The Missouri legislature is still in session with at least 17 bills in play that could have a direct effect on Missouri marijuana laws.
The next Missouri NORML Lobby Day in the Missouri General Assembly will take place Wednesday, March 27, beginning at 11:00 a.m. in the West Alcove on the second floor of the beautiful Missouri Capitol Building! Please join us for this important opportunity to influence legislation in the 2019 session of the Missouri legislature.
The legislators are on Spring Break this week. We are at the midway point in the 2019 session which will adjourn Friday, May 17.
There are at least 17 bills pending which directly impact marijuana laws in our state and others which will indirectly have an impact on people accused of marijuana law violations. Among the bills which still have a chance of moving forward this year is a very progressive decriminalization bill, HB 1095, filed by Rep. Shamed Dogan of St. Louis.
Missouri NORML helped Rep. Dogan draft this bill. Shamed’s bill goes far beyond what any other state decriminalization law has done. It dramatically reduces penalties for both possession and distribution of marijuana in larger quantities than any other state! He has also filed HB 1096, a bill which would restore the right of Missouri farmers to cultivate marijuana on a large scale. Although these bills have not yet been assigned to a committee, it is likely they will go to the Special Crime Committee chaired by Rep. Dogan.
If so, there is an excellent chance they will come out of committee quickly with a positive recommendation for passage by the whole House!
A bill to allow judges discretion to grant exemption from otherwise “mandatory minimum sentences” is moving. HB 113 has already passed the Missouri House and has been forwarded to the Senate.
There are some bad bills moving forward as well. One bill, SB 227, filed by Senator David Sater of District 29 in Southwest Missouri would encourage Missouri employers to drug test medical marijuana patients and discipline or fire them when they test positive.
Another bill, SB 5, also sponsored by Sen. Sater, would make it far more difficult for Missouri citizens to place an initiative on the ballot. Many of us hope to see a full adult legalization initiative on the ballot in Missouri within a few years. This bill would make it much harder to accomplish that.
Fortunately, it is usually easier to stop a bad bill from passing than it is to pass a good bill. Whether or not you can attend Lobby Day next Wednesday, you should definitely call and email your state Senator and your state Representative and ask both of them to vote against any attempt to make it more difficult for citizens to place initiatives on the ballot in Missouri!
Our plan for the day will be to visit with members of the General Assembly, either in their offices or by calling them off the floor of the House or Senate. We should not be shy about doing so. These people are our servants. They are paid with our tax dollars. We have every right to expect them to listen and respond to our opinions.
The mandate of 66% support for medical marijuana from Missouri voters last November has given us a new level of credibility and respect in the legislature. We should make the most of that by showing up next Wednesday, March 27. At 3:00 p.m., we will gather across High Street, just east of the Capitol Building at 3:00 p.m. at Arris’ Pizza to review our experience lobbying and make plans for future lobbying activity.
I also urge you to attend the Spring 2019 Missouri NORML State Conference which will take place on Saturday, April 27, at The 10 Spot KC, 1000 Broadway Boulevard, #300, in Kansas City. This event will run from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and will feature several excellent presentations including a keynote speech by Erik Altieri, the national Executive Director of the National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws, NORML!