Campaigns sponsoring medical marijuana legalization, paid sick leave, and abortion-related ballot initiatives submit signatures in Nebraska

The signature deadline for initiated laws and amendments was July 3 in Nebraska. Campaigns sponsoring medical marijuana legalization, paid sick leave, and abortion-related initiatives filed signatures with the secretary of state.

The medical marijuana and paid sick leave initiatives are initiated statutes, while the abortion-related initiatives are initiated constitutional amendments.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana filed two petitions containing over 114,000 signatures each aiming to qualify two separate initiated state statutes legalizing medical marijuana. One initiative would enact the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Patient Protection Act. The act would legalize the use of up to five ounces of marijuana for medical purposes by qualified patients. The other initiative would enact the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Regulation Act. The act would legalize the possession, manufacture, distribution, delivery, and dispensing of marijuana for medical purposes. It would establish the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission to regulate and provide the registration for the medical marijuana program.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana filed signatures for two initiatives that would have enacted similar policies in 2022, but the petitions did not meet the state’s distribution requirement, which requires petitions to contain signatures from 5% of the registered voters in each of two-fifths (38) of Nebraska’s 93 counties. The petitions met the distribution requirement in 26 counties.

Paid Sick Leave for Nebraskans submitted more than 138,000 signatures for verification on June 27. The initiative would enact a law requiring businesses to offer earned paid sick leave for employees—up to seven days for businesses with at least 20 employees and five days for businesses with fewer than 20 employees. Employees would earn one hour of paid sick time per 30 hours worked.

In Nebraska, the number of signatures required to qualify an initiated statute for the ballot is equal to 7% of registered voters as of the deadline for filing signatures. As of July 1, the number of registered voters in Nebraska was 1,234,652, which equates to 86,426 signatures.

Campaigns sponsoring competing abortion-related amendments also filed signatures on the deadline. Protect Our Rights is sponsoring an amendment that would add a new section to the Nebraska Constitution establishing a right to abortion until fetal viability. Protect Women & Children is sponsoring an amendment that would amend the state constitution to prohibit abortions after the first trimester unless necessitated by a medical emergency or the pregnancy is a result of sexual assault or incest. Both submitted over 200,000 signatures each and need 123,465 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot.

A veto referendum campaign is still gathering signatures to qualify for the Nov. ballot. The referendum would repeal Legislative Bill 1402, which authorizes the state treasurer to administer an education scholarship program with a $10 million budget. Signatures are due July 17—90 days after the legislature that passed the targeted bill adjourns.

Twelve citizen initiatives were filed for the 2024 ballot in Nebraska. A veto referendum to repeal LB 753, which was passed in 2023 and enacted tax credits for education scholarships for students to attend private schools, qualified for the ballot but was then removed after the state legislature passed legislation replacing LB 753. Five other campaigns relating to taxes, recreational marijuana, and abortion did not submit signatures by the deadline.

Between 2010 and 2022, an average of eight initiatives were filed each election cycle with an average of one certified for the ballot. There are currently no measures certified for the 2024 ballot in Nebraska.