During his State of the Commonwealth address Wednesday evening, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said the state of the commonwealth is “strong, and it’s growing stronger.”
“Every day, we’re welcoming more businesses, more families, and more visitors to our new Kentucky home,” Beshear said. “We’re making progress like we’ve never seen before, and the rest of the country is noticing. Right now, all eyes are on Kentucky.”
The governor touted successes in economic development, including over $35 billion in private investment and 59,800 new jobs over the last five years, along with new records for exports and tourism.
Beshear said it is time to reintroduce Kentucky to the world, calling back to the “New Kentucky Home” Initiative introduced in November as he highlighted that Kentucky is 11 percent below the national average for cost of living, ranks third for utility affordability, and ranks in the top ten for affordable child care.
“Our new Kentucky home is a place where we’re focused on our people,” Beshear said. “At a time when things cost too much, we’ve lowered the income tax and we’ve lowered property taxes for four years in a row. We froze the gas tax when times were tough and we’ve capped the price of insulin.”
The governor highlighted business projects such as the opening of Whiskey House and the ECTC BlueOval SK training facility in Hardin County, infrastructure projects including new bridges and drinking water developments, and the certification of more Recovery Ready Communities.
Beshear closed by encouraging Kentuckians to “push out all the toxic noise we hear on TV and social media” and come together.
“So to everyone out there tonight, remember: life’s short, so do good things and be kind to each other,” Beshear said. “Show each other compassion, love, generosity, even patience.”
Beshear’s complete address is available on the governor’s website and YouTube channel.
