This is the full text of Article XII, Section 8 of the Nebraska Consitution. These provisions are more commonly known by the name, Initiative 300.
Sec. 8(1) No corporation or syndicate shall acquire, or otherwise obtain an interest, whetherlegal, beneficial, or otherwise, in any title to real estate used for farming or ranching in thisstate, or engage in farming or ranching.Corporation shall mean any corporation organized under the laws of any state of the UnitedStates or any country or any partnership of which such corporation is a partner.Farming or ranching shall mean (i) the cultivation of land for the production of agriculturalcrops, fruit, or other horticultural products, or (ii) the ownership, keeping or feeding ofanimals for the production of livestock or livestock products.Syndicate shall mean any limited partnership organized under the laws of any state of theUnited States or any country, other than limited partnerships in which the partners aremembers of a family, or a trust created for the benefit of a member of that family, relatedto one another within the fourth degree of kindred according to the rules of civil law, or theirspouses, at least one of whom is a person residing on or actively engaged in the day to daylabor and management of the farm or ranch, and none of whom are nonresident aliens. Thisshall not include general partnerships.These restrictions shall not apply to:(A) A family farm or ranch corporation. Family farm or ranch corporation shall mean acorporation engaged in farming or ranching or the ownership of agricultural land, in whichthe majority of the voting stock is held by members of a family, or a trust created for thebenefit of a member of that family, related to one another within the fourth degree of kindredaccording to the rules of civil law, or their spouses, at least one of whom is a person residingon or actively engaged in the day to day labor and management of the farm or ranch and noneof whose stockholders are non-resident aliens and none of whose stockholders are corpora-tions or partnerships, unless all of the stockholders or partners of such entities are personsrelated within the fourth degree of kindred to the majority of stockholders in the family farmcorporation.These restrictions shall not apply to:(B) Non-profit corporations.These restrictions shall not apply to:(C) Nebraska Indian tribal corporations.These restrictions shall not apply to:(D) Agricultural land, which, as of the effective date of this Act, is being farmed or ranched,or which is owned or leased, or in which there is a legal or beneficial interest in title directlyor indirectly owned, acquired, or obtained by a corporation or syndicate, so long as such landor other interest in title shall be held in continuous ownership or under continuous lease bythe same such corporation or syndicate, and including such additional ownership or leaseholdas is reasonably necessary to meet the requirements of pollution control regulations. For thepurposes of this exemption, land purchased on a contract signed as of the effective date ofthis amendment, shall be considered as owned on the effective date of this amendment.These restrictions shall not apply to:(E) A farm or ranch operated for research or experimental purposes, if any commercial salesfrom such farm or ranch are only incidental to the research or experimental objectives ofthe corporation or syndicate.These restrictions shall not apply to:(F) Agricultural land operated by a corporation for the purpose of raising poultry.These restrictions shall not apply to:(G) Land leased by alfalfa processors for the production of alfalfa.These restrictions shall not apply to:(H) Agricultural land operated for the purpose of growing seed, nursery plants, or sod.These restrictions shall not apply to:(I) Mineral rights on agricultural land.These restrictions shall not apply to:(J) Agricultural land acquired or leased by a corporation or syndicate for immediate orpotential use for nonfarming or nonranching purposes. A corporation or syndicate may holdsuch agricultural land in such acreage as maybe necessary to its nonfarm or nonranch businessoperation, but pending the development of such agricultural land for nonfarm or nonranchpurposes, not to exceed a period of five years, such land may not be used for farming orranching except under lease to a family farm or ranch corporation or a non-syndicate andnon-corporate farm or ranch.These restrictions shall not apply to:(K) Agricultural lands or livestock acquired by a corporation or syndicate by process of lawin the collection of debts, or by any procedures for the enforcement of a lien, encumbrance,or claim thereon, whether created by mortgage or otherwise. Any lands so acquired shall bedisposed of within a period of five years and shall not be used for farming or ranching priorto being disposed of, except under a lease to a family farm or ranch corporation or a non-syndicate and non-corporate farm or ranch.These restrictions shall not apply to:(L) A bona fide encumbrance taken for purposes of security.These restrictions shall not apply to:(M) Custom spraying, fertilizing, or harvesting.These restrictions shall not apply to:(N) Livestock futures contracts, livestock purchased for slaughter, or livestock purchasedand resold within two weeks.If a family farm corporation, which has qualified under all the requirements of a family farmor ranch corporation, ceases to meet the defined criteria, it shall have fifty years, if theownership of the majority of the stock of such corporation continues to be held by personsrelated to one another within the fourth degree of kindred or their spouses, and theirlandholdings are not increased, to either re-qualify as a family farm corporation or dissolveand return to personal ownership.The Secretary of State shall monitor corporate and syndicate agricultural land purchasesand corporate and syndicate farming and ranching operations, and notify the Attorney General of any possible violations. If the Attorney General has reason to believe that a corporation or syndicate is violating this amendment, he or she shall commence an action in district court to enjoin any pending illegal land purchase, or livestock operation, or to forcedivestiture of land held in violation of this amendment. The court shall order any land heldin violation of this amendment to be divested within two years. If land so ordered by the courthas not been divested within two years, the court shall declare the land escheated to the Stateof Nebraska.If the Secretary of State or Attorney General fails to perform his or her duties as directedby this amendment, Nebraska citizens and entities shall have standing in district court to seekenforcement.The Nebraska Legislature may enact, by general law, further restrictions prohibiting certainagricultural operations that the legislature deems contrary to the intent of this section.(Adopted 1982.)
