Text of SC Gov. Nikki Haley's State of the State address

Mr. Speaker, Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen of the General Assembly, constitutional officers and my fellow South Carolinians:

By the grace of God, this will be the first year I do not list a single active duty member of our armed forces who was taken from us.

[...] the men and women of our military are not alone in their willingness to sacrifice for us and in their dedication to keeping us safe.

[...] please join me as we pay tribute to those who gave the last full measure of devotion in the service of South Carolina and her people:

A public servant is only as strong as the strength she has at home.

Billy O'Dell was a loving husband, father, and grandfather.

Honest policy differences do not need to morph into personal dislike, distrust, and disillusion.

Mr. Scott was stopped by a North Charleston police officer for having a broken taillight.

The vast, vast majority of police officers in this nation are honorable men and women.

In the face of overwhelming video evidence that something had gone terribly wrong, South Carolina did not erupt in riots or violence.

South Carolina will forever grieve the loss of your son and be forever grateful to you and your family for helping us learn from your tragedy, grow from it, and take action to make sure, to the best of our ability, it never happens again.

Starting my first year in office, we have conducted emergency tabletop exercises that allow us to go through disaster situations in real time.

What did, in 2014, were two winter storms that challenged our infrastructure, our utility companies, and our resources.

October's 1,000-Year flood was one that challenged our state in a way few natural disasters ever have.

Please help me thank a group of people who didn't back down from a historic challenge, one I am proud to call Team South Carolina.

There is no excuse for South Carolina to rank as the state in America with the highest percentage of women killed by me