Next week the Missouri Senate will stand adjourned for the annual spring recess. Most of my colleagues will travel back home to their districts to get some much-needed time with their families, visit with local constituents and catchup on work for their primary jobs. It is a welcome break for lawmakers, who spend January through May in Jefferson City, often working long hours away from their families to accomplish the people’s business.

This year, I will spend my spring recess a little differently than usual. I have been invited by the governor to attend a trade mission to Taiwan and South Korea. As one of only two senators invited, I am honored to be a part of this trip.

Businesses throughout the state regularly send their goods to countries across the world. Expanding this area of our economy would benefit all of Missouri. We don’t want to encourage the importation of more foreign goods, but we do want to support the exportation of Missouri products.

In recent years, more and more American goods are exported to Asia. As countries in the Pacific Rim have grown, there has been an increased demand for many products made here in the United States and Missouri in particular, especially agriculture. Beef is one of the fastest growing exports to Asia. According to the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, U.S. beef sales to South Korea exceeded $582 million in 2012, and Taiwan consumers purchased more than $200 million of U.S. beef in 2011. With Missouri home to countless livestock operations, we are in a wonderful position to take advantage of this growth.  

During the trip, we will meet with various officials and leaders. Our goal is to increase our trade agreements with these two countries and, if possible, lower the tariffs on our goods. Tariffs are basically a tax on exported or imported goods. Right now, high tariffs are preventing us from exporting as many products as we could to Taiwan and South Korea, two of our largest trade partners. Lowering these will grow our export sales and benefit businesses across the state, particularly our agricultural industry. 

Our trip includes stops in Taipei, Taiwan, and Seoul, South Korea, two of the largest cities in the region and the economic centers for both nations. I am excited for the opportunity to visit these two incredible countries. Costs for the trip will be covered by the Hawthorn Foundation, a nonprofit organization that focuses on economic development. This trip is strictly business, but it will be interesting to visit a part of the world not everyone gets to see.

The Senate will return on Monday, March 25, for the last half of the legislative session, which ends on May 17. Crafting the state budget, the only duty we’re constitutionally obligated to complete, will take up a majority of our remaining time in Jefferson City. I will be taking a break from my weekly column next week, but will resume these updates the following week.

If you have any questions or comments about this or any other matter regarding your state government, please feel free to contact me at (573) 751-1503; you are also welcome to e-mail me at jay.wasson@senate.mo.gov.