A Republican lawmaker pushing legislation to legalize recreational marijuana in Missouri says his bill is in jeopardy because of stall tactics by his GOP colleagues and the insistence of the House floor leader that it include license caps.
Rep. Ron Hicks, R-Defiance, said he was initially told his marijuana legalization bill would come up for debate in the House Monday night, with only two weeks left before the legislature adjourns for the year.
Instead, Hicks says House Majority Leader Dean Plocher informed him that the bill would not move forward without further discussion about including caps on licenses to grow, transport and sell marijuana.
Hicks wants no caps at all, saying the free market should dictate how many businesses emerge in the potentially lucrative industry. He argues license caps implemented by the state in Missouri’s medical marijuana industry have created a monopoly and led to the appearance of corruption.
The bill was already facing long odds, Hicks admits, with pending adjournment, the Senate mired in gridlock and continued opposition from the state’s medical marijuana industry.
But Plocher’s resistance has dealt it a potentially fatal blow, he said. [Read more at Missouri Independent]
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Comment *
Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
Notify me of new posts by email.
Δ
The legal cannabis industry is thriving in the U.S., reaching its highest-ever number of jobs and sales, a new report shows. Vangst, a cannabis industry job platform, found that at…
Maine is the newest frontier for the illicit marijuana trade, with potentially hundreds of suspected unlicensed grow houses operating in the state, a CBS News investigation has found. It’s part…
Ten years ago this month, Iowa policymakers made it legal to use cannabis for certain medical treatment, marking the start of what would eventually become Iowa’s existing medical cannabidiol program.…
By Tom Hymes Remediation in the cannabis industry has become an increasingly hot topic as the practice has expanded in legal markets throughout the country, and for good reason. Remediation…