The constitutional modification legalizing leisure marijuana in Missouri gained voter approval in November however created a schism amongst social-justice activists over the query of racial and financial fairness.
Some imagine the brand new regulation will empower minority marijuana enterprise house owners, whereas others fear it would cement an already distrusted, inequitable enterprise licensing system in place.
A lot rides on who is chosen for chief fairness officer by the Division of Well being and Human Providers, the state company tasked with overseeing the marijuana program.
By regulation, the state should have a chief fairness officer for its marijuana program in place by Feb. 6 — a place meant to make sure the social and financial fairness necessities of Missouri’s new marijuana regulation are met.
A DHSS spokeswoman mentioned the division will probably be saying the chief fairness officer quickly.
The division posted the place on the state’s job itemizing web site, MO Careers, from Nov. 29 to Dec. 9, in accordance with Lisa Cox, DHSS’ spokeswoman.
“Our positions submit for 10 days externally and internally,” Cox mentioned. “Our jobs are normally picked up and marketed in LinkedIn and Certainly as nicely. We’re working by way of our course of and an announcement will probably be coming quickly.”
Based on the job posting, the chief fairness officer is described as a management place inside Missouri’s Division of Hashish Regulation.
The officer will report on to the division director, and “will train vital independence whereas additionally working carefully with different groups throughout the division,” the job posting states.
The chief fairness officer will oversee the fairness measure that legalization marketing campaign supporters boast to be the primary of its form within the nation — a microlicense program designed to spice up alternatives within the business for companies in deprived communities.
The officer’s tasks embody main communication about this system and conducting evaluations “to certify microbusinesses are eligible candidates and in good standing for licensure.”
That particular person can even create and promote instructional programming across the licensing course of and obtainable assist and assets for people making use of for microbusiness licenses.
The officer will “set up focused technical help programming to communities impacted by hashish prohibition” and compile an annual report on compliance.
Adolphus Pruitt, president of the St. Louis Metropolis NAACP chapter, was amongst those that pushed for the creation of a chief fairness officer place as a part of the legalization marketing campaign.
The NAACP despatched out notices concerning the place, however Pruitt mentioned he was uncertain about how many individuals utilized.
Among the many officer’s most necessary tasks, Pruitt mentioned, is contributing to an annual report that gives “mixture knowledge for every kind of license.”
This may very well be the trail ahead for minority inclusion targets for Missouri’s marijuana business, he mentioned.
The report ought to embody demographic traits of enterprise house owners, Pruitt says, and their staff— which might put the state one step nearer in the direction of weighing racial range within the license software course of.
However to ensure that Missouri to stave off courtroom challenges — usually by white-owned companies — towards such a transfer, the state should conduct a “disparity examine.” Pruitt mentioned the combination knowledge would serve the identical goal as a disparity examine.
“With out having knowledge, there ain’t a lot we will do,” Pruitt instructed The Unbiased in November. “If the state enacts [minority participation] targets with out knowledge, they sue and we lose. We’ve been down that highway earlier than.”
This story was initially revealed on the Missouri Unbiased.