Jefferson City – The Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry has recognized 125 members of the Missouri General Assembly as Business Champions. The Business Champion designation recognizes state lawmakers who supported policies during the 2023 legislative session to grow our economy and make Missouri a more competitive place to do business.
Locally, Karla Eslinger and Jason Bean were chosen on the State Senate side. The six local state representatives were selected as well. Those individuals are District 141 rep. Hannah Kelly, District 143 rep. Bennie Cook, District 144 rep. Chris Dinkins, District 153 rep. Darrell Atchison, District 154 rep. David Evans, and District 155 rep. Travis Smith.
The lawmakers recognized as Business Champions helped the Missouri Chamber successfully advocate for several important pro-business policies, including:
• Taking steps to curb Missouri’s rising crime rate
• Building and retaining a skilled workforce
• Positioning Missouri as a logistics hub through transportation investment
• Protecting the right to Let Business Decide on workplace policies
• Reauthorizing the employee stock ownership plan tax deduction
• Bolstering efforts to onshore high-tech manufacturing in Missouri
• Improving access to quality healthcare
“The Business Champion recognition is our way of thanking Missouri’s top pro-business lawmakers for their commitment to moving Missouri forward,” said Missouri Chamber President and CEO Daniel P. Mehan. “A significant number of anti-business mandates were introduced in the Missouri General Assembly this year. We are grateful for the Business Champions who helped fend off overreaching policies and protected the right to Let Business Decide. As our state faces additional challenges such as workforce shortages, public safety concerns, and an unfriendly legal climate, these legislators were our most important supporters of the policies needed to help Missouri grow and thrive.”
The Business Champions list was created after an analysis of key votes on these and other critical business issues. To be included, state legislators needed to have at least a 75% record of siding with the Missouri Chamber on priority business issues. This year, 26 members of the Missouri Senate and 99 members of the Missouri House of Representatives met that criteria.
