Reviewing the First Session of the 107th Legislature – Part I
The first session of Nebraska’s 107th Legislature adjourned sine die May 27.
The Legislature is scheduled to convene in early fall for a special legislative session to complete the redistricting process. The second session of the 107th Legislature is scheduled to convene Jan. 5, 2022.
What follows is a review of the legislation advanced last session broken down by committee. Part I, which runs today, covers Agriculture; Appropriations; Banking, Commerce and Insurance; Business and Labor; Education; and Executive Board. Part II, which runs Tuesday, covers Government, Military and Veterans Affairs; Health and Human Services; Judiciary; Natural Resources; Redistricting; and Retirement Systems. Part III, which runs Wednesday, covers Revenue; Transportation and Telecommunications; and Urban Affairs.
Agriculture
The Agriculture Committee this session advanced proposals to update the Livestock Brand Act and allow farmers and ranchers to offer livestock ownership shares to customers.
Under LB 572, introduced by Sen. Steve Halloran of Hastings, the Nebraska Brand Committee may provide for electronic inspection of enrolled cattle identified by certain approved nonvisual identifiers, including electronic devices, nose prints, retinal scans or DNA matches.
The bill, passed on a vote of 47-1, creates an electronic inspection fee of no more than 85 cents per head and lowers the physical brand inspection fee to the same amount. The new fee schedule takes effect Oct. 1 and ends June 30, 2023.
LB 572 also increases fees for new brand applications and brand renewals and authorizes the committee to charge for actual mileage incurred by an inspector to perform a physical inspection.
Additionally, the bill requires the committee to provide a certified bill of sale and a certified transportation permit to qualified dairies that sell or move calves under 30 days of age out of the brand inspection area. Dairies first must provide required information electronically to the committee.
LB 572 also makes violations of several Livestock Brand Act provisions infractions enforceable by citation. The bill makes it a Class III felony to willfully or knowingly apply, remove, damage or alter an approved nonvisual identifier — or corrupt the information recorded on an identifier — if it is done to steal or falsely assert ownership of livestock.
Finally, the bill makes Nebraska Brand Committee appointments subject to confirmation by the Legislature.
Introduced by Plymouth Sen. Tom Brandt and passed 48-0, LB 324 allows the acquisition of meat through an animal share — an ownership interest in an animal or herd of animals created by a written contract between a consumer and a farmer or rancher — under certain conditions.
Among other requirements, the animal share owner, or someone acting on their behalf, must receive the meat, and the farmer or rancher must provide the consumer with a description of their livestock health and processing standards.
A farmer or rancher who offers an animal share must be a Nebraska resident and maintain a record of each animal share sold. The name and address of each individual with an ownership interest in the particular livestock must be presented to the processor prior to slaughter.
LB 324 also creates an independent processor assistance program that, if funds are made available, will provide funding to certain federally inspected, state inspected or custom-exempt slaughter and processing facilities in Nebraska that employ fewer than 25 people
Appropriations
Lawmakers approved the state’s $9.7 billion budget package this session.
The package includes a number of appropriations and transfers to address the state’s prison overcrowding situation, including $100 million in general funds to the Nebraska Capital Construction Fund, to be available for the Legislature to appropriate for a new state prison should one be deemed necessary in the future.
It also appropriates $14.9 million to fund the preparation of designs for a possible new facility, including site selection and an option to purchase, as well as completion of an independent engineering study regarding the useful life of the current Nebraska State Penitentiary.
The package provides $15 million to the Prison Overcrowding Contingency Fund and $200,000 to contract with the University of Nebraska to study inmate classification within the state Department of Correctional Services.
Among the budget components passed this year was LB 380, the mainline budget bill, which funds state government for the next two fiscal years. The bill was introduced by Speaker Mike Hilgers on behalf of Gov. Pete Ricketts and contains provisions of several other bills, including:
• LB 141, sponsored by Gering Sen. John Stinner, which appropriates $7.5 million in fiscal year 2022-23 to the Museum of Nebraska Art in Kearney;
• LB 391, sponsored by Lincoln Sen. Eliot Bostar, which appropriates $2.5 million in fiscal year 2021-22 to the Customized Job Training Cash Fund;
• LB 493, sponsored by Omaha Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh, which appropriates $1 million in each fiscal year of the biennium to the state’s developmental disability wait list; and
• LB 585, sponsored by Omaha Sen. Tony Vargas, which appropriates $1.5 million in fiscal year 2021-22 and $3 million in fiscal year 2022-23 to local public health departments.
