Senate committee hears bill to let banks offer capped low-interest emergency loans to Georgia veterans

Senator Islam Parks brought Senate Bill 451, the Support for Economic Resilience and Veterans Empowerment (SERVE) Act, to the Senate Committee on Banking and Financial Institutions in a hearing-only session, proposing a voluntary program that would let certified financial institutions provide short-term, low-interest loans to Georgia veterans.

Parks said the program is designed as a bridge for veterans who face lengthy waits for federal benefits. "It's called the SERVE Act," she told the committee, and described a model that would provide "low interest loans up to $10,000 to veterans facing financial emergencies" with a four-year payback period and a 1.5% interest rate on loans lent back into the program.

The bill would allow donors—individuals and corporations—to apply to the Georgia Department of Revenue for approval of a contribution and receive a 100% state tax credit. Parks said the tax-credit pool is capped at $20,000,000 and that donations would be routed to certified banks, which would hold segregated accounts to fund the veteran loans. Under…