House speaker-elect visits Springfield, Branson

The soon-to-be speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives made the rounds through southwest Missouri on Monday, spelling out his priorities for the coming legislative session.

Rep. Ron Richard, R-Joplin, who is expected to be elected as the new speaker when the General Assembly convenes Jan. 9, presented an outline of his legislative agenda to business and community leaders in Branson and Springfield.

He said the top priority is the economy - specifically, creating jobs. The fastest path to job creation, he said, is offering attractive incentives to businesses for relocation and expansion. He pointed to the Quality Jobs Act and the Enhanced Enterprise Zone program as examples.

"We're in a global economy, and we have to make Missouri accessible and attractive in a global economy," Richard said during his Springfield presentation at University Plaza. "We do that by making sure we have good incentive packages like Quality Jobs that link Missouri with other businesses."

Richard, who is entering his fourth term in the House, said partisan politics would only get in the way of the progress the state needs. He noted that he has already met with Democratic Gov.-elect Jay Nixon, and that they are in agreement on all the major economic issues.

"The message sent by the people electing a (Democratic) governor and expanding the (Republican) majority in the legislature is that the people want two parties to come together, reach a consensus and lead the state," Richard said.

See SBJ's Jan. 5 issue for more on Richard's agenda and community reactions.[[In-content Ad]]