The Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission, still behind statutory schedule, began voting to award licenses to cannabis cultivators on Tuesday afternoon.It’s a major milestone for the cash-strapped commission and the first step toward regulating the rollout of medical marijuana from seed to sale.”Based on the scoring results, the following applications are eligible to receive an offer of licensure: Nancy Laughlin-Wagner on behalf of Midwest Cultivator Group, and Patrick Thomas,” Dr. Monica Oldenburg, the chair of the commission, said. Laughlin-Wagner had no comment, but Thomas’ attorney provided a statement.”Patrick Thomas is grateful for the opportunity and the trust that the commissioners had placed in him,” attorney Perry Pirsch said. “And he looks forward to being an ethical distributor working within the law and working on behalf of the citizens of the state of Nebraska.”The three commissioners denied two of the four applications, selected by a lottery from a pool of almost 40. They did not make public the specific rubric they used to score applicants, but they said it was based on how it fit into the commission’s regulations.Crista Eggers, who heads up Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, had applied because she said she wanted to grow medicine for her son, who has epilepsy. She was one of the two applicants rejected. One of the three commissioners scored her application at 11, well below the necessary 70-point threshold, while another scored her at 72.Rejected applicants can appeal. Eggers spoke during the hearing but did not comment on the denial.”I am grateful that the commission has moved forward in the licensing process,” Eggers said. “I hope that the individuals that receive these licenses are good people that have every intention of providing good medicine to the people of the state, those who desperately need it.”Still, there are lingering questions. Attorney General Mike Hilgers has signaled support for federal preemption arguments against medical cannabis in the past. KETV asked his office if it had any plans to sue the commission now that it was awarding licenses. His office had no comment.There’s a public hearing set for Oct. 15 on the proposed regulations, but all three commissioners said they won’t be in attendance.NAVIGATE: Home | Weather | Local News | National | Sports | Newscasts on demand |