We also know what children need in those other 18 hours. Every morning, they need to start the day with nutritious food in their bellies. They needed was to get to school safely. They need a coat to protect them from the elements as i get to and from school. And at night they need a warm, safe, stable place to sleep with a roof over their heads. [applause] the budget we agree on should nurture all our students in and out of the classroom. We know how hard it is to educate a homeless, hungry, sick child. Our families and our communities also need the Vital Services that allow them to function nurses, Mental Health is hillarys, Police Officers and fighters. The full range of services that help make washington a great place to live and a great place to raise a family. We have been cutting these services to balance our budget and its no longer working. Over the past six years, we cut existing and projected spending in our state budget by 12 billion. Make no mistake, we have found savings and efficiencies as well. Among other examples, we are saving an average of 19 6 million annually on leasing costs. The department of health and social Services Save in 2013. And we are saving 2 million in longdistance charges through a new service. And we need to continue this work. But we have reached the place where multiple courts have said we cut too much or neglected to fund adequately and have now ordered us to do a better job on foster care, Mental Health, and protecting vulnerable children. I know some people say they havent noticed these cuts. But i will tell you this. The fellow handcuffed to a gurney in an emergency room due to lack of beds in a Mental Health ward, he notices. They woman who was a victim of Domestic Violence and could not get emergency housing, she notices. They College Students whose tuition went up 50 , they sure noticed. What can seem invisible to some of us is painfully real to others. [applause] for the prosperous future we all want, we cannot leave so many people behind. Some see the road ahead paved only with cuts to services. Some consider only revenue as options. Both camps will ultimately realize that neither view is the definitive answer. We are going to approach our joint work with a bold spirit of seeking Solutions Rather than finding excuses. And with a cando attitude of kicking aside our differences instead of kicking the can down the road. The same is strewn with transportation. Without action in transportation this session, there will be a 52 cut in the maintenance budget for our state. 71 bridges will become structurally did structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. Robbing us of time with our families. Without action, our ability to move goods efficiently will be diminished. The tragic and cried a straw frick and catastrophic event in homers county last year reminds us that communities are caught off from the rest of the state when we lose infrastructure. But now imagine a Transportation System that moves the entire state, one that improves reliability and safe, addresses congestion and maintenance creates jobs, and offers more choices. As you know, i have an i have been working for a balance multimodal chess notation package since my first day in office. In december, i proposed a plan that builds on the bipartisan spirit of past efforts by offering a goodfaith compromise to spark action this session. It keeps us safe bike fixing our bridges, patching our roads and cleaning our air and water. It also embraces efficiency, saves time and money to drive the results that the public can trust in real reform. Finally, it is a plan that delivers a Transportation System that truly works as a system, a system that transcends our old divide and rivalries. No more east versus west, no more urban versus rural and i really do welcome your suggestions for improvement. But the state cannot accept a continued failure to move on transportation. Lets get this done. [applause] there is another thing my Transportation Plan does here in it does. It institutes a carbon emission charge that has our largest polluters a rather than leaving the gas tax on everyone. In my plan, it is the polluters who pay. We face many challenges. But it is the growing threat of Carbon Pollution that can permanently change the nature of washington as we know it. It is already increasing the acidity of our states water. It is increasing wildfires increasing asthma rates in our children, particularly in low income communities and communities of color. We have a moral obligation to act. Our moral duty is to protect a birthright. Future washingtonians deserve a healthy washington. [applause] this is not unique to our generation. Every generation has this duty to pass on healthy air and water to the next. And when we do, we will know that we are 7 million washingtonians strong who stand for preserving the grander the grandeur that is our state. If we dont stand up for the health of our state, who will . The people who are less than 1 of the world today are leading the world in aerospace, leading the world in software, and now we can lead the world in clean energy because thats who we are in the state of washington. [applause] i believe this because what we lack in numbers way more than make up