The bill passed on a 47-0 vote and took effect immediately.
LB 384, approved 41-0, transfers funds and changes the permitted use of a fund. The bill includes provisions of LB 588, introduced by Stinner, that extend existing appropriations for deferred maintenance under the University of Nebraska Facilities Program until 2062 and the State College Facilities Program until 2040.
Additional budget measures approved were:
• LB 379, passed 47-0, which adjusts funding for state operations, aid and construction programs in the current fiscal year;
• LB 381, passed 46-0, which provides for the $12,000 annual salaries of Nebraska’s 49 state senators;
• LB 382, passed 46-0, which funds salaries and benefits for judges and constitutional officers;
• LB 383, passed 38-2, which appropriates funds for capital construction;
• LB 385, passed 44-0, which makes a number of fund transfers to and from the state’s Cash Reserve Fund; and
• LB 666, passed 45-0, which provides for payment of claims against the state and agency write-offs for uncollectible debts.
Lawmakers also approved a bill that provides state general funds to counties to pay certain federal judgments.
LB 103, sponsored by Sen. Myron Dorn of Adams, appropriates $2 million in general funds in fiscal years 2021-22 and 2022-23 to any county that has a judgment against it from a federal court of more than $25 million if the total cost of the judgment exceeds 20% of the county’s annual budget.
An eligible county must set its property tax levy at the maximum for each year that it receives aid under the bill and any state funds received may be used only for payment of a qualifying judgment.
LB 103 passed on a 44-3 vote and took effect immediately.
A measure that provides state funds to one of Nebraska’s federally qualified health centers also passed this session 49-0.
LB 185, sponsored by Gordon Sen. Tom Brewer, appropriate $531,000 in general funds in fiscal years 2021-22 and 2022-23 to the state Department of Health and Human Services to provide funding to the Fred LeRoy Health and Wellness Center in Omaha.
A proposal introduced to appropriate funds to the Nebraska Department of Transportation to speed work on the state’s expressway system was narrowed to become a reporting requirement before being passed by lawmakers.
LB 579, as introduced by Columbus Sen. Mike Moser, would have appropriated $70 million in general funds to NDOT to offset dollars spent to repair highways, roads and bridges damaged during flooding in 2019.
An amendment adopted on general file removed the funding provision and the bill instead requires the department to include in its annual report to the Legislature information detailing the amount of money spent to date on the state’s expressway system, the number of miles yet to be completed and expected milestone dates.
The report also must include a statement of all state highway projects under construction and the estimated cost of each project.
LB 579 passed 45-0.
Banking, Commerce and Insurance
Digital asset management, step therapy, insurance parity and protection of vulnerable adults topped the list of issues heard by the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee and addressed by the Legislature this session.
LB 649, introduced by Norfolk Sen. Michael Flood, creates a regulatory framework for managing digital assets in Nebraska. Under the bill, a state-chartered bank may create a digital asset division or a digital asset depository may be created under a new charter. Both will be regulated by the state Department of Banking and Finance.
Among other provisions, the bill also:
• Establishes procedures for incorporation, operation, liquidation and dissolution of digital asset depository institutions;
• Prohibits digital depository institutions from taking cash deposits or lending cash;
• Requires a digital depository’s headquarters and office of the chief executive officer to be established in Nebraska;
• Allows digital depositories to be held by a bank holding company and allows existing bank investment in such a depository;
• Requires a surety bond or pledged investments and specified private insurance;
• Establishes a minimum capital requirement of $10 million; and
• Authorizes the director of the Department of Banking and Finance and the governor to set the assessment of digital depositories to cover administration costs.
LB 649 passed on a vote of 46-2.
LB 297, introduced by Omaha Sen. Brett Lindstrom, allows broker-dealers and investment advisers to hold transactions for up to 30 business days in suspected cases of exploitation of seniors and vulnerable adults.
