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Gosen looks to fourth term

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Rep. Don Gosen, R-Chesterfield, will be seeking a fourth term in the Missouri House of Representatives.

“I had considered running for Sen. Eric Schmitt’s Senate seat with him being term limited,” said Gosen. “However, Rick Stream and Andrew Koenig are running for that. I am confident with either of them being a senator representing the area. With me having one more term left, I am going to continue to serve in the House.

“People conjectured that with the new ethics laws going into effect that I’d go into government affairs, but that’s not why I came to the House. When I came to the House, I wanted to bring my small business perspective to Jefferson City. I got here and found that there was a vacuum at the time for insurance knowledge. At the time, I believe former Rep. Chris Molendorp was the only representative that was really engrained in the insurance industry and really understood it.”

Gosen
Gosen

Gosen started as vice chairman of insurance, then became chairman of the House Insurance Committee. He now serves as chairman of the Select Committee on Insurance.

“I want to continue doing that, I really enjoy that,” said Gosen.

Gosen has caught some flack from other outlets for his involvement with insurance legislation, which he does not view as a conflict of interest.

“We’re the People’s House,” Gosen said. “We all bring backgrounds of all kinds. We see farmers file agriculture bills, lawyers file legal bills, teachers and educators file education bills. We all have areas of expertise. …It’s very difficult for to have a conflict of interest when a law will apply to an entire industry.”

This year, several health bills have gone to Gosen’s committee. Whereas, he is a State Farm Insurance Agent, he focuses on property and casualty insurance, not health insurance. Nonetheless, Gosen takes steps to disclose, as well as work across the aisle.

“Another thing I do each year is send a letter to be added to the Journal disclosing my business affiliations,” said Gosen. “It was something that someone who is no longer here said to do so no one could think you’re trying to hide anything. I worked real hard last year and had my best fundraiser in September. I work hard to support the caucus. I approach things here as a team sport, it is not an individual sport. We get things done as a team and that team isn’t always just Republicans. When I get ready to leave here at some point, I will leave here with some of my best friends being Democrats. I enjoy working with everybody up here.”

He plans to continue to build on his past focused successes, if re-elected, in his fourth term.

“A vibrant insurance industry is almost always to the benefit of the consumer,” said Gosen. “The more companies, the more competitiveness you will always have. It makes it a better market for the consumer. The Department of Insurance will tell you that Missouri has one of the most competitive insurance markets in the country right now and that is good for the consumer.”

As a junior representative hoping to move on to be in the small minority of seniors in the House, Gosen emphasized team work as a large component of effective legislating.

“I talk to people even before they get here,” Gosen said. “Things move so fast here and there are so many of us that when you win your election, I tell people to immediately start planning and preparing. The first day, when freshmen get here, the train is about 100 yards down the track and if you’re not on it, you start playing catch up from day one. Learn the system, learn how to be effective as a legislator.

“We come down here with these altruistic ideas of how we can change Missouri, and that’s great, but quite often we find that just being effective in an area where we have expertise can do just as much good creating jobs and moving Missouri forward. It’s a team sport, it’s not like boxing where you can prepare all summer long and you get to the ring and it’s just you and your opponent. This is like preparing for an NFL season: you’ve got to learn your team and how to work with your team. You’ve got to prepare the same way to be effective as a legislator.”

Filing begins Feb. 23.

“I’m 100 percent all in. Hopefully I’ll be one of the first in line. I like to get it done and out of the way right off the bat.”