for in our innovative spirit. And we are not acting alone. By next year, countries and states that are responsible for the worlds best for half the worlds Carbon Pollution will have instituted these omissions. We can do something even bigger. By locking arms with oregon and california and british columbia, through the Pacific Coast collaborative, we begun we become 53 Million People comprising the worlds fifthlargest economy. Wouldnt it be great when the west coast leads while washington, d. C. , is stymied by gridlock . Im pleased that there is a growing can that it is time to act. We must meet the Carbon Pollution limits that were enacted by this body in 2008. I propose a competence of solution, the caps carbon emissions, creates incentives for Clean Technology and transportation. Invest in energy efficiency. For all we do, together in the next few months, for all their fiscal woes, for all her shortterm demands, we know that our most enduring legacy we can leave is a healthy, clean, beautiful, evergreen state. I will not and in the deepest part of my heart i hope you will not allow this threat to stand your we also know the challenge of Carbon Pollution brings great Economic Opportunities to our state. Unit energy is leading the way in the field of Storage Technology for renewable energy. And mcdonald miller, which is not only reducing the carbon foot and of commercial building, but last year they added 300 jobs in our state. We are leaders in this state. When we act, others follow. Lets shape that action together. Lets test our ideas. Lets fashion a washington Carbon Pollution action plan similar to the genius and leadership capabilities of our eight state. [applause] we can do this. It has already been done successfully in other places including 10 american states and 35 countries. I cant tell you today what our joint efforts will produce, but i can say, after six years of no progress on this front washingtonians deserve action on Carbon Pollution and in developing my budget, i took the same approach of looking to tested solutions for revenue proposals. Here is the sad truth. Washington state has the nations most unfair tax system, the nations most unfair tax system. Our lowest paid workers pay nearly 17 of their income in taxes while the top 1 pay less than 3 . A new teacher page three times more in taxes as a percentage than our wealthiest citizens. We know that there are many forces driving inequality. But we can make policy choices that move us toward an economy that works for all washingtonians. We can work to award a toward a fair tax system and we should. [applause] thats why i am proposing to eliminate by tax loopholes. Thats why we are asking the wealthiest washingtonians to do a little more. I am proposing the new Capital Gains tax sales of bonds, stocks and other assets. It is estimated that less than 1 of the states taxpayers will be affected. As i mentioned this idea isnt new to us in our state. But certainly not a new cost to new concept nationally. We one states have the system already. It works. And heres Something Else we can do to bring a modicum of fairness to our tax system. A system that relies so heavily on sales tax revenue and fx are working families so disproportionally. I am proposing we fund the working families tax rebate, which was passed by the legislature in 2008 but never funded. [applause] this could help more than 500,000 working families in washington, mostly in rural and economically struggling counties i have always believed that, if you work fulltime, you should be able to provide your families most basic needs and that is why i will continue to work with legislators to work with families. [applause] so we begin the 64th legislative session at a clear crossroads. The time of recession and hollowing out is behind us. It is now i have a deep and abiding belief in our ability to lead the world and to build on our first 125 years. That is why we should choose the upper path. That leads to more opportunity. Greater prosperity. And a better quality of life for everyone. Lets walk this path together. In than washingtonians. There is no better place to invest than washington. There is no better time to invest than 2015. [applause] lets get to work. [applause] thank you. Thank you. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. Visit ncicap. Org] [captions Copyright National cable satellite corp. 2015] now the state of the state address from the republican governor of wyoming. He spoke about the impact that air quality regulations were having on wyomings coal industry, which leads the nation in coal production. The governor is currently in his second term in office after winning reelection in november. This is about an hour. [applause] thank you, good morning, good morning, thank you very much thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Please have a seat. Thank you very much. Very nice. Thank you. Thank you. Good morning. Thank you for the warm welcome. I dont know that it will get any better than that. Thank you very much. Very kind. Mr. President , mr. Speakers, members of the 63rd wyoming legislature, secretary murray, treasurer gordon superintendent balo, chief justice burke, all members of the judiciary, all military and veterans, fellow