’t list the warning signs itself. The Department of Public Health supplies the content, working with the Georgia Commission on Family Violence and, at its discretion, other agencies that serve survivors.
Where can I get a copy of the premarital fact sheet?
From the Department of Public Health, which must make it available in electronic form for the public, including a version that prints legibly as a poster up to 24 by 36 inches. Premarital education providers also distribute it. The statute doesn’t name a web address, so the department’s website or your premarital education provider is the place to ask.
Does the fact sheet explain protective orders?
At a basic level, yes. The section requires information on the rights of victims of domestic violence and related abuse and the resources available to them, and it names civil protective orders among those resources, along with website and telephone resources, legal assistance and confidential shelters. The fact sheet is information, not a court filing; protective orders are governed by Chapter 13 of this title, including § 19-13-4.
Amendment History
Laws 2019, Act 187, § 1-5, eff. July 1, 2019; Laws 2020, Act 388, § 3, eff. July 1, 2020.