By Theodore Ball, News Intern Nebraska Public Media and Noelle Annonen 
, Multimedia Reporter
May 11, 2026, 5:26 p.m. ·
Nebraska’s Medical Cannabis Commission on Monday approved licensed medical marijuana cultivators to get their products inspected.
It is a necessary procedural step for cultivators to begin offering their product in Nebraska. Advocates for a statewide medical marijuana program see this as a small step in the right direction, but are nonetheless frustrated by what they see as continual delays.
"These are things that should have been done eons ago," said Crista Eggers, executive director of Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana.
Eggers added that before cultivators can begin to sell in Nebraska, the commission must first regulate licensing, fees, transportation and manufacturers. She said it is her understanding that Attorney General Mike Hilgers has had the draft rules on his desk since the last meeting and questioned why nothing has moved.
"That is the final step that has to happen for this program to move forward," she said.
At its previous meeting, the Medical Cannabis Commission sent draft regulations to Hilgers for approval. Those regulations include restrictions on parts of a marijuana plant that may be used, THC limits and licensures for doctors prescribing the drug as a treatment.
Now that the commission has sent regulations to the attorney general, any substantive changes it makes, including any fees added for cultivator inspections, will have to be reviewed through a 30-day public comment period before being signed off on again by the attorney general and the governor. Eggers said this process will likely take months. She estimates no big advances will be made in the medical marijuana program until September, at the earliest.
Hilgers and Gov. Jim Pillen, who also must approve the regulations, have expressed open opposition to the state medical marijuana program and have raised questions about the legality of the measure and the ballot initiative that got it approved. Hilgers' office did not have a comment on the commission's meeting.
Three of the state's four licensed cultivators updated the commission on their progress Monday. Mahomota, based in Raymond, said its outdoor operation is ready now and is targeting a June 1 inspection, while its indoor facility is nearly complete. Meadowlark Medicinals, which operates a remote outdoor grow site in western Nebraska, is also targeting an inspection in the coming weeks. Midwest Cultivator Group is building an indoor controlled-environment facility in Omaha but ran into city zoning complications after receiving its license and is not expecting an inspection until November.
"It's imperative that we plant here in the next few weeks for us to be able to get a crop done," one cultivator told the commission. "If we have to wait for your next meeting, that's going to be a significant delay."
Eggers said if all goes as planned, plants could be in the ground by June 1— something she called a huge step forward.
"That is something that is basic and fundamental for these plants to go in the ground and start growing the medicine," she said.
The commission voted unanimously to allow any cultivator that passes an inspection to begin growing immediately, without waiting for formal ratification at the next commission meeting. No inspector has been designated yet, and the commission said that would be handled internally.
But Eggers was disappointed the commission did not take up a timeline for the next round of licensing — for processors, transporters and dispensaries. Each month that gets pushed back, she said, pushes everything else back. Cultivator Pat Thomas of Mahomota echoed that concern, warning that harvested cannabis degrades quickly, is susceptible to mold and pests, and becomes a major security risk in storage.
He said processors take about three months to set up, and that if licensing is not resolved soon, the fall harvest could arrive with nowhere to go. But the product also cannot be sold without further regulatory decisions being approved by the commission, attorney general and governor.
"The storage is yes, it is possible, but I would say it should be avoided at all costs," Thomas said. "We're really worried that the processors aren't going to be in place."
The commission also approved seed-to-sale tracking systems for cultivators, including Agtech for both Mahomota and Meadowlark Medicinals.
Commissioner Lorelle Mueting also reminded meeting attendees that the federal government recently lowered marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a Schedule III. Mueting said it will take the commission time to ensure that its regulations are in compliance with federal law. All cultivators were also reminded that the reclassification requires them to register with the DEA within a 60-day window.
The meeting ended with commissioners voting to go into closed session to discuss pending litigation.
Advocates feel like their voices are not being heard, with some questioning the commission's intentions as they foresee future delays to the medical marijuana program. Some accused the commission of sabotaging the will of the voters who approved medical marijuana on the ballot.
"I hope the patients survive," Lia Post, a medical cannabis patient, said.
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