Feb. 21--Missouri on Tuesday launched an Internet-based resource guide designed as a one-stop-shop for small-business owners to access information on operating businesses in the state.

The site, the Missouri Business Portal, focuses on four key areas in business operations: research, registration, maintenance and resources. Its address is www.business.mo.gov.

The website guides small-business owners through the procedures and regulations of registering their businesses with the state as well as cities and municipalities in Missouri. It also provides links to other state and federal agency websites with information on employment taxes, development programs and business consulting.

The portal is a result of several discussions with small employers around the state and planning with multiple state agencies "" all headed by Gov. Matt Blunt and Robin Carnahan, Missouri's secretary of state.

"Small businesses are obviously the economic engine in our state," Carnahan said Tuesday in an interview. "We wanted to make it as easy as possible to start a small business and for those who have one, to help it grow."

The website is a resource that is overdue in the state, said Kevin Wilson, interim director for the St. Louis Small Business Development Center, part of the University of Missouri Extension program. Previously, Missouri typically focused more on larger corporations rather than the local small-business owner, he said.

"I think that this (the portal) is going to help a whole lot in terms of cultivating an entrepreneurial environment in the state of Missouri," Wilson said.