citizens, good morning. Thank you all for being here. And thank you for those who are participating via the internet or other media. We welcome all of you. And were pleased the technology has many benefits, including the freedom to be wherever you want to be in wyoming or anywhere else to take place in these proceedings. I want to say good morning to my family. For those of you that have been here for four years, youve seen some growth in the kids. [laughter] i mentioned at the inauguration that one place on the governors residence wall, which will make sure we get painted before we leave, weve marked the height of our children over the years and its remarkable. We think they have grown not only in height but in many other ways. Theyve grown up in this body youve seen them all grow up but its caused us to reflect upon many of the reasons were here, for our kids and our grandkids. And i cant imagine being here without the love and the support of carol and mary and pete. I thank all of you for helping me get here and helping me do this job. [applause] i think it was my first state of the state, before i gave it, pete wrote me a note and his hand writing, you have to decipher a little bit back then, but he said, good luck, dad, youll do great. He signed it not pete but best son ever. [laughter] im lucky to have the confidence of my family and the a confident family. These are exciting times. We have new faces in the legislature, in leadership and in our statewide offices and i look forward to working with all of you. As ive told this body in the past, we are so fortunate in wyoming to have a citizen legislature. Every one of you here have made sacrifice to be here. You leave your homes, your family, your work and before we start this session, i just want to say to the president , to the speaker, to all of you how much i appreciate and how much it means to the entire state to have your service and i thank you for that. Im excited about the state and where we are. As ive done in the past, i have asked the citizens of wyoming to be here with me today so i can recognize them. Because we recognize that as the state is strong, its because individual citizens do so much and have committed so much to our state. First i want to start with max maxfield. Max served two terms a state auditor, followed by two terms as secretary of state. Last year as you know he decided to retire from state service. Max served wyoming with energy optimism, intelligence, honesty and civility. Max and gala, we are sad to say farewell, but we wish you all the best. You both have served wyoming making it a better place for us all. You are friends, you are dear friends, and i ask all of us to join me in recognizing max and gala and their service. Max, will you please stand up . [applause] we are fortunate to have with us, as weve had in years past members and representatives of wyoming tribes and i got to the meet with them before i came up here today. They were gracious in letting me know that they had time on their hands and they offered to write my speech for me, which i thought was a wonderful thing. That message wasnt passed on otherwise i would have taken them up on that. There are no questions. We have challenging issues to deal with. Which is sometimes the case with sovereigns. But no matter what, we do remain friends and neighbors, with a common interest. That being a great affection for this beautiful place, wyoming, we all call home. If the tribal members would please stand, we are always enjoy the opportunity to welcome you. Thank you for being here. [cheers and applause] one of the great privileges ive had in my role as governor is to get to work with the men and women of our guard. And i do wish on occasion that i could articulate what my eyes have seen, the work the men and women of the guard do. Its absolutely amazing. And when i see them off, as theyre being deployed overseas know this, that these men and women, often its very early in the morning, they are hugging their spouse goodbye. The grandparents are hugging them goodbye. And sometimes youll see a young mother or a young dad kissing a young infant goodbye. Its a remarkable thing. Because each one of them stands, raises their hand and agrees with everything it takes including their life, to serve and defend this country. We have about 2,800 members in the guard. The men and women of the guard are ready for duty here at home and when duty calls them to a distant land. The guard fights fires and much more, including fighting the war on terror. Wyoming soldiers have been busy. Theyve been in the thick of it deployed overseas. Serving bravely. Missing home and family as we miss them and anticipate the return. Service and sacrifice. Service and sacrifice. Whether for a single tour or over the course of a long military career, are no small things to give. They are huge. And we are deeply grateful. General luke ryan earth, s here ryanert is here. We appreciate what our guard what all our military members, what our vets have given for wyoming and for america. General, we want you to stand so we may recognize you and the guard. [applause] today, this morning, i think its appropriate we remember john schiffer. John served as a wyoming senator for over 20 years, from 