There is an annual opportunity for college Junior and Senior students to serve as Legislative Page. The deadline for interested parties to submit Page applications for Page is October 2, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. The Page Selection Committee will meet in October to select individuals to fill the positions. If you or someone you know is interested in a Page position, please contact my office for more details.

Tax Commissioner Tony Fulton reports that gross General Fund receipts for June were $578 million, which is 0.4% above the certified forecast of $576 million. Gross sales use, individual income, and miscellaneous funding all