Georgia
‘It affects my family’: Georgia Senator speaks on losing job after voting against lawsuit reform
ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – A Georgia state lawmaker lost his day job after voting against the contentious lawsuit reform bill aimed at curbing business liability lawsuits and large insurance payouts.
“It affects my family,” state Rep. Vance Smith (R-Pine Mountain) said. “It was a very negative effect on my wife and my whole family.”
Smith said he was fired as the CEO of the Harris County Chamber of Commerce in a Zoom call Friday, the day after he voted against Senate Bill 68.
“My vote wasn’t taking the chamber in the direction that they wanted to go, and therefore we’d had to part ways,” he said, paraphrasing what the chamber’s board chair Theresa Garcia Robertson told him.
In a sit-down interview with Atlanta News First Investigates, Smith said he sat in four of the hours-long subcommittee sessions to hear the testimony and debate regarding the bill and how it would affect Georgians’ everyday lives.
“I’m a small business. I’ve got an LLC. I’m a member of my own chamber. I definitely think about small business on the issues that I vote on, it affects me directly and affects everybody else in the community across the state,” Smith said. “I didn’t know the outcome was going to lead to where we are now.”
The bill passed on Friday, a day after the House approved a substitute in a 91-82 vote.
Smith said he can’t even count the number of texts, calls and emails he’s gotten since.
“I want to thank you. This is a family in here,” he told the House chamber Tuesday. “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it.”
Democrat representatives rushed up to comfort him as he began to choke up.
“I guess I’m kind of a sentimental guy,” Smith told Atlanta News First Investigates.
Smith said he had a few concerns about the bill and had been asking a lot of questions.
For example, he had asked for representatives with insurance companies to call him to explain what they would do going forward.
“Looking at this bill, will this bill entice companies to come back to Georgia? Will it ease the fears of companies that are here in Georgia to that they’ll stay in Georgia?” he asked, but said to this day, he hasn’t heard from anyone from the insurance side.
“I said, ‘Well, you know, if we can make this a better bill, I think I’ll vote no now so we can work on that bill some more,‘” Smith said.
He had no idea it would cost him his job representing businesses in Harris County.
“My position here is very important to me. I want to do what’s right,” he said.
Garcia Robertson, who fired Smith, is the wife of one of the bill’s sponsors, Sen. Randy Robertson. Some have asked Smith if he believes losing his position was also party retaliation for his vote.
“I honestly will not speculate,” he said. “We’ve got legislation to do. I’ve got to work ‘til April the 4th midnight, passing bills that are meaningful to my area of the state and in, actually to the whole state. So I’ve got to concentrate on that.”
Garcia Robertson told Atlanta News First Investigates in an email statement, “We do not comment on personnel matters. What we can tell you is that we hold Vance in high regard personally and appreciate his service to our community and his district.”
Smith said he helped start the Harris County Chamber of Commerce in the early 1990s and had been CEO for almost three years.
This is his 24th year as a Georgia lawmaker.
House Majority Whip James Burchett, who also co-sponsored SB 68,addressed Smith’s firing in a release.
“Numerous members have suffered threats to their livelihoods and independence because of their votes on Senate Bill 68,” he wrote. “We should hold legislators accountable for their votes at the ballot box – not by taking aim at their ability to support their families.”
Atlanta News First Investigates also reached out to the Georgia Senate’s press office for a comment from Sen. Robertson. We are still waiting to hear back.
Atlanta News First Investigates previously reported on online “threats” made to businesses that supported SB 68.
One example is a story post on Facebook from a personal injury attorney, who said: “I cannot wait to sue businesses who blindly support tort reform. Not only will I give you a lesson on how insurance works, but I will punish you for your pathetic attempt to put profits over people. Welcome to the show.”
The attorney told Atlanta News First Investigates, “While admittedly zealous, my post reflects my thoughts that if the businesses that blindly supported tort reform and spread misinformation end up in lawsuits because their carriers failed to resolve claims fairly.”
The bill was heavily supported by the business community, which said insurance premiums were rising so rapidly that some small businesses couldn’t afford to have them anymore.
Small business owners in the state said they’re frustrated with constantly having to pay huge settlements over lawsuits they feel are frivolous.
Opponents of the bill also noted that nothing in its language actually required insurance companies to lower their rates.
The last day of this year’s Georgia General Assembly is set for Friday, April 4, 2025.
Atlanta News First and Atlanta News First+ provide you with the latest news, headlines and insights as Georgia continues its role at the forefront of the nation’s political scene. Download our Atlanta News First app for the latest political news and information.
Copyright 2025 WANF. All rights reserved.
The value of Georgia products sold overseas surpassed $60 billion last year, state officials said.
Georgia was ninth in the U.S. for exports in 2025, propped up by its logistics infrastructure of the world’s busiest airport, an extensive railroad network and the ports of Brunswick and Savannah (pictured). (Courtesy of Georgia Ports Authority 2024)
Despite a barrage of new tariffs imposed across the globe, Georgia saw another record year for international trade in 2025.
