Entrepreneurs' Rights Act bill would exempt small and seasonal businesses from new paid-leave and wage mandates; committee hears mixed views

Representative Verneti presented House Bill 546, titled in committee as the "Entrepreneurs Rights Act," proposing exemptions for small businesses (50 or fewer employees) and seasonal businesses (26 weeks or less) from aspects of recently passed labor measures, including rising minimum wages and paid-leave requirements.

"Businesses are either going to have to cut jobs and push more work onto the remaining employees, pass these additional costs onto consumers, or... decide it's time to do something else," Representative Verneti said in opening remarks, urging the committee to consider protections for small and seasonal enterprises.

Why it matters: The bill responds to Proposition A — the ballot measure that raises Missouri's minimum wage and creates a paid-time-leave mandate — which passed in recent elections. Supporters of HB 546 argued the initiative's paid-leave rules in particular impose compliance and recordkeeping obligations that can overwhelm small, thin-margin businesses and seasonal employers in tourism-dependent parts of the state. Opponents said higher wages and paid leave improve worker stability and that carving widespread exemptions would undercut the voters' intent.

Supporters' testimony: Industry representatives from the Missouri Restaurant Association, Missouri Grocers Association, Missouri RV Parks and Campgrounds, outfitters, bankers and small-business groups testified in support. Buddy Law of the Missouri Restaurant Association said his sector supports reasonable labor policy but urged carve-outs to keep small, seasonal and margin-sensitive businesses afloat. "With industry profit margins in restaurants averaging 3%, these costs force operators to make difficult decisions such as raising prices, reducing staff, or investing in technology to replace human labor," Law said.

Small-business perspectives: Seasonal outfitters and campground operators described the sector's reliance on entry-level and seasonal staff and warned that mandatory paid leave and the administrative burden could reduce hiring of young workers and entry-level opportunities. "If we have to hire less, that means less opportunities for those young folks in areas where they don't have the large outfitters," testified Larry Helms of the Missouri Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds.

Opponents' testimony: Witnesses who opposed the bill or urged caution emphasized that nearly half the state's workforce is employed by small businesses and that many low-wage workers rely on wage increases. Opponents argued that access to a living wage and paid leave reduces churn and benefits families; they warned that exempting businesses broadly could leave many workers without intended protections.

Committee next steps: The committee heard testimony from more than a dozen organizations and individual owners and did not take an immediate vote. Representative Verneti framed the bill as a targeted relief measure; members expressed interest in balancing voter intent with small-business relief and signaled possible amendment options (for example, raising size thresholds, indexing phase-in periods, or narrowing the paid-leave carryover rules).

Ending: HB 546 puts the legislature between voter-approved labor changes and small employers who say the new rules could be disruptive. The committee will weigh the legislative trade-offs between honoring ballot outcomes and addressing implementation burdens on small and seasonal employers.