COCHRAN LAUDS MISSISSIPPIANS AS TOYOTA ROLLS OUT
FIRST CAR FROM NEW BLUE SPRINGS MANUFACTURING PLANT

Senator Says Cooperation, Diligence Helped Bring Plant to Reality in Northeast Mississippi

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Thad Cochran (R-Miss.) today praised the cooperation and fortitude shown by Mississippians during the multi-year effort to build a massive new Toyota automobile manufacturing center in Northeast Mississippi.

Cochran issued a statement today in lieu of his participation in a “line off” ceremony on Thursday for the first Corolla produced at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi facility at Blue Springs.  Cochran’s duties as vice chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee require him to be in Washington this week.

“I am extremely proud of the cooperation, diligence and fortitude displayed by Mississippians since Toyota chose to locate a plant in Northeast Mississippi.  The manufacture of Toyota vehicles in our state would not have happened without local, regional and state leaders working together to prepare a home for Toyota in Mississippi,” Cochran said.

“I look forward to Toyota Mississippi having a long presence in our state, and certainly welcome the economic lift this manufacturing plant and associated jobs will give the region.  It will enhance Mississippi’s manufacturing portfolio and should make us more attractive to other ventures,” he said.

Since Toyota announced its intent in February 2007 to build a manufacturing plant in Blue Springs, Cochran has worked with officials in Mississippi to identify and secure federal funding to prepare the region—including appropriated funds to upgrade public infrastructure and to advance industrial recruitment.

The Senator also continues to advocate for passage of federal legislation to expand on-the-job training programs that provide training or retraining for unemployed or underemployed workers.  In cooperation with local businesses and workforce investment boards, the Mississippi Department of Employment Security utilizes such programs to prepare employees for new jobs and as an economic development tool for attracting industry to the state.

Toyota’s facility at Blue Springs is expected to employ 2,000 people and help generate more than 2,200 indirect jobs.