1993 until his death last june. In his Long Public Service career, john served in numerous leadership positions including senate president. He was an advocate for the Natural Resource and wildlife trust, and among other things was a supporter of education and Mental Health programs. He brought great intellectual and a ranchers common sense to the legislature and he had those big, big strong hands that were representative of his big heart and care for wyoming. He made a positive difference for each of us. He made a positive difference for all of wyoming. And i ask you now to join me for a moment of silence in johns memory. Im thinking today also of to all those in the cold and the dark who battle the blaze had on december 30, we thank you. The fire was a tragedy. We are thankful there were no deaths or injuries. The town will rebuild, as unique and wonderful as ever. I have no doubt. To the people of dubois, please know you also are in our thoughts and prayers. Now, ive broken my speech into two parts. Two big parts. I want to first talk about the last four years and then talk about where we should go from here. The last four years we did what we said we were going to do and weve gotten results. Thats the way government should operate. We build upon the success of prior governors and prior legislatures and together we have made Great Strides for wyoming. When i took office in january, 2011, wyomings unemployment rass was about 6. 5 rate was about 6. 5 . The state budget had doubled the previous decade and the state was coming off a period of government expansion. High Speed Broadband was limited, only two cities had ethernet at their schools. There was no state Energy Strategy, there was no water strategy, and in my mind there was a growing, growing need to push back against federal overreach. To set a course, to set a new course there was no time to waste. Nine days into office, my first state of the state address, i announced my vision for wyoming. I said, we would be focusing this on the economy, focusing on broadband, infrastructure, assisting local government consolidating State Government education and federal actions that were adverse to our state. As part of our focus on the economy, we would continue to support our big three industries, energy, tourism and ag. And that we would also seek to diversify our economic base. This was a tall order. But this is wyoming and we do not shy away from big tasks. So we took this on, all of it, and four years later we see the difference. Starting with the economy, we made a real push for jobs. Economic growth, diversification and supporting our big three. Here are some of the highlights. Weve been able to welcome new enterprises. For example, end car, microsoft, searing industries, mag pool high viz and oil to rail facilities. Weve been developing and beginning to implement our state Energy Strategy. In the last session you provided funding to continue with initiatives in Energy Strategy. I have and some of you have gone to trade missions to places such as hong kong, canada, south korea and taiwan, to promote trade and tourism. Week of been funding predator control and helping provide relief for drought and flooding. Week of provided strategic incentives and recruiting hard for data centers. Our efforts are paying off. Microsoft recently opened an innovative biogaspowered data center. The company has also invested 274 million in data center expansion. Bringing its investment in wyoming to nearly half a billion dollars. In december, wyoming was recognized as a leader in the country for data center recruiting. This is the third year in a row wyoming has received that recognition. Weve built our tourism and established markets and established new ones as well. We love telling people about all the wyoming has to offer and we love to show it to them. Two years ago we added a new sporting event in wyoming. The cowboy tough adventure race, to annual summer activities. And for those of you that havent seen that, its got to be the toughest race in the world as far as im concerned. It is truly cowboy tough. On july 10, 2015, wyoming will mark the 125th anniversary of statehood. This will be another special occasion for all of us to enjoy and to invite visitors from near and far. Our focus on the economy has paid off. We see the success and we see National Recognition of our success. Wyomings received a number of accolades recently, including the highest possible rating from Standard Poors for the last four years. We have the number one ranking for 2015 as the state with the best tax climate for businesses. We have been ranked as having the best return on investment for taxpayers in 2014. We have the lowest state, lowest tax local tax burden. We have the lowest foreclosure race in the rate in the nation. Ranked now as the second most probusiness state in the country. We are third best in economic performance. And in 2014 more wyoming people were employed than ever before in the history of our state. These rankings are important not for boasting rights but they show the progress that we have made in four years. The economy was a priority four years ago and weve made Great Strides. Broadband was a priority and weve made Great Strides. This brings opportunities, broadband