Members of Kentucky's Senate majority leadership are in Pike Fall this week for a retreat to hash out some of the issues likely to come up during the 24 legislative session.

Among those topics, the roads you drive on and the taxes you pay.

We're going to be the same group of people setting the policy as we have since 2017, irregardless of who the governor is.

We did it with then Governor Matt Bevin and will now do it again with Governor Andy Beshear.

Transportation is part of the infrastructure.

Much of the mountain parkway impacts this area.

We hope and I think it will be very possible that we'll start looking at something that will impact the region but will not directly happen in the region of creating a four lane from Hazard, Kentucky, to London, Kentucky, which will open it up for not county, Pike County, Letcher County to get to the south corridor of I-75 faster, because as we looked at Appalachian Tank, they're going to be moving product.

Other people are going to be moving product, and they need to get to the second most heavily traveled interstate in the United States, which as I-75, you know, those those types of things are going to be there.

We want to we always with you, Pike.

We just have had the report released on the study of higher education.

We're going to start reviewing that and see what recommendations CPE had, how it would impact KCTCS.

We very much want to work on issues that we have the most qualified workforce possible, and that will be like the big Sandy in KCTCS.

I'm truly honored to host the Senate Majority Caucus here in my hometown of Pikeville.

You know, this is really a day of pride for me.

And I think what it shows is the commitment of the Senate Republican leadership and really the legislative leadership to not only prosperity for just certain areas of Kentucky, but for all of Kentucky.

We want to get to be as competitive as Tennessee, North Carolina, Mississippi, even go on there.

Florida's going there.

Texas is going there to a zero income tax state.

But as David said, it has to be measured.

We can't sit there and do it in a haphazard way that all of a sudden we find out we have less receipts, less revenues, less taxes, whatever you want to call it.

They end the obligations we have to pay out every year.

We've had our struggles in recent years, but we're also a region of unparalleled opportunity.

It's been said many times that the coal that was mined out of this area powered the Industrial revolution, and that is undoubtedly true.

And but, you know, behind every lump of coal that was mine was our people.

And our people are strong.

And I am grateful that my colleagues here have come to support me, to support our area.