On September 14 a parent counted the days. One Commissioner answered with his own timeline. Another said nobody gives them orders. Here is what each of them said, what got pushed back that day, and my read, labeled as mine.
The Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission met in Lincoln on September 14, 2026, from 1:12 to 2:33 in the afternoon. I spoke during public comment. Afterward I was told to go look it up, so I did. I went back through the whole meeting, word for word.
The quotes below come from the meeting’s automatic captions, which I saved. Captions make mistakes, so every quote here will be checked against the Commission’s official minutes when they are posted. The captions do not say who is talking. I name the two Commissioners by what each one said about himself. Everyone who spoke that day, and what each person is to the issue, is on Who Spoke at the Commission.
Crista Eggers spoke as a parent, and she is also the executive director of Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, the group behind the 2024 petitions (Nebraska Examiner, May 9, 2025). Both are true, so you get both. Public comment is three minutes, open to any citizen and voter, and she used hers like anyone else. She brought numbers.
“Today marks 3,517 days since I showed up [at] the legislature to advocate for my son.” … “678 days since 71% of voters passed medical cannabis in November of 24.” … “At this point, these delays seem purposeful.” … “This is intentional.”
Crista Eggers, public comment, September 14, 2026 (captions)
That is her view, said out loud, in her own name, at the podium, and it comes from both roles. It is a view, not a finding.
After public comment, Commissioner Elworth said he had not planned to speak, and then he answered her. He said he and Commissioner Synhorst were appointed in November 2025. Here is his timeline, in his words where I quote him:
He ended with: “No one’s fault. These are just facts.” And: “We’re making progress. We continue to make progress.”
Near the end, Commissioner Coffey spoke. He listed his oaths: the Army before Vietnam, the bar, 25 years on the Douglas County district bench. Then:
“I want you to understand that I do not know Governor Pillen.” … “I have never received any directives. Any suggestions, any orders from the governor or his staff about how we should proceed.” … “The same holds true for Attorney General [Hilgers].”
Commissioner Coffey, September 14, 2026 (captions)
On money, he said they “got nothing doing this job until like May of this year, when the legislature did provide us finally with funding.” Commissioner Elworth said April. Close enough that I print both and let you see it.
That is his answer on the record. It goes on this page right next to my read below, because a fair page carries both.
Those are decisions, voted on, in the captions. Whether they are careful or slow is the argument. The dates are not.
I was there, so I connect the dots. In my mind, she was put there to slow it down. By “she” I mean Lorelle Mueting, the Governor’s appointee who now presides as the Commission’s interim chair.
That is what I think after sitting in that room and reading the record. It is not a finding. I have no document that says it. Commissioner Coffey said on the record that no one gives them orders.
What I can show you is the record under my read: before her appointment, her agency said it “does not support legalizing marijuana in any form for medical purposes” without federal approval, and she opposed LB 677 at its hearing (Nebraska Examiner, May 9, 2025). Her confirmation went 4–4 in committee, then 5–3, then 27–16 on the floor. She has presided as interim chair since February 3, 2026. And there is still no published count of patients. From your vote to the Commission has every one of those with its source.
I think it is time for another panel to be chosen, even if that points to the top. Here is how the panel is chosen today, so the ask is concrete:
So the nearest door is that open seat. My ask to the Governor and to my senator is the same thing I asked the Commission on September 14: put someone who lives with pain in the room where the rules get written.
October 15, 2026, 1 to 4 PM: public hearing on the proposed rule changes, mostly fees, in the same room in Lincoln. Three minutes each. Written comments are due by 11:59 PM that day to mcc.contact@nebraska.gov or PO Box 95046, Lincoln, NE 68509-5046.
October 19, 2026, 1 PM: the next Commission meeting. Confirm times and places on mcc.nebraska.gov before you go.
I will be looking for the minutes of September 14. When they post, every quote above gets checked against them, and any correction goes here with a date.
#PROOF — trust, but verify.