Missouri Sparkler Laws – Can I Have Sparklers at My Wedding in Mo?

TL:DR Missouri residents can purchase sparklers at a number of retailers year round legally or online from us. without fear of getting fined by the State.

Can I use Sparklers in the State of Missouri for my Wedding, I’m confused?

Short answer is yes. The internet, what a lovely machine we have created. Now, most of the time when searching on Google you find helpful information, and sometimes you get a lot of, well, disinformation. There are some unscrupulous sparkler and fireworks vendors from other states that would rather see Missouri Residents and Brides worry than sell their generic white label sparklers online to you.

Recently there has been some rather strange disinformation posted on the internet regarding sparkler use for weddings in the State of Missouri. We’re not sure who, what or why but we recently had a Bride to be literally crying asking us about Missouri Fireworks Laws. She was so confused because she had called her venue, wedding planner and then us because she read somewhere on the internet that sparklers were illegal to use at weddings in Missouri (why her sparkler vendor shipped them to her is beyond us!*). Cold Hearted and Vile!

We’d like to clear the air regarding wedding sparkler use in Missouri and give you reassurance that sparklers at your wedding is just fine with the State of Missouri. You will not get in trouble or get fined by the State.

We recently posted a helpful reminder to our customers covering in detail if sparklers could be shipped on planes. Within this post we covered what sparklers are, their classifications and how they are not classified as fireworks according to UN and USA standards. Let’s expand upon that post a bit.

Sparklers (we sell) are novelties:

Again, what are sparklers? They are novelties and as such are regulated differently than fireworks in Missouri. As a matter of fact sparklers are not regulated at all by the state.

3.2 Novelties The following devices do not require approval from DOT and are not regulated as explosives under the provisions of  this Standard, provided that they are manufactured and packaged as described below… Novelties must be packaged in strong outer packagings that are sealed to prevent leakage of the contents. Each package, and overpack if used, offered for surface transportation must be plainly marked NOVELTIES, NOT REGULATED, EXCEPT WHEN TRANSPORTED BY AIR, IN CONFORMANCE WITH APA STANDARD 87-1. If novelties are transported by aircraft, they must be classed, labeled, anddescribed as Flammable Solid, Inorganic, n.o.s (Novelties), UN3178.

There are some sparklers that are in fact classified as fireworks and really should not be shipped via common carrier within the USA according to 87-1. Big fines for the retailer who sells non-novelty sparklers (aka neon sparklers), no fines for the consumer. We do not sell those online, however you can purchase them from many locations in Mo at various times during the year. Contact us if you’d like to know which sparklers are classified as fireworks and therefore could be difficult to legally ship without proper documentation.

Sparklers are not fireworks and therefore not regulated by the State of Missouri:

Simply put, The Missouri State Fire Marshal’s office does not regulate sparklers, sparkler use, sparkler sales or sparkler shipping because they are not classified as fireworks by their office. Their website isn’t exactly clear so maybe that’s why the misinformation is out there. So when we contacted them at their email address they confirmed that fact.

But I read that fireworks can only be sold during certain times of the year within Missouri?

Well that’s not really the case. There are 3 types of retailers according to the Missouri State Regulations in a document called 11 CSR 40-3.010 that can get permits to sell fireworks in Missouri, they are:

• Seasonal Permits: Most seasonal permits are issued to non profits like your local church, Boy’s Scouts or Women’s League for road side tents. (I) Fireworks season, the period beginning on the twentieth day of June and continuing through the tenth day of July of the same year and the period beginning on the twentieth day of December and continuing through the second day of January of the next year, which shall be the only periods of time that seasonal retailers may be permitted to sell consumer fireworks;
• Wholesaler: A wholesaler can sell fireworks year round to wholesale customers and out of state consumers. They can also sell novelties (such as confetti poppers) and sparklers year round to everyone. This is so obvious that it’s not specifically spelled out in the state statute. Two of the largest importers of fireworks in the World are head-quartered in Missouri, Black Cat / Winco in Lone Jack, Mo and Fireworks Over America in Springfield, Mo. Do you really think the state of Missouri is hating on these girls to bring in revenue? Leave it to an out of state generic white label cheap sparkler vendor to leave you to believe otherwise.
• Manufacturer: Quite simply manufacturers make fireworks which again have nothing to do with Sparklers in the State of Missouri. Zenith Specialties is one of the last brands of fireworks proudly Made in the USA. They produce top notch products and should get our support and not be tangentially disparaged by a misinformation attack from jealous competitors. Seriously if you see a Zenith firework sold near you, buy it. It may be a tad bit more expensive but they are a dying breed. Some generic sparklers and fireworks importers buy only from China. Have some pride and help fellow hard working Americans doing the right thing by standing by their family business for over 100 years.

Can I purchase sparklers locally in Missouri without being scared?

Around the holiday seasons listed above there are literally thousands of locations in Missouri that you can legally purchase sparklers from without any sort of problems at all. Most of them are non-profits doing hard work for charity. Out of season, most wholesalers do not actually stay open to the public, however near Kansas City you can go to the Winco Outlet in Lone Jack or Fireworks Over America Superstore Odessa. There are probably 50 wholesalers spread all over the state that would sell you sparklers if you called them. And of course you can buy sparklers online from us all year round.

So what wedding venues allow sparklers in Missouri?

Well from all of the pictures in the local bridal magazines there are apparently quite a few near Kansas City. Call ahead to determine which venue is best for you. Most venues allow it unlike in Minnesota.

photo: CC 2012 Philip Leara

* She returned the generic sparklers with a return fee after she saw what a joke they were and we pointed her to a local dealer hours before her wedding.

With much love and secure purchasing, Wedding Sparklers USA