state you know i'm acting in the best interest of ohio. i am working each and everyday to make a high wind lives better. i am not worried about my political career i'm worried about you that's the lens upon which i'm going to approach the problems you're facing in washington. correct c-span is your unfiltered view of government the world hasn't changed to date the fast relabel internet connection is something no one including wow. >> the world has changed to date the fast relabel internet connection is something no one can live without. so wow is there for our customers with speed, reliability, value and choice. now more than ever it starts with great internet. >> wow support c-span as a public service along with these other television providers. giving it a front row seat to democracy. >> next missouri republican governor mike parson delivers

his final state of the state address before a joint session of the legislature in jefferson city. the governor who was in the final year of his last term in office highlight's achievements and shared his agenda for the state's future he touched on several issues including workforce to velma, education, info structure investment, judicial appointments and the fentanyl crisis. [applause] [applause] [applause]

[background noises] [background noises] >> ladies and judgment help me walk with the 57th governor of the state of missouri michael l

parsons. [applause] [applause] quick so it may be a speaker you were going to do this. oh, okay all right. well, first of all thank you lieutenant governor, mr. speaker, statewide officials, members of the general assembly, esteemed guests and it is my honor to welcome for the first time in our state's history judges of the first ever female majority supreme court of missouri. [applause]

[applause] [applause] there is another person i want to recognize today i normally don't do it but i'm going to do very quickly it is a gentleman that has been doing this job for 20 years making sure these teleprompters work correctly. todd mayfield is doing us 20 of the session here into the statef missouri, thank you. [applause] [applause] welt to say the least it is an honor to as i welcome for the final time is a 57th governor of the great state of missouri.

during our time as governor we have accomplished more than any of us probably thought was ever possible. but i would not be standing here todayys without my support syst, my family. and that is where i want to start today.t, first and foremost the first lady. teresa has been by my side every step of the way. and after 38 years of marriage i would not be the husband, the father, the gramps, or governor that i am today without her. thank you for serving in a role you never asked for and you've been doing eachce and every day with grace and passion and commitment to best serve the people of missouri. ladies and gentlemen the first lady of the states of missouri. [applause]

[applause] there is another group of people with me today and it is my family. am one of the most blessed people in the world to have the family that i have and for all of them should be here i really started with my son and my daughter years ago. it really made me a better person having those who come into my life and they are both here today with us. naturally they are the ones who have all of my grandkids and i just can't say enough of how much my children have meant to be inki my life and my grandkids and most of them are here today but i have one i want to give a little bit of a shout out too. it is his first i public event t the ripe age of six months. he is with us today for the first time. and i have another great grandchild on the way that's here my brothers are here i have

nieces and nephews and cousins, brothers, all of my family from here i tell you there two things i know in life that are important. that is god almighty and my family. i love all of you guys who are here today. would you please recognize my family and show them your appreciation. please rise. [applause] [applause] like the legislators in this room and missourians across the statend my faith, family, and te next generations are the driving force by the change we have made a missouri.

and last year when i stood before you, i highlighted many of our historic achievements we've accomplished together. as we laid out bold and historic proposals high declared this at governor, this in dad, this gramps was not done yet. and i tell you, we are not done yet and while that is still true i am here to tell you we are getting close. after serving six sessions in the house, six sessions in a senate, two sessions as lieutenant governor and now my sixth and final session as your 57th governor i am expected to say this is a bittersweet moment.rs but, while the view facing all of you is a fine sight to see, but it is no comparison to the

view of the output county farm behind the windshield of my john deere tractor. [applause] but look, i promise i will think of all of you occasionally. [laughter] but in all seriousness, i will be leaving here with my head held high because like many of you who came here for the right reasons we never wavered from those wise words on our capitol and inscribed in our state seal. let the good of the people be the supreme law. in every decision we make we must look to the effects on the next generation and the ability for them to achieve their american dream. and every decision we must put

people first. if this had been hard to do. it is a simple idea that has been our guiding principle since the beginning and that is our final commitment to you until our finalil day we will continue to put people first. when i became governor, missouri was tired of the turmoil. political infighting self involved personalities. they were tired of quitters. when i first stepped into the governor's office, through thousand local media we close the chapter on scandal and begin