brings opportunities for schools, businesses and individuals and for development of a tech center. I mentioned that when i started only two School Districts had ethernet speed. Now everyone, every school district, all 48, have ethernet speed. Weve increased high speed connections to our schools by over 1,900 . Weve held to move broadband forward in 2012, 2013 and 2014 and well continue to do so. Last year i asked for funding for the unified network. This network, im pleased to report as of today, is fully built. We got it done in less than a year. This Network Brings even higher standard of broadband to our state, more fiber optic connections and giga by the speeds. The state has been a facilitator, helping on providing the infrastructure upgrades for our schools and government and it will also be available to the private sector. We all, you, prepared the ground, but the private sector is now delivering the goods. Ron mccue is president of silver star communications. Last november silver star launched an initiative to offer gigabit level broad band to communities in western wyoming. Efforts like this make wyoming more competitive for tech businesses, for people who want to run global businesses from a home base in wyoming. For everyone who uses a computer. Gigabit level broadband gives wyoming the type of access usually associated with large cities. Such access makes wyoming a leader in broadband and a player in tech. Weve not been called these things in the past, but we are now. We should be proud of this effort, to diversify our economy. Ron, we recognize what Business Leaders like you are doing to make wyoming a leader in broadband and a player in tech. Ron, please stand so we can recognize your efforts. [applause] so ive talked about the economy and ive talked about broadband. Another priority four years ago was infrastructure. We know that for our communities to thrive, for quality of life for Economic Growth and for commerce generally infrastructure is essential. Weve been paying attention to wyomings infrastructure. Not counting School Construction, here are a few examples. We provided funding for the Gillett MadisonWater Project and recognized future funding needed for completion. We passed a 10cent per gallon gas tax increase, that produces 47 million for the state for road maintenance. We funded a new u. W. College of engineering, 95 million and 15 million match for construction. Weve provided initial funding for five state facilities that need renovation, including the state hospital, the life resource center, the Veterans Home. You set aside 35. 7 million to start and 20 million more from the for fiscal year 2015. We have provided funding for municipal landfills, weve supported the Business Council loan and Grant Programs for community development. We have and should continue to invest and we should continue to save. And the fact is, we have seen record savings and we can be proud of that. But we have opportunities again, not down the road, but this session to invest in more infrastructure. We do this because we know that at wyoming, the wyoming we enjoy today, was built by those with vision and with courage. Our forbearers did not view the role of government as a bank. They were not hoarders, but builders. As we judge their work, we will also be judged with what we build for future generations. What opportunities have we provided for our children and our grandchildren . Have we made wyoming a better place . Another priority four years ago and still is eye civility is assisting local government. Work gets done and lives are lived in our cities and towns and our counties. We know how great it is to live here and we want our communities to keep doing better. For residents to attract more businesses and visitors. We have additional funding we have provided additional funding to local government each of these last four years. And during my time in office more than once i have suggested that longer Term Solutions for funding local government. That included looking at a portion of the statutory 1 diversion. Added funding always matters. But when it comes a year at a time in differing amounts or perhaps not at all, this tends to hamper local planning and development efforts. Theres no question we have done well by local governments these past four years. But we still need to decide on longer term funding for local government. That they can count on. And this is the time, now is the time, to work towards a solution. One of the other areas that we have stressed these last four years is consolidating government. And we have done so. For example, we have addressed backlogs and delays. We got all state employees on the same email system. Weve merged two agencies. We have developed a meaningful employee evaluation system. We have consolidated i. T. Services. Weve reduced the standard budget by over 6 , reducing ongoing spending by over 60 million a year. Weve begun a rules initiative for state agencies and have significantly reduced rules. Some have reduced by almost 50 . And we have amended state law to allow further reductions to provide updated database, which will give everyone better access to rules. We have fewer employees now than we did four years ago. State government has