Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Graves County.

It's an honor to have you here this year at the Fancy Farm Picnic, and I hope you'll enjoy the barbecue as much as you do The speeches from this stage are smooth.

It's this evening.

This event is a celebration of this community, its values, its shared commitment to the future of Grays County and the great Commonwealth.

That kind of commitment led me to run for this office 12 years ago and guided me ever since.

This served me through four years of the minority where I started to learn how the process should work and what policies we really needed.

It guided me when the ultimate test came and we were given the majority in 2016.

I feel proud of what we've accomplished.

We've passed bills aimed at eliminating the state income tax, modernizing the tax code, reforming unemployment insurance and worker's compensation, supporting low enforcement, building our workforce and making our schools safer.

Folks, our income.

Tax was at 6% when I took office.

Today is at 4% income.

January of 2026, it will go to three and a half percent.

We've invested billions of dollars in roads and bridges, water infrastructure, broadband expansion, paying off pension liabilities.

We've also placed historic amount of money in our state's budget reserve trust fund.

At the same time, we made historic progress in protecting human life, parents rights and our children.

And I was proud to sponsor.

Legislation that established an innovative program to help local governments and nonprofits find matching funds to access millions of federal dollars.

The program we call the Grant program stands for Government Resources Accelerating needed transfer transformation that has the potential of bringing change to the entire state of Kentucky.

And together we started down that long and painful process of recovering from the single largest Trangie our region has ever experienced in our state's history.

We're still building back from the tornadoes and the storms in December of 2021.

But you can be sure that when we're finished, Mayfield and Graves County will be stronger than ever.

I am, of course.

Saddened that this is my last chance to welcome you here to a fancy farm in graves County.

As your state representative, I will always appreciate the support of my family and friends.

Together, we've accomplished some really great things.

Of course, it may not be the last time you'll see me.

Chris and I will continue to look for ways to serve.

Before I wrap up, please let me extend my gratitude to Father VENTERS.

Saint, your own parish.

Fancy Farm Picnic Committee.

You've outdone yourself again this year.

For those of us who call Grace Hanni home, we know how much work goes into putting this picnic on and how much good this church does in our community.

We also want to give a shout out to law enforcement, firefighters and first responder ers.

Ladies and gentlemen.

God bless you.

God bless Kentucky.

God bless America.