Governor Terry Branstad and Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds toured the Hormel plant in Knoxville Thursday. It’s part of a tour of businesses throughout the state. They tell KNIA/KRLS News that they’re hearing positive things about the decrease in property taxes in terms of competitiveness. However, Branstad and Reynolds say that they do hear concerns about a shortage of skilled labor. Branstad says things are much more mechanized now than they were in his previous decades as governor. He says lots of the back-breaking labor that factories used to have has been placed with automation, so the labor force must be familiar with problem-solving skills, computers, and robotics. Reynolds adds that’s why STEM fields – science, technology, engineering, and math – are so important for future job growth.