Judge rejects residency requirement for Missouri medical marijuana licenses

A federal judge last week prevented Missouri from enforcing a requirement that medical marijuana licenses go to companies owned by residents of the state.

US District Judge Nanette Laughrey ruled that the residency requirement violated the US Constitution’s commercial clause.

A constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2018 to legalize medical marijuana requires facilities to be “majority owned by individuals who have been Missouri citizens for at least one year prior to filing the application.”

Mark Toigo, a Pennsylvania marijuana investor and minority owner of a Missouri business, granted multiple licenses to filed a lawsuit last year to remove this requirement.

Toigo argues in its lawsuit that the medical marijuana market in Missouri is expected to reach retail sales of $ 175 million to $ 275 million per year. But the residency rules prohibit him from investing more money in a Missouri business if it increases his stake above 49 percent.

The request, the lawsuit said, “limits Mr. Toigo’s economic opportunities in Missouri’s burgeoning marijuana industry.”

The state justified the residency requirement by stating that the Department of Health and Senior Services can only investigate the backgrounds of people who have lived in Missouri for at least a year, Laughry wrote.

But the judge dismissed the logic of this argument, stating in her ruling that an applicant “could accumulate an extensive criminal history and records of financial crimes in Kansas, move to Missouri, and apply for an operating license a year and a day later.” a medical marijuana facility. It is unclear how the permanent residence requirement would help the DHSS to uncover the alleged inadmissibility of this applicant under these circumstances. “

The public interest is best served by “protecting Toigo’s constitutional right to participate fully in the medical marijuana business in Missouri, like a Missouri resident,” Laughrey wrote, “a right likely through permanent state residency get hurt”. Requirement.”

Lisa Cox, spokeswoman for DHSS, declined to comment on the ruling or whether the state would appeal.

The Missouri Independent is a non-profit, non-partisan news organization dedicated to state government and its impact on Missouri residents.