JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Senate gave its stamp of approval on a variety of bills including a measure that removes medical marijuana from the list of controlled substances.
On Thursday, the upper chamber passed four bills, three of which gained unanimous consent. Bill that received a 31-0 vote included a subcharge for DNA profiling, changes to commercial driver’s licenses, changes of controlled substances. Sen. Bob Onder’s bill on employer-employee relationships passed with 24-7 approval.
Sen. David Sater’s SB 6 made significant changes to the laws on controlled substances. The measure removes medical marijuana from the definition of a “controlled substance” and from Schedule I of the controlled substances. It also prohibits the sale of edible marijuana-infused products that are designed, produced, or marketed in a manner to appeal to minors, such as, candies, lollipops, cotton candy, or products in the shape of a human, animal, or fruit.
Under specific circumstances, fentanyl and carfentanil would be added to the offense of trafficking drugs. The measure also upps the penalty for distributing a detectable amount of heroin to a Class B felony.
SB 20, filed by Sen. Doug Libla, extends the expiration of a criminal court surcharge for the DNA Profiling Analysis fund from August 28, 2019, to August 28, 2029.
SB 89, also filed by Libla, makes multiple changes to commercial driver’s licenses. The measure increases commercial driver’s instruction permits to one year and makes them nonrenewable. It also adds test score documents to an exemption from the prohibition against retaining certain driver’s license application materials.
Under SB 38, filed by Sen. Bob Onder, neither a franchisee nor a franchisee’s employees shall be considered employees of a franchisor for any purpose unless the franchisor exercises direct and immediate control over the hiring, termination, discipline, and direction of the employees of a franchisee.
Alisha Shurr was a reporter for The Missouri Times and The Missouri Times Magazine. She joined The Missouri Times in January 2018 after working as a copy editor for her hometown newspaper in Southern Oregon. Alisha is a graduate of Kansas State University.
