As Nebraska officials face criticism over attempts to significantly scale back a voter-approved medical marijuana law, an Native American tribe within the state has now approved its first license for a vertically integrated cannabis operation since approving legalization in its borders earlier this year.

At its first meeting on Monday, the Omaha Tribe of Nebraska’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission discussed proposed rules to stand up the tribal marijuana market. They also agreed to license the tribe itself to move forward with next steps in setting up the industry for launch.

The draft rules weren’t adopted at the meeting, but the tribe’s attorney general, John Cartier, said that in time he wants the territory to “stand as a direct contrast to that dysfunction and show that the will of the voters is being respected, at least on the Omaha Reservation.”

“We’re prepared to move forward to grant access to the folks that need help through medical cannabis,” he said.

Under the legalization code that the tribe adopted in July—making it the first to enact such a reform in a state where lawmakers have long resisted the policy change—adults 21 and older can purchase and possess up to an ounce of cannabis as long as they’re on the tribal land.

Arthur Isagholian, a member of the cannabis commission, cautioned at the meeting that, “If you violate rules off of the tribal land and you get caught with product that you purchased on tribal land, you’re kind of on your own,” as NTV reported.

While the tribe approved a vertically integrated license for its own purposes to help streamline the implementation of legalization in the territory, it’s unclear when the regulatory rules will go up for a vote and open up opportunities for legal sales.

The tribe’s license “will be subject, obviously, to our published rules and regulations—but just so the tribe is able to start working towards agreements, equity and funding while we’re hashing this out,” a member said.

The commission will be meeting once a month, and it’s expected that at least some of the proposed regulations will be approved when members come together again in November.

In a press release ahead of Monday’s meeting, the tribe’s attorney general had some choice words for state officials.

“While Nebraska’s process lurches from delay to debate, we’re doing the one thing patients and businesses need—governing,” Cartier said. “On October 27, we give Nebraska a greenlight: clear rules, real oversight, and a workable, well-regulated industry rooted in sovereignty, safety, and common sense.”

“We want to stand as a direct contrast to that dysfunction [at the state level] and show that the will of the voters is being respected, at least on the Omaha Reservation, and we’re prepared to move forward to grant access to the folks that need help through medical cannabis,” he said.

He’s not alone is the criticism. Advocates have strongly pushed back against the state after a governor-appointed panel put forward proposed rules for the medical cannabis market, including prohibitive purchasing limits.

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While the state approved its first medical cannabis business license to a cultivator, there is still no lawful means for patients to access products yet.

Meanwhile, last month Nebraska activists have filed an initiative to legalize marijuana and establish a constitutional right to use cannabis for adult over the age of 21. If organizers collect enough valid signatures from registered voters, it could appear on the 2026 ballot.

The marijuana reform push also comes as the state attorney general is cracking down on sales of intoxicating hemp-derived products, including those containing delta-8 THC.

Las year’s approval of two medical marijuana ballot measures came after an earlier attempt in 2020 gathered enough signatures for ballot placement, but saw the measure invalidated by the state Supreme Court following a single-subject challenge. Supporters then came up short on signatures for revised petitions in 2022 due in large part to the loss of funding after one of their key donors died in a plane crash.

Photo courtesy of California State Fair.

“We shouldn’t be harassing people who are trying to do the right thing and paying their taxes.”

At IgniteIt’s Market Spotlight: California, Treasurer Fiona Ma told a packed room what many licensees have been saying for years — then laid out where the fixes need to happen.

Why the treasurer matters here

A treasurer is basically the state’s banker. All revenues flow through Ma’s office; roughly $3 trillion a year by her tally. She invests a portfolio in the $150 to $250 billion range, balances it daily to six decimals, and issues California’s bonds for infrastructure and the UC and CSU systems. When finance policy closes doors, she sees it first. When a legal industry cannot access programs or capital, she sees the gap. As she reminded the crowd, the governor is not her boss. Voters are.

During COVID, California pushed out about $28 billion in state grants. “Not one penny could go to cannabis because it’s still Schedule I [substance].” That single constraint still shapes how the industry banks, borrows, and plans.

What she told operators, straight up

Enforcement is upside down. Ma described agencies targeting licensees they can find (because they can find them) while obvious illicit activity lingers for months. She called for coordination and a focus on actors who refuse to play by the rules. She added that during COVID, many state workers were not on site, and even now average about two days a week, which weakened enforcement.

Also read: Every Two Minutes, Someone in America Is Arrested for Marijuana

Tracking is clunky and duplicative. Operators maintain internal systems, then layer METRC on top. The result is redundancy, cost, and confusion.

Leakage is real, tax capture is not. California still produces at scale. Newer markets are thriving without matching in-state production. The product is coming from somewhere, and too much of it bypasses legal channels and taxes. On how Prop 64 has played out, Ma was blunt: “Ten years later, it is a failure.”

