Leslie Meyer, R- eastern Audrain County, is formally announcing her re-election campaign to the position of Audrain County Eastern District Commissioner.
She has held the title of associate commissioner since 2021.
“I love being a commissioner of Audrain County and representing its residents,” she said.
“It is a privilege to serve such amazing communities and I would appreciate your support in the upcoming election.”
Since her time on the commission, Meyer (46) was instrumental in establishing the Audrain County Municipalities program.
This countywide program has brought leadership from all municipalities as well as resource partners in the community together to discuss topics and issues that affect county residents.
“This program is extremely beneficial for Audrain County and all of its residents,” she explained.
“Every municipality in the county is participating, which is exciting!
I’ve also reached out to the administrations of Van-Far and Community R6 to participate, which they are as well.
The commission is proud of the program and, more importantly, the teamwork we have throughout the county.”
During her last campaign, she promised to advocate for communities and offer assistance with over regulation of cities’ aging infrastructures.
Meyer is currently collaborating with Representative Don Mayhew at the state level for legislation to extend the time for re-certification of sewer systems and inspections.
This summer, she was also able to earn a commitment from Senator Josh Hawley to help with the issue at the federal level.
“I explained the high costs of the regulations for the communities in eastern Audrain County and emphasized that none of the infrastructure money from the federal level has made its way to our smaller communities in rural America,” she explained.
“Senator Hawley promised to work with the commission and city leaderships to right this path.”
With her background in agriculture, she has also focused her efforts representing Audrain County and its agriculture interests on a statewide and national level.
She currently serves as vice-president of the agriculture and rural affairs committee with the National Association of Counties, vice-president of the agriculture and rural affairs committee through the Missouri Association of Counties (MAC) and has offered testimony on legislation in Jefferson City.
She said at the state level, MAC’s ag committee’s priorities are to support legislation for a statewide taxation plan on solar farms, limit the percentage of farmland that can be used for green energy projects in each county, support Representative Mayhew’s legislation of expanding the length of time between sewer and water infrastructure inspections, and tackle eminent domain issues for projects like the Tiger Connector.
Recently, she wrote a priority resolution for MAC that was passed at the annual conference last week.
The resolution calls to extend inspection time of rural infrastructures to 20 years and asks the state to establish a fund to aid communities in paying for upgrades that new standards require.
Members of the MAC board will use the resolution when working with leaders in the state capital.
On the federal level, the NACO Agriculture and Rural Affairs Steering Committee is looking at a variety of topics: infrastructure in rural areas and funding opportunities, improvements upon the Farm Bill as well as its passage, and healthcare in rural America.
Other projects Meyer has worked on since joining the commission are road and bridge improvements, which include the recent bridge replacements on Audrain County Roads 525 and 708; collaborating with other elected officials to set policy and processes to help county residents; economic development opportunities; and continuing to work towards having a hospital in Audrain County.
She said she has also made it a priority to connect the Van-Far School District and the Community R6 School District with new grant opportunities and resources that will help their student populations.
“When EDF Renewables mentioned they wanted to be a part of the community and offered grants, especially to STEM programs, I immediately connected the community relations manager with both school superintendents (because the project is in both districts),” she explained.
“In smaller school districts, those resources mean so much!”
Her priorities for the new term include continuing to assist Audrain County communities with their infrastructure needs.
She will also continue to work with the commission and county engineer to improve small structures and roadways; work on economic development opportunities for Audrain County; represent the county’s interests across all facets of government; and be a positive presence in the community by working together with her fellow commissioners and elected officials to represent all residents.
Meyer has lived in Audrain County since 1999 when she moved to Mexico to take a reporter’s position at The Mexico Ledger. Since then, she worked for KXEO and then owned and operated two small businesses, Social Solutions LLC and Leslie A. Meyer Photography while working alongside her husband and three children, Paige (19), Kat (16), and Wyatt (13) on the family farm.
In her spare time, she is a member of the Vandalia Chamber of Commerce, Mexico Area Chamber of Commerce, Community R6 Boosters, the Audrain County Farm Bureau, is a media coordinator for the Miss Missouri Scholarship Organization and volunteers at a variety of community events.