"The
spirit of Arizona is strong and so is the
state of our state." Governor Jan Brewer
The
luncheon was held on Wednesday, January 15th
at the Glendale Civic Center. It marked
Glendale Mayor Jerry Weiers’ first year as
Mayor. The three-hundred plus political and
business leaders affiliated with WESTMARC
welcomed Governor Jan Brewer, who is a
resident of Glendale and long -time supporter
of the West Valley. Governor Brewer referred
to the West Valley as "My side of
town" in the opening of her address.
Governor
Brewer has not announced her plans for running
for another term as governor. That
announcement is reported to come sometime in
February. Governor Brewer may not be able to
run this year, if it is decided that she has
been governor for two terms.
When
Governor Brewer came to office in 2009 Arizona
had a three-billion dollar defect. Today,
Arizona
has a healthy surplus, a replenished rainy
day fund and an impressive with 900
million in the
bank.
"I am proud to report to you today that
Arizona’s physical house is in order. And
together let’s
keep it
that way."
In the
coming legislative session Governor Brewer
plans to support bills that promote large and
small businesses, stabilize in-state college
tuition. In addition, Governor Brewer will
continue to push for support and protection
for Luke Air Force Base; revamp Child
Protective Services, fight human trafficking
and to improve mental health care for
Arizonians.
Businesses
across the country and the world are watching
Arizona. "Our message to job creators is
clear, Arizona is open for business".
Forbes magazine recognized Arizona as being
number one in expected job growth.
Governor
Brewer made a call-out to West Valley local
business owner and Maricopa County Supervisor
Clint Hickman of Hickman Family Farms of
Buckeye, Arizona. In the audience of nearly
four-hundred were Governor Brewer recognized
many familiar faces of friends and colleagues.
When
asked by Michelle Rider, President and CEO of
WESTMARC,
"What
would you like your legacy to be?"
Governor Brewer answered, "I think I
would like my legacy to be that I inherited
the worst budget deficit in the history of the
state. Times were bad and tough. And that when
I left, Arizona had a balanced budget, had
money back in the rainy day fund and that we
had implemented reforms that we thought we
might not be able to get done… and that
Arizona today is far better off than we ever
could have anticipated. It was because of the
honesty and the policies that I was able to
work with the legislature on, and that we were
able to get done, to make this the greatest
state in out county to live in."
For the
full text of Governor’s Brewer’s State of
the State
Monday, January 13, 2014 address, please visit
