As I attended the very impressive celebration last Friday in Rock Port designating them as the first and only town in the United States to be 100 percent wind powered it was evident that a great amount of foresight, hard work and risk had been involved. The leaders of the Rock Port community can be very proud of their efforts and achievement. It was also made clear that without the Federal tax credits and other incentives, this project would not have become a reality.
The growing number of varied tax credits in the state of Missouri is quite honestly a big concern for me but when they are used to stimulate business that pays back big dividends they have been used effectively. On Forbes Magazine’s 2007 list of the best states for business, Missouri ranked #16. That is especially impressive considering the fact that only a few short years ago our state was one of the leading states in jobs lost. Our labor force, quality of life, business cost rank and regulatory environment led to this encouraging ranking that I think we should all be proud of. Whether you are a small business owner, executive at a large Missouri business, or just a hard-working Missouri employee, this is good news because it means we have implemented a strong economic policy that has immediate, positive effects including encouraging new business and providing more quality job opportunities.
Proof that we have our doors open for business is the recent interest we have received from Bombardier Aerospace. As you might have read in the news lately, Kansas City is one of the top candidates for a project for a passenger jet assembly plant. Bombardier Aerospace is a Montreal based company that is looking for a site to assemble its C Series 110 and 130 seat passenger jets. The plant would eventually employ up to 2,100 people, with up to 5,200 indirect jobs attracted to the area – meaning millions in economic development for Missouri.
The fact that our state is a top contender would not have been possible without the pro-growth initiatives we have enacted during the past few years. With policies such as our workers comp reform and business incentives; we have been able to add thousands of new jobs. Incentives like the Quality Jobs Act have made sure we are attracting the right kind of jobs – ones that offer livable wages and health care benefits for Missouri Families. These initiatives have helped create more than 90,000 jobs since 2005, unemployment rates are comparatively low and the stimulation of small business is especially encouraging.
We are excited to have this chance in the Kansas City region, but we are also doing all we can to attract economic development all over the state. We have given initial approval to another economic development bill, HB 2058, which offers numerous provisions to promote job growth across our state. This bill would increase the annual cap on the amount of tax credits available for the Enhanced Enterprise Zone Program, which is designed to help stimulate development, and revitalization in economically challenged areas by providing economic development assistance.
If you have questions, you may reach me at my Capitol number 573-751-9465, at the local district number, 660-582-4014, by email at mike.thomson@house.mo.gov or by mail at Room 406A State Capitol Building, Jefferson City, MO 65101.
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