Gov. Tate Reeves, a second-term Republican, gave his 2025 State-of-the-State Address outside the state Capitol on Wednesday, January 29.

A transcript of the speech, which was aired live by Mississippi Public Broadcasting:

Thank you, Lieutenant Governor Hosemann and Speaker White.

To the members of the legislature and to my fellow Mississippians – thank you.

The State of the State is a time-honored tradition delivered by governors for years. It is how we mark the end of one year and the beginning of another. And I’ve got to tell you, the year we just ended is going to be an awfully hard act to follow.

Thanks to your hard work and commitment, the state of our state marks 2024 – on so many
levels – as the most successful in Mississippi history!

Together, we broke record after record and our economy roared. Billions of dollars were invested in our state, and thousands of jobs were created.

Unemployment reached an all-time low, and Mississippi was Top Three in the nation for the fastest growing economy, and Top Four for the fastest growing per-capita income in America, in the most recent data.

This is the success we all promised the people of our state. We said Mississippi had momentum and this is Mississippi’s time – and the results are clear. In fact, this is Mississippi’s time.

We had win after win on behalf of the people who live here, and we did things that some thought would never be possible. I want to thank all of you for your hard work. It would not have been possible without you. Success on this scale is a team effort.

And in 2025, we will soar to even greater heights, we will accomplish even bigger things.
Before we go any further – and believe me I am going to go further into this success – I want to remind everyone watching of why we push so hard.

Our goal is not statistics. Not dollars invested. Not even jobs created. Our goal is families. We want Mississippi to be the best place in America to raise a family, to keep a family together, and to have your kids raise your grandkids. That is why we do it.

We know that our state is the best culture, the best tradition, the best place for families. We know our people want to stay here – and other people would love the community they’d find here.

But to make that possible, Mississippi must be the best state to build and grow a business – the best state.

Tonight, I am filled with hope and optimism for our future. And I am eager to highlight some of our state’s incredible successes.

And of course before I get in trouble, I’d like to begin by thanking a woman who makes my life happier, fuller, and better every single day. Everything I have accomplished in my life has been because I have had her by my side. She has supported me, she has encouraged me, and she has embodied beauty, grace, and service.

Thank you, Elee, for the gift of being your husband. Thank you for making me a dad. Thank you for the incredible example you have set for our daughters and for our state. In a life full of God’s blessings, you have, without question, been God’s greatest gift to me. I am extraordinarily fortunate to have you by my side and Mississippi is extraordinarily fortunate to have you as our First Lady.

2024 was the single greatest year ever for Mississippi’s economy. Billions of private sector
dollars were invested here, thousands of new jobs were created, and unprecedented economic development success benefitted every region of our state.

In fact, since I’ve been governor, Mississippi has announced over $32 billion in new private
sector investment. Let me say that again: over $32 billion in new private sector investment has flowed into Mississippi since 2020!

But this $32 billion is more than just figures mentioned in a speech or numbers on a page. It’s not about talking points. It’s what they will do for our people that makes all the difference.

This $32 billion is a gamechanger for our state and our citizens. These aren’t dollars that will just sit in a bank account collecting interest. Instead, they are being deployed in a way that is in the best interest of Mississippians, and in a way that will make their lives better and our entire state stronger.

This $32 billion is helping to create thousands of good jobs for the people who live here. It’s
helping families fill up their gas tanks and helping put food on their table. It’s helping even more workers seize better job opportunities, and it is helping Mississippi seize the momentous economic development opportunities that have been placed in front of us. My hat goes off to everyone here today for making this a reality.

Y’all know this well, so I’m not telling you something new. Mississippians are the hardest
workers in the nation – they’re the best workers in the nation. If you want something built and built right – and quickly – I say to every company in America: come build your products in Mississippi!

Together, by staying true to our fiscally conservative principles, we’ve sent a message to
America – and to the world – that Mississippi is open for business. We have what it takes to get your products to market, and we will always get the job done. That’s why since 2020, we have created tens of thousands of new jobs and an economy that works better for every Mississippian. The results have been felt all across our state – from North Mississippi all the way to our Gulf Coast and everywhere in between. Make no mistake, something special is happening here and it’s something we should all celebrate.

