DAVE THE CRIMINAL

A 2006 Incident Report filed with the Johnson City Police Department claims that Hatley and two others threatened physical violence against a business owner. According to the report, on June 14, 2006, Hatley made verbal threats to cause bodily harm and threatened to assault both the business owner and another employee.
In 1998, a police officer filed an affidavit stating that David Hatley had threatened to kill a woman if she spoke out about a scam he ran in the 1990s. Fearing for her life, the woman went into hiding. (Washington Municipal Court Records)
Hatley was convicted of federal bank fraud after passing bad checks for two years and lying to an FBI agent.
He served federal prison time and was ordered to pay $37,958.13 in restitution. (U.S. District Court-Eastern District of Tennessee, Case 2:98-cr-00028-TGH-1, Filed 9/14/98, Kingsport Times-News, 10/24/98; David Hatley, “Tested In Tennessee,” Pgs. 44-49)
Tennessee cannot afford a felon running the state.

‍

NO VOTE HATLEY

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In 2009, Hatley filed for bankruptcy in federal court just months after his business did.
$2 billion in assets. $10.6 billion in liabilities. Maybe Hatley should balance his own books before balancing Tennessee’s. (U.S. Bankruptcy Court-Eastern District of Tennessee, Case 2:09-bk-51414, Voluntary Petition, Filed 5/21/09)

$7.7 Million

IN UNPAID TAXES

Hatley wants to be Tennessee’s next governor and control billions in taxpayer dollars.
Yet the IRS and the State of Tennessee filed nine tax liens against him for at least $7.7 million in unpaid taxes. (IRS and Tennessee Department of Revenue, Tax Liens-Hatley, Accessed 8/10/26)
If Hatley couldn’t keep his own tax affairs straight, why should Tennesseans trust him with theirs?

In 2008, Hatley’s Great Spa Manufacturing Company filed for bankruptcy, reporting $9 million in assets and $14.5 million in liabilities. (U.S. Bankruptcy Court-Eastern District of Tennessee, Case 2:08-bk-52293, Voluntary Petition, Filed 11/19/08; Schedules, Filed 12/19/08; U.S. Bankruptcy Court-Eastern District of Tennessee, Case 2:09-ap-05053-MPP, Complaint, Filed 8/24/09)
12 lawsuits. 170 employees abruptly lost their jobs.
That’s not building. That’s tearing down and ruining Tennesseans' lives while Hatley was trying to break the law to make a quick buck.

The IRS filed an $876,261.61 tax lien against Hatley’s Great Spa Manufacturing Company for three years of unpaid taxes. (IRS, Notice of Federal Tax Lien, Serial No. 693044010, Filed 8/26/10)
Three years. Nearly $1 million in unpaid taxes.
Debt Dave couldn’t pay his tax bill. Now he wants Tennesseans to trust him with theirs.

$2 MILLION

withheld from his company

Hatley says Costco withheld $2 million from his company after hearing from vendors that he wasn’t paying his bills and amid concerns over warranties on defective tubs.
Costco ultimately used the entire $2 million over six months to refund customers for cracked tubs and damaged units.
When the bills weren’t getting paid, even Costco stopped trusting Hatley with the money. (David Hatley, “Tested In Tennessee,” Pgs. 90-94)

In June 2026, one of Hatley’s LLCs paid a delinquent 2025 property tax bill for his residence.
The bill included $2,329 in interest penalties.
For someone asking to lead Tennessee, even the basics of paying the taxman on time seem to have been a problem.
(Washington County Trustee’s Office, Property Tax Payment-144 Lake Meadow Drive, 6/22/26)

In 2020, LPI received a $2.3 million PPP loan to support 293 jobs. The loan was later forgiven.
At the same time, Hatley described COVID as “one of the biggest booms to our business.”
His own book says May 2020 sales were 300% higher than May 2019.
Business was booming for Hatley, while people were dying. Sales were soaring while millions in taxpayer backed PPP dollars were flowing into Hatley’s pocketbook.

( PPP Loan Data, LPI, Accessed 8/29/26; David Hatley, “Tested In Tennessee,” Pgs. 78-79)