become more effective, more efficient, we are doing more with less. Also a priority four years anked now is education ago and now sedcation. As a state we make sizable investment in education through blog grants and School Construction funding. In turn, such an investment should yield the best education possible for our kids. We started work on Education Accountability in 2011 and it continues. I note this session youll consider a bill to improve the state assessment system. We have over the last four years increased awards under the hathaway scholarship program. We broke ground for the stem facility at u. W. We provided funding for u. W. Science programs and facilities and more is in my budget this year. I ask for your support on that proposal. We have joined complete college america, c. C. A. We know the demands for our students to have a Postsecondary Education is rising. C. C. A. Is another tool to help wyoming students get the education including importantly career Technical Education they need to succeed. We now have stem summits in wyoming and last april i attended the rollout of a Stem Initiative for sublet County School district one. The fact is Stem Education is important at every level. And i look forward to more events like this. All this work on education is lost without great teachers. Teachers like tyler bartlett. Tyler is the 2015 wyoming teacher of the year. Hes a math teacher at new castle middle school. Hes in his sixth year of teaching and loves his job. When he received his award he said, theres a lot going that goes into being a successful teacher. Sometimes we focus too much on teaching and not enough on learning. I think the real bottom line is that students have to be learning. Wise words and tyler puts them to work in his classroom getting students engaged in their own learning. Tyler teaches a stem subject and is representative of the excellent teachers we have in wyoming. Tyler, please stand so we may recognize you. [applause] congratulations, tyler. We will keep working on education at every level. Early childhood education, k12, our Community Colleges and u. W. , to get things right. For the future of our state, we have to get education right. Another priority four years ago and now is federal actions that adversely affect our state. I will say, wyoming has been very aggressive these past four years in opposinging federal actions that affect our state. Sometimes we fail. The fact is, sometimes we dont. But we know we cannot look the other way, because impacts are too great. We must continue together to stand against federal overreach. One of my first acts in office in fact was to ask the wyoming attorney general to join the constitutional challenge to the a. C. A. This is an important lawsuit and wyoming had to be part of it. Many of us, including myself did not like the result that wyoming didnt need to be involved. Weve also been very active in filing or joining actions to support grazing rights. We in wyoming know how valuable ag is not just to our state but in fact this country. It is one thing as a country to not be able to fuel yourselves its another thing entirely to not be able to feed yourselves. We have to continue to have strong support for ag. In december we filed a case in wyoming Federal District court to require b. L. M. To better manage wild horses. We continue to fight for wyomings regional haze plan and its a good plan for addressing visibility. Last fall the 10th circuit upheld the states plan regarding sulfur docks and recently we filed our brief in the 10th circuit in support of the states plan as it relates to nitrogen oxides. We have, as many of you know most frequently done battle with the e. P. A. The reason is simply, the e. P. A. Rulemaking under president Obamas Administration has been troubling at best. Wyoming is opposing power plant rules. The proposed rules for water of the u. S. , as well as many other e. P. A. Actions. And we will to do so. Wyomings fight against federal Regulatory Overreach will not stop. Along with the attorney general, along with the support of this body, we must all continue fighting for wyoming. Looking back at the past four years, there are some other matter ill mention. Weve reduced the d. D. Waiting list. Weve undertaken job initiatives, including those for those with disabilities. We will continue our work in this area with the employmentfirst concept. At my direction, the d. F. S. Has apoinltsed a statewide homeless coordinator and will create a 10year plan to address homelessness. Weve renewed our focus on Suicide Prevention with a statewide initiative. Regarding worker safety, i support and i appreciate the safety alliances formed by the oil, gas, transportation refinery and construction industries. The state level, weve added new osha safety positions. Weve created a 50000,000 fund to provide matching grants to companies for training. We created a program to reduce Workers Compensation premiums for those willing to participate in health and safety consultations. In addition, Work Force Services has developed annual reporting for better analysis of on the job accidents. In 2013, we had a better year. We saw improved statistics fewer fatalities and hospitalizations. This was encouraging. We havent got the