If we want to attract even more record-breaking private sector investment and create thousands more jobs – we must keep telling our Mississippi story. Our future depends on it.
Just last year, we finalized the single largest private sector investment in Mississippi history after working together on the $10 billion Amazon Web Services project. That’s more than any other private sector investment in Mississippi since we became a state in 1817.

As y’all may have seen in the headlines, the project is building two large data center complexes in the Jackson Metro area and creating 1,000 high-paying, high-tech jobs for Mississippians. And it’s helping make Mississippi a hub for American technological innovation.

In 2024, we also announced the single largest payroll commitment in state history – a $2 billion private sector investment by Accelera by Cummins, Daimler Trucks & Buses, and PACCAR that will create 2,000 jobs with an average annual salary of $66,000. That’s more than $130 million that will be paid out to Mississippians every single year!

We also recently broke ground on the largest private sector investment in the history of the
Mississippi Delta – a $1.2 billion investment by Entergy to build the Delta Blues Advanced
Power Station in Greenville. Once completed, this facility will generate enough energy to power 385,000 Mississippi homes. That’s a lot of power.

In 2024, we announced that PCC GulfChem is investing $540 million in Harrison County.

Koch Foods is investing over $145 million in Scott County.

Liebherr is investing nearly $240 million in Lee County.

Anduril Industries is investing $75 million in Stone County.

And Gulf States Canners is investing nearly $41 million right here in Hinds County. And these are only a few of the incredible wins we had in 2024!

But we should all want more. And just one month into 2025, we did it again.

Just yesterday, I was proud to help break ground on the new Compass Datacenters project – a $10 billion private sector investment for a new hyperscale data center in Meridian, Mississippi. $10 billion! This ties the AWS project for the largest project in the history of our state!

This new campus will also create thousands of direct and indirect jobs. In 2024, $10 billion was the largest investment in state history. In 2025, $10 billion is just our first major win!
And also yesterday, we announced Yancey Engineered Solutions is investing over $20 million and hiring 250 workers in Batesville, Mississippi.

This truly is Mississippi’s time!

During this time of record-shattering economic growth, Mississippi has never been stronger than it is at this moment. And we are so well-positioned for the new golden age of America.
Last week, I had the privilege of attending the inauguration of the 47 th President of the United States, Donald J. Trump. As I said on social media, after he was sworn back into office for his second term, “It’s morning in America again!” After four years of migrant crime, open borders, crushing inflation, sky-high gas and grocery prices, and weakness on the world stage, America once again has a leader who is putting America first and American families first! During his first term, President Trump lowered taxes, lowered gas and grocery prices, made America respected by our allies and feared by our enemies, and built a record-breaking economy. He did it once and he will do it again!

President Trump is unleashing the American energy industry. The phrase “drill baby, drill,”
represents not only his unwavering commitment to producing energy right here in America, but his commitment to protecting the jobs of every man and woman who keeps America’s economy moving. On his first day back in office, President Trump removed us from the disastrous Paris Climate Agreement, revoked Joe Biden’s ban on certain oil and gas drilling, and reversed the Biden ban on new liquefied gas export facilities. On his first day, President Trump was focused on making America energy rich, energy secure, and energy independent.

But while Mississippi may have an ally in the White House, we are in intense competition with our fellow states. We are competing for jobs, competing for new private sector investment, and competing to retain a technologically advanced workforce. It is critical that we continue to invest in our state and create an economic climate that supports businesses and the investment and jobs they bring.
The single best thing we can do for our state and her people is to eliminate our state’s income tax. This money does not belong to the government. It belongs to the hard-working
Mississippians who earn it.

In today’s economy, the competition among states for projects and investments is fierce. You’ve heard me say before that we are competing against states like Texas, Tennessee, and Florida, all of which have no state income tax. Other states have taken notice of what is happening in Mississippi. Moreover, they’ve taken action.

