The GA Files

Accountability

PPP Loans, Forgiven

Every Georgia official tracked on this site whose business had a COVID-era Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiven — 14 of them, $7,638,429 in all, across 18 separate loans — 17 of which were forgiven in full and one in part, with the balance repaid. Below each, where it's on the record, is what they've said about forgiving your debt — student loans and medical bills. Every figure is a primary SBA record; every statement is sourced. The juxtaposition is left to you.

$7,638,429forgiven, total
14officials
17/18loans forgiven in full
1
Rick Jackson Republican $2,560,996 forgiven

Premier Anesthesia — five Jackson Healthcare entities · Alpharetta, GA · April–May 2020

  • Premier Anesthesia of Montgomery, PC — $1,204,687
  • Premier Anesthesia of Texas PA — $573,469
  • Premier Anesthesia of Delaware LLC — $373,930
  • Premier Anesthesia of Pennsylvania PC — $301,770
  • Premier Anesthesia of New York PC — $107,140 (forgiven in part; balance repaid)

Five Premier Anesthesia companies — state-level entities in the Jackson Healthcare family of companies, which Jackson founded in 2000 and chairs as CEO — each filed from Jackson Healthcare's Alpharetta headquarters, through the same lender, within three weeks of one another in spring 2020, and together drew $2,560,996 in first-draw PPP loans covering 100 reported jobs. Jackson Healthcare first passed $1 billion in annual revenue in 2018 and $2 billion in 2022. SBA's rule for the program said a borrower is normally counted together with its affiliates against the 500-employee limit, waiving that test only for hospitality businesses, franchises and SBIC-backed firms — none of which these healthcare entities are. Whether the five should have been aggregated is a legal determination; these records do not make it, and nothing in them shows the question being reviewed by SBA or the lender. Every figure here is read directly from the SBA's own loan file.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: SBA — PPP loan data, FOIA release (primary records; data through 9/30/2024) · Premier Anesthesia — contact page (“Part of the Jackson Healthcare family of companies,” 2655 Northwinds Pkwy) · Jackson Healthcare — About (founded 2000 by Chairman and CEO Rick Jackson; $1B revenue 2018, $2B 2022) · Jackson Healthcare — Premier Anesthesia company page · SBA affiliation rule — 85 Fed. Reg. 20817 (Apr. 15, 2020); 13 C.F.R. 121.301

2
Emanuel Jones Democrat $1,263,369 forgiven

Legacy Ford of McDonough, Inc. · McDonough, GA · April 2020 & February 2021

The auto dealership Sen. Jones owns took two PPP loans — $685,800 (approved April 2020, forgiven April 2021) and $577,569 (approved Feb. 2021, forgiven Jan. 2022) — both fully forgiven, about $1.26M total.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: SBA PPP disclosure (ppp.directory) · ProPublica — Tracking PPP

3
Mike Collins Republican $920,000 forgiven

Collins Trucking Company · Jackson, GA · April 2020

Collins's trucking company received the loan in April 2020; federal records show it was later forgiven. Afterward, Collins put more than $500,000 of his own money into his 2022 congressional campaign.

…on forgiving your debt
  • Student-loan forgivenessopposedOn the House floor backing the resolution to overturn Biden's student-loan cancellation, said "everyday hardworking Americans who either chose not to attend college or who have paid off their loans are on the hook for the financial decisions of others," and voted for H.J.Res. 45. (June 2023) source

Sources: AOL / syndicated reporting · ProPublica — Tracking PPP (search)

4
John LaHood Republican $879,184 forgiven

Fellowship Home senior-living facilities (Valdosta, Cordele, Milledgeville, Nashville) · Valdosta / Cordele / Milledgeville / Nashville, GA · April 2020

The Fellowship senior-living group Rep. LaHood presides over runs at least four Georgia facilities that each took PPP loans, all forgiven: Brookside/Valdosta $411,013, Cordelia Manor/Cordele $150,987, Meriwether/Milledgeville $228,345, and Nashville $88,839 — about $879,000 across the four.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: SBA PPP disclosure (ppp.directory) · Georgia Recorder

6
Greg Dolezal Republican $391,300 forgiven

Renewed Vision, LLC · Alpharetta, GA · April 2020

The presentation-software company (maker of ProPresenter) Sen. Dolezal co-founded took a $391,300 PPP loan, forgiven in February 2021.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: SBA PPP disclosure (ppp.directory) · ProPublica — Tracking PPP

7
Mark Newton Republican $358,000 forgiven

MedNow Urgent Care · Evans, GA · April 2020

The urgent-care business physician-legislator Rep. Newton owns in the Augusta area took a $358,000 PPP loan, forgiven in June 2021.