numbers on 2014 but we have reason to believe at this point that 2013 is going to be a better year than 2014. We need to continue to look on how we do better as a state. To emphasize Workplace Safety and improve job safety. I know as you all do that employers care. We all do, about getting workers home safely at the end of the work day. We have been headed in the right direction. But theres more progress to be made and we have to keep at it. We will. For example, one of my funding requests is for passing lanes and that is safety related. Finally, im very proud we have passed a law for our veterans. In 2011 we created the wyoming Veterans Home excuse me, the wyoming veterans welcome home day. Thanks to this law, at the end of march every year, we hold ceremonies in communities around the state. This day is especially for vets like our korean vets, our vietnam and gulf war vets who perhaps did not receive a proper homecoming after their military service ended. And as i go to each one of these events at the end of march, its a remarkable thing that you all have done on that welcome home day. Because as you see these vets, and you greet them, after you say a few words, its astounding because you have vietnam vets, for example, who will greet you sometimes just with a nod or a handshake, sometimes with a hug. Oftentimes with tears in their eyes saying, its all i ever wanted is to somebody say, welcome home and thank you for your service. Certainly [applause] certainly that is the least we owe our vets. So i congratulate this body on that wonderful concept. It has been tremendous. And today we have a vet with us who knows what its like not to get what you should when you return home. Art served as an Army Infantryman in the korean war. In 1951 art was wounded in action and earned a purple heart. A few years ago, it came to light the medal was never awarded. Last november, 63 years after the fact, the situation was put right. Art received his purple heart at a ceremony in cheyenne. Its never too late to put things right. Veterans initiatives like the welcome home day, special license plates, recognition for of service for professional licensing, and instate tuition can pay our respect and gratitude. Art, we thank you and all our vets for serving and making sacrifices for our country. Art, please stand so we can recognize you. [cheers and applause] to sum up, wyoming has come far these past four years. Compared to unemployment, at about 6. 5 in january of 2011, we have unemployment at 4. 5 in november, 2014. Significantly lower than the u. S. Unemployment rate. Compared to ballooning costs of state operations the past decade, our state budget is staying relatively flat. Weve improved State Government and enhanced technology and infrastructure, given extra support to local government, developed an Energy Strategy grown and diversified the economy and tackled other tough issues. So today im pleased to report to all of you, with full confidence, the state of the state is strong and getting stronger. [applause] this is because of the work youve done. For example, creating a great climate for bills. This is because of wyomings natural advantages, including abundant mineral and energy resources. Above all, this is because of wyoming the wyoming people, our greatest strength. We should not take our eye off the ball now. Or our foot off the gas. We have built a Solid Foundation for our future. We will move ahead by building on the Solid Foundation laid not by standing still. We have been sewing the seeds and harvesting the crops. If we continue to plant and steward well, we will leave greiner pasteurs and even a better legacy. We have the fiscal resources the people resources, the Natural Resources and the civic leadership to make a difference for generations to come. We look at the next four years i look at the next four years, with great optimism. In my second term ill continue to focus on the areas ive talked about today. Theyve been important from day one, they remain important and theres more we can do on each. To add to these initiatives, i would add coal initiatives advancing our Energy Strategy, increasing International Trade forest health, Medicaid Expansion and implementing our water strategy. Again, i ask that we take on a great deal. But again i say, wyoming is here in wyoming, the industry provides revenue for schools and infrastructure and thousands of direct and indirect jobs for wyoming workers. In the coming years, i will continue to work with bulldog determination on coal initiatives, port expansion, new technology and valueadded products. In the coming years, we dont need to let up, we need to double down. We must assure coals continuity. There are legitimate opportunities such as the integrated test Center Project and we must seize them. We fight for coal and well fight for oil and well fight for gas and uranium and other resources if they are targeted by oppressive federal regulations. And part of that is advancing the Energy Strategy. Last session you funded continued work on initiatives identified in the Energy Strategy. Our task is to go further, to advance the strategy issued two years ago this may, by continuing the work on the initiatives and identifying new initiatives. I mentioned International Trade. Heres an interesting statistic. From 2010 to 2013, International Trade grew from 983 million to 1. 