a new direction because there was no turning back. we declared a fresh start the return of stability we committed to ensure the next generation have thedr opportunity of the american dream. we promise the return of integrity to statete government and above all we promise to return to people first mentality. and today i firmly believe we have done just that. every year we have approved conservative and balance budgets. we have maintained our triple aaa credit rating we have always left funds on the bottom line. actually with the budget we outlined today, we will leave

office with over $1.5 billion on the bottom line which has never been done before interstates history. we are also pleased to report we have paid down the dirt missouri's debt by over $600 million leaving the states with 53% less debt then when we started. that is quite the contrast compared to what we have seen happening in washington d.c. in missouri we don't leave future generations a pick up the tab we pay our bills and put people first. [applause] working with all of you balancing conservative budgets

norm never been the the exception. we have always been more interested in giving back hard earned dollars rather than spending them. in turn that creates jobs and increased revenue to the state. in fact, state revenues have increased 40% since 2018 with a significant growth coming from sales revenue. not income tax. not corporate tax and not fuel taxes but from a revenue created by it missourians spending their own money not to government programs. and one of the huge factors is this three separate tax cuts we approved including the largest in ourto state's history.

we have decreased tax burdens by over 20% on leaching and economic powerhouse in the state of missouri. [applause] when i became governor we were ranked 47th for gdp growth in last among our midwest neighbors but today we are ranked 23rd in the nation. top five in the midwest for gdp growth. that is a real reckoning here in jeff city.at that is not all talk and hot air that is a true reckoning of growth, opportunity that missourians have come to expect from this administration and state governments. that is our leadership creating a real formula for success and that is something all of us should celebrate in this

chamber. overall missouri has the 13th lowest tax burden of any state in the nation and under our administration, our unemployment rate fell 2.1%. the lowest rate of reported in our state's history. actually it has been so low our problem is not creating job filling jobs since becoming governor we have added more than 100 10,000 jobs to our economy and closed out the year ranked 15th nationally for job creation. and today as i stand before for the final time as missouri's 57th governor i declare the state of our straight is stronger than it has ever been. [applause]

[applause] we have done it all by putting people first and that started with stateen governments. nothing we do in this room is possible without the dedicated public service across the state to implement these ideas. when i became governor governments became underappreciated, understaffed and underpaid. that is why we approve three historic pay increases to recruit and quality talent across state government raising team member pay by over 20% since 2018 and let me just say the investment in our state employees have been worth every penny. [applause]

and that's y why this year we ae proposing additional three-point to percent cost-of-living increase for all of our state employees. [applause] and representing our more than 47000 team members here today is my cabinet. there every crisis i turn to my cabinet and its team not the federal government i have always maintained the answers to our

problems are in the state and among our people. if we disallow ourselves to put egos and self-importance to decide and just listen and while they may have already been recognized, i want to ask myab cabinet to stand with me for one last time. i alwayst say being a good leadr is not about being the best. it is about making those around you better and today i thank you and your teams for proving that to be true. [applause]

the largest deregulation ever in our state's history eliminating nearly one out of every five state regulations and during covid-19, we waved over 600 more regulations. we made many of these changes permanent in statute and improved the regulatory environment in missouri because to be honest with you, many of these rules should have never existed in the first place. [applause]

when i became governor, we also inherited nearly 4,000 pending clemency applications. i am a law and order governor. 4,000 people in limbo waiting for an answer is not how we do good business. we set out to provide answers. today i'm proud to announce the clemency backlog we inherited has been totally cleared for the first time in decades. [applause] as a former sheriff, this reform did not mean we were letting people out of prison. people who truly turned their lives around, people like kenny

who joins us here today. he was drinking, getting in fights and found himself on the wrong side of the law. but today, he has turned his life completely around. he is a proud husband and father of three kids and earned both a bachelors and masters degree and has been a pastor for more than 20 years including service as a hospice chaplain. kenny and others like him might have made some mistakes when they were young but he earned a second chance. please join me in recognizing kenny.