The bill, passed on a 47-0 vote, requires broker-dealers and investment advisers to notify the Adult Protective Services Division of the state Department of Health and Human Services and the state Department of Banking and Finance within two business days in order to delay a transaction and conduct an internal review.
Senators also passed a bill that gives health care providers greater flexibility in prescribing treatment. LB 337, introduced by Sen. Mark Kolterman of Seward, reforms step therapy — an insurance company practice in which a patient must fail a treatment selected by an insurance company before the company will cover a treatment originally prescribed by the patient’s health care provider.
The bill, approved 47-0, allows a provider to request a step therapy override exception and requires that the override be granted if all of the following apply:
• A provider believes a drug prescribed under step therapy will be ineffective because of the drug’s characteristics or the patient’s experience with the drug;
• A patient previously was prescribed a drug that was ineffective;
• A patient successfully is being treated by a drug prescribed by his or her provider; and
• A drug required under step therapy is contraindicated by the drug manufacturer’s prescribing information or the drug is likely to cause an adverse reaction, decrease a patient’s ability to perform daily activities or cause mental or physical harm to the patient.
LB 487, introduced by La Vista Sen. John Arch, prohibits a private health insurance plan that covers mental health treatment from establishing rates, terms or conditions that place a greater financial burden on an insured for accessing treatment via telehealth.
The bill, passed 43-0, also requires that the reimbursement rate for telehealth treatment for a mental health condition be the same as the rate for a comparable treatment provided in person.
A proposal that would increase the interest rate that licensees may charge on installment loans remains on select file. LB 510, introduced by Lindstrom, would raise the current interest rate cap of 24% on the first $1,000 borrowed and 21% thereafter to a single rate of 29% annually.
LB 510 advanced from general file but was not scheduled for second-round debate.
LB 20, introduced by Sen. Carol Blood of Bellevue, was advanced to general file by the committee but was not scheduled for debate. The bill would require public and private insurers not preempted by federal law to cover the expense of a self-administered hormonal contraceptive approved by the Federal Drug Administration.
A measure regarding automobile insurance remains in committee. LB 602, introduced by Omaha Sen. Rich Pahls, would restrict Nebraska insurers in the use of aftermarket parts used in vehicle repair.
Business and Labor
Among the issues considered by members of the Business and Labor Committee this session were compensation for families of first responders, strengthening worker protections and expanding unemployment benefits and family leave.
LB 255, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Matt Hansen, provides monetary compensation to the family of a law enforcement officer, firefighter, correctional officer or government or nonprofit EMS ambulance squad member killed in the line of duty, including those who work on a voluntary basis.
Under the bill, a qualifying family member must file for compensation within one year of the death. For first responders killed in 2022, compensation provided will be $50,000. For each following year, compensation will be equal to the previous year’s compensation increased by the percentage increase in the consumer price index for all urban consumers.
The bill defines a line-of-duty death as having occurred within three years of a related incident or injury during the active performance of an individual’s official duties.
LB 255 passed on a 38-6 vote.
Worker Protections and Wages
A bill to extend employment discrimination protections was approved by lawmakers this session.
LB 451, sponsored by Omaha Sen. Terrell McKinney, expands the definition of race in the Nebraska Fair Employment Practice Act to include characteristics associated with race such as skin color, hair texture and protective hairstyles. The bill defines protective hairstyles as braids, locks and twists.
An employer still may implement health and safety standards regulating characteristics associated with race as long as they are non-discriminatory and applied equally to all employees, and if good faith efforts have been made to accommodate an employee.
The Nebraska National Guard and state, county and local law enforcement agencies may continue to impose their own dress and grooming standards.
LB 451 passed on a 40-4 vote.
A bill intended to protect meatpacking employees from the coronavirus pandemic stalled on select file.
Omaha Sen. Tony Vargas introduced LB 241, which would require meat processing employers to maintain 6 feet of space around and between each worker, including in common areas like lunch, break and locker rooms.
Among other provisions, employees would be screened for COVID-19 at the start of each shift and could leave the meatpacking operation premises to receive a test on paid work time.
