• Louisiana is on the verge of an industrial renaissance.

• Industry drives the economy of our state and creates countless jobs.

• The path to positive growth for business and industry in Louisiana requires true leadership.

Individually, those three sentences are how Louisiana gubernatorial candidates U.S. Sen. David Vitter, La. Public Service Commissioner Scott Angelle and State Rep. John Bel Edwards addressed River Region readers in L’OBSERVATEUR this week.

The statements were part of the “Industry Proud” special section we published Wednesday. While what the candidates shared in their introduction wasn’t exactly newsworthy, what they explained throughout their remarks offers insight into how each might lead Louisiana in regard to industrial growth and maintenance should one of them be elected governor.

Vitter is touting a bill he authored to update the nation’s chemical safety law.

“It creates a predictable and transparent system to regulate the safety of chemicals based on the latest science,” he said. “And it also preserves existing state actions and allows further state actions on chemicals where the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is not acting.”

Angelle said Louisiana must have a business friendly tax climate that is smarter, fairer and simpler for those Louisiana serves. He also said the state needs to strengthen its workforce development in order to have men and women trained for the caliber and quality of jobs being brought in, especially through support of programs like the Louisiana Department of Economic Development’s FastStart.

Edwards said he wants to focus on increased investment in transportation infrastructure to deal with the nearly $12 billion backlog of projects, including ports like The Port of South Louisiana.

He also wants to double the current $20 million Port Priority Fund for development.

Each candidate sees this region and its unique advantages as key in their plans for state growth.

To read more about what they have planned, check out the special section, which was included in Wednesday’s newspaper and is still available at our local office in LaPlace, 116 Newspaper Drive.