By William Cork

It’s an exciting time to be doing economic development in Mississippi.

We’re not just seeing growth — we’re seeing the kind of record-breaking momentum that only happens when people get aligned, work a plan, and follow through. Since 2020, under Governor Reeves’ leadership, we’ve landed over $31 billion in new capital investment and more than 22,000 jobs. And we’ve done it with a smaller team and a smarter approach.

This isn’t about headlines or photo ops. It’s about building something real — something that lasts — for the people of Mississippi.

A few months ago, I sat down with Damon Tipton for his podcast and had a wide ranging interview. If you listen to it (it’s linked at the end of this post) you’ll learn a lot about what Mississippi is doing to position us for the future.

Let me provide a quick summary of the key points of the interview, and give you a walk through what I believe is driving our success, and what it’ll take to keep moving forward.

We Don’t Incentivize Hope — We Incentivize Performance

We’ve changed how Mississippi does business. We used to write checks up front and hope it all worked out. But if the project didn’t materialize, we were stuck trying to claw that money back from companies that were already failing.

Now, we do it differently.

With tools like the Mississippi Flexible Incentive Tax Credit, we tie performance to benefits. Companies don’t get incentives until they’ve met their commitments. Just like a contractor’s draw — you perform, you get paid. It’s conservative, it’s smart, and it protects the taxpayer.

Speed, Risk, and Money — Plus the Intangibles

When a company is evaluating where to put a factory or a data center, they’re asking three things: How fast can I move? What’s the risk to my business? What’s it going to cost?

Mississippi has learned how to answer those questions well.

But there’s a fourth element that gets overlooked: the intangibles. A lot of states can check the same boxes we do. But companies are also looking at culture, at values, at brand. They want to know: If I tie my brand to this state, what does it say about me?

We had to confront that head-on with the old state flag. Nobody could quantify how many deals we lost because of it, but we all knew it was an issue. Now, with a flag that reflects the values of our people, we’re no longer starting conversations with a disadvantage.

This Is About People

When we cut a ribbon and I see workers standing there in their uniforms — ready to go to work, with a wage that supports a family and a future — that’s why I do this job.

I’ve been in economic development for over 30 years. I’ve worked projects from the local level to the national level. Nothing compares to the run we’ve had over the last five years. And nothing compares to the reward of seeing Mississippians thrive because we landed a company in their town.

This job is about people. It always has been.

Mississippi Is Affordable — But We’re Not Cheap

Too often, people mistake affordability for being low-quality or low-wage. That’s not the case here.

We’re affordable — for both companies and workers — but we’re not racing to the bottom. The average wage for the manufacturing jobs we’ve brought in is around $60,000 a year. These are family-sustaining jobs with real upward mobility.

I don’t want us competing to be the cheapest. I want us to be competitive — on value, on speed, on workforce, and on outcomes.

Why Net Export Income Is the Whole Ballgame

One of the most important things we think about at MDA is what I call net export income.

If we’re going to grow our economy, we have to bring money into Mississippi — not just move it around within the state (which is also a good thing). That’s why we don’t typically incentivize retail or restaurants. Those businesses are important and they generate a multiplier effect, but our primary target is attracting new dollars to the state.

When Nissan builds cars here and sells them globally, that creates net export income. When the federal government funds military contracts and R&D in Mississippi, that’s money we’ve pulled in from across the country.

And when a tourist comes here and spends their dollars — we’re exporting our experience and importing their money. That’s how you grow a state economy.

The Tech Boom Is Real — and We’re Ready for It

Our recent wave of hyperscale data center announcements didn’t happen by accident. We’ve built out fiber infrastructure, we’ve got abundant power and water, and we’ve prepared sites in advance.

We’ve also invested in workforce — from construction and HVAC to cybersecurity and AI.

We’re not just chasing the leaves and ornaments of a tech ecosystem. We’re planting the roots and growing the trunk. When you get that right, the rest follows.

Immigration and Workforce: A Pragmatic, Human Approach

I served in the Marine Corps. As a military policeman at Camp Pendleton, I personally apprehended hundreds of undocumented migrants. I’ve seen firsthand what it looks like — scared families, children, people just trying to find a better life.

At the same time, I believe in law and order. We need to secure the border. We need to enforce our laws. But we also need to acknowledge the humanity behind the issue and look for common-sense solutions.

We’ve got around 42,000 working-age Mississippians not in the labor force today. We need to figure out how to re-engage them — not grow welfare, but grow opportunity.

Eliminating the Income Tax Is the Right Move

Governor Reeves has made it clear: he wants Mississippi to eliminate its personal income tax. I agree.

Taxing labor is the wrong way to grow an economy. When you tax something, you discourage it. That’s Economics 101.

States like Florida, Texas, and Tennessee have shown that you can eliminate income tax and still grow — in fact, they’re growing faster. If we want to attract high-net-worth individuals and business owners, this is a smart play.

Yes, we’ll need to be smart about the transition. But long-term, the benefits outweigh the risks.

If You Want to Win, You’ve Got to Show Up

I tell communities all over the state: you can win something — but only if you’re aligned, prepared, and committed.

Amazon in Madison County, Aluminum Dynamics in Columbus, Compass in Meridian — none of those projects happened overnight. They were years in the making. Some of them started with a water line to a piece of empty land.

The state will meet you halfway. But we can’t do it for you. If you’re fighting among yourselves or waiting for someone else to act, you’re not going to see results.

Get organized. Make a plan. Stick to it. That’s how we win.

Mississippi is on a run right now. The stars have aligned — and we’ve worked hard to make it happen. We’ve got more work ahead, but the mission hasn’t changed.

We’re here to serve. We’re here to grow. And we’re here to make this state everything we know it can be — for every worker, every community, every business.

Mississippi has momentum. This is Mississippi’s time.

Watch the full one-hour interview here where we go into these concepts in detail and much more!!