The bill also would ensure paid sick leave for an employee who tests positive, which would not count against any other paid sick leave owed to the employee. The protections proposed in LB 241 would apply until June 30, 2022.
Kearney Sen. John Lowe offered a motion during select file debate, adopted 25-18, to bracket the bill until June 10, 2021, which ended consideration of LB 241 for this session.
Unemployment and Family Leave
In light of the coronavirus pandemic, lawmakers voted this session to expand eligibility for unemployment benefits.
LB 260, sponsored by Omaha Sen. Megan Hunt, expands the list of “good cause” reasons to leave employment voluntarily to include caring for a family member with a serious health condition.
The bill allows workers to be eligible for unemployment benefits if they voluntarily leave employment to care for a family member but are seeking to return to employment and meet all other existing requirements.
LB 260 passed on a 33-11 vote.
Lawmakers debated two additional bills that would expand unemployment eligibility and paid leave in Nebraska.
Omaha Sen. Mike McDonnell sponsored LB 298, which would allow work-authorized immigrants to collect unemployment benefits when otherwise qualified. Currently, Nebraska employers pay unemployment insurance taxes for these employees, who are barred under state law from receiving such benefits.
An individual eligible for benefits under LB 298 first would have their employment authorization verified through the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements Program.
The bill advanced from general file on a 26-9 vote but was not scheduled for select file debate this session.
LB 258, sponsored by Vargas, would require employers with four or more employees to provide paid sick and safe leave. Under the proposal, employees would accrue at least one hour of paid leave for every 30 hours worked. Employees could earn up to 40 hours of paid leave per year, based on hours worked.
Qualifying employers would be required to allow an employee to use his or her paid sick and safe leave for a mental or physical illness, injury or health condition, to care for an ill family member or for an absence due to domestic abuse, assault or stalking — including psychological treatment or legal services.
LB 258 failed to advance from general file on a 17-20 vote. Twenty-five votes were needed.
Education
Measures to create a school safety reporting system, establish a statewide farm-to-school program and require schools to create health plans for students with seizure disorders were among the proposals advanced by the Education Committee this session.
Health and Safety
Lawmakers voted 41-5 to approve a statewide school safety reporting program.
LB 322, sponsored by Gothenburg Sen. Matt Williams, requires the state Department of Education to establish a statewide, anonymous reporting system to support threat assessment teams with the goal of reducing violent incidents.
The reporting system — the Safe2HelpNE report line — allows students, school staff, parents and community members to report information about concerning behavior or possible harm to people or property anonymously and free of charge by telephone, mobile app, website or email.
The report line will be available to any public or nonpublic school that has a threat assessment team and maintains a current list of contact information for at least five team members designated to receive alerts from report line staff 24/7.
Report line staff immediately will alert the appropriate threat assessment team of any concern directly regarding or likely to impact a student, school staff member or school property.
Senators also passed a bill that requires each public, private, denominational and parochial school in Nebraska to create individualized health plans for students with seizure disorders.
Under LB 639, introduced by Sen. Jen Day of Omaha and passed on a 44-3 vote, a school with an enrolled student who has a seizure disorder and requires medication must have at least one employee at each school building who is trained to recognize and respond to seizures and administer medications.
Before a school employee may administer seizure medication, a student’s parent or guardian must provide a written authorization, a written statement from the student’s doctor and the medication in its unopened, sealed package with the intact label affixed by the dispensing pharmacy.
A parent or guardian also must collaborate with school employees to create a written, individualized health plan to acknowledge and prepare for the health care needs of a student diagnosed with a seizure disorder. Each student’s seizure action plan must be distributed to any school personnel or volunteers responsible for them.
LB 639 also requires each certificated school employee to review seizure disorder materials at least once every two school years beginning in school year 2022-23.
The state will install high-quality air filters in certain classrooms to study their effect on student test scores and behavior under a bill passed on a vote of 44-2.
LB 630, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Eliot Bostar, requires the department to develop and implement a two-year pilot program to study the efficacy of commercial air filters to remove air pollution from classrooms and their impact on academic performance and behavior.