In 2024, Arkansas enacted its fourth tax cut in two years, reducing their top bracket to 3.9
percent (a random number I’m sure). In a recent special session, Louisiana cut their top bracket to 3.5 percent. And in Georgia, in his State of the State address, Governor Kemp recently called for yet another reduction in their state income tax rate. The competition for jobs and investment is real and our fellow states are not waiting – they are competing. It is critical that Mississippi do the same!

On that note, I would like to recognize and thank Speaker Jason White and House Ways and Means Chairman Trey Lamar for their work on House Bill 1. This piece of legislation – which was passed by a large bipartisan majority by the way – shows us a realistic path to eliminate the tax on work in Mississippi once and for all. Thank you to everyone who helped get this bill across the finish line in the House.

As the process goes, now House Bill 1 moves to the Senate, which means there is still work to be done. I urge our friends in the Senate to take action on this historic legislation.
If there’s something in the bill you don’t like, let’s talk about it. But if we truly share the same goal, let’s figure it out together. Here I am reminded of what my friend former Jackson State

Head Coach Prime loves to say: “I ain’t hard to find.”

But please understand, doing nothing is not an option. Let’s get this done. Send House Bill 1 to my desk for the hard-working men and women who sent us here to do big things and make their lives better. Our fellow Mississippians are counting on us, and I know we have what it takes to get this legislation passed. Let’s eliminate our tax on work once and for all!
We always need more dollars flowing through Mississippi. We always need more action in the state of Mississippi. We know how to make that happen. Today, I want to issue a challenge and make a promise that will result in more winning than Mississippi has ever dared to dream. We must be a leader in American energy. We must be at the front of the pack in the race to have more power. In today’s world, power is the key to prosperity. If we can be on the bleeding edge of energy technology, we can beat our peers and bring about more wealth and better lives for all Mississippians.

First, let me recognize Public Service Commissioners Chris Brown, De’Keither Stamps, and
Wayne Carr and the work they have been doing in this regard. I appreciate their friendship, their focus, and their partnership in this endeavor.

I know they will be excited as our state embarks upon a transformative effort that I’m calling Mississippi’s Power Play. We are marshalling the forces of our government and our private sector to find bold solutions to bring more energy to our state’s grid and our economy. Right now, the top minds of our administration are huddled – developing plans to invest in affordable, abundant, American energy for the people of this state. We welcome all ideas and inputs on one condition: have a bias towards boldness. Help us dream bigger, and aim higher. Help us lean in at this unique and opportune moment, and we will achieve great things together. This is the key to our future, and we know that we must get this right.
One of the reasons that Mississippi has attracted such a historic run of private sector investment is our optimistic and abundance-minded energy policy. I’m telling you: when private sector companies learn they can trust that we can provide the power to manufacture, smelt, and compute, their eyes light up and their wallets open up. They invest in our state, and our people, and our land.

But as we succeed, demand grows. And as demand grows, we must aim higher. What we are
doing today is not enough. We must invest in energy to enrich our population. When we make power here, we create high-paying, stable jobs. This is how Mississippi rises.
It will take all forms of energy and every corner of our economy. Electricity derived from
nuclear power, our sun, our winds, and that beautiful, life-giving technology: natural gas. We need transformative solutions, and a sprint to escalate what we already know works. We don’t need ideology and climate-cult death-wish politics. We need abundant, affordable energy that feeds ambition and wealth for our citizens.

You already heard me mention a billion-dollar investment in a brand new Delta power plant. In the future, you will hear me announce more investment in energy from the private sector. And in the coming months, you will hear innovative solutions to unlock more energy here.

Watch this space. Today, I simply want to beg for your mind and ambition to engage in this
mission alongside us. Help us win more innovation, investment, and power, and our people will be rewarded more than ever before. This work takes time and patience. It is not immediate gratification. I will not be governor when the true fruits of this effort are picked. But I will be a Mississippian, and I will be proud to look around and see the success of the state we all love. My friends, you’ve just heard me talk about the best things we can do to strengthen Mississippi and uplift her people. But I also wanted to spend a few minutes talking about what we shouldn’t do, because that’s also vitally important to the future of our state.

