Missouri Cannabis Stakeholders Prepare 2026 Ballot Initiative To Create ‘Unified’ Marijuana And Hemp Regulations

Missouri cannabis activists and industry stakeholders are gearing up for a
push to put an initiative on the state’s 2026 ballot that’s meant to
consolidate regulations and create parity between the hemp and marijuana
sectors.

The marijuana legalization law that voters approved in 2022 enshrined
regulations in the state Constitution, removing lawmakers’ ability to make
certain adjustments. The industry coalition behind the forthcoming
initiative is aiming to strike much of that language and instead give a
constitutional mandate for the legislature to develop statutory rules
themselves.

“In our American tradition, the purpose of a constitution is to define and
restrain the power of governments—not the private sector or the
individual,” Eapen Thampy, a lobbyist for American Shaman, told Marijuana
Moment on Monday. “It’s the job of statutory law to handle regulation of
the private sector.”

“I think this solves a lot of issues for a lot of people,” he said. “The
marijuana guys have this insane regulatory burden created by regulations
that they can’t change, despite the millions of dollars they spent
supporting campaigns for office in the last election cycle.”

The text of the proposal is currently being drafted by an unnamed law firm,
Thampy said during a virtual briefing with stakeholders and advocates on
Monday. The plan is to get the measure filed by August to make the November
2026 ballot.

The effort is being organized under a new political committee called
Missourians for a Single Market, which was formed this monrh.

In theory, the initiative would create a more leveled playing field for the
marijuana and hemp industries, which currently abide by a discordant set of
regulations. What stakeholders want to see is both industries treated more
equitably, with policies that more closely resemble how the state deals
with the alcohol and tobacco markets.

“We’ve got this artificial legal construct called ‘marijuana’ and this
artificial legal construct called ‘hemp,’ and these two legal creations
represent one plant,” Thampy said. “And so the idea here is, it’s one
plant. There should be one unified market. There should be one unified set
of regulations.”

“We have an opportunity in Missouri to pioneer a first-in-the-nation
approach,” he said.

Steve DeAngelo, a well-known marijuana advocate and entrepreneur who has
been involved in multiple successful legalization campaigns in the past and
founded the Harborside dispensary in Oakland, California, also joined
Monday’s video conference and voiced his support for the proposal.

He described the three “pillars” of the industry that he feels should be
unified under a single regulatory model: marijuana, hemp and “legacy”
operators that were in the space before legalization.

“When you bring down the barriers to entry, all of the legacy folks who are
right now out of the legal system would be able to come in,” he said. “So
you create one single, unified market for cannabis across all sectors.
That’s the proposal that I have to advance now.”


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Meanwhile, Missouri’s hemp market has been facing increased pressure from
the state as officials attempt to crack down on businesses selling
intoxicating cannabis products such as THCA outside of the marijuana
program. Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey (R) sent over a dozen
cease-and-desist orders to such businesses this month, threatening
potential legal action for non-compliant businesses.

Lawmakers are contemplating multiple approaches, with different details on
what kinds of products would be allowed and what limits would be set on THC
levels in the products.

In February, legislation allowing low-dose intoxicating hemp beverages to
continue to be sold in grocery and liquor stores was reported favorably by
committees in both the House and Senate but was not enacted into law.

D.C. Hemp Company Sues Feds Over ‘Unworkable Standard’ Created By Marijuana
Budget Rider

*Photo courtesy of Philip Steffan.*

The post Missouri Cannabis Stakeholders Prepare 2026 Ballot Initiative To
Create ‘Unified’ Marijuana And Hemp Regulations appeared first on Marijuana
Moment.