Missouri's Division of Cannabis Regulation now denies new and renewal agent ID cards for disqualifying felonies and requires state and federal fingerprint checks. The emergency rule has been in effect since Sept. 30. Audit renewals and build fingerprinting into every hire.
Missouri's Division of Cannabis Regulation (DCR), under the Department of Health and Senior Services, amended 19 CSR 100-1.070 by emergency rule in the Missouri Register, Vol. 51, No. 21 (Nov. 2, 2026), page 1409. The Register prints that it was filed Sept. 16, 2026, "becomes effective Sept. 30, 2026, and expires March 28, 2027."
The purpose line on page 1409 says the amendment "adds the prohibition against issuing new or renewal agent IDs to individuals with disqualifying felony offenses, and it clarifies the standard of disqualifying felony offense review."
What the emergency rule says
Amended (2)(A)2. states (p. 1409):
No individual may obtain or renew an agent identification card from the department if the individual has a disqualifying felony offense, as defined by Article XIV, section 1.7(2) of the Missouri Constitution, and the department determines no exception in section 1.7(2)(a)-(c) applies.
Amended (2)(E) replaces discretionary fingerprinting with a mandate (p. 1409):
All applicants and renewal applicants for agent identification cards shall submit fingerprints to the Missouri state highway patrol for the purpose of conducting a state and federal fingerprints-based criminal background check to screen for disqualifying felony offenses as defined in Article XIV, Section 1.7(2) of the Missouri Constitution.
The emergency statement on the same page says DCR believes "no additional screening will occur for current employees as a result of this emergency amendment." The bar and fingerprints attach when someone obtains or renews a card.
The statement also explains the filing: on Sept. 4, 2026, the Administrative Hearing Commission found the division lacked authority to screen employees for disqualifying felony offenses, so fingerprints under section 195.817, RSMo, could not by themselves block a card.
What "disqualifying felony offense" means
The CSR does not list specific felony statutes. It points to Article XIV, section 1.7(2) of the Missouri Constitution. That provision defines a "disqualifying felony offense" as a violation of, and conviction or guilty plea to, state or federal law that is, or would have been, a felony under Missouri law, regardless of the sentence imposed, unless the department determines that:
the conviction was for the medical use of marijuana or assisting in the medical use of marijuana; or
the conviction was for a nonviolent crime for which the person was not incarcerated and that is more than five years old; or
more than five years have passed since release from parole or probation, and the person has not been convicted of any subsequent criminal offenses.
Proposed follow-on in the same issue
The Nov. 2 Register also carries a proposed amendment to 19 CSR 100-1.070 (pp. 1428–1430). Among other changes, it would require a recent color face photo, an attestation that fingerprints will be submitted within fourteen (14) days, and notice to the department of felony charges within thirty (30) days (disposition within fourteen). Comments must arrive within thirty (30) days after publication of the notice ([email protected]). No hearing is scheduled.
What managers should do now
Map every agent card expiration through March 28, 2027. Renewals during the emergency need fingerprints and an Art. XIV §1.7(2) screen.
Build Highway Patrol fingerprint turnaround into the offer-to-start timeline, not only the card fee.
Pre-screen offers against the constitutional definition and exceptions with counsel. Do not invent a store felony list.
Treat upcoming renewals as the compliance event. The emergency statement says current employees are not getting a mid-card re-screen from this filing.
Calendar the proposed-rule comment window. Draft SOPs for the 14-day fingerprint attestation and 30-day charge notice if those land, and give hiring managers one written checklist.
Missouri isn't alone
Other states already pair worker screens with felony bars, fingerprints, or both.
Closest to Missouri:
Illinois: Agent cards denied for an "excluded offense" (violent felony or felony CS violation); state and federal livescan (68 Ill. Adm. Code §§1290.210, 1290.230; 1290.230).
Nevada: CCB: "excluded felony offense" means Category A felony or two or more felonies in 10 years; exemption under NRS 678B.633 (CCB FAQ).
Ohio: Division shall deny an employee badge for a defined disqualifying offense; BCI and FBI fingerprints (OAC 1301:18-1-01, 1301:18-3-09; 3-09).
Arizona: Level I fingerprint clearance or full state/federal prints; hard bars include listed violent and felony drug/alcohol offenses (5-year lookback) (A.R.S. §§36-2855, 41-1758.07; 36-2855).
Florida: MMTC staff need Level 2 screening (§435.04, F.S.) and fingerprints before work (Fla. Admin. Code R. 64-4.208; 64-4.208). See Florida MMTC Background Screening Rule 64-4.208.
New Jersey: Cannabis Business ID applicants get NJSP and FBI fingerprints; rehabilitation can overcome a disqualifier (N.J.A.C. 17:30-8.1; CRC fingerprinting).
Pennsylvania: Drug-trafficking felony bar (time lookback); fingerprints to PSP for FBI check (28 Pa. Code §1141a.31; §1141a.31).
Minnesota: Employer may not hire a disqualified cannabis worker; full fingerprints to BCA (Minn. Stat. §342.151; §342.151).
Stricter:
Hawaii: Shall deny hire for murder, class A/B felony, or class C Schedule I/II trafficking (non-cannabis) within 10 years (Haw. Code R. §11-850-17; §11-850-17).
Virginia: No felony in the last five years for dispensing-facility employees or agents (3VAC10-30-140(F); 3VAC10-30-140).
Outliers:
Colorado dropped employee-license fingerprints Jan. 5, 2026 (HB25-1209); name-based checks instead (MED).
California and Washington: no statewide employee agent card or MO-style employee felony/fingerprint screen (Cal. Gov. Code §12952; §12952; WAC 314-55-040; WAC 314-55-040).
Michigan: employer-level check only; CS felony within 10 years needs written CRA permission to hire (MCL 333.27405; CRA FAQ).
Massachusetts: employer CORI (935 CMR 500.030–.031), not state-run agent fingerprints. See The Badge That Follows the Budtender.
FAQ
Q: Does every current budtender need fingerprints this week? A: Not under the emergency statement on p. 1409. The bar and fingerprints apply to applicants and renewal applicants.
Q: Where is the list of disqualifying felonies? A: There is none in the CSR. 19 CSR 100-1.070 points to Article XIV, section 1.7(2): a general felony definition plus three exceptions. Counsel applies that text to a record.
Q: How long does the emergency last? A: Effective Sept. 30, 2026; expires March 28, 2027, as the Register prints. Emergency rules are not renewable; a proposed amendment is in the same issue.
Q: What changed from the old fingerprint rule? A: Prior (2)(E) allowed fingerprints "[i]f authorized or directed by statute." The emergency makes state and federal fingerprint checks mandatory for all applicants and renewals (p. 1409).
Q: Can someone with an old nonviolent felony still get a card? A: Possibly, if an Art. XIV §1.7(2) exception applies and the department so determines. That is a department decision.
Q: When are comments due on the proposed rewrite? A: Within thirty (30) days after publication of the Nov. 2, 2026 notice (pp. 1429–1430). Count the calendar; the Register does not print a "December 2" date.
Sources
Missouri Register, Vol. 51, No. 21 (Nov. 2, 2026), emergency amendment 19 CSR 100-1.070, p. 1409; proposed amendment pp. 1428–1430. https://www.sos.mo.gov/CMSImages/AdRules/moreg/2026/v51n21Nov2/v51n21.pdf
Missouri Constitution, Article XIV, §1.7(2)
Register authority cites: Art. XIV §§1.3(1)(b), 1.3(2), 2.4(1)(b), 2.4(4); sections 195.815 and 195.817, RSMo Supp. 2026