Jason Grill

Jason Grill serves as the Chief Government Affairs Officer at Right to Start. In this role, he leads all public policy engagement, government affairs efforts and strategy for the organization on the local, state and federal level throughout the United States. Jason's leadership and work at Right to Start has led to 22 US states moving forward with over 65 pieces of legislation on a host of different topics to expand entrepreneurial opportunity, reduce barriers to starting a business, streamline new business processes, cut red tape, and grow young businesses. Many of these 22 US states have signed into law or implemented by executive action, many of Right to Start's policy recommendations, including Nevada, Missouri, Indiana, New Mexico, Kansas, Michigan and Colorado. Additionally, legislation based on Right to Start policy recommendations has passed in states including Texas, North Dakota, Arkansas, Hawaii, Arizona and Oklahoma. 

Jason is a former two-term member of the Missouri House of Representatives and has worked at the White House and at CNN. Jason passed significant legislation under both Republican and Democratic Governors, as a member of the Missouri House.  Additionally, he is the Founder of JGrill Consulting and a Senior Advisor at Parris Communications. In his consulting career, Jason has worked with many clients including with the Kauffman Foundation to start and build the Mayors Conference on Entrepreneurship and other pro-entrepreneur policy engagement on the local, state and federal level.

Jason is a licensed attorney in Missouri and Kansas and has served as advance site lead for Presidential visits. He is a regular political contributor to Fox 4 in Kansas City and the hosted the popular Grill Nation Show on radio / podcast for a decade. Jason served as a contributing writer for The Huffington Post, an on-air contributor for Wall Street Journal Radio, and has been featured in Inc. Magazine, Forbes and Politico.

In 2018, he had a successful entrepreneurial exit from a company he co-founded and started, Sock 101. He serves on the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Greater KC and the Missouri Motion Media Association (Film in MO).

Jason graduated Summa Cum Laude from Saint Louis University and earned a Juris Doctorate (JD) and Certificate of Dispute Resolution from the University of Missouri. Additionally, he completed a semester at Loyola University Chicago's Rome Center in Italy. He is also a graduate of the Kansas City Tomorrow Program, FBI Citizens Academy, the Socrates Program at the Aspen Institute, and is a member of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) Leadership Network.

Jason has been honored with many professional and civic awards in his career, such as the Kansas City Business Journal’s Next Gen Leader Award, Ingram’s Magazine Forty Under Forty Award, Boy Scouts of America’s National Outstanding Eagle Scout Award, Autism Speaks Advocacy Award, and the University of Missouri School of Law Distinguished Graduate Award.

Jason is an avid sports fan who has run 8 marathons (4 majors) and enjoys worldwide travel and golf.