[applause] another way our office has been able to capitalize historic opportunity is appointing over 155nd missouri judges and three supreme court judges, meaning more than 40% of the judiciary hasee been appointed by our administration. by focusing on core values we truly reshaped judiciary for generations to come. a judiciary thatti upholds the w and not the politics of the moment additionally putting the

people of missouri first our office put politics aside and appointed five strong statewideo officeholders which has never happened before in our state's ghistory. lieutenant governor, attorney general bailey, honor fitzpatrick and though he is not here today, senator smith and i thank you all for f stepping up and answering the call to serve missourians and i trust you will never quit on the great people of the state of missouri. [applause] and today i want to highlight another one of our quality appointments in the city of st. louis circuit attorney we didn't pick him because of his

politics. matter of fact we never even asked. it was because he clearly cared alfor the people of st. louis. he valued strong communities, fighting crime, returning law & order and putting people first. the level of professionalism between the circuits attorney's office, the metro police, the courts, the attorney general's office andan our office is grear than i've ever experienced. please join me in recognizing the attorney dave gore. [applause]

when the history books tell the story of the 57th governor, i hope it's our workforce development infrastructure accomplishments that stand out and this year as we propose our final priorities as governor, there is no turning back. we know the strong foundation starts with a quality education and our children. this year we will once again fully fund the k-12 foundation formula with an additional over last year's level and also fully fund transportation across the state of missouri. [applause]

in total, our administration has increased funding for k-12 funding by $700 million and i will note that is state funding, not the federal government, and at the same time, our administration and this general assembly took the first step towards school choice for more families in the education savings account program and whether it's public, private, charter or christian, we don't care where they are getting a quality education as long as they get one. [applause] this year, to do our part on teacher pay, we are including

funding to increase the baseline increase the teacher baseline pay to $40,000 per year. this represents a 15,000-dollar0 increase for teacher pay during our administration. [applause] we were also recommending $6 million. together these programs benefited tens of thousands of teachers and every corner across our state. we've also made historic investments in the higher education. we've increased higher education funding by 24% and invested

$1.2 billion in state-of-the-art capital improvements and upgrades on the college campuses. this year's budget we included another 3% core increase for the institutions and community colleges and $54 million from the workforce training programs on the college campuses. [applause] when i graduated high school, i went straight into the workforce and joined the united states army and for me, there was no turning back. nearly 60% of the workforce don't have college degrees and

that's okay because we know it doesn't take a college education to be successful. he helped establish, upgrade and transform 57 career and technical education institutions across the state. more of our young people are earning a quality skill, a certificate or credential that will help secure them a good paying job without a college degree. [applause] we are also upscaling the current workforce and helping them secure the skills they need to succeed. since its upgrade in 2019, they have helped train more than 173,000 workers.

additionally, since its creation, our fast track program has benefited over 1,700 students with more than 55% going into healthcare and ladies, i want you to listen up. more than two thirds of that being women. [applause] we have also made tremendous progress by prioritizing apprenticeships in this state and joining us today are some of the individuals who benefited from our historic support. in the upper gallery, we have isaac from four rivers career center, kayla, and apprenticeship reservist from springfield and a trucking apprenticeship from pleasant hill. i firmly believe that with hard

work, determination, and a skill of some kind, anyone can achieve the american dream and these individuals are proving it. please join me in recognizing these hard-working folks and others like them across the state. [applause] this group represents just a sample of the more than 57,000 new apprenticeships we haveps added to since becoming governor. under our administration, yearly apprenticeship activity has grown by more than 100%. that's why this year we are including another 3 million-dollar investment to support even more youth apprenticeship opportunities. as you can see these targeted

investments truly make a difference in the lives of missourians and thanks to our past efforts, i am proud to report that missouri is ranked second in the united states of america for apprenticeship and that is something we should all be proud of. [applause] like any challenge in this we rise to it. we don't hide from it. this year we are also investing another $10 million for advanced semi conductor research, development and skills training as well as nearly $7 million to support critical mineral development. missouri ranks fourth in the

nation for new manufacturing when it comes to semi conductors and critical minerals. we can lead and we will lead to an sure we never have to rely on nations like china again. [applause] another focus in the workforce development arena that the first lady and i are especially proud of is jag commiserating with students that may be struggling academically and may have found themselves in some trouble or are at high risk. when we first began the initiative back in our lieutenant governor days, it was supporting just six programs into serving 225 students.

