“Tere was one time during a committee hearing that I was testifying for a bill while my dad was testifying against it,” Overfelt recalled. “Tat certainly was an interesting day.”
COMMON GROUND
Aſter graduating from the School of Journalism at the University of Missouri- Columbia, Overfelt covered local sports for an Arkansas newspaper for a few years. He returned to Jefferson City in the early 1980s and worked for the Missouri Department of Revenue as a lobbyist for one year.
Tis opportunity with the state set in motion Overfelt’s lobbying career in financial services. In October 1983, Overfelt joined the Missouri Savings & Loan Association. During the 1980s and 1990s, lobbyists for various large banks were a fixture in the
Missouri Capitol, in addition to Overfelt and Bill Ratliff, MBA’s former lobbyist.
“Building coalitions was the key to getting things done at the Capitol,” Overfelt said. “You worked to find common ground on the issues, and this helped foster great relationships with other associations.”
It was this type of camaraderie and respect that prompted discussions about Missouri Savings & Loan Association joining MBA. In November 2001, Overfelt and MBA President & CEO Max Cook signed documents that officially solidified this merger between the associations.
THE TEAM
With Overfelt now on board, MBA had another strong voice advocating for its members at the Missouri
Craig Overfelt MBA Senior Vice President
Capitol. Tis team of Overfelt and Ratliff, along with Cook and former MBA lobbyist Chris Lepper and MBA general counsel Wade Nash, was respected by members of the Missouri General Assembly.
“MBA is known for its great reputation to get things done at the Capitol,” Overfelt said. “I’ve been told by lawmakers that whatever issue we were working on was the right thing to follow.”
Tat reputation still holds true today. Overfelt and
Cook hold the distinction of working with both the trailblazers — Ratliff, Lepper and Nash — and the new emerging voices for the banking community, David Kent, Emily Lewis and Keith Tornburg.
“Tey’ve done a great job of carrying on the tradition, and I know they will continue to do so,” Overfelt said.
FOSTERING RELATIONSHIPS
From January to May of each year, Overfelt walked the halls of the Capitol as
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