LB588 LB588
2023 2023
LEGISLATURE OF NEBRASKA
ONE HUNDRED EIGHTH LEGISLATURE
FIRST SESSION
LEGISLATIVE BILL 588
Introduced by Wishart, 27.
Read first time January 17, 2023
Committee: Judiciary
1 A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to cannabis; to amend sections 28-439,
2 60-6,211.08, 77-2701.48, 77-2704.09, and 77-4303, Reissue Revised
3 Statutes of Nebraska, and sections 28-416, 71-2454, and 77-27,132,
4 Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement, 2022; to adopt the Medicinal
5 Cannabis Act; to provide civil and criminal penalties; to create a
6 fund; to change provisions relating to controlled substances, open
7 containers, the prescription drug monitoring system, and taxation;
8 to harmonize provisions; to provide operative dates; to repeal the
9 original sections; and to declare an emergency.
10 Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,
-1-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 Section 1. Sections 1 to 78 of this act shall be known and may be
2 cited as the Medicinal Cannabis Act.
3 Sec. 2. For purposes of the Medicinal Cannabis Act, the definitions
4 found in sections 3 to 27 of this act apply.
5 Sec. 3. Allowable amount of cannabis means:
6 (1) Two and one-half ounces or less of cannabis in any form other
7 than a cannabis product;
8 (2) Cannabis products containing no more than two thousand
9 milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol; or
10 (3) A specific greater amount authorized by a medical necessity
11 waiver pursuant to subdivision (3) of section 39 of this act.
12 Sec. 4. Bona fide practitioner-patient relationship means:
13 (1) A health care practitioner and patient have a treatment or
14 consulting relationship, during the course of which the health care
15 practitioner has completed an assessment of the patient's medical history
16 and current medical condition, including an appropriate examination; and
17 (2) The health care practitioner has consulted with the patient with
18 respect to the patient's qualifying medical condition.
19 Sec. 5. (1) Cannabis means any species of the cannabis plant, or
20 any mixture or preparation of any species of the cannabis plant,
21 including whole plant extracts and resins. Cannabis includes cannabis
22 products.
23 (2) Cannabis does not include (a) any prescription drug approved
24 under section 505 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C.
25 355, as such section existed on January 1, 2023, or (b) hemp or hemp
26 products as allowed under the Nebraska Hemp Farming Act.
27 Sec. 6. (1) Cannabis accessory means any delivery device or related
28 supplies and educational materials used in the administration of cannabis
29 as allowed under the Medicinal Cannabis Act.
30 (2) Cannabis accessory does not include a bong, pipe, rolling paper,
31 or other paraphernalia that is used to smoke cannabis in violation of
-2-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 section 57 of this act.
2 Sec. 7. (1) Cannabis product means a product (a) that is infused
3 with cannabis or an extract thereof or that consists of cannabis resin or
4 extract and (b) that is intended for use or consumption by humans.
5 (2) Cannabis product includes, but is not limited to, a concentrate,
6 a topical product, an ointment, an oil, a pill, or a tincture. Cannabis
7 product does not include an edible cannabis product, except for a pill.
8 Sec. 8. Certified patient means a Nebraska resident who:
9 (1)(a) Has been issued a written certification within the past
10 ninety days;
11 (b) Is not prohibited from participating pursuant to section 54 of
12 this act;
13 (c) Has signed a disclosure form if the department has provided a
14 disclosure form on its web site; and
15 (d) In the case of a patient younger than eighteen years of age, has
16 an affidavit which is signed by the patient's parent or legal guardian
17 with responsibility for health care decisions for the patient, which
18 states that the parent or legal guardian grants permission for the
19 patient's medicinal use of cannabis, and which states that the parent or
20 legal guardian agrees to control the use of cannabis by the patient; or
21 (2) Is enrolled in the registry program.