…on forgiving your debt
  • Medical-debt reliefsupportedAn ER physician and House Health Committee chairman, Newton championed surprise-medical-billing protection (HB 888 / HB 789, 2020) — casting the tie-breaking committee vote and calling it "an important step forward" — to shield patients from unexpected out-of-network charges. (This is billing protection, not debt forgiveness.) (Feb 2020) source

Sources: SBA PPP disclosure (ppp.directory) · ProPublica — Tracking PPP

8
Andrew Clyde Republican $154,950 forgiven

Clyde Armory, Inc. · Bogart, GA · April 2020

The firearms retailer Rep. Clyde founded and owns. The loan was fully forgiven ($156,697 with interest). Clyde has been a vocal opponent of federal student-loan forgiveness.

…on forgiving your debt
  • Student-loan forgivenessopposedTweeted that Biden's student-debt relief would "transfer millions more in student debt onto the backs of hardworking taxpayers" and was "a desperate attempt to buy votes with Americans' hard-earned money." The White House pointedly replied that Clyde himself had $156,697 in PPP business debt forgiven. (Aug 2022) source

Sources: ProPublica — Tracking PPP · Atlanta Journal-Constitution

9
Russ Goodman Republican $97,561 forgiven

Cogdell Berry Farm, LLC · Homerville, GA · April 2020

The family blueberry farm Sen. Goodman co-owns took a $97,561 PPP loan, forgiven in January 2021.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: FederalPay — SBA PPP data

10
Gary Richardson Republican $60,725 forgiven

Sparkle Express Car Wash — Grovetown LLC · Grovetown, GA · April 2020

Richardson owns the Sparkle Express car-wash chain in Columbia County. Its Grovetown LLC took a $60,725 PPP loan, forgiven in July 2021; a separate Furys Ferry (Martinez) LLC also took a $51,920 loan.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: ProPublica — Tracking PPP · FederalPay — SBA PPP data (Furys Ferry loan)

12
Sam Watson Republican $47,300 forgiven

Chill C. Farms, LLC · Moultrie, GA · April 2020

The vegetable farm Rep. Watson co-founded and runs took a $47,300 PPP loan, forgiven in February 2021.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: FederalPay — SBA PPP data

13
Brian Kemp Republican $38,137 forgiven

Specialty Stone, LLC · Hoschton, GA · May 2020

Specialty Stone, a commercial stone-supply yard in Hoschton co-owned by Gov. Kemp and listed on his state financial disclosures, took a $38,137 PPP loan, forgiven in January 2021.

…on forgiving your debt
  • Student-loan forgivenessopposedJoined 22 Republican governors urging Biden to withdraw his student-loan forgiveness plan, arguing "a high-cost degree is not the key to unlocking the American Dream — hard work and personal responsibility is," and his office called it debt relief "for Ivy League graduates ... by executive fiat." (Sept 2022) source

Sources: ProPublica — Tracking PPP · Axios Atlanta — Kemp's businesses

14
Tyler Harper Republican $20,832 forgiven

Tyler Harper — beef-cattle farm (sole proprietorship) · Ocilla, GA · February 2021

The Agriculture Commissioner's beef-cattle operation took a PPP loan as a sole proprietorship; SBA records show it was forgiven in September 2021.

No public statement on student-loan or medical-debt forgiveness found.

Sources: FederalPay — SBA PPP data · ProPublica — Tracking PPP

The Paycheck Protection Program was a lawful pandemic-relief program; the loans here were forgiven under its rules, and receiving one is not wrongdoing. Loan amounts and forgiveness are from the SBA's public data (ProPublica / FederalPay), verified to each person's named business. Statements on student-loan or medical-debt relief are quoted or described from the cited sources; "no public statement found" means exactly that. Corrections welcome via the contact link below.