Elections can hold significant consequences when it comes to the future of marijuana policy. In 2016 voters in California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada approved ballot initiatives legalizing adult marijuana use. While voters in Arkansas, Florida, Montana and North Dakota elected to either legalize or expand medical cannabis access. The outcome of the 2018 midterm elections will be […]
Missouri
Missouri Legislature Let Medical Marijuana Die In Last Days Of Session Leaving It To Voters In November
A push in the Missouri legislature to legalize medical marijuana has gone up in smoke. The legislature’s chances to make Missouri the 30th state to legalize medical marijuana died in a conference committee two days before the end of session, leaving the issue up to voters to decide in November. Rep. Jim Neely, R-Cameron, added […]
Missouri Votes Votes To Legalize Medical Marijuana
Missouri voters may have the option to legalize medical marijuana this November. Lawmakers are rushing to get there first. The Missouri House voted Tuesday to legalize medical marijuana and Republican Rep. Jim Neely, the bill’s sponsor and a physician, argued that it was important that the Legislature set the rules for the industry. “If we […]
Missouri House gives initial approval to medical marijuana bill
The Missouri House voted Monday evening in Jefferson City to give initial approval to legislation that would allow people suffering from terminal illnesses and debilitating medical conditions to use medical marijuana. State Rep. Jim Neely, R-Cameron, a physician at northwest Missouri’s Cameron Regional Medical Center, is the bill sponsor. He spoke several times Monday on […]
These 5 States Are Not Making It Easy To Legalize Marijuana
While many states are standing in the way of marijuana legalization, they usually aren’t outright sabotaging efforts to do so. Even politicians who don’t support cannabis end up implementing the new laws if the voters want it. But some states will go to extreme lengths to prevent the voters’ will from becoming law. Here are […]
Missouri Advocate Groups Are Making Another Push for Medical Marijuana
JEFFERSON CITY • Proponents of legalizing marijuana for medical use say 2018 is the year for Missouri. Public opinion has shifted. Money is flowing. And canvassers dot street corners. But we’ve heard this before. After raising more than $1.3 million through June of last year, a group called New Approach Missouri — run by some of […]
New Bill Would Allow for Use, Sale and Growth of Marijuana in St. Louis
A bill filed this week allowing the use, sale and growth of marijuana in St. Louis aims to reduce disproportionate penalties for existing violations and free up time for police to focus on crimes with victims. The bill, sponsored by Alderwoman Megan Green, 15th Ward, would stop enforcement of any laws that permit “the civil […]
With Illinois as a Model, Missouri Could See Medical Marijuana After 2018
A small building nestled off Interstate 70 in Collinsville looks like a typical doctor’s office, until you get inside and look up close at the colorful artwork on the walls. They’re portraits of marijuana plants. At this dispensary, about 12 miles east of the Missouri border, patients and the medical staff have lively conversations about the […]
Kansas City Votes to Limit Marijuana Penalties to $25 and No Jail Time
Kansas City voters on Tuesday decided to lower penalties in city court for people caught with small amounts of marijuana. With 97 percent of precincts reporting, a measure to reduce fines and eliminate jail time for marijuana possession was winning 71 percent of the vote. The measure lowers the maximum fine for marijuana possession in […]
These 11 States May Change Their Marijuana Laws in 2017
After four states legalized recreational marijuana last year and twice that many approved new medical marijuana laws, at least eleven more are considering changing their laws in 2017. Here are the states and the legislation they’re proposing: 1. Connecticut Not only are lawmakers hoping to expand Connecticut’s five-year-old medical marijuana legislation, but Martin Looney, the […]
Missouri Medical Marijuana Initiative Falls Short on Signatures for November Ballots
It looked like 2016 might finally be the year for medical marijuana to gain a legal foothold in Missouri. Opinion polls suggested the state might finally be ready to join places like Colorado. New Approach Missouri, the group formed to bring a ballot initiative to voters in November, raked in an astonishing $1.3 million in […]
Missouri Will Also Be Voting on Marijuana in 2016
Missouri’s 2016 ballot could be filled with weed. Competing proposals, bolstered by growing national support, are seeking to put medical marijuana legalization on the statewide ballot. If approved, Missouri would join 23 other states that have done so. Proponents have an uphill battle. First they need to collect 168,000 valid signatures from at least six […]
Missouri Ponders Medical Marijuana – and the Money to Be Made Selling It
JEFFERSON CITY — Steve Mitchem’s career has spanned from evangelical minister to president of the luxury jeweler Tivol to the controversial world of online lending. For the last few years, he’s also been growing and selling marijuana. The Kansas City businessman is a partner in Buddy Boy Brands LLC, one of Colorado’s largest medical marijuana dispensary […]
Marijuana in Wonderland: Making Sense of a Judge’s Anti-Cannabis Ruling
By Barry Gainsburg “When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.’ ” — Lewis Carroll, from Through the Looking Glass Last week, the U.S. District Court in Northern California declined to declare the federal classification of marijuana […]
Missouri Making Moves to Tax Illegal Drugs and Legalize Medical Marijuana
JEFFERSON CITY — It took a little while for Missouri Rep. Shawn Rhoads’ colleagues to wrap their heads around the idea of taxing marijuana and other illegal drugs. “A drug dealer is supposed to show up and buy a tax stamp for his drugs?”Bill Lant, a Republican from southwest Missouri, asked during a committee hearing on […]
Missouri Lawmakers Hear Emotional Testimony in Support of Medical Marijuana
JEFFERSON CITY — Advocates for increased patient access to medical marijuana, including television personality Montel Williams, shared personal stories while testifying for a Missouri bill that would create a state-monitored distribution program for the drug. Williams and others spoke at a House committee hearing Monday in support of the measure sponsored by a Republican representative. […]
Amber Iris Langston is on the front lines to legalize marijuana in Missouri
Amber Iris Langston became an activist at age 5. After learning her older brothers could take swimming lessons at the pool in her hometown of West Plains, Mo., but she couldn’t, she objected. “You had to be 6,” her mother, Janice Bowden, said. “And she staged an open protest. She started wandering over to the […]
Legalization proposal in Missouri lacks typical restrictions
While states that have already legalized recreational marijuana use must follow strict guidelines, Missouri activists want to propose a far different plan. Mark Pedersen, an author and influential activist, believes marijuana should not take the alcohol and tobacco route when legalizing. “I believe that cannabis needs to be as legal as corn or wheat,” Pedersen […]