The pilot program will include 50 schools, with six participating classrooms of students in grades 3 through 8 in each school. Half of the classrooms will be assigned to the control group.
Participation is voluntary, and no more than 50% of participating schools will be from the same school district. The department will submit the study results to the Legislature.
A bill that would require Nebraska public schools to adopt programs intended to curb child sexual abuse remains on select file.
As introduced by Sen. Joni Albrecht of Thurston, LB 281 would require schools to adopt a child sexual abuse prevention program beginning with the 2022-23 school year for students in kindergarten through 5th grade. As amended on general file, programs would extend through the 12th grade.
LB 281 advanced to the second round of consideration but was not scheduled for further debate.
Cleanup Bill, Lottery Funds
Lawmakers voted 48-0 to pass a measure that makes several technical changes to education law and extends current allocations of lottery funds to education-related programs.
LB 528, sponsored by Fremont Sen. Lynne Walz, extends the sunset date to school year 2020-21 for a grant program meant to improve teacher effectiveness, expands the list of programs eligible for the Community College Gap Assistance Program and changes eligibility requirements for the Access College Early Scholarship Program.
The bill also specifies that the purchase of computer technology or equipment and internet access and related services are qualified higher education expenses under the Nebraska educational savings plan trust.
Additionally, each school board must require that the telephone number for a national or local suicide prevention hotline or a crisis text line be included on new student identification cards beginning with the 2022-23 school year.
Public postsecondary institutions also will include one of those numbers on new student ID cards beginning with the 2022-23 academic year.
LB 528 includes provisions of LB3, introduced by Sen. Tom Briese of Albion, that require the state Department of Education to establish and maintain a website where the public may access school financial data at the statewide and district levels.
Also included are provisions of LB 558, sponsored by Omaha Sen. Tony Vargas, that require the state commissioner of education to grant a temporary teaching certificate to any applicant who has completed a teacher education program at a standard institution of higher education and has a certificate to teach in good standing from another state.
Finally, LB 528 extends the current allocation of state lottery funds to several education-related programs, including need-based college scholarships for Nebraska students, through fiscal year 2023-24.
The committee advanced a bill that would allocate a portion of lottery funds to behavioral awareness and intervention training, but it stalled on the second round of debate after a failed cloture motion.
LB 529, introduced by Walz, would allocate lottery funds to more than a dozen education programs for fiscal years 2021-22 through 2025-26.
Under one new program, school districts would ensure that teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals, school nurses and counselors receive evidence-based behavioral awareness and intervention training beginning with the 2023-24 school year.
After four hours of select file debate, Walz filed a motion to invoke cloture, which ends debate and forces a vote on the bill and any pending amendments. The motion failed on a vote of 28-11. Thirty-three votes were needed.
Postsecondary Education
Nebraska home-school students are eligible for in-state tuition at Nebraska postsecondary educational institutions under a bill approved by lawmakers on a vote of 43-0.
Under LB 92, introduced by Elmwood Sen. Robert Clements, students who complete the program of instruction offered by a home school are considered residents for tuition purposes.
The bill also prohibits a publicly funded college or university in Nebraska from discriminating against any student with regard to determinations of residency status or scholarship eligibility on the basis of having been home-schooled.
Another measure advanced by the committee makes certain AmeriCorp participants eligible for in-state tuition.
Under LB 197, introduced by Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha and passed on a 43-0 vote, a student who qualifies for an AmeriCorps award is considered a resident for tuition purposes at Nebraska postsecondary educational institutions.
Certain uniformed service members will receive priority college admission under another bill approved by lawmakers.
LB 669, also introduced by Vargas, requires Nebraska’s public postsecondary institutions to accept military and veteran students who apply to enroll as undergraduates if they otherwise meet admissions requirements.
A student who graduates from a Nebraska high school on or after Jan. 1, 2022, signs enlistment papers to serve in a uniformed service and meets other requirements related to the length of their service is eligible.
Nebraska high school graduates and individuals who graduated from high school in another state on or after Jan. 1, 2002, and served in a uniformed service while assigned to a location in Nebraska also qualify if they received an honorable discharge.
LB 669 passed on a vote of 38-0 and took effect immediately.
