Mississippi Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves spoke at the Lowndes County Republican Women’s monthly lunch at Lion Hills at noon Tuesday.
Reeves talked about traveling the state after being elected in 2011. The number one concern from people he talked to during that trip was job creation.
Reeves told the club he believes the government’s role is not to create jobs but to create an environment which allows those in the private sector to create jobs. He talked about four ways he and the other Republicans in state government have tried to create that environment.
The first was to create a fiscally responsible government which balanced the budget and set aside funds for a “rainy day.”
“We’ve done the exact opposite in Jackson of what’s going on in Washington, D.C.,” Reeves said.
He said he has also supported efforts to ensure the state tax code encourages capital investments. He talked about recently passed legislation eliminating inventory tax, which he claimed will result in a $150 million tax cut for small businesses.
The third way Reeves said he has tried to create jobs is by improving the education of citizens by investing and reforming public education. He said every child, no matter their zip code or their parents’ economic status, deserves the opportunity to succeed, whether their districts voted for him or not.
Reeves said that under the current Republican administration, monetary investment in public education has increased and that more money goes to the classrooms and not the administration offices. He added that state Republicans have consolidated seven school districts in the last four years.
Reeves also talked about the new grading system which rates school districts on a simple A to F grading policy which he said will ensure that “parents and grandparents (are) armed with the information they need” about school districts.
The final issue Reeves talked about was social policy and how he and other Republicans have implemented policies they believe will make Mississippi the “best place in American to raise a family.” He mentioned both the recently passed Mississippi Religious Freedom Restoration Act and a pro-life bill now in court.
“I can live anywhere in the world I want to live,” Reeves said. “But I can’t imagine raising my three little girls anywhere but Mississippi.”
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