First, we must continue our focus on expanding our workforce, not on expanding welfare. We need more people working, and less people dependent on government programs. Therefore, we must again resist the urge to use taxpayer dollars to expand government, because the radical left isn’t giving up. Instead, they are working overtime to influence some of our lawmakers.

My friends, America is over $36 trillion in debt. We now have an administration in Washington that is dead set on reducing spending and getting us closer to a balanced budget. Medicaid changes, for example, are coming. What they will be, we do not yet know. But there is a large possibility that those changes will result in a greater spend by states who have enacted this type of welfare expansion.

With all of the good things happening in Mississippi – especially when it comes to workforce development, and economic development, and job creation – now is not the time to expand welfare in our state. It’s actually the worst possible time to do it.
After all, why would we change course and sprint left when so many good things are happening here as a result of our conservative policies?

Another way we will get our state to where we want to go is by giving parents more choices and by continuing to raise standards. We cannot keep doing the same old thing and expect to get new and improved results.

Mississippi has produced some of the greatest authors to ever walk this earth. Entire courses have been taught on the volumes and volumes of books and passages they’ve written.

But while our state’s authors have perhaps the best vocabulary in the history of man, there are three words that should be permanently struck from Mississippi’s dictionary. They are
“complacency” and “status quo.”

In 2025, we will keep our momentum going. We will see Mississippi’s economy grow even
more. We will see even more high-paying jobs created. We will see even more Mississippians with the skills they need to be successful in the jobs of the next 50 years. And we will see our state rise to even greater heights. But only if we commit to leaving our comfort zone. This is especially true in education.

During my time as governor, we have seen record-breaking academic success in our state. It has been so profound that the New York Times, of all papers, referred to it as the Mississippi Miracle.

We have seen record achievement from our kids in a variety of subjects. We have seen record high graduation rates and record low dropout rates. Our kids are learning more than ever before, and our kids are graduating into one of the strongest economies in state history.

Today, we actually received even more proof that what we have done is working.
Mississippi’s brand-new data from one of the top testing institutions – the National Assessment for Educational Progress – shows that we broke educational achievement records again.

Listen to this: Our fourth graders are Number One in the nation. Let me say that again: Number One in the nation in reading and math test score growth. My friends, it’s just not stopping!

Mississippi kids achieved their highest rate of proficient and advanced scores on these testing measurements – ever.

Our African American students – you’ve heard me talk so many times about how proud we are of them being Number Five in the nation on their testing scores. Well, now they’re third. And we won’t stop until they – and all of our students – are Number One!

Our Hispanic students scored Number One in the nation in reading, and Number Two in math. Our eighth graders ranked among only 13 states whose scores didn’t fall this past year.

I’m going to let these numbers sink in for a minute. Best in the nation. Number Two in the
nation. Number Three in the nation. In fact, Mississippi’s fourth graders now rank Number Nine overall in America for reading scores, and they are Number 16 for math.
For so long, our teachers and our kids have been told they are last. 50 th . At the bottom. Y’all, it’s just not true. Mississippi is charging to the front of the pack with our education system and daring other states to keep up!

We took bold action, together, united under conservative policies, and we changed the course of Mississippi’s future, and the individual futures of our students. This is what it’s all about.

I could not be more proud of the teachers and kids across our state who have worked so hard and shone the world exactly who we are down in here in Mississippi.
But, my friends, we must continue raising education standards in our state. We’ve come too far to take our foot off the gas now.

I’ll be the first to admit raising standards will not be easy – it never is. In fact, it will most likely require a lot of uncomfortable conversations. It will force us to leave our comfort zone. But leaving our comfort zone is what must be done to leave our state with the best and brightest future possible. I’m ready to do that. Are y’all with me?

