Partner and Chairman Kenny C. Hulshof focuses on strategic planning for KBS, as well as providing hands-on, effective advocacy for KBS clients. The former congressman joined the firm in 2015 and his clients include national leaders in renewable energy, the largest domestic airline carrier in the U.S., a Power 5 athletic conference and the nation’s largest transporter of finished vehicles and logistics.

• While client successes are many and varied, a few highlighted accomplishments include:
• Assisting Kansas authorities in securing nearly $500 million in federal funding to construct the nation’s only Biosafety Level 4-Agriculture laboratory facility in Manhattan, Kansas;
• Pushing the Administration to institute a Federal Rule change for HUBZone designations on behalf of a Midwestern defense manufacturer and maintaining local jobs;
• Working with the Government of Mexico and congressional leaders on trade in updating NAFTA and enacting the U.S. Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA);
• Winning an extension of the biodiesel blenders tax credit in the FY2019 omnibus appropriations bill; and
• Drafting and assisting in the enactment of innovative productivity measures for the automobile transporter trucking industry in the FAST Act.

Before joining KBS, Kenny served as vice chair of Polsinelli Law Firm’s Public Policy practice. He served with distinction in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1997-2009, representing Missouri’s Ninth Congressional District. After defeating a 10-term incumbent in 1996, Kenny was appointed by then-Speaker Newt Gingrich to the powerful Ways and Means Committee. He served on this prestigious committee during his entire congressional tenure and was a member of the Health and Trade subcommittees, as well as the Budget Committee. He established a strong national reputation as a leader with integrity on the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, also known as the Ethics Committee.

Kenny rose to national prominence when he co-authored the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Act. The bill, signed into law by former President Bill Clinton, helps individuals with disabilities lead independent, productive lives. He also championed legislation reflective of his diverse district: education savings accounts; biofuels incentives; telemedicine and health information technology initiatives. Kenny was a key player during the consideration and passage of significant tax legislation during the entirety of his congressional tenure.

Prior to his congressional career, Kenny served as a special prosecutor in the Office of Missouri Attorney General. He also held previous positions as an assistant public defender and assistant prosecuting attorney for Cape Girardeau County, Mo.

Kenny serves on the board of directors of the Congressional Sports for Charity, the group which organizes the annual Congressional Baseball Game for Charity at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. He is a member of Missouri Main Street Connection, an organization which enhances historic downtown business districts in Missouri. And, he is a founding member of the Historic Downtown Charleston (MO) Board of Directors. Kenny has been awarded The Golden Plow Award, from American Farm Bureau Foundation; the Geyer Public Service Award from the MU Alumni Association and the Lon O. Hocker Award for Trial Advocacy from the Missouri Bar.

Kenny splits his time between Washington, D.C., and Columbia, Missouri. He owns and operates his family farm in southeast Missouri, and is also an avid cyclist, musician and historic preservationist. He is a 1980 graduate of the University of Missouri Columbia, with a BS In Agriculture Economics and a 1983 graduate of the University of Mississippi School of Law. He is married to his wife Renee (Howell), and they have two adult daughters.