22 Sec. 9. Department means the Cannabis Enforcement Department.
23 Sec. 10. Designated caregiver means:
24 (1) In the case of a person who is not the parent or legal guardian
25 of a patient, a natural person who:
26 (a) Is at least twenty-one years of age;
27 (b) Has been designated by a patient to assist the patient with the
28 medicinal use of cannabis in a sworn and signed affidavit, signed by the
29 patient, that affirms that the person is the only person serving as a
30 caregiver for the patient unless more than one designated caregiver is
31 authorized by the department as provided in section 34 of this act; and
-3-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 (c) Is not prohibited from participating in the registry program
2 pursuant to section 54 of this act;
3 (2) The parent or legal guardian of a patient if not prohibited from
4 participating in the registry program pursuant to section 54 of this act;
5 or
6 (3) A health care facility as defined in section 71-413 or a home
7 health agency as defined in section 71-417 if the facility or agency has
8 registered with the department and agreed to serve as a designated
9 caregiver.
10 Sec. 11. Dispensary means an entity registered by the department to
11 acquire, possess, or dispense cannabis, cannabis products, and cannabis
12 accessories.
13 Sec. 12. Felony offense means a violation of Nebraska or federal
14 law that is a felony or of another state's law which would be a felony if
15 committed in Nebraska, regardless of the sentence imposed. Felony offense
16 does not include an offense that consists of conduct for which the
17 Medicinal Cannabis Act would likely have prevented a conviction, except
18 that the conduct either occurred prior to the operative date of this
19 section or was prosecuted by an authority other than this state.
20 Sec. 13. Health care practitioner means a person licensed (1) under
21 the Medicine and Surgery Practice Act to practice medicine and surgery or
22 osteopathic medicine and surgery, (2) under the Medicine and Surgery
23 Practice Act to practice as a physician assistant, or (3) under the
24 Advanced Practice Registered Nurse Practice Act to practice as a nurse
25 practitioner.
26 Sec. 14. Laboratory means a person or entity registered by the
27 department to test cannabis for potency and contaminants.
28 Sec. 15. (1) Medicinal use includes the acquisition,
29 administration, delivery, possession, preparation, transfer,
30 transportation, or use of cannabis, cannabis products, or cannabis
31 accessories relating to the administration of cannabis to treat or
-4-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 alleviate a patient's qualifying medical condition or symptoms associated
2 with the patient's qualifying medical condition.
3 (2) Medicinal use does not include:
4 (a) The cultivation of cannabis unless the cultivation is done by a
5 producer; or
6 (b) The extraction of resin from cannabis by solvent extraction
7 unless the extraction is done by a processor.
8 Sec. 16. Nonresident caregiver means a person who:
9 (1) Is the parent, legal guardian, conservator, or other person with
10 authority to consent to the medical treatment of a patient who has been
11 diagnosed with a qualifying medical condition;
12 (2) Is not a resident of Nebraska or has been a resident of Nebraska
13 for less than forty-five days; and
14 (3) Holds a currently valid registry verification or its equivalent
15 under the laws of another state, district, territory, commonwealth,
16 insular possession of the United States, or country recognized by the
17 United States that allows the person to assist a patient to use cannabis
18 for medicinal purposes in the jurisdiction of issuance.
19 Sec. 17. Nonresident patient means a person who:
20 (1) Has been diagnosed with a qualifying medical condition;
21 (2) Is not a resident of Nebraska or has been a resident of Nebraska
22 for less than forty-five days; and
23 (3) Holds a currently valid registry verification or its equivalent
24 under the laws of another state, district, territory, commonwealth,
25 insular possession of the United States, or country recognized by the
26 United States that allows the person to use cannabis for medicinal
27 purposes in the jurisdiction of issuance.
28 Sec. 18. Participating health care practitioner means a health care
29 practitioner who (1) is treating a certified patient and (2) complies
30 with the requirements of section 37 of this act.
31 Sec. 19. Patient registry number means a unique identification
-5-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 number assigned by the department to a patient enrolled in the registry
2 program.
3 Sec. 20. Process means to process harvested cannabis materials into
4 cannabis products or concentrated cannabis.
5 Sec. 21. Processor means a person registered by the department to
6 process cannabis in this state.
7 Sec. 22. (1) Produce means to manufacture, plant, cultivate, grow,
8 or harvest cannabis.
9 (2) Produce does not include:
10 (a) The drying of cannabis by a processor if the processor is not
11 otherwise producing cannabis; or
12 (b) The cultivation and growing of an immature cannabis plant by a
13 processor if the processor purchased or otherwise received the plant from
14 a producer.
15 Sec. 23. Producer means a person registered by the department to
16 produce cannabis in this state.
