As the Drug Enforcement Agency mulls federal cannabis reform, pro-pot advocates in individual states continue their efforts to free the plant. Industry attention may be on Florida, but one unlikely state is ramping up for a cannabis legalization effort of its own: Nebraska.
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The group Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana (NMM) has gathered enough signatures to put two cannabis-related initiatives on the November ballot. The first, known as The Patient Protection Act, would ensure medical cannabis patients and their certifying health care providers would not be prosecuted for possession or consumption. The second, dubbed The Medical Cannabis Regulation Act, would create a Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission tasked with regulating the state’s industry.
NMM reportedly submitted more than 114,000 signatures supporting both measures, with roughly 89,000 certified so far. Nebraska law states that ballot initiatives must have at least 87,000 signatures to qualify. The signatures must come from five percent of voters in at least 38 of the state’s 93 counties, something NMM achieved.
“Although our fight is not over, we are one step closer to the day that patients in our state will have compassionate access to medical cannabis,” NMM wrote in a Facebook post.
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Republican Governor Jim Pellin declared his opposition to the ballot measure, saying cannabis “poses demonstrated harms to our children.” He told the Nebraska Examiner that medical marijuana should only be allowed if the Food and Drug Administration approves it first.
Nebraska is one of the lone states that has no form of legal cannabis. Advocates from NMM had tried and failed to put medical marijuana on the ballot in previous election cycles. The Nebraska Supreme Court struck down their last attempt, ruling the way the question was presented to voters was flawed.
Barring any court challenges, voters in Nebraska will have their voices heard this November. Pro-cannabis advocates hope patients in the Cornhusker State will soon get much-needed respite and see one of the last prohibition holdouts finally move the needle.
