Business Advocacy

Veteran lawmaker reflects on unusual but successful legislative session Lincoln Hough has been in the Missouri Senate for four years and previously served three terms in the state House of Representatives. But as the senator told a packed room on May 31 during a meeting of the Chamber’s Governmental Relations Committee, the 2022 legislative session…

Recapping a challenging but successful state legislative session The 2022 legislative session of the Missouri General Assembly ended on May 13, and while the year brought a series of unique challenges, it ultimately proved to be quite successful for the business community and for southwest Missouri. Numerous bills passed both chambers of the legislature and…

Making progress in a complicated legislative landscape State Senator Dave Schatz has a lot on his plate. Not only does he represent Franklin and St. Louis counties in the Missouri State Senate, but he also leads the upper chamber as the president pro tem – meaning it’s his job to keep legislation moving through his…

Summarizing years of progress in the Springfield region Since 1994, the Chamber has convened community leaders from the public, private and non-profit sectors for the Community Leadership Visit. The delegation of leaders travels to a peer city to learn from their experiences and bring back ideas that will benefit our region. The 2021 CLV initiative…

State rep discusses outlook in General Assembly When State Rep. Alex Riley visited the Chamber in early March to offer a legislative update to the Governmental Relations Committee, he shared that one of the biggest issues hanging over the General Assembly was the gridlock in the Senate due to ongoing battles over the redrawing of…

Board leaders advocate for business priorities Leaders from the Chamber’s Board of Directors visited the state Capitol on March 3 to advocate for board-approved business community legislative priorities. The delegation included Board Chairman John Oke-Thomas of Oke-Thomas + Associates, and Chairman-Elect Joselyn Baldner of Central Bank of the Ozarks, along with other members of the…

Chamber endorses two candidates for school board election on April 5 The Board of Directors of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce has endorsed Chad Courtney and Charles Taylor for Springfield Public Schools (R-12) Board of Education in the election on April 5. Through volunteer-driven committee evaluation and board of directors’ decision-making, the Chamber has…

Governor discusses higher education, workforce investment with community leaders Governor Mike Parson met with public and private sector community leaders on February 10 at the Missouri State University efactory Jay Wasson Idea Loft to discuss transformational investments in Missouri’s workforce and education system. Leaders from Springfield Public Schools, the City of Springfield, Greene County, Missouri State University,…