17 Sec. 24. Qualifying medical condition means a current diagnosis of
18 any of the following conditions:
19 (1) Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis;
20 (2) Autism with frequent or severe self-injurious or aggressive
21 behavior;
22 (3) Cancer;
23 (4) Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis;
24 (5) Epilepsy or epileptic seizures;
25 (6) Glaucoma;
26 (7) Hepatitis C that causes moderate to severe nausea or cachexia;
27 (8) Human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immune deficiency
28 syndrome;
29 (9) Huntington's disease;
30 (10) Parkinson's disease;
31 (11) Spinal cord injury or disease with residual neurological
-6-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 deficits;
2 (12) Terminal illness with a probable life expectancy of under one
3 year;
4 (13) Tourette's syndrome;
5 (14) A serious medical condition, or the treatment of a serious
6 medical condition, that causes severe nausea or cachexia;
7 (15) Severe and persistent muscle spasms caused by multiple
8 sclerosis, spinal cord injury, or muscular dystrophy; or
9 (16) Severe or chronic pain lasting longer than six months that is
10 not adequately managed, in the opinion of a health care practitioner,
11 despite treatment attempts using (a) conventional medications other than
12 opioids or opiates or (b) physical interventions.
13 Sec. 25. Registry program means the voluntary patient registry
14 established under the Medicinal Cannabis Act.
15 Sec. 26. Registry verification means the verification provided by
16 the department that a patient is enrolled in the registry program
17 pursuant to subsection (5) of section 35 of this act.
18 Sec. 27. Written certification means a document that is made in
19 accordance with sections 37 and 39 of this act and that states that a
20 patient has been diagnosed with a qualifying medical condition.
21 Sec. 28. (1) Nothing in the Medicinal Cannabis Act permits any
22 person to engage in or prevents the imposition of any civil, criminal, or
23 other penalties for:
24 (a) Undertaking any task that would constitute negligence or
25 professional malpractice due to the use of cannabis;
26 (b) Possessing or engaging in the use of cannabis:
27 (i) On a school bus or van;
28 (ii) On the grounds of any preschool or primary or secondary school
29 except as provided in section 29 of this act;
30 (iii) In any jail, adult or juvenile correctional facility, or youth
31 rehabilitation and treatment center; or
-7-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 (iv) On the grounds of any child care facility or home daycare
2 except as provided in section 29 of this act;
3 (c) Inhaling cannabis by means of vaporization:
4 (i) Where the vapor would be inhaled by a nonpatient minor child; or
5 (ii) In any public place, including any indoor or outdoor area used
6 by or open to the general public or a place of employment as defined in
7 section 71-5724, other than with an aerosol inhaler;
8 (d) Inhaling or consuming cannabis in a motor vehicle;
9 (e) Having a container or package of cannabis within the passenger
10 area of a motor vehicle in violation of section 60-6,211.08; or
11 (f) Operating, navigating, or being in actual physical control of
12 any motor vehicle, aircraft, train, or motorboat, or working on
13 transportation property, equipment, or facilities, while under the
14 influence of cannabis.
15 (2) Nothing in the Medicinal Cannabis Act:
16 (a) Requires an employer to permit or accommodate the growing,
17 possession, consumption, use, distribution, display, transfer,
18 transportation, or sale of cannabis;
19 (b) Affects the ability of an employer to restrict the use of
20 cannabis by employees;
21 (c) Requires any employer to accommodate the medicinal use of
22 cannabis; or
23 (d) Requires the medical assistance program or any employer or
24 insurance carrier pursuant to the Nebraska Workers' Compensation Act to
25 reimburse a person for costs associated with the medicinal use of
26 cannabis.
27 (3) Nothing in the Medicinal Cannabis Act shall be construed to:
28 (a) Prohibit an employer from including in any contract a provision
29 prohibiting the use of cannabis;
30 (b) Permit a cause of action against an employer for wrongful
31 discharge or discrimination;
-8-
LB588 LB588
2023 2023
1 (c) Prohibit a person, an employer, a corporation, or any other
2 entity which occupies, owns, or controls property from prohibiting or
3 otherwise regulating the growing, possession, consumption, use,
4 distribution, display, transfer, transportation, or sale of cannabis, on
5 or i