Power Profile: Sam Bushman – Cole County Presiding Commissioner

Sam Bushman is “old school.” He sends handwritten thank-you notes (with impressive longhand skills), returns phone calls the same day (even to those who only want to vocalize their displeasure), and prefers to confer with people face-to-face (though the pandemic has limited the ability). 

Bushman utilizes that approach as he works to serve the people of Cole County, MO, as the presiding commissioner. 

“I hope I am serving the people of Cole County well. That is my intention: To serve our county and make it one of the best counties to live in in the United States,” said Bushman . “I came by this — government — late in life but it is still serving people. So, it’s not that different than being in retail.”

By trade, Bushman is the owner of Samuel's Tuxedo & Gifts in downtown Jefferson City. He entered the retail game while recovering from a broken arm — at the time he was seeking the necessary credentials to become an art teacher — and never left. For years, he was encouraged to seek an elected office but had held off. It was when his predecessor, Marc Ellinger, opted not to run again that Bushman threw his hat in the race on a whim. 

“I figured that God will guide me the way I should go,” Bushman said. “I have probably had more fun and met more people than I would have as a teacher.”

Bushman tends to be the first person in the building every morning. He was spending that time going through his email, but as folks learned of his early hours they started dropping by his office when the building doors were unlocked. Bushman noted he is happy to connect with those he serves.

The last year and a half has presented unique challenges to government officials, business owners, and citizens — all categories Bushman falls into. He noted, “2020 was a year I don’t ever want to go through again.”

“It has been a very interesting 15-months. Everything came to a screeching halt. We have changed the way we do things,” Bushman said. The county had planned bicentennial celebrations that were canceled, there were several county improvement projects that didn’t happen, non-essential businesses closed (including Bushman’s), and people were afraid. 

“Cole County never had a mask mandate, but our restaurants followed the guidelines and did social distancing and are still doing a lot of takeout,” Bushman noted. He praised the response of the county health department in handling COVID-19.

“We are getting better every day,” Bushman said. “We just gotta get more people vaccinated.”

Beyond the pandemic, the Cole County commissioners still have their regular tasks to handle, such as setting the budget, which includes the voter-approved renewal of the county sales tax.

“I think our citizens of Cole County understand and appreciate what we do with that money. And we have always been transparent about what we are going to spend the money on,” Bushman said. The revenue from the sales tax is geared toward transportation improvements and a portion is allocated to each community. 

The county government is also working with Ameren Missouri to increase the energy efficiency of its buildings with LED lights, leveraging the utility's incentives through its BizSavers Program, available to all business and commercial customers. Bushman noted, “I think Ameren has done a really good job of trying to get people to use less energy.”

Updating the lighting is just one project on the county’s priority list. Bushman says that everything on the county list is focused on one goal — improving Cole County.