Gov. Blunt's Pro-Jobs, Pro-Growth Agenda Working for Missouri's Families

Press Release

Gov. Blunt's Pro-Jobs, Pro-Growth Agenda Working for Missouri's Families

Gov. Matt Blunt tonight addressed members of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce at the organization's annual meeting and awards dinner and reported that the changes enacted since January 2005 to improve the way the state does business are working for Missouri's families.

"Over the last four years, together with the dedication of Missouri's working men and women, we have let job creators know that Missouri is open for business," Gov. Blunt said. "By reforming the state's business and regulatory environment with pro-jobs, pro-growth initiatives, we have strengthened Missouri's economic climate and helped create new family-supporting jobs for our workers. Now, four years later, we have gone from a state that had lost 34,000 jobs in the previous four years to a state that has created more than 80,000 jobs since January 2005."

When Gov. Blunt took office in January 2005, he inherited a $1.1 billion deficit. Missouri's budget was in the red due to too many lawsuits, too much regulation, wrong priorities and a massive state government with bloated bureaucracies. Gov. Blunt spent four years reversing the bad economic policies of the past to place Missouri back on the road to prosperity.

In the four years before Gov. Blunt took office, Missouri had lost 34,000 jobs. The improvements Gov. Blunt made to Missouri's entrepreneurial climate led to the creation of 80,300 jobs since January 2005.

Gov. Blunt has made rejuvenating the state's once-stagnate economy a top priority. Earlier this year the governor signed legislation containing several major provisions to build on strong economic growth and development in Missouri. The legislation increases the annual cap on the governor's successful Quality Jobs Tax Credit Program from $40 million to $60 million. The program has helped create approximately 22,884 new jobs and retain 2,442 others that pay above the average county wage where they are located and that provide health care benefits for employees. Among other things, the legislation also increases the amount of tax credits the Missouri Department of Economic Development may authorize for the Enhanced Enterprise Zone Program from $14 million to $24 million.

Economic development legislation passed this year builds on the unparalleled reforms enacted under Gov. Blunt's leadership. Comprehensive litigation reform enacted under Gov. Blunt's leadership drove the state to a ten spot jump in a leading national watch group's ranking. The state's jump in rank is indicative of the many success stories resulting from Gov. Blunt's pro-family, pro-jobs initiatives.

A recent report by Ball State University's Bureau of Business Research recently ranked Missouri as the best state in the country for manufacturing and logistics.

Last year, Gov. Blunt enacted a tax cut to protect manufacturing jobs in Missouri. The tax cut authorizes a state sales tax exemption for the cost of all energy sources, machinery, equipment and other materials used in the manufacturing, processing, compounding or production of a product and research and development related to manufacturing.

In addition, Gov. Blunt's workers' compensation reform measures enacted in 2005 are helping to decrease workers' compensation rates in the state. The law restored fairness to Missouri's workers' compensation system by protecting rights of injured workers without threatening Missouri jobs.

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