today, it supports 212 programs and serves more than 4,000 students with a high schoolud graduation rate of 98%. [applause] and that is thanks in large part to the first lady for taking this program under her wing. in the upper gallery, we have current and former students joining us today. these students are well on their way whether it is college, the military or straight into the workforce. and withfo your help, we can support this life-changing

program with an investment of $3.8 million, but if you choose not to stand behind these students and the thousands like them across the state, it won't be mean you have to answer to, but the first lady herself. would you please join me in giving these students a round of applause. [applause] when it comes to preparing misery for the workforce, we know we are on the solid ground. the biggest thing we can do is to simply continue. but today, our state is in a critical need of quality, early learning programs. business leaders estimate the lack of early learning programs

in over 85% of missourians believe early childhood learning supports a child's success, parent success and business success. but today, we only have the capacity to serve s just 39% in licensed facilities, and it's time for change. this year we are again proposing three new childcare tax credit programs. these programs will help improve access and affordability for families seeking child care across the state of missouri. additionally, we are continuing funding with an expansion of prekindergarten programs. these are commonsense measures that are good for business, great for families and best for

our missouri children. joining us today, who utilized the child care subsidies. catherine still findse it difficult to find a quality childcare.ua catherine is a full-time nursing student that uses the early learning program. she only wants the best possible educationon for theo. something i think we can all agree on and that should be the minimum for every child in missouri. and that's why this year we are proposing a $52 million investment to the childcare subsidy program to make sure infants, toddlers and children like theo can receive the

quality care they need and deserve. please join me in welcoming catherine, theo and the program director. [applause] another issue affecting missouri children is the fentanyl crisis. drugs pouring into the country through the southern border is devastating. last year dozens of missouri children were lost due to fentanyl exposure. i will say that one more time. they were lost. they didn't use it or do anything. they were just exposed.

this year, alongside senator thompson and the representative, we are proposing legislation thatat guarantees strict punishments for exposing children to the crisis that is here and it is tearing families and communities apart. children dying from fentanyl is 100% preventable. and while president biden and the federal government fail to do their jobs by securing the southern border, missouri will act. [applause] we are also protecting missouri children and our most vulnerable by supporting attorney general

andrew's plans to prosecute and punish human traffickers in the state of missouri. together these initiatives are not only pro children and profamily, but pro-life as well. [applause] and speaking off pro-life, i wat to take this opportunity to highlight our historic success in the fight for life. when i came to jefferson city, nearly 8,000 elective abortions performed annually in missouri. and as i stand before you today, i am proud to report that number

is zero. [applause] now another priority of this administration, roads, bridges and the infrastructure. while the road and bridge repair might not be the most exciting

topic, it is the one that impacts all the most. infrastructure was one of the first major initiatives we took on. five and a half years ago, working with all of you, we set out to repair and replace 250 of the poorest bridges. for the first time in the states history, we leveraged general revenue and bonding to fund the focus on the program. the way in which we created this program allowed us to pull down additional funds to not only repair 250 overlooked and crumbling missouri bridges but it freed up additional resources for major projects like the eye 270 north and the new road support bridge. many doubted that it would ever

happen. but as i stand before you today, i say mission accomplished. focus on bridges is complete. finished, and by this time next year, we expect them to be completed as promised. [applause] we truly believe the focus on the bridge program will be the model moving forward because also focus was in the name, it doesn't mean everything else stopped. in total, under our administration, we have repaired or replaced over 1,000 bridges across the state. we have repaired nearly 17,000 of miles of the missouri roadway in five short years. that's about 50% of all the entire highway system that has been replaced were prepared and

i will remind you we had the seventh largest in the nation. with nearly 200 miles of roads that have been completed. [applause] when i became governor, the statewide transportation improvement program for infrastructure projects across the entire state stood at $2.5 million. today, it's funded at nearly

$14 billion and joining us today in the upper gallery are the men and women who were making it all happen. each of these eight men and women represent over 130 years of experience and the more than 4,600 employees across the state. under our administration, we kept this group busy. so please join me in recognizing their contributions to the state. [applause] the expansion of i 70 has been talked about in this building for decades. decades of hot air, passing the buck. under our administration and this general assembly and the leadership of lincoln, decades

ofad inaction has burned into action, and this summer construction on i 70 is set to begin in columbia and from there let's just say there is no turning back. [applause] but it's the strategic way we chose to fund that i bring up theoj project today with the smt use of the resources and efficient and effective work we are projecting in i 70 completion not only on time, but with savings. two days ago we received more great news from the congressman that we will be receiving over