Total trade last year reached nearly $211 billion, up almost 6% from 2024. Imports, subject to many tariffs enacted by the Trump administration, made up most of that activity, growing about 3% to more than $150 billion, according to a state report released Thursday.
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Georgia’s top exported product in 2025 was civilian aircraft and ancillary parts, such as Gulfstream’s G500 and G600 aircraft seen on the assembly line in Savannah in December. (Hyosub Shin/AJC)
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Amy Wenk is the consumer brands reporter for the AJC.
Cal entered tonight’s matchup against a destitute Georgia Tech side dusting themselves off from an unexpected loss to a middle of the road Pitt team. The Golden Bears were looking to stay on the bubble of the NCAA tournament, while Tech, who finished last in ACC play, were simply trying to finish out their season with pride. This game marked the beginning of what will prove to be a long road trip for the boys from Berkeley.
Tech came out red hot from 3, thanks to forward Kowacie Reeves, who went 5-8 from behind the arc in the first half, while the entire Cal team was 0-12. His 19 points provided the difference in a first half with long stretches where neither team could put the ball in the basket.
Cal were frustrated early offensively, with Justin Pippen and Dai Dai Ames held scoreless in the first half. Lee Dort proved his offensive value, as the highest scorer for the Bears in the first half, particularly finding success in the paint, and they started the second half off feeding him early inside with some success.
The Bears opened the second half strong, finding ways to run their sets and get more players looks around the basket. Simultaneously, Camden began to find his shot from three, and things began to fall into place for a Cal side that was already having a decent night on the boards.
Georgia Tech could not keep pace once Cal’s offense found a rythm, though they would have to do so without any scoring contributions from Justin Pippen, who went 0-7 from the field, but closed out the night with eight assists and two rebounds.
Ultimately, Tech’s 18 turnovers, and Cal’s persistence gave way to a Bears lead that wouldn’t be overcome. The Yellow Jackets did not have an answer for Lee Dort’s efforts in the paint, and when Dai Dai Ames found his footing on offense, eventually the game was all but finished. Despite a valiant effort, the Yellow Jackets could not maintain an offensive pace or defensive effort to keep up with Cal, who face Wake Forest this Saturday in another must win.
Gas prices surge as Iran war closes Strait of Hormuz
Gas prices rise as Iran closes the Strait of Hormuz threatening oil supply and raising fears of global economic fallout.
In the days since the initial U.S. strikes in Iran, countless lawmakers stateside have weighed in on the Trump Administration’s decision to once again get involved in a conflict in the Middle East.
Prominent Georgia political figures like former representative Marjorie Taylor Greene and Senators Ossoff and Warnock have denounced the attacks, while candidates to replace MTG and others running in midterm elections have backed the president.
Now, Georgia State Senator Greg Dolezal, who is running for Lieutenant Governor in November, has posted a controversial video to social media depicting a hypothetical scenario where an extreme version of what he calls “Sharia law” has taken over the United States.
“London has fallen. Europe is under siege. In America, the invaders who would rather pillage our generosity than assimilate are roaming Minnesota, New York and LA,” Dolezal said in the post. “As Lt. Governor, I will fight the enemy before they’re within the gates and keep Georgia safe and Sharia free.”
The video was marked with a content warning on X.
What does the video show?
The video, appearing to have been AI-generated, begins with two people walking toward a building and wearing head coverings, possibly hijabs, shaylas, Al-miras or khimars.
It then cuts to a man writing with frosting on a cake, possibly “Happy Easter,” but the letters are unclear. A figure dressed in all black runs into frame and slices the cake with a weapon like a Zulfiqar sword.
It goes on to show military vehicles driving down the street, a woman being stopped from driving, a group of men in head coverings shooting weapons into the air and a suicide bomber vest, all while playing a song with the lyrics “No Sharia.”
(Warning: the video may be disturbing for some viewers.)
Video called ‘disgusting’ and ‘racist’
The video was met with significant criticism, including from Democratic gubernatorial candidate Geoff Duncan.
“This is disgusting. People wonder why I became a Democrat, it’s because of the inexcusable hatred spewed by so many Republicans like Greg Dolezal. Hate, including Islamophobia, has no place in Georgia,” Duncan wrote on X.
Rev. James “Major” Woodall, Sr., of Atlanta, called the video “deeply racist.”
“As a Christian man who deeply loves Georgia, I pray you never become Lt. Governor,” Woodall wrote.
Emanuel Jones, of the state senate, called out his fellow representative and said “if you don’t know it yet, Georgia is better than this!!”
“We don’t need race baiting, fear mongering to get votes. Perhaps that (is) what the Republican Party has devolved into,” Jones said on X.
Dolezal got support, however, from MAGA personality Laura Loomer who commented “No Sharia!”
The video has also been reposted more than 1,000 times as of 2 p.m. on March 4.
Who is Greg Dolezal?
The state senator represents District 27, and is based in Alpharetta. He was sworn in to the Georgia Senate in 2019.
He is a small business owner and attended North Park University.
Irene Wright is the Atlanta Connect reporter with USA Today’s Deep South Connect team. Find her on X @IreneEWright or email her at ismith@usatodayco.com.
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