Reliable state programs are thin. Asked what cannabis can actually count on at the state level, her first answer was stark: “Nothing. … Not much.” She noted that only one state loan program is currently accessible to cannabis businesses. An audience member flagged OCAL under CDFA as a bright spot, and Ma welcomed highlighting anything that works.

Banking remains a choke point. Ma backed financial institutions that chose to serve cannabis and said many charge high due diligence fees. Support helps, but cost and coverage remain uneven.

Budget context is real. California faces a structural deficit of about $20 billion a year. Ma’s argument is fiscal as much as philosophical: fix the legal market, grow the taxable pie, stop pretending the illicit delta is invisible.

The federal piece

On the path forward, Ma did not mince words: “It should be descheduled completely.” Her concern is practical. Push cannabis toward a pharmacy counter with ID checks and prescription-style rules and access gets clunky while the illicit market keeps its edge. True descheduling would unlock normal banking, modernize compliance, and let regulators focus on safety and bad actors rather than paperwork hunts.

A regulator who speaks like a human

Ma’s relationship to the plant is not theoretical. She mentioned using gummies to manage sleep through a tough stretch. It landed because it was simple, relatable, and said without posture.

Politics in the room

On stage, Ma was introduced with an enthusiastic nod toward a run for lieutenant governor. She urged the industry to talk to every candidate in the next governor’s race and find out who actually understands the issues. The response from operators and investors was loud.

What to do now if you are plant-touching

1. Make your books bulletproof. Treat audits, KYC, and traceability as daily hygiene. If you run parallel tracking, make sure the data matches every time.
2. Push for rational enforcement. Support efforts that prioritize illicit-market reduction over low-hanging paperwork targets.
3. Engage early. These races will shape enforcement priorities, banking access, and tax design. Know who gets it.

About the event, and what’s next

These remarks were delivered at IgniteIt Presents: Market Spotlight, California. The series moves to the Midwest next.

If California is the stress test, Ohio is the next checkpoint. The questions Ma raised in California are the same ones Ohio will have to answer. Operators who prepare now will be the ones left standing when the noise settles.

Photo: Shutterstock

New Hampshire House lawmakers have given initial approval to a bill that would legalize marijuana in the state—despite expectations that it’s destined to stall out in the opposite chamber or otherwise get vetoed by the governor.

Members of the House Commerce and Consumer Affairs Committee on Tuesday voted 10-7 to advance the proposal from Rep. Jared Sullivan (D) on Tuesday. The vote followed a work session last month at which the panel discussed the cannabis measure.

Part of those discussions involved acknowledgment by lawmakers that, while the House has repeatedly passed similar legalization legislation, few anticipate that it would move in the Senate, assuming the full House approves this latest iteration. Then there’s also the fact that Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) staunchly opposes adult-use legalization.

Nevertheless, the committee passed the bill without further debate. Sullivan previously said it’s worth the effort, at least to force opponents to again go on record with their opposition to a policy popular among voters.

“Most people in this state want it, so our job is to not make the governor’s reelection campaign easier. If this turns into an issue, that’s not our job,” he said last month.

Sullivan, who is running for U.S. Senate, said in a recent interview that he would take the fight for cannabis reform to Capitol Hill if elected.

“The last poll I saw was in April—70 percent of people, including 55 percent of Republicans, want it legal in the state. We need to stop arresting people for this,” he said. “And if we could get that to happen at the federal level, all those states are falling in line, and we would stop arresting people nationwide for something that most people in this state certainly want to see legal.”

“We need to stop ruining people’s lives because they get arrested and get charged with felonies for possession of cannabis,” Sullivan said.

Meanwhile, the same committee earlier this month advanced a separate bill to allow medical marijuana dispensaries in the state to convert from from non-profit organizations to for-profit businesses.

Part of the motivation behind the legislation is the fact that medical marijuana dispensaries, called alternative treatment centers (ATCs) under New Hampshire law, don’t qualify for federal non-profit status. But in the state, they’re considered non-profit organizations, which has resulted in disproportionately increased operating costs.

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Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.
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New Hampshire lawmakers are also gearing up for a busy 2026 session when it comes to cannabis and psychedelics, filing at least a dozen requests for legislative staff to draft reform bills they plan to file next year.

Separately, after the House added provisions to a Senate-passed bill that would allow medical marijuana patients to grow cannabis at home, those measures were stripped in conference.

The governor also said in August that her position on marijuana legalization would not change even if the federal government moved forward with rescheduling the plant—a policy change President Donald Trump is actively considering.

“If federal law changes, I have to comply with federal law,” Ayotte said. “But my position has been, and continues to be, that we should not legalize marijuana in the future.”