Curriculum Requirements
A bill intended to improve the personal finance skills of Nebraska students passed on a vote of 49-0.
LB 452, introduced by Omaha Sen. Terrell McKinney, requires each school district to include financial literacy in its elementary and middle school instructional program. The bill also requires all students to complete at least one half-credit high school course in personal finance or financial literacy as a graduation requirement, a provision originally introduced by Sen. Julie Slama of Peru in LB 327.
Under LB 452, financial literacy includes knowledge and skills regarding budget and financial record keeping, taxes, debt, savings, risk management, insurance, investment strategies and establishing, building, maintaining and monitoring credit.
The State Board of Education will adopt measurable academic content standards for financial literacy as part of the state’s social studies standards. Beginning Dec. 31, 2024, each school district is required to provide an annual financial literacy status report to its school board.
The committee advanced a proposal that would require Nebraska public and private schools to incorporate multicultural education into their instructional programs, but it was not scheduled for general file debate.
Currently, each public school district is required to incorporate into their K-12 curriculum studies related to the culture, history and contributions of African-Americans, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans and Asian Americans.
Under LB 359, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, multicultural education also would incorporate the perspectives of those groups and reflect the “diverse races and cultures of all persons in Nebraska and the United States of America.”
LB 359 also would require the department to hire a full-time consultant trained and experienced in the field of multicultural education.
Student Discipline
Nebraska will track and report individual student discipline data under a bill passed on a vote of 46-0.
LB 154, introduced by Omaha Sen. Justin Wayne, requires the State Board of Education to implement a statewide system for tracking individual student discipline by type and by demographic characteristics including race, poverty, high mobility, attendance, disability and limited English proficiency.
Under the bill, each school district is required to report any individual student act resulting in suspension or expulsion, assignment to an alternative school or alternative learning program, the use of physical contact with a student or the restraint or seclusion of a student.
LB 154 also requires the board to include student discipline as an indicator in an accountability system used to measure the performance of individual public schools and school districts. The state Department of Education will analyze and report on student discipline in a currently required annual report on student achievement.
A measure that would change several provisions in the Student Discipline Act related to suspension, expulsion and mandatory reassignment advanced from committee but was not scheduled for first-round debate.
LB 198, sponsored by Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha, would require that a student be given an opportunity to complete any classwork and homework missed during a suspension, including examinations.
It also would require school districts to reinstate a student after an expulsion and accept certain non-duplicative, grade-appropriate credits earned by the student during the expulsion.
Among other changes, LB 198 would modify procedures for student discipline hearings and require a principal to decide student discipline by long-term suspension, expulsion or mandatory reassignment within two school days after learning of the alleged misconduct.
The committee indefinitely postponed a bill that would have authorized teachers and other school personnel to use reasonable physical intervention to manage student behavior to protect the student or another person from physical injury
LB 673, introduced by Sen. Dave Murman of Glenvil, also would have required school districts to provide behavioral awareness and intervention training to teachers, administrators and certain other school staff.
Other Measures
A Nebraska farm-to-school program will provide locally grown and minimally processed food to elementary and secondary school students under a proposal approved this session.
LB 396, introduced by Sen. Tom Brandt of Plymouth and passed on a 48-0 vote, requires the state Department of Education to hire a coordinator to administer the program, which also may provide students with hands-on learning activities, such as farm visits, cooking demonstrations and school gardening and composting programs.
The coordinator will partner with public agencies and nonprofits on a public engagement campaign and build a communication network that links farmers and schools.
They also will encourage schools to develop and improve their nutrition plans using locally grown or processed food and provide technical assistance to school food services staff, farmers, processors and distributors regarding the demand for and availability of Nebraska food products.
Lawmakers voted 46-0 to pass a bill intended to speed the issuance of teaching certificates to military spouses.
LB 389, introduced by Bellevue Sen. Rita Sanders at the request of Gov. Pete Ricketts, requires the State Board of Education to issue a certificate or permit to a military spouse who, among other requirements, holds a valid certificate or permit currently in force in another state to teach, administer or provide special services.
Under the bill, the certificate or permit for a military spouse is valid for at least three years and includes the same or similar endorsements to teach in all subject areas for which the applicant had been certified in the other state if Nebraska offers a similar endorsement.
