This week FFA students and chapters around the country participated in National FFA week and celebrated FFA’s impact in our schools, communities, and our farms. FFA is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States and it’s about much more than growing crops and raising animals; it’s about growing leaders. More than 25,000 young Missourians wear the FFA’s famous National Blue corduroy jacket with Corn Gold lettering. It’s a tradition that dates back to the 1933 FFA Convention in Kan... READ MORE
People in southern Missouri always tell me they wish their federal government budgeted more like a family farm or small business – operating within its limits, balancing its books, and only rewarding employees when they do well. I couldn’t agree more. It’s why one of the first bills I introduced when I came to Congress was a balanced budget amendment to the United States Constitution. Families in Missouri have to live within their means, and so should the federal government. This week Speaker Pe... READ MORE
SCOTT CITY, Mo. – This week the Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority honored Congressman Jason Smith (MO-08) for his work to enhance rural infrastructure in southeast Missouri. After a tour of the port facility and mill, the Semo Port Authority Board of Commissioners presented Congressman Smith with a resolution recognizing and thanking him for his work to secure a $19.8 million grant from the Department of Transportation. The grant will be used to build a railway loop at the Semo Port, wh... READ MORE
Starting something new can be challenging and intimidating, but when it’s a small business the stakes are high with your entire livelihood on the line. With this Saturday being Small Business Saturday and November being National Entrepreneurship Month, I want to take the opportunity to celebrate these job creators. The entrepreneurs who take the risk to start a business or a farm, armed only with fresh ideas and hard work, drive the economy and embody the best of the American spirit. When most p... READ MORE
Missourians work hard day in and day out for their money, and they should have a government that watches over their dollars as carefully and responsibly as they do at home. We don’t mind paying our fair share to live in a safe nation, to have a judicial system that maintains law and order, or for public infrastructure improvements. But in Missouri we don’t have the appetite for a massive government that wants to use our hard-earned tax dollars on inefficient government programs and handouts. You... READ MORE
For Missourians, agriculture is the heart of our communities. The country roads of southeastern and south central Missouri weave together 19,000 farms, home to some of the hardest working people I’ve ever met. This week I’m kicking off a thirty-county swing to hear firsthand from the farmers and ranchers – big and small – who drive Missouri’s economy and feed the world. The thirty counties I am blessed to represent are rich with every farm imaginable. From the soybean fields in the Bootheel to t... READ MORE
Jobs are open, wages are up, unemployment is down, and Americans are optimistic about the future. The country has come a long way in the six months since President Trump signed historic tax cuts, which I was proud to send to his desk. The best is yet to come, but the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act is doing wonders for the pocketbooks and paychecks in Southern Missouri. That’s because the new tax code prioritizes farmers, families, and workers first – removing the Washington roadblocks that have held them... READ MORE
WASHINGTON – The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Water Resources and Development Act (WRDA) of 2018 on Wednesday with Congressman Jason Smith’s (MO-08) amendment included to protect Missouri homes and farmland residing along the Mississippi River. “The 2011 Army Corps activation of the Birds Point Levee was one of the darkest days for the families and farmers residing along the river. What’s worse, it took the Corps eighteen months to return the levees back to their original design. Tha... READ MORE
This past week we celebrated National FFA week. Since its founding in 1928, the National FFA Organization has brought together students, educators and private sector agriculture professionals to support agriculture education in schools across our country. More specifically, FFA teaches young adults throughout southern Missouri to do, learn, earn to live and live to serve. Countless lives, including my own, have been changed for the better as FFA provides confidence in the classroom, on the farm ... READ MORE
Rural America is roaring back. A recent report from the Department of Agriculture shows that for only the second time in the last century, we are actually increasing the number of farmers under the age of 35. With the President’s leadership, we have been able to deliver tax cuts for American farmers, reduced federal regulations at a rate of 22:1, driven down energy prices and have grown the economy to bring jobs back to rural America. Personally, I experienced this resurgence first hand during m... READ MORE
