# Georgia HB 172: Veterinary education; limits on student loan forgiveness program; provide Georgia HB 172, Veterinary education; limits on student loan forgiveness program; provide, is a 2025-2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Robert Dickey (Republican), Chuck Efstration (Republican), Jaclyn Ford (Republican) and 2 others; status signed, last action 2025-07-01 (Effective Date); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB172-2025-2026 - 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 172 - State: Georgia - Session: 2025-2026 Regular Session - Title: Veterinary education; limits on student loan forgiveness program; provide - Status: signed - Chamber: House - Introduced: 2025-01-29 - Last action: 2025-07-01, Effective Date - Sponsors: Robert Dickey (Republican), Chuck Efstration (Republican), Jaclyn Ford (Republican), Spencer Frye (Democrat), David Huddleston (Republican) - Cosponsors: 1 - Subjects: Higher Education, General Bill - Touches household money: yes - Roll calls: 2 (207 yes, 8 no in all) - Economic provisions PRIA read: 3 ## Summary No summary available. ## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read - Higher loan relief for rural vets: benefit, high. The law raises the maximum veterinary education loan purchase from $80,000 to $90,000 per person. Approved applicants earn $30,000 in loan relief for each 12 months of qualifying service after entering an agreement. Service must take place in a board-approved rural Georgia county. Three years of qu… - More counties qualify, but vet eligibility narrows: mixed, medium. Applicants must be Georgia residents with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree or equivalent and authority to practice in Georgia. They must practice food-animal specialties in Georgia and have done so for 10 years or less. Required service takes place in a board-approved rural Georgia county. Th… - Simpler vet contracts, but no repeat awards: mixed, medium. Veterinarians can receive only one loan-purchase award in their lifetime, under a written contract lasting three consecutive years. Participants do not need to reapply, but the board may require yearly proof of compliance during and after the contract. The Attorney General must approve the contract… ## Sponsors and cosponsors - Sponsor: Robert Dickey (Republican), House - Sponsor: Chuck Efstration (Republican), House - Sponsor: Jaclyn Ford (Republican), House - Sponsor: Spencer Frye (Democrat), House - Sponsor: David Huddleston (Republican), House - Cosponsor: Matt Brass (Republican), Senate ## Roll call votes | Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 2025-04-04 | Senate | PASSAGE | pass | 43 | 4 | 7 | | 2025-02-26 | House | PASSAGE | pass | 164 | 4 | 6 | ## Actions (22) - 2025-07-01: Effective Date - 2025-05-12: House Date Signed by Governor (House) - 2025-05-12: Act 119 - 2025-04-09: House Sent to Governor (House) - 2025-04-04: Senate Taken from Table (Senate) - 2025-04-04: Senate Third Read (Senate) - 2025-04-04: Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate) - 2025-04-02: Senate Taken from Table (Senate) - 2025-04-02: Senate Third Read (Senate) - 2025-04-02: Senate Tabled (Senate) - 2025-03-31: Senate Tabled (Senate) - 2025-03-18: Senate Read Second Time (Senate) - 2025-03-13: Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate) - 2025-02-27: Senate Read and Referred (Senate) - 2025-02-26: House Third Readers (House) - 2025-02-26: House Passed/Adopted (House) - 2025-02-20: House Committee Favorably Reported (House) - 2025-02-18: House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House) - 2025-02-13: House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House) - 2025-02-03: House Second Readers (House) - 2025-01-30: House First Readers (House) - 2025-01-29: House Hopper (House) ## Bill text - HB 172/AP* (v5): [PDF](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/239287) ## 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 172/AP* (v5) (PDF)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/239287) ## 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-HB172-2025-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).