Missouri lawmakers are still figuring out exactly how to best regulate the state’s nascent intoxicating hemp market, as new competing bills show a deepening rift between industry players over distribution systems and product restrictions.
Three prefiled bills propose different regulatory frameworks for hemp-derived products, which can currently be sold in bars and coffee shops statewide without formal oversight, according to the Missouri Independent.
“We don’t have any mechanism to regulate them right now, and so they’re in no man’s land,” Steven Busch, owner of Krey Distributing, told the outlet. “And that’s our biggest problem right now – that there are no rules.”
Two competing bills backed by alcohol industry veterans would implement a three-tier distribution system similar to alcohol regulation. A third proposal, supported by the Missouri Hemp Trade Association, is expected to be filed soon, the Independent reported.
The bills differ significantly on THC content limits. Legislation backed by Busch would cap edibles at 5 milligrams THC per serving and beverages at 10 milligrams, while the trade association’s proposal allows up to 100 milligrams per serving for medical users.
“If they were taking something that’s been federally legal for the last six years, in August they’re going back to being a criminal again,” South Point Hemp manufacturer Brian Riegel told the Independent, referring to medical users.
The hemp trade association strongly opposes the three-tier distribution system, with spokesman Craig Katz telling the outlet that it “creates a monopoly on behalf of the distributors.”
A fourth bill, backed by the Missouri Cannabis Trade Association, would restrict intoxicating hemp sales to licensed marijuana dispensaries. The association’s executive director Andrew Mullins questioned whether the state should establish a “dual, parallel, expensive system of regulation” for similar products.
The legislative push follows months of regulatory uncertainty. In August, Missouri Gov. Mike Parson tried to ban intoxicating hemp products through executive order, citing public health concerns, Green Market Report previously reported. The order faced implementation challenges after Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft refused to sign off on the plan.
Parson’s administration also requested $877,000 to fund additional food inspectors and $160,000 for legal staff to handle potential enforcement challenges tied to his earlier executive order, the Independent reported.