Up to an estimated $879 million in LGBTQ+ household and business income has left Missouri in recent years, as queer residents flee a hostile political environment, according to a recent analysis by the Movement Advancement Project (MAP).The state lawmakers responsible for creating this financial drain were warned, the Missouri Independent reports. Related Republican AG sues cities for Christian counselors right to turn LGBTQ+ youth straight For years, business organizations, advocacy groups, and individuals cautioned officials pushing discriminatory laws that the economic fallout would be one deleterious result.Local officials and chambers of commerce raised red flags about impacts on workforce recruitment, employee retention, and the ability to lure businesses to the state. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Now, economic data is confirming those predictions.The new $879 million estimate on Missouris losses is based on asurvey conducted by MAP in collaboration with The Trevor Project, the LGBTQ+ youth nonprofit.When people feel unwelcome or uncertain about their future in a community, they often take their skills and their families elsewhere, Tracey DeMarea, executive director of the Mid-America LGBT Chamber of Commerce, told The Independent. That loss affects our workforce, our businesses, and our shared sense of community.A2023 Wells Fargo reportrevealed that states with bigger LGBTQ+ populations have higher rates of economic growth, while the inverse is also true.Multiple surveys and studies show that LGBTQ+ people young adults in particular have moved or are considering moving from states hostile to LGBTQ+ rights. An estimated 3% of cisgender young people and 5% of all trans people have already fled red states.The economic impact of ideological legislation on the broader community is often lost on the lawmakers pushing it, according to Naomi Goldberg, MAPs executive director. The responsibility of lawmakers is to represent communities across the state, and when they pass laws that target already vulnerable communities, they should consider their actions, she said. When families choose to leave the state, the loss is not only in the vitality and diversity of the community, but also in the economic power and resources that families provide.One example of the warnings came in 2024, during a marathon hearing on multiple bills, including proposed rules covering restrooms in private businesses. Lobbyists stayed up late explaining to lawmakers that the bills were a threat to free enterprise and business development.Businesses want to ensure that people feel comfortable and safe in their workplaces, Kara Corches, president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told committee members. Their ability to recruit and retain talent is their top concern. Henry Eubank, governmental affairs coordinator for Greater St. Louis Inc., said that the discriminatory legislation before the committee depicted Missouri as unwelcoming.It sends a powerful negative signal to potential residents, investors, businesses, and workers, he told lawmakers, that the state of Missouri is not a place that they would want to visit, live, to do business, to start a business, or move their family.Missouri has passed a slew of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation since, while the states attorney general has sued to uphold conversion therapy, gone after trans women in locker rooms, and targeted healthcare workers for assisting trans youth.The last was the final straw for St. Louis restauranteur Rob Connoley, who is gay. He was a newly awarded James Beard finalist for his Ozark cuisine when he was in London representing Missouri at an international food festival not long ago.It felt egregious and awkward to be promoting a state in a region that was actively working against my own personal interests, he told The Independent.So Connoley packed up his kitchen and headed to Oregon.It made more sense for me to take my entrepreneurial skills and go to a community that I think would be more supportive of what Im trying to accomplish, he said.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.