COLUMBIA — Gov. Mike Kehoe signed Senate Bill 81 into law in an effort to strengthen public safety in Missouri.
The bill covers various issues affecting public safety, including expanding criminal background checks, supporting spouses and families of law enforcement and helping better protect victims of childhood sexual abuse. Another aspect of the bill is aimed at changing fireworks regulations.
Specifically, the bill updates Missouri’s fireworks law to match U.S. safety standards.
John Walker, the vice president of legal affairs for Spirit of ’76, a fireworks supplier, was involved with the development of this section of the bill.
"The Missouri fireworks law was originally enacted in 1985, and since then, there's been little to no substantive changes in the law," Walker said. "But a lot has changed in the fireworks industry since 1985."
This includes new technology and techniques used in current fireworks. Walker says this update allows firework businesses to do business in Missouri with clearer legal parameters. Walker also hopes it can serve as a framework for fireworks laws in other states.
"Missourians buy more fireworks per capita than any other state in the nation, so Missouri is also the home of a lot of the largest distributors and importers of consumer fireworks in the nation," Walker said. "So we felt that Missouri should be the forefront and the leader of that."
It also gives the State Fire Marshal oversight to ensure safe public displays, inspect facilities and enforce compliance. Gale Blomenkamp, Assistant Chief for the Boone County Fire Protection District, said this part of the bill will mainly affect areas without fire codes.
"In Boone County, they can focus their efforts on areas that don't have those same resources to do inspections, and so they can go to those counties or those areas that don't have any fire code, or any inspectors, or any fire marshals, and they can do their work there and make sure that everybody throughout the state of Missouri's being safe," Blomenkamp said.
The bill will go into effect Aug. 28.
