Section 195.758

Title XII PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE

Chapter 195

Effective - 28 Aug 2018, 3 histories, see footnote   (history) 

  195.758.  Monitoring system, recordkeeping requirements — inspections, when — destruction of crop, when — aerial surveillance — coordination with local law enforcement. — 1.  Every grower or handler shall be subject to an industrial hemp plant monitoring system and shall keep industrial hemp crop and agricultural hemp seed records as required by the department.  Upon three days' notice, the department may require an inspection or audit during any normal business hours for the purpose of ensuring compliance with:

  (1)  Any provision of sections 195.740 to 195.773;

  (2)  Department rules and regulations;

  (3)  Industrial hemp registration or agricultural hemp seed production permit requirements, terms, or conditions;

  (4)  Any industrial hemp plant monitoring system requirement; or

  (5)  A final department order directed to the grower's or handler's industrial hemp or agricultural hemp seed operations or activities.

  2.  In addition to any inspection conducted under subsection 1 of this section, the department may inspect any industrial hemp crop during the crop's growth phase and take a representative sample for field analysis.  If a crop contains an average delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol concentration exceeding three-tenths of one percent or the maximum concentration allowed under federal law, whichever is greater, on a dry weight basis, the department may order any grower or handler to destroy the crop.

  3.  If such crop is not destroyed within fifteen days of the grower or handler being notified by the department by certified mail that the crop contains concentrations exceeding those set forth in subsection 2 of this section, and directing the grower or handler to destroy the crop, such grower or handler shall be subject to a fine of five thousand dollars per day until such crop is destroyed.  Such fine shall be in addition to any criminal liability the grower or handler may incur, except that no such penalty or fine shall be imposed prior to the expiration of the fifteen-day notification period.

  4.  The Missouri state highway patrol may perform aerial surveillance to ensure illegal industrial hemp or marijuana plants are not being cultivated on or near legal, registered industrial hemp plantings.

  5.  The Missouri state highway patrol may coordinate with local law enforcement agencies to certify the destruction of illegal industrial hemp and marijuana plants.

  6.  The department shall notify the Missouri state highway patrol and local law enforcement agencies of the need to certify that a crop of industrial hemp deemed illegal through field analysis has been destroyed.

­­--------

(L. 2018 H.B. 2034)