35 billion. A growth of 36 . We want to see that growth continue. And you have added 350,000 in the biannual budget to develop International Trade. Funding i fully support. We are, my office and you all, can use this funding productively to continue the progress that weve made. Our forests have been a challenge. With beetle kill. And forests are a great resource. They provide homes for wildlife, lumber for industry and places for recreation. We want our forests to be as healthy as possible and so many have been devastated by beetle kill. I put together a task force to look at the condition of our forests and make recommendations. I support these recommendations and ive included funding in my budget proposal. Last session, the legislature asked the department of health to find the best deal possible for wyoming under the a. C. A. We have seen over the last four years much more flexibility from h. H. S. And c. M. S. Our department of health was able to craft what we believe is the best plan for wyoming. Some in the legislature are looking at an alternative plan and i appreciate their work. Regarding the a. C. A. , you as i may not like it. But it is upon us. We challenged it, but it is upon us. Two years ago, not last year two years ago, as i said in my state of the state, let us try within the law that is upon us to find the best deal, the best fit for wyoming. Under the a. C. A. I fail to say the same today. Heres some facts regarding the a. C. A. Fact is, small and large hospitals are anchors in our wyoming communities. The fact is, businesses make clear to me they cannot recruit new people without reasonable health care. Beyond that, they cant keep people in an area without reasonable health care. And if small hospitals close our rural towns will suffer tremendous loss and opportunity for the future. Fact is, we have working men and women of wyoming who cannot afford health care. This is true now as it was when both i and the legislature supported healthy frontiers in an attempt to address the issue. The fact is the wyoming Hospital Association reports 200 million in uncompensated care. The number in terms of their actual costs they believe is around 100 million. The fact is, Economic Analysis shows that Medicaid Expansion would create about 00 jobs in wyoming 800 jobs in wyoming. The fact is, many of us dont like the a. C. A. , including me. But heres another fact. Our federal tax dollars pay for the a. C. A. Wyoming federal tax dollars help pay for the a. C. A. Do we choose to have that support, that wyoming money returned to colorado, to california, or to wyoming . I say wyoming. My plan or yours or something better. We have fought the fight against the a. C. A. Weve done our best tofight find a fit for wyoming. Were out of timeouts. And we need to address Medicaid Expansion this session. Water strategy. Wyoming is subject to seven water compacts and two Supreme Court decrees. Water were not committed to providing others under these compacts and decrees belongs to us. It is wyomings water. And wyoming water is key to our future. All of us need water. Municipalities, industries, ag and individuals. It is our most important Natural Resource. Water, more than anything, is tied to everything we do in this state. Its tied to everything we have done and its going to be tied to everything we do in the future. Yet wyoming has not had a water strategy. Developing a water strategy was one of the initiatives identified in the Energy Strategy. Over the last year or so, with wite public input, weve put together a very good strategy. Its going to be issued tomorrow and Available Online and in hard copy. The strategy includes a 10 and 10 proposal. 10 Small Reservoir projects in 10 years. And nine other initiatives including a proposal for something. The time to protect our water is now. And as a state, we cannot afford to delay. The supplemental budget gets us started on that. I requested a traffer of about 18. 6 million for the Water Development account. I hope youll approve this request and the rest of my budget proposal. I also hope youll consider supporting the water strategy and future budgets as you have supported the Energy Strategy. The budget in general, this is a general session, so i have it before you a model 156 million budget proposal. It is a conservative supplement to the biannual budget. I believe it positioned wyoming well for the years ahead. It strengthens u. W. And our Community College system. It makes events investments in strategic areas. The fact is, the state has these funds. There are well over 100 million in reversions. Money unused by agencies. Which together with fully funds my proposal. With your recognition of the reversions, all fund something available. My proposal keeps government operating costs relatively flat. State agencies have worked hard to keep budgets trim. Only 17 million, less than one half of one percent of the standard budget sin creased by my budget. And is for operating and ongoing expenditures. Now, i do make some requests that do not add to the future budgets, they are onetime proposals. These include 25 million for local government