Stephen P. Duerst, JD is the Vice President and Senior Director of Policy and Advocacy at Federico // Duerst Consulting, where he focuses on governmental lobbying at the Municipal and State levels in Kansas as well as at the U.S. Federal level. Stephen provides clients with legislative monitoring, public relations, issue management, regulatory counsel, and professional association management services. Prior to working with Federico // Duerst, Stephen helped start Cowan Strategies, a premiere boutique Washington, D.C. consulting firm, which assisted clients with business development, Washington lobbying efforts, and the targeting and entering of foreign markets. Prior to his consulting work, Stephen was hired at the Republican National Committee to assist the organization in its fundraising efforts. In 2012, Stephen was brought onto Governor Mitt Romney’s campaign and was a key member of the finance team that raised nearly $1 billion. Stephen graduated with honors from the University of Wisconsin – Madison and earned his Juris Doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Law.