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LB 696

Change, provide, and eliminate provisions of the Professional Landscape Architects Act

109th Legislature (2025-2026) Introduced by Jane Raybould

Nebraska updates Landscape Architect Act to align licensure with national standards, recognizing Canadian accreditation, ending the 15-year reciprocity, and clarifying roster fees.

Approved by Governor on May 15, 2025
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Bill Summary · LB 696

Summary — LB 696 (Professional Landscape Architects Act)

Status: Approved by the Governor, May 15, 2025. Introduced Jan 22, 2025; passed Final Reading May 14, 2025 (47–2). Amendments adopted: AM499.

Purpose

To update and modernize Nebraska’s Professional Landscape Architects Act by aligning licensure requirements with a new national standard adopted by member boards in 2022, remove obsolete or administrative requirements, clarify terms, and adjust the Board’s record‑sharing authority.

Key changes and provisions

  • Defines “direct supervision” (Sec. 81‑8,184): “having full professional knowledge and control over work that constitutes the practice of landscape architecture…”.
  • Roster/public records (Sec. 81‑8,192): clarifies that the State Board of Landscape Architects will maintain and make available a complete roster of licensed landscape architects and may charge fees for providing copies in accordance with state public‑records fee statutes (sections 84‑712 to 84‑712.09). (Committee materials indicate removal of an antiquated requirement to file/send a yearly roster to the Secretary of State/licensees; the enacted text harmonizes roster provisions.)
  • Education/accreditation (Sec. 81‑8,196): adds the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects as a recognized accreditation authority (or its equivalent as determined by the Board) for degree programs; updates accreditation language to recognize equivalent accreditations as determined by the State Board.
  • Application/documentation changes:
    • Eliminates the statutory requirement that applicants must submit a Council Record from the Council of Landscape Architectural Registration Boards (CLARB). The Board may still accept a valid CLARB council record as verified information.
    • Removes a prior statutory pathway that automatically granted licensure to individuals who had practiced in another jurisdiction for 15+ years (the 15‑year reciprocal provision).
    • Retains minimum licensure elements (education from accredited program, passage of exam, post‑degree experience under supervision) but aligns language with the updated national standard.
  • Grandfathering and housekeeping:
    • Existing licenses as of the bill’s effective date are grandfathered.
    • Eliminates obsolete language, harmonizes cross‑references, and removes a statutory reference to “cancellation” of a certificate of licensure.
  • AM499 (committee amendment): resolves ambiguous references to multiple boards and removes proposed discretionary language that would have allowed the Board to designate successor accreditation authorities in the future.

Who is affected

  • Applicants for landscape architect licensure (education and accreditation pathways adjusted; Canadian‑accredited graduates explicitly recognized).
  • Current licensees (grandfathered; some administrative processes clarified).
  • The State Board of Landscape Architects (record‑production fee authority; updated rulemaking/administration under the revised standards).
  • Employers, government entities, and public users who rely on the Board’s roster and licensing processes.

Procedural/timeline notes

  • Referred to Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee (Jan 24, 2025); committee hearing Mar 6, 2025; AM499 adopted Mar 11; advanced through legislative stages and approved by the Governor May 15, 2025.
  • The act amends sections 81‑8,184, 81‑8,192, 81‑8,196, 81‑8,199, 81‑8,200, 81‑8,206, and 81‑8,208, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska, and repeals original sections. (Check the statute for the bill’s effective date; the Governor approved the bill May 15, 2025.)

Potential impact

  • Modernizes Nebraska licensure to align with national standards, potentially making licensure pathways clearer and more consistent.
  • Expands recognized educational credentials (explicitly includes Canadian accreditation), potentially broadening the applicant pool.
  • Reduces certain statutory reciprocity shortcuts (15‑year pathway removed), which may require some experienced out‑of‑state practitioners to meet the updated licensure criteria.
  • Allows the Board to charge public‑records fees for roster copies, clarifying administrative cost recovery.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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