There are some inside the education establishment that, despite this amazing trajectory we find ourselves on, would have us do the complete opposite. Rather than raise standards, they would have us water them down and they would force us to pass kids who are not yet ready.

Some have even called for the elimination of testing requirements. Requirements that help us gauge whether kids are proficient in algebra, biology, English, and US history.
There’s no other way to say it, folks. Those proposals are downright crazy. They should be a
nonstarter for every legislator here today, and we should not take them seriously.

The same people calling for us to be derelict in our duty now, are the same people who implied in 2013 that passing the third grade reading gate would be disastrous for students across our state. These are the same people who eventually changed their tune years later after they saw the history-making results. Hey, better late than never, I guess.

But in 2025, we should do more. That’s because history has already proven that raising
education standards benefits students – and our state – tremendously.
That’s why in my most recent budget recommendation I proposed overhauling how we grade schools in Mississippi.

It is wrong that schools can be awarded with an ‘A’ or ‘B’ rating when more than 70 percent of their students aren’t proficient in reading. Let me say that again: there are schools in Mississippi who are hanging their hat on their rating when 70 percent of their students can’t read at an adequate level. That’s just flat out wrong. And we must put a stop to it.
To truly best prepare our students for adulthood, we must hold school districts accountable. And that’s why I proposed revising the accountability system to place a greater weight on proficiency and less weight on growth in academic achievements.

We got the nation talking about the Mississippi Miracle before, we’re doubling down right now, and we’ll have them talking about us again and again if we can get this done in our state. Our future is too important to accept anything less, and I look forward to working with all of you to make it happen. I’m in this for the long haul.

And while we’re at it, we should insist that our higher education institutions train Mississippians to earn. Far too many students are stuck in tracts that will not lead to fruitful careers. That may be fine for a few who want to go down academic rabbit holes, but the focus of our investment and our efforts should be preparing our kids to live well. We must focus on degrees that lead to lives of prosperity and stability.

I’ve engaged in a lot of conversations with CEOs considering investing billions in our people. I’ve never heard them ask if we have a workforce of gender-studies students prepared to take their high-paying jobs. They are ready to pay Mississippi mechanics, engineers, and technologists. They are ready to take those trained in business and science and fill their family’s bank accounts. We need a return on investment for the hundreds of millions of dollars we put into our colleges and universities, and that return should appear in the wages of our workers. I urge my friends in policymaking to consider innovative approaches to achieve this. My fellow Mississippians, our state is stronger than ever.

That’s because in the midst of all the special things happening here, we remain Mississippians. We are bold, creative, accomplished, and fearless. These qualities created the greatest year in Mississippi’s history in 2024. And because we are Mississippians, in 2025, we will do it again.

For all Mississippi.

May God bless you and may God bless Mississippi!

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

A bill to make a second offense of domestic assault a felony died in committee after Republican senators debated the proper way to prevent domestic violence and deal with it in the criminal justice system.

Under current state law, domestic assault becomes a felony on a third conviction, said Sen. Angela Hill, R-Picayune. Her legislation would have elevated a second offense from a misdemeanor to a felony, a change she said would deter people from continuing to offend.

“I think these folks know that it’s a misdemeanor, they know they’re going to go to municipal court and they know they can continue on until they get a third time in that municipal court,” Hill said.

READ MORE: ‘I had faith that the system was going to protect her’: Law enforcement, advocates say abusers are under-charged in domestic violence situations

Mississippi law states a person is guilty of simple domestic violence if he or she attempts to harm a spouse, romantic partner or certain family members, negligently hurts another with a deadly weapon or means likely to produce serious harm, or attempts to put another in fear of imminent serious harm. Aggravated domestic violence entails a person attempting to cause serious bodily injury to another person.

Simple assault can also include nonviolent actions, such as threatening someone.

The bill prompted concern from some other senators, who said the proposal would charge more people with felonies without addressing the root causes of domestic violence.

“Until we actually get to the point of addressing what creates domestic violence, this is not doing anything,” said Sen. Brice Wiggins R-Pascagoula.

