Drew Echols

Drew Echols earned a high school diploma from East Hall High School. His career experience includes being a co-owner of Jaemor Farms.[1][2]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

A lifelong resident of the 49th district, husband, and father of two, State Senator Drew Echols knows that nothing is more important than the environment in which we raise our children.

The Echols family has a long history in Hall County. Now, Drew is ready to give back to our community to continue to make Hall County the best place to live, work, and raise a family.

Growing up on Jaemor Farms, a family farm that he still co-owns with his father today, Drew learned the value of hard work and how to take a small orchard to a diversified multi-crop farm with over one million visitors annually.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Families in Hall County are working hard and still feeling squeezed at the grocery store and the gas pump, and too many young people can't afford a home in the community that raised them. State government shouldn't add to that burden. That means spending your tax dollars carefully and cutting the red tape that drives up what it costs to build a house or open a business. I run a family farm, so I know what rising costs do to a household budget and a small business's bottom line. I want Georgia to be a place where working families can afford to live and where my kids' generation can afford to stay.You know how to spend your money better than the government does. This year I voted to cut Georgia's income tax rate to 4.99%, with a path to lower it further, and I voted for property tax relief for homeowners. That was a good start, but we're not done. Rising property tax bills hit seniors on fixed incomes and young families especially hard, and I'll keep pushing for real, lasting relief. Every dollar we leave in a family's pocket is a dollar they can put toward groceries or a mortgage. When the state collects more than it needs, that money belongs back with the people who earned it.I've spent more than two decades running a family farm and small business, and I know how much time and money it takes just to keep up with government paperwork. Every new rule has a cost, and it almost always lands on small businesses and, eventually, their customers. Government should do its core jobs well and stay out of the way on everything else. When a bill comes before me, I ask a simple question: does this make life easier for Georgians or harder? I'll keep working to cut unnecessary regulations and keep state government lean and accountable to the people who pay for it.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I'm most passionate about two things. The first is children with special needs. Our son Cohen has special needs, and raising him has shown Shelly and me how much these kids have to give and how often they end up at the back of the line. I want Georgia to make children with special needs and their families a higher priority, in our schools and in the state budget. The second is economic development. As chairman of the Senate Economic Development and Tourism Committee, my focus is bringing good-paying jobs to every corner of Georgia and making sure the farms and small businesses already here can grow. Helping build our family farm into a destination for visitors taught me what tourism can do for a local economy.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

My grandfather, Jimmy Echols. When I was 15, he told me that God designed us to work, and I've tried to live by that ever since. He helped build our family farm into what it is today.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty and a willingness to work. People have to be able to trust that you'll tell them the truth, even when it isn't what they want to hear, and that you'll keep your word. Elected officials also have to remember who they work for. I work for the people of the 49th District, not special interests, and I owe them an open door and my best effort every day. My grandfather taught me that God designed us to work, and I believe that applies to public service as much as it does to farming.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

The first responsibility is to represent the people of your district, which means listening to them and voting the way you told them you would. Beyond that, a state senator has to pass a balanced budget that respects taxpayers and hold state agencies accountable for how they spend the public's money. A lot of the job happens outside the Capitol, too. It's helping a constituent who's stuck with a state agency, or working with local leaders on our roads and on protecting Lake Lanier.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I'd like people to say I left Hall County and Georgia better than I found them. That families could still afford to live here, that farms and small businesses could still make it here, and that kids like my son Cohen were treated as a priority instead of an afterthought. At home, I want my children to know their dad kept his word and did the work.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

Working on our family farm, and in a way I still have it. I grew up at Jaemor. I spent two and a half years at Georgia Power before coming home to the farm full time, and I've been there for more than 20 years now.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and state legislature?

A working partnership, with each branch respecting the other's role. The legislature writes the laws and passes the budget, and the governor leads the executive branch and carries those laws out. I served as one of Governor Kemp's floor leaders in the Senate, so I've seen how much gets done for Georgians when the two work together. At the same time, the legislature has a duty to be an independent check and to make sure the folks back home are heard.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Managing growth while keeping Georgia affordable. People and businesses keep moving here because we've gotten a lot right, but that growth puts real pressure on housing costs, roads, water and farmland. We have to keep taxes low and regulations reasonable so families can afford to live here. We need to invest in infrastructure without growing government, and protect resources like Lake Lanier for the next generation. We also need a workforce that's ready for the jobs coming to our state.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

Yes, on the details, but never on principle. I won't compromise my conservative values or what the people of the 49th sent me to Atlanta to do. But good policy usually comes from listening and finding common ground on how to get there. This year's tax package is a good example. The House and Senate started with different plans, and by working it out we cut the income tax rate to 4.99% and delivered property tax relief for homeowners.

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