Power Profile: Sen. Jason Bean
Twenty-one days. That’s how long Sen. Jason Bean, a farmer by trade, lived without power in the winter of 2009. An ice storm had swept through southeast Missouri and took out the energy grid in the process.
From that experience, the newly sworn-in legislator saw firsthand the result of outdated infrastructure. It gave him a unique look at how modern amenities play into everyday lives and the energy grid necessary to deliver them.
“A reliable energy source is so important,” Bean stressed. And not just for residents. “When you have companies looking at an area, power plays an important role. They have to have to good [power] lines.”
Ameren Missouri’s Smart Energy Plan is geared toward upgrading the power grid throughout its service territory. The technology Ameren Missouri is installing will help prevent some outages and reduce the time Missourians are without power.
Modern infrastructure is not just an upgraded power grid, according to Bean. It is also access to broadband internet, which is why he has sponsored Senate Bills 184 and 185. The legislation proposes taking advantage of the infrastructure Ameren Missouri is currently building to get internet to areas lacking high-speed service.
“I’ve seen how important broadband is in my area. I’m pretty lucky. Where we live rural broadband is becoming more accessible. But if you look at my district as a whole — Butler, Shannon, and Carter counties — it is really tough to get high-speed internet,” Bean said. “There are so many different reasons why it is important: Industries look at internet capabilities. With COVID-19, people are working remotely, and so many children are going to school virtually.”
Expanding access to broadband is just one of his priorities for the 2021 legislative session. Bean also wants to focus on workforce and economic development. Those priorities play into why he ran for the state senate in the first place: To give children the same opportunities he had growing up.
“When I grew up in southeast Missouri, we had so many opportunities. Take Kennett, Missouri, for example. If you needed a suit, you went into town and bought a suit. If you were in town at 3:30 p.m. when the factories let out, traffic was a problem. Today, those factories are gone and many of the storefronts are empty,” Bean said. “It is not just my hometown. It is all across the Bootheel.”
It’s why he aims to bring economic development and workforce development back to the area. Bean does not expect it will be easy but plans to utilize the perseverance he learned on the farm.
A fifth-generation farmer and son of a former-state representative, he knows not every day will be a “bright, sunny day.” Bean — who cultivates rice, cotton, corn, soybean, watermelon, wheat, and potatoes — noted that his family has had crops ruined by hailstorms, floods, sandstorms, and other disasters. Yet, through the many trials, they have persevered.
“If you want something, you have to work for it,” Bean said. And he wants to be a senator who gets the job done.