A statewide effort to advocate for workforce and infrastructure
Members of the Chamber staff are in the Capitol every week, advocating on behalf of the business community’s top priorities. But sometimes, hearing directly from business leaders and job creators is the most effective way to carry the message.
On April 3, business leaders from across the state – representing the Chambers in Springfield, St. Louis and Kansas City as well as the Missouri Chamber – gathered in Jefferson City to advocate as a group. Springfield Chamber Board Chairman Jeff Childs of SVN/Rankin Co. and Chairman-Elect Robin Robeson of Guaranty Bank represented our Chamber.
The message from the business community was clear: workforce development and infrastructure funding, stated as Gov. Mike Parson’s highest priorities for this session, are the top needs of businesses throughout the state and need to be passed. The delegation’s attention was focused on the senate, where these proposals were long overdue to receive a vote because of opposition from a small number of senators. The House of Representatives passed the Governor’s workforce development proposals early in session, with strong bipartisan support.
“These are issues that impact the entire state,” Robeson said. “They are not regional; they will help our entire state compete and stand out in a crowded field with other states like Tennessee and Alabama.”
Following the visits, the chambers from the state’s three largest metro areas sent an op-ed that further stressing the importance of making progress on these issues.
These key issues are finally making progress. Missouri One Start – a program to help meet workforce needs of companies and deliver tailored training solutions – and state transportation infrastructure funding both passed out of the Senate. A few more votes are needed before these proposals receive final approval, but the progress has been significant.
Thank you to the members of our local and regional delegation in the House and Senate who have been supportive of these measures. And thank you to our volunteer leaders for their engagement and leadership on these key issues; long-term plans for funding our infrastructure needs and providing workforce training are critical to addressing many needs across Missouri.
