The gubernatorial campaign trail made its way to South Fulton Chamber of Commerce Thursday with the appearance of Georgia Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor. The long-time politician focused many of his comments on the importance of local business and his aim to restore cuts to the HOPE scholarship and provide healthcare to all Georgia children.
Gearing his comments to the business audience, Taylor acknowledged the participation of local business leaders across the state and their contribution, one that has ramifications statewide. Though Georgia offers incentives for regional, national and international businesses to locate in the state, it is the efforts of local leadership combined with quality education that provides a greater magnet for development, he said.
“The work of a chamber helps prepare Georgia for its future. That’s why your work is so important,” Taylor said. “What 20 years of public service has shown me is that it is not incentives that make the real difference in attracting business, it’s local leadership and educational attainment that will make the difference. Economic development strategies cannot be top down, they have to be from the neighborhood up once priorities and challenges are identified. An overriding issue for local leadership is education. Good jobs will follow good test scores. Educational opportunities will far outstrip the economic development incentives.”
Taylor cited his long held belief in the merits of a lottery for education, a cause he took on from the beginning. And he praised past results of the HOPE scholarship, adding that education has to be the focus every year, not only during election years. Combining that mantra with local efforts, Taylor said chambers of commerce provide a perfect venue for mentoring one child at a time, making one difference at a time. Taylor said HOPE has helped 910,000 Georgians with college and more than 700,000 four year-olds with Pre-K.
Referencing his campaign for governor, Taylor pledged to stop annual cuts to schools that have been the equivalent of $600 per child in Fulton County and $1,000 per child in rural Georgia. He pledged to restore the cuts to the HOPE program, adding that it is in excellent financial shape and reminded the audience that HOPE is not given, it is earned.
Having helped successfully initiate PeachCare, Taylor promised as governor to provide PeachKids, an effort designed to provide health insurance to every child in Georgia. Also in the area of healthcare related issues, Taylor proposed the Georgia Rx program, an effort that will free all medications from sales tax and will provide medicines to residents aged 55 and older at the same cost paid by the state.