As a legislative probe into the rollout of Missouri’s medical marijuana program has expanded into Gov. Mike Parson’s office, a Neosho-area lawmaker is working to remove a cap on the number of medical marijuana licenses set by the state. Though he said he voted against Amendment 2 in 2018, Rep. Ben Baker, R-Neosho, said that […]
Missouri
COVID-19 could cancel Missouri recreational marijuana campaign, says activist group
The future of an effort to get recreational marijuana onto Missouri’s November 2020 ballot is “unclear,” according to a statement circulated early Saturday by Missouri attorney and cannabis activist Dan Viets. Viets is the state coordinator for the pro-cannabis group NORML and is an advisory board member for Missourians for a New Approach, the entity […]
Medical marijuana expo shows Missouri ready to meet demand
At first glance, the trade show at Union Station in St. Louis last week looked like any other home-and-garden show or perhaps a farm-equipment expo with vendors lining the exhibit hall with displays of irrigation equipment, greenhouse supplies and fertilizer products. But it wouldn’t have taken a visitor long to realize this was no ordinary […]
‘This has been a disaster’: How did Missouri screw up medical marijuana licenses?
Missouri’s process for awarding medical marijuana licenses has been disappointingly deficient, to the detriment of patients who believe cannabis can relieve their pain. Voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2018 that cleared the way for medical marijuana in the state. In 2019, the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services launched a complicated process to sort through […]
Missouri legislators continue probe of alleged conflicts in medical marijuana program
Despite hours of testimony in recent weeks from state regulators, Missouri lawmakers still have serious questions about alleged conflicts of interest in the fledgling medical marijuana industry. With widespread reports of scoring irregularities and hundreds of appeals already filed by unsuccessful applicants, the Missouri House’s government oversight committee began holding hearings in early February to […]
Missouri faces complaints over how it licensed marijuana businesses. So who won?
As lawmakers meet again Wednesday to hear complaints about how medical marijuana business licenses were awarded, a review of Missouri records shows some of the country’s biggest pot chains and the board members of a state trade group were among the top winners. While the Department of Health and Senior Services has released only select […]
Group now pushing for marijuana legalization
Fresh off of a victory for medical marijuana activists, a campaign group is now trying to take Missouri one step further and legalize marijuana through a ballot initiative. Missourians for a New Approach announced that it’s collecting signatures to get the initiative on the ballot. According to a campaign official, the group will need about […]
Campaign for Missouri recreational marijuana begins
A week after Missouri officials announced winners of nearly 200 medical marijuana retail dispensary licenses, officials with a group dubbed Missourians for a New Approach announced their intent to campaign for a recreational, or “adult-use,” marijuana initiative. They want to get recreational marijuana onto the November ballot. “We believe Missourians are ready for this,” campaign […]
Hundreds denied Missouri medical marijuana business licenses — and it’s not clear why
Leisa Stevens thought she had compiled a fairly competitive application to start growing cannabis on 30 acres near Kansas City International Airport. To get in on Missouri’s fledgling medical marijuana business, she scoured the state’s rules, hired an engineering firm and brought an attorney on board. She found a security expert and worked with an […]
Missouri Commercial Hemp Farming Update
By Daniel E. Tranen and Neil M. Willner There is a great deal of interest in Missouri regarding the opportunities the state offers in the commercial hemp farming business. Hemp is a burgeoning new cash crop with scores of applications from fabric to “hempcrete” to drywall to biofuel. Of course, hemp also is the source […]
