--- title: HB 172. Veterinary education; limits on student loan forgiveness program; provide collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb172 cite_as: HB 172, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb172 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb172.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb172/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69649 date: 2025-05-12 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb171.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb173.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 1270 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb172.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 172 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-12 last_action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 sponsors: - David Huddleston - Chuck Efstration - Robert Dickey - Spencer Frye - Jaclyn Ford - Matt Brass text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB172/2025 upstream_id: 1947600 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - veterinary medicine - student loan forgiveness - rural healthcare - food animal veterinarians - higher education funding --- # HB 172. Veterinary education; limits on student loan forgiveness program; provide ## Text 25 LC 46 1037/AP House Bill 172 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representatives Huddleston of the 72nd, Efstration of the 104th, Dickey of the 134th, Frye of the 122nd, and Ford of the 170th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Part 6A of Article 7 of Chapter 3 of Title 20 of the O fficial Code of Georgia1 Annotated, relating to state veterinary education, so as to provide for limits on the student2 loan forgiveness program; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for3 other purposes.4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:5 SECTION 1.6 Part 6A of Article 7 of Chapter 3 of Title 20 of the Official C ode of Georgia Annotated,7 relating to state veterinary education, is amended by revising Code Section 20-3-518.3,8 relating to purchases of loans made for educational purposes to students who have completed9 a veterinary medical degree program, as follows:10 "20-3-518.3.11 (a) The board may provide for the purchase of loans made to students or former students12 who are residents of Georgia for educational purposes who have completed a program of13 study in the field of doctor of veterinary medicine or its equivalent and are authorized to14 practice veterinary medicine in this state, with services in th e form of the practice of15 H. B. 172 - 1 - 25 LC 46 1037/AP veterinary medicine while residing in this state to be rendered as consideration for such16 loan purchases.17 (b) Only persons whose veterinary medicine practices in this s tate include food animal18 specialties and have been practicing such specialties for ten years or less shall be eligible19 for loan purchases under this part."20 SECTION 2.21 Said part is further amended by revising subsection (a) of Code Section 20-3-518.4, relating22 to loan purchases granted to applicants based upon services ren dered and limitations, as23 follows:24 "(a)(1) Persons whose applications are approved and enter into a loan purchase25 agreement with the board, as provided by Code Section 20-3-518.3, shall receive a loan26 purchase in a total amount to be determined by the board, but not exceeding $80,000.0027 $90,000.00 per person, as provided by Code Section 20-3-518.3 . The loan purchases28 shall be paid in such manner as the board shall determine.29 (2) The loan purchases to be granted to each applicant shall be based upon the condition30 that the consideration for such loan purchases shall be service s to be rendered by the31 applicant after entering into a loan purchase agreement with the board by practicing his32 or her profession in a board approved rural county in Georgia with a population of 35,00033 50,000 or less according to the United States decennial census of 2010 2020 or any future34 such census.35 (3) For time served after entering into a loan purchase agreem ent with the board in36 practicing his or her profession in such board approved locatio n, the applicant shall37 receive a loan purchase at a rate equivalent to $20,000.00 $30,000.00 per 12 months of38 service; provided, however, that the total purchase amount shall not exceed the maximum39 specified in paragraph (1) of this subsection."40 H. B. 172 - 2 - 25 LC 46 1037/AP SECTION 3.41 Said part is further amended by revising Code Section 20-3-518.5, relating to contract and42 cancellation, as follows:43 "20-3-518.5.44 (a) Each applicant before being granted a loan purchase shall enter into a contract with a45 term of three consecutive years with the board agreeing to the terms and conditions upon46 which the loan purchase is granted, including such terms and provisions as will carry out47 the full purpose and intent of this part. It shall not be necessary for a contract enrollee to48 reapply after entering into a contract; provided, however, that the board may require the49 contract enrollee to provide an annual certification of continued compliance with this Code50 section. No person shall be eligible to receive such award more than once during his or her51 lifetime. The form of such contract shall be prepared and approved by t he Attorney52 General, and each contract shall be signed by the chairperson o f the board and by the53 applicant. 54 (b) The board shall have the authority to cancel the loan purchase contract of any applicant55 at any time for any cause deemed sufficient by the board, provided that such authority shall56 not be arbitrarily or unreasonably exercised."57 SECTION 4.58 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.59 H. B. 172 - 3 - ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary. House Bill 172 raises the cap on Georgia's veterinary student loan repayment program from $80,000 to $90,000 and limits eligibility to food animal veterinarians practicing 10 years or less, while adjusting the rural county population threshold and annual payment rate. ### Plain-language summary Georgia runs a loan purchase program that helps pay off veterinary school debt for graduates who agree to practice in the state, in exchange for the state buying up their loans. This bill changes several details of that program, found in Part 6A of Article 7 of Chapter 3 of Title 20 of the Georgia Code. It narrows eligibility so only veterinarians whose practice includes food animal specialties, and who have practiced 10 years or less, can qualify. It raises the total loan purchase cap from $80,000 to $90,000 per person, and raises the per-year service payment rate from $20,000 to $30,000 for every 12 months of qualifying service. It also updates which rural counties count as eligible locations, changing the population threshold from 35,000 to 50,000 residents and updating the census reference from 2010 to 2020. The bill also revises the contract cancellation section without substantive changes beyond restating existing board authority. ### What it does - Limits eligibility for the veterinary student loan purchase program to veterinarians practicing food animal specialties for 10 years or less. - Raises the maximum total loan purchase amount a veterinarian can receive from $80,000 to $90,000. - Increases the per-year loan purchase rate for service in an approved rural county from $20,000 to $30,000 per 12 months. - Expands the definition of an eligible rural county from a population of 35,000 or less to 50,000 or less, using the 2020 census instead of the 2010 census. - Restates the board's authority to cancel a loan purchase contract for sufficient cause, as long as that authority is not used arbitrarily. ### Who it affects Georgia veterinary school graduates and veterinarians who practice food animal medicine, especially those considering working in rural counties, along with the state board that administers the loan purchase program and rural communities seeking veterinary services. ### Why it matters Veterinarians who focus on food animals and practice in newly eligible mid-sized rural counties could receive more loan relief under the higher caps, potentially encouraging more of them to work in underserved rural areas of Georgia, while veterinarians without food animal specialties or with over 10 years of practice would no longer qualify. ### Key provisions - Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 20-3-518.3 to restrict eligibility to veterinarians whose practice includes food animal specialties and who have practiced 10 years or less. - Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 20-3-518.4 to raise the total loan purchase cap from $80,000 to $90,000 and the per-year payment rate from $20,000 to $30,000. - Section 2 also raises the population threshold for an eligible rural county from 35,000 to 50,000 and updates the census reference from 2010 to 2020. - Section 3 revises O.C.G.A. § 20-3-518.5, keeping the three-year contract term and the board's authority to cancel a contract for sufficient, non-arbitrary cause. - Section 4 repeals all conflicting laws. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-12) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-07-01 (2025-05-12) - Sponsors: David Huddleston, Chuck Efstration, Robert Dickey, Spencer Frye, Jaclyn Ford, Matt Brass - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69649 > The history, votes, and amendments (1,270 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb172.md?full=1