As Missouri rolls out legal weed, regulators create a new role: chief marijuana equity officer

The position will oversee the equity measure that legalization campaign supporters boast to be the first of its kind in the nation — a microlicense program designed to boost opportunities in the marijuana industry for businesses in disadvantaged communities.
The constitutional amendment legalizing recreational marijuana in Missouri won voter approval in November but created a schism among social-justice activists over the question of racial and economic equity.

Some believe the new law will empower minority marijuana business owners, while others worry it will cement an already distrusted, inequitable business licensing system in place.

Much rides on who is selected for chief equity officer by the Department of Health and Human Services, the state agency tasked with overseeing the marijuana program.