KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Missouri Gov. Mike Parson joined chamber members in Springfield to provide a "State of the State" update on Tuesday.
The governor acknowledged that it was a tumultuous last year due to the pandemic, but said 2021 has been much better.
"I think when we look back we'll say we did a pretty good job taking care of Missouri," Parson said.
He cited a "balanced approach" to handling all aspects of the pandemic and other tasks of the government beyond.
Parson said Missouri unemployment sits at 4.3% as of July, which he said is one of the lowest in the nation.
The governor said the state has recovered over 70% of jobs lost to the pandemic.
Much of the focus of the address was on new business opportunities that have been brought to Missouri in the last year or that are on their way.
Parson said the state is leading the U.S. in small business wage growth, is second in apprenticeship programs, fourth in best places to retire, seventh in relocations to the state, eighth in best places to work for nurses, ninth in best places for military members to retire, 10th in business expansions and 11th in site selections for new business locations.
He said the state has seen $780 million in new business investment and thousands of new jobs due to major companies choosing Missouri to build new facilities.
One such facility will address the worldwide shortage of semiconductor chips, with a company investing $210 million in chip manufacturing in the state and creating 75 jobs, according to the governor.
"I'm telling you, Missouri is on the right track," he added.
Some of the other topics Parson highlighted are legislative efforts to increase infrastructure and transportation funding, the passage of the Wayfair bill, the creation of PDMP for opioid drug monitoring and efforts to pass a COVID-19 liability bill.
Parson challenged the legislature to continue the momentum 2021 has brought for business and growth.
"Others want to come to Missouri because of our values: our hard work and our common-sense approach," he said.
Parson briefly touched on the pandemic.
"Here in Missouri, we took a balanced approach to the pandemic," he said.
He cited the state's use of monitoring COVID-19 testing, personal protective equipment availability, hospital testing and data to decide management approaches.
Parson also said that every eligible Missourian needs to be encouraged to get vaccinated.
