Speaker Mike Johnson invites Louisiana business leader to State of Union

Greg Hilburn

• House Speaker Mike Johnson invited Louisiana business owner Trott Hunt to the State of the Union address.
• Hunt stated that his company has benefited from recent federal tax and energy policies.
• Johnson said Republican policies support American economic development for businesses like Hunt's.
• Hunt praised the administration's work to advance domestic growth and energy security.

Trott Hunt, a founder and partner in an international engineering and professional services company headquartered in Ruston, will be House Speaker Mike Johnson's guest for President Trump's State of the Union Address Feb. 24.

Hunt, Guillot & Associates operates 15 offices in seven states with 800 employees.

Hunt said tax cuts and energy policies in Trump's One Big Beautiful Budget Act as well as the president's controversial tariffs have driven economic expansion for his company and his clients, including those in the oil and gas industry.

"Our company has directly benefited from recent federal tax and energy policy initiatives driven by President Trump and Speaker Johnson," Hunt said in a statement to USA Today Network. "We have supported several international companies relocating manufacturing operations to the United States, driven by tariff policy alignment, accelerated depreciation and other tax incentives available under the OBBBA. These measures have meaningfully improved the economics of U.S.-based production and capital investment."

HGA's has Louisiana offices in Baton Rouge, Lake Charles, Monroe, Ruston and Johnson's hometown of Shreveport.

"Trotter and his team at Hunt, Guillot & Associates are a driving force for large-scale business development, domestic investment and American energy production in North Louisiana," Johnson said. "Republicans’ Working Families Tax Cuts directly support American economic development and growth for businesses like HGA by restoring immediate expensing of research and development and eliminating burdensome regulations to restore American energy dominance.”

Hunt said the president's energy sector policies advanced by the Republican Congress have "unlocked significant private investment in pipeline and facilities infrastructure."

"This has accelerated the movement of domestically produced natural gas to LNG export facilities and to new power generation projects, including those supporting the rapid expansion of data centers across the country," Hunt said.

"I am honored to attend the State of the Union as a guest of Speaker Mike Johnson and am proud of the work he and President Trump are doing to advance domestic growth, energy security and long‑term economic competitiveness."

Greg Hilburn covers state politics for the USA TODAY Network of Louisiana. Follow him on Twitter @GregHilburn1.