“We’re not pioneering anything new here. What Missouri is doing … is simply aligning our state statutes with federal action.”
By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent
The Missouri House passed a bill Thursday that would ban all intoxicating hemp products — like THC seltzer or hemp-derived THC edibles currently sold at gas stations and smoke shops — beginning in November.
The bill, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Dave Hinman of O’Fallon, would ban hemp products from containing more than 0.4 milligrams of THC per container, among the limits included in a provision of a federal spending bill passed by Congress last year.
Even if Congress were to reverse course and decide to allow the sale of these products, Hinman’s bill would allow them to be sold only at licensed marijuana dispensaries in Missouri. And if Congress chooses to delay the ban for a couple of years, Missouri would ban all products except alcoholic beverages.
With a vote of 109-34, the bill now goes to the Senate for consideration.
“We’re not pioneering anything new here,” Hinman said during Thursday’s debate on his bill. “What Missouri is doing … is simply aligning our state statutes with federal action so that our law enforcement, highway patrol, local prosecutors and the attorney general’s office can work together with our federal partners. No loopholes, no loopholes.”
Republican state representative Matthew Overcast of Ava spoke out against the bill, particularly a provision that says intoxicating hemp products “shall be considered marijuana” and regulated equally.
This would essentially ban all intoxicating hemp sold in the state because marijuana must be grown in Missouri and most hemp is grown elsewhere. It would also require that hemp products be sold in licensed cannabis dispensaries, which can only sell products grown in Missouri licensed cultivation facilities.
Overcast argued that the Missouri constitution already defines what constitutes marijuana, and that only voters, not lawmakers, can change that definition. And while proponents say the changes are necessary to protect children from getting these products, Overcast said, the reality is the bill will only protect the marijuana industry from competition.
“We cannot rewrite voter-approved language by statute because some market participants prefer less competition,” Overcast said. “If protecting children was really the goal, we know what works: age restrictions, standards, clear labelling, packaging protections, responsible retail rules.”
Hinman said he believes Missouri lawmakers have the power to make that change.
“The (Missouri) Constitution defines marijuana as anything from the hemp plant except industrial hemp,” Hinman said. “Cannabinoid products derived from hemp are not industrial hemp. They are intoxicating.”
The cloud also argued invoice does not allow Missouri to continue to comply with federal guidelines. If Congress were to pass legislation allowing states to sell intoxicating hemp products outside of marijuana dispensaries, Overcast said Missouri businesses would not be able to do so because Hinman’s bill allows them to sell only within what he called a “marijuana monopoly.”
“That’s not public safety, that’s not security policy,” he said. “This is about picking winners and losers.”
State officials estimated in 2024 that 40,000 food establishments and smoke shops and 1,800 food manufacturers were selling products that would be banned under the proposed federal regulations. This includes low-THC seltzers such as Mighty Kind and Triple, which have grown in popularity in liquor stores and bars.
Hinman’s legislation is one of the first bills to pass the House this year. He previously told The Independent that the legislation was a priority for state leadership, including the governor, attorney general and House speaker.
It will be the fourth year Missouri lawmakers have tried to regulate intoxicating hemp productsending the previous discussions in deadlocks.
Hinman told The Independent Thursday evening that he is “pro-small business” and that this was not a bill he wanted to pass this year, but the state is in line with the coming federal cuts.
“All of last year and right up until this federal decision, I was pushing to make the drinks and low-dose gummies available for those small businesses to sell,” he said.
For 10 months last year, he said, he tried to bring together hemp business owners to propose a regulatory framework outside of marijuana rules.
“And they couldn’t come to a conclusion about what would be acceptable,” Hinman said.
Limiting the products to being sold only at cannabis dispensaries also wasn’t his priority, he said, but it’s a regulatory framework the state already has in place.
His original language stated that Missouri would delay its ban if the federal government did, but he said that would inadvertently leave the products unregulated in the state indefinitely.
“And then we’re back to trying to create a regulatory framework for hemp products,” he said. “The attorney general was not happy because he wants to get something done. And of course, the police do … their hands are tied with continuing an unregulated market.”
If Congress decides to allow low-dose THC hemp products to be sold outside of dispensaries, Missouri would have to go back and pass legislation allowing that, he said.
Republican state representative Jeff Myers of Warrenton advocated closing the loopholes that opened up when Congress legalized hemp in the 2018 Farm Bill.
“All we’re saying is the federal government stepped back and dealt with a loophole that was exploited,” he said. “We’re closing that gap.”
This story was first published by the Missouri Independent.