The committee also advanced a bill under which Nebraska schools that take measures to welcome military-connected students may receive a special designation.
Under LB 5, introduced by Sen. Carol Blood of Bellevue and passed on a vote of 46-0, a public, private or parochial school may apply to the State Board of Education for an annual “purple star school” designation.
To qualify, a school must designate a staff member as a military liaison who will serve as a school’s point of contact for military-connected students and their families.
Among other criteria, a qualifying school must offer online resources for military-connected students and their families, maintain a student-led program to assist military-connected students in transitioning into the school and offer training for staff members on issues related to military-connected students.
Nebraska public schools will provide transition services to each student with a developmental disability two years sooner under a bill passed on a vote of 48-0.
Schools are required to provide a coordinated set of activities that help prepare qualified students for life after high school. Under LB 527, sponsored by Fremont Sen. Lynne Walz, schools will provide transition services to those students beginning when they turn 14 rather than 16.
A commission would conduct an in-depth review of Nebraska public elementary and secondary school financing under a bill that remains on select file.
LB 132, introduced by Sen. Wendy DeBoer of Bennington, would create a 16-member school finance review commission within the state Department of Education.
The commission would examine methods of financing public schools that would provide equitable educational opportunities across the state and offer alternatives to a heavy reliance on property taxes.
Finally, the committee advanced a bill to general file that would allow home-schooled students to participate in a public school district’s extracurricular activities without also enrolling in the district’s classes.
Current state law requires public school boards to allow students enrolled in private, denominational, parochial or home schools to enroll part-time as long as they are residents of the district.
LB 210, introduced by Glenvil Sen. Dave Murman, would allow those students to enroll part-time for all courses selected by the students. It also would require school boards to establish policies and procedures to allow home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular activities to the same extent and subject to the same requirements as students enrolled in the public school governed by the board.
The bill was not scheduled for debate this session.
Executive Board
The Executive Board advanced measures this session that established legislative committees to investigate a child welfare contract and provide oversight to the state’s youth rehabilitation and treatment centers, as well as a task force to study implementation of a mental health crisis line.
Nebraska implemented a statewide privatization of its child welfare system in 2009. By 2012, the experiment had failed and all service areas except the eastern — serving Douglas and Sarpy counties — had returned to casework provision by the state Department of Health and Human Services.
In 2019, the department awarded a five-year provider contract for the eastern service area to Saint Francis Ministries for $197 million — a considerably lower bid than was made by the entity that was providing services at the time.
LR 29, introduced by Omaha Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh, creates the Eastern Service Area Child Welfare Contract Special Investigative and Oversight Committee to study the procurement process undertaken by DHHS and Administrative Services to award, implement and oversee that contract.
Committee membership includes two members each from the Appropriations, Government, Military and Veterans Affairs, Health and Human Services and Judiciary committees as well as one at-large member of the Legislature who is a resident of the eastern service area.
The committee has subpoena power, subject to authorization by the Executive Board, and will report findings and recommendations to the Legislature by Dec. 15. The committee will terminate Dec. 31, 2022.
Senators also voted to reauthorize an oversight committee for the state’s troubled youth rehabilitation and treatment centers.
In 2020, lawmakers created the Youth Rehabilitation and Treatment Center Special Oversight Committee of the Legislature in response to a crisis at YRTC Geneva the year before. The nine-member committee issued a report of its findings and recommendations to the Legislature and terminated Dec. 31, 2020.
LR 25, sponsored by the Health and Human Services Committee, reauthorizes the oversight committee with a termination date of Dec. 31. The oversight committee may hold hearings, request and receive reports from DHHS and issue subpoenas. It will issue a report to the Legislature by Dec. 15.
LB 247, sponsored by Lincoln Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks, establishes the Mental Health Crisis Hotline Task Force to create an implementation plan for the 988 crisis hotline established by the federal government in 2020.
Voting members include the chairpersons of the Health and Human Services, Judiciary and Transportation and Telecommunications committees and two at-large members of the Legislature appointed by the Executive Board.
