Grill remains positive about re-election, challenger Schieber on the attack

State Representative Jason Grill is running for a third-term in Missouri’s 32nd district encompassing southern Platte County. While Grill ran unopposed in 2008, this election cycle he’ll find a challenger running against him in Republican Ron Schieber. Both have been talking to voters over the recent months to convince them that they should be the one to represent them in Jefferson City.

Grill, 31, is a lifelong resident of Platte County where he graduated from St. Pius X High School, Saint Louis University, and University of Missouri School of Law. He has served in the legislature since first elected in 2006 and has most recently on the House Ways and Means, Judiciary, Real ID, and Financial Institutions committees where he served as a ranking member. He currently resides in Parkville.

Rep. Jason Grill

“If re-elected I look forward to continuing to serve on influential House committees, as well as potentially filling a seat for our area on the Economic Development and Job Creation committee. The relationships I have built with Republicans and Democrats will be instrumental to our community and our state,” Grill said.

Although Schieber did not respond to several requests for information from The Citizen, his website indicates he grew up in Maryville, Missouri and is a 1983 graduate of Northwest Missouri State University. He’s been a resident of Platte County since 1993 when he moved here with his family. He and his wife, Stephanie, have five daughters in Rachel, Kelsey, Heather, Madison, and Alysa. Schieber has worked in the finance and banking industry, most recently as a home mortgage consultant with Wells Fargo.

When not serving in the legislature, Grill, is an attorney at King Hershey, a law firm which specializes in economic development, public finance, and commercial transactions. He says his work in the private sector has fueled his interest in improving the way the State of Missouri provides incentives to businesses and promotes job creation in the legislature.

“There are a wide range of innovative options available to produce revenues for Missouri which include stopping the loss of businesses moving to Kansas,” Grill said.

Jobs have been a focus of Schieber’s, with his campaign indicating tax cuts across the board and less regulation are a few of the ways Missouri can create jobs. As a former member of the Park Hill School Board, Schieber also believes he can be a strong advocate for education and student achievement. Even though Schieber has taken a broad approach to the two main issues of jobs and education, Grill contends his record shows those are already two of his top priorities which is why he’s earned endorsements from the National Federation of Independent Business and several education organizations including the Missouri National Education Association.

Grill has committed much of his campaign to telling voters about what he believes are some significant accomplishments and measures he has helped pass in the legislature over recent years including being a lead sponsor on a bill passed into law that now requires insurance companies to cover treatments for children with autism.

“As a fiscal conservative, I’m proud to have supported balanced budgets without raising taxes and responsible economic policies which include co-sponsoring a balanced budget resolution at the federal level,” Grill said.

Contrarily, Schieber’s website makes it clear that he believes Grill’s approach is self serving which has resulted in, with less than two weeks to go until Election Day, the Missouri Republican State Committee funding several negative ads through television, phone, and mail to attack Grill with comparisons to President Obama along with ‘big government liberals’ over the last week. In a district which tends to lean moderately Republican, it is yet to be seen how the ads will affect the race and how Grill will choose to respond, but voters can be sure they aren’t being taken for granted this cycle.