House Speaker talks to Cape business leaders

House Speaker Catherine Hanaway says Missouri should offer a more business-friendly climate, Gov. Bob Holden should release the $198 million he withheld from the elementary and secondary education budget and Southeast Missourians should be proud to be the "epicenter" of leadership in the state legislature.

Those were the three points that Hanaway, a Republican from Warson Woods, made at First Friday Coffee, a regular meeting of area business leaders sponsored by the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce.

Hanaway reminded everyone that Missouri lost more jobs than any other state in the country, including 77,700 jobs last year.

"Imagine that employee who has to go home to his wife and kids and say 'I lost my job today,'" she said. "Some of the state's policies are wrong."

The Republican led legislature "beat back" $700 million in tax increases, she said, because it would have been wrong during a recession to take that money from the taxpayers' pockets and put it in government. That would have even made the employment situation worse, she said.

She also criticized Holden for vetoing tort reform and a small business regulatory relief bill that would have created a board for small business people that could appeal extreme government regulations that affected their business.

Reg Swan, an owner of JCS-Tel/Link, said after the meeting that he could tell how stymied the legislature felt after fighting with Holden on many issues.

"I just felt the frustrations that they had, passing multiple things and being rejected by the governor," he said. "You could sense the frustrations. They're up there to do a job."

But Hanaway said many positive things did happen during the session.

She touted MODESA, or the Missouri Downtown Economic Stimulus Act, which allows the state to distribute up to $150 million a year for development projects in downtown areas with a majority of buildings at least 35 years or older.

There was also a bill that set aside a fourth of Missouri's proceeds from the national tobacco settlement that will be used for life science research starting in four years. That bill -- which will fund research and development for ways to improve quality of life, health and nutrition -- was sponsored by State Sen. Peter Kinder and Hanaway.

smoyers@semissourian.com

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