Representatives from DHHS and the Public Service Commission — along with advocacy, education, law enforcement and behavioral and mental health provider representatives — are nonvoting members.
The task force will issue a report to the Legislature by Dec. 17 regarding implementation plans and recommendations and will terminate Dec. 31, 2022.
LB 247 passed on a 46-0 vote and took effect immediately.
General Affairs
Senators established casino gaming regulations, permanently legalized to-go alcohol sales authorized during the pandemic and expanded the type of fireworks that can be sold in Nebraska.
Gaming
Lawmakers created a statutory framework for a constitutional amendment approved by voters last November that legalized all forms of games of chance at licensed Nebraska horse racing tracks.
Among other provisions, LB 561, introduced by Sen. Tom Briese of Albion:
• Allows wagering on sporting events at racetracks in the state;
• Prohibits wagering on high school youth sports;
• Establishes a system for filing complaints;
• Prohibits the use of credit cards to place bets;
• Renames the State Racing Commission to the State Racing and Gaming Commission;
• Raises the legal age to wager on horse racing from 19 to 21;
• Establishes a process for allowing individuals to be excluded voluntarily from wagering; and
• Classifies manipulation of a game of chance or gaming machine as a Class I misdemeanor.
LB 561 also prohibits betting on Nebraska college teams when they are playing in state and requires that keno played at licensed racetrack casinos operate in accordance with the same state regulations that govern existing keno parlors.
The bill passed on a 44-3 vote and took effect immediately.
LB 371, introduced by Grand Island Sen. Raymond Aguilar, also addresses the ballot initiative. Current state law prohibits gambling and a number of other activities within 660 feet of a state, district, county or agricultural fair and provides exceptions.
The bill adds games of chance under the Nebraska Racetrack Gaming Act to the list of exceptions, allowing games of chance at licensed racetracks in Nebraska that are located near fairgrounds to operate at the same time as a fair.
Senators passed the bill on a 35-7 vote.
Alcohol
LB 274, introduced by Sen. John Lowe of Kearney, creates a new promotional farmers market special designated license. Under the bill, farm wineries, craft breweries and microdistilleries that currently are licensed to manufacture alcoholic beverages may apply for the SDL, which allows sales at any farmers market for one year, subject to local approval.
Previously, such entities were required to apply for an SDL for each event at which they sold alcohol.
LB 274 includes provisions of North Platte Sen. Mike Groene’s LB 415 that increase the maximum number of gallons a Nebraska microdistillery may produce annually from 10,000 to 100,000.
The bill also includes provisions of LB 578, introduced by Omaha Sen. Tony Vargas, which create ready-to-drink cocktails as a new category of alcoholic beverage in statute — defined as spirits in an original container with up to 12.5% alcohol — and set the excise tax at 95 cents a gallon.
Also included are provisions of LB 72, introduced by Sen. Suzanne Geist of Lincoln, which allow the holder of a Class C, I or Y liquor license to sell alcohol not in the original package — such as a mixed drink, cocktail or wine slushy — for consumption off the premises.
The holder of a Class B, C, D, L, Y or Z retail liquor license may sell alcohol to an individual 21 or older who is in a motor vehicle if the alcohol is sold along with food. Alcohol must be placed in the vehicle’s trunk or in an area behind the last upright seat.
LB 274 passed 45-0 and took effect immediately.
Other Measures
Nebraskans have more options when buying fireworks under LB 152, introduced by Sen. Julie Slama of Peru. The bill adopts the federal standard of consumer fireworks, which is more permissive than was previously allowed in Nebraska law.
The bill also authorizes the state fire marshal to test commercially available fireworks in response to complaints and declare them unsafe if necessary.
The bill passed 42-3 and took effect immediately.
LB 70, introduced by Omaha Sen. Justin Wayne, authorizes the state athletic commissioner to regulate professional kickboxing and bare-knuckle boxing. The commissioner currently regulates professional mixed martial arts and boxing.
The bill passed 42-2.
This review first appeared in The Unicameral Update, a daily news source produced by the Clerk of the Legislature’s Unicameral Information Office that covers legislative activity, including floor action and committee hearings. For additional coverage, visit update.legislature.ne.gov.
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