At an awards ceremony on August 19, The National Coalition for Capital honored Dan Mehan, president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, for his work to promote access to capital for small business and entrepreneurs, especially those in distressed communities.

“This award recognizes Dan’s important work to preserve and create jobs through access to capital policy that helps Missouri small businesses grow and develop,” says Greg McIlvaine, president of the National Coalition for Capital. “Dan has demonstrated he is a champion of small business, and his efforts will have an enduring positive impact on Missouri.”

Dan joined the Missouri Chamber in 1995. As president and CEO, he has worked to hold the line on employer taxes and has helped secure numerous economic development incentives. He has also been a strong advocate for expanding the Missouri New Markets Development Programs, which has attracted hundreds of millions of dollars in capital to the state’s low-income communities. He also built the Missouri Chamber PAC, which gave businesses a voice in key political issue campaigns.

“Now more than ever, it’s critical that elected officials do their part to advance innovative access to capital policies that allow small businesses to grow and prosper,” Mehan says. “I am pleased to be among those honored for supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs as they strive to preserve and grow jobs in their communities.”