$90 million in additional funds to put towards projects on i 70. [applause] with those savings and these additional funds today, we are seeing our recommendation to establish the i 44 improvement fund that will build on then nearly $150 million already included in the current step. that's right. we aren't just laying the foundation for one interstate across the state, but to interstates. [applause]

now that all sounds good, but i have more. today we are also ranked second in the united states for capital and bridge projects. ninth for improving rural roads and for the cost-effectiveness and conditions of the roadways. another important piece of infrastructure is broadband. working with you our administration has invested $400 million towards broadband expansion making tens of thousands of homes, business and farm connections across the state. and $1.7 billion is coming to our state to federal funds that former senator blunt helped us secure. we believe that in the next five

years the digital divide in missouri will be closed once and for all. [applause] in less than six years we've accomplished more than most governors are able to in eight years. and i will remind you we did it all while challenged with some of the most unprecedented events in our state history. whether it was the crisis, droughts, tornadoes, civil unrest, train derailment or in 2020 when a global pandemic came knocking at our doors, a crisis

that came with no roadmap playbook we never backed down past the buck or had they been critics, sure they are a dime a dozen. one thing that i have learned in life, you will never be criticized by someone doing more than you. i will always be the person doing less that makes more noise. [applause] through all the criticisms, we never stopped working for the people of missouri. and for all my like-minded colleagues who stood with me, alongside me, and who came here to be good public servants and put people first, i want you to

listen closely to what i say next. together, we have reshaped our supreme court and judiciary as a whole. we protected the second amendment rights, focused on law & order and safeguarded the landmark castle doctrine. we thought the fight and reduced the number of abortions in the state from 8,000 annually to zero. we streamlined state agencies, supported our team members and reduced the size of state government. we built over 1,000 bridges, repaired 50% of our entire 100 highway system and crafted lasting partnerships. we'vef cut the nearly 20% of the regulations on the books and made state government more effective while unleashing an economic development. we've maintained our aaa credit rating and achieve the lowest unemployment ever recorded in our states history. we paid our bills.

we left the state of missouri with over 50% less debt than we started and $1.5 billion on the bottom line. we created over 110,000 jobs and brought $14.5 billion in new business investments. we've cut taxes three times and reduced income tax burdens by over 20% with the largest income tax cut in the states history. no one, and, i mean, no one has gone to the bat for the people in missouri like this administration and you and today, we have one. [applause] as i begin to wrap up, i want to

recognize another group of special people that make this all happen. these individuals are the best of the best. i couldn't have asked for better people to serve with in the office of governor and with 6 million across the state, there's often overlooked and overworked, but their impact on the status beyond measure. we have taken on challenges that no one could ever imagine. they never complained, they never gave up, and above all they believed in the mission and our a people and in the extraordinary capability to

achieve an even better tomorrow. i am filled with pride that we have public servants of such caliber serving our state. as the sun begins to set, i know their talents will continue benefiting today, tomorrow and for the years to come. to the most loyal. on behalf of this entire state i say thank you to the members of my staff and the past and present, please stand to be recognized. [applause] as a final message to this body,

i am reminded of ann old saying. society grows great when men and women plant trees. the shade they know they will never sit in. to summarize it's all about putting people first. ladies and gentlemen, that's been the focus of this administration. we plant the seeds today for a better missouri tomorrow. the first lady and i may never be able to fully realize the work we've done here alongside all of you. but that was never really the purpose in the first place. the point is all of our kids and grandkids across the o state wi. with faith, family and freedom at the forefront honoring the constitution and leading with the ideas of the declaration of independence, putting people first. that is what leadership has been

to us. in missouri, our economy is strong. our democracy is strong. our people are strong and we can keep it that way if we continue to put people first. [applause] missouri took a chance on me and placed their confidence in me and my team and put the people first. you gave me the largest victory margin of being a republican governor in modern history and i will forever be grateful. when i got the call to become governor, my big brother told me little brother, if you come back

home the same way you are leaving here today with your head held high, i will be keeping that promise. then i will return to the farm with our heads held high and if we are honored enough to be considered as a pretty good governor, a decent guy or someone who never forgot where he came from, then it will all be worth it. words cannot express the sincere appreciation that i have for the state and our people. so, for one final time before the chamber today, i simply say to the more than 6 million that i've had the absolute privilege to serve, it has truly been the

honor of my life to beri your 5h governor of the great state of missouri. god bless you and god bless missouri and the united states of america. thank you. [applause] [applause]

to vermont where the republican governor bill scott gave his state of the