Mississippi has the nation’s highest rate of domestic violence deaths caused by guns, Wiggins said. He said lawmakers needed to tailor solutions around scientific insights that shed light on domestic violence, such as findings that show strangulation is a red flag for a pattern of violence.

Law enforcement and advocates for domestic violence victims have said is a reluctance to charge and prosecute aggravated domestic violence — particularly in the case of strangulation — because it is difficult for prosecutors to get a conviction in court.

“We need to have a serious discussion about domestic violence in this state and also moving into the 21st century about how we address domestic violence,” Wiggins added. “It is killing our law enforcement officers, it is killing our people and our solution is, let’s elevate to a felony.”

Sen. Daniel Sparks, R-Belmont, said the misdemeanor status for second offenses was important to preserve so people don’t face harsh penalties for nonviolent crimes.

“While I don’t need to be yelling or swearing at my family members, I don’t also need to have a felony for yelling or swearing,” Sparks said. “I’m just very, very concerned that we’re going to felonize a lot of the cases that I see in the misdemeanor courts that do not rise to the level of a felony.”

Sparks ultimately voted to advance the proposal, but Democrats and other Republicans joined to kill the bill.

Then the committee approved a bill that would reduce the crime of selling fireworks out of season from a felony to a misdemeanor. Hill wasn’t pleased.

“I think as the only woman on this committee, I think I look out here and see the women’s faces that are just in dismay that this committee killed a bill that would have elevated domestic violence second offense to a felony and we’re talking about fireworks, I don’t think that speaks too well of us today,” Hill said.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Another push to shutter Mississippi’s oldest and infamous prison died in a Senate committee Wednesday.

Senate Bill 2047 by Sen. Juan Barnett proposed a four-year phase down of operations at the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman. More than half of its committee members voted to table the bill, meaning it cannot be brought up for reconsideration. 

“How long are we going to sit by and do nothing?” said Barnett, a Democrat from Heidelberg, who chairs the Corrections Committee, before the vote. 

He estimated that the cost to close Parchman would be about $110 million – cheaper compared to the $120 million to $130 million the state spends years on the facility. 

Parchman has had years of defunding and neglect that have led to deteriorated infrastructure and violence that boiled over in 2020. In response, the Department of Justice opened a civil rights investigation and found in a 2022 report that the prison’s conditions violate the Constitution. 

Barnett said it’s not fair to keep asking taxpayers to pay for an old building that may be beyond repair, and he said inmates and staff would have to continue to be in that environment. The prison, which opened in 1901, has 2,542 beds and houses the state’s 34 death row inmates.

He also said Missisisppi shouldn’t have to be forced into a position like Alabama, which is building a $1 billion facility in response to a Justice Department lawsuit about unconstitutional conditions including violence and sexual assault. 

SB 2047 directed Parchman to close by transferring inmates, employees and programs to other state prisons and regional facilities, including by contracting with Tallahatchie County Correctional Facility, which is run by CoreCivic. 

Last year, some members of the Senate Corrections Committee expressed hesitation about contracting with CoreCovic because a contract or memorandum of understanding was not yet in writing. 

That concern came up again Wednesday as members asked for figures about cost and specifics about the number of inmates and staff who would be moved. 

Sen. Sarita Simmons, a Democrat from Cleveand whose district includes Parchman and part of Tutwiler, asked Barnett how the committee could be asked to vote on the bill when not everyone has been to Parchman to see the conditions. 

Barnett said he would schedule a visit for any member, they just needed to ask. After the question, at least half of the committee members indicated they had visited the prison. 

Corrections Vice Chair Lydia Chassaniol, R-Winona, said numbers would have helped her to support the bill. She requested a reverse repealer to help move the bill along, which members approved. 

Simmons made the motion to table the bill, which was the last vote of the committee meeting. 

Last year, the bill passed through the Corrections Committee and made it to the Appropriations Committee, where it died because it was not brought up for a vote. This year’s bill was also referred to both committees.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.