By Rachel Lippmann, KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Gov. Jay Nixon was in St. Louis Thursday afternoon to sign legislation that was his top priority for the just-finished 2009 session of the Missouri General Assembly.
Nixon outlined his "Show Me Jobs" initiative in the January State of the State. Negotiations on the proposal lasted until the session's final night. It expands tax credits and incentives to make it less expensive for companies to hire and expand. Community colleges and universities will receive, for the first time, funding to work with companies to design training programs for specific jobs.
Missouri's unemployment rate reached 8.7 percent last month - but Nixon would not give a specific number of jobs he expects the legislation to create.
"The metrics are, we get up each morning, we try to provide a competitive toolbox for us when competing with other states, we try to support Missouri businesses," he said.
Also Thursday, Nixon vowed to "lean up" the state's $21.5 billion budget. He will likely eliminate several projects from a bill that includes funding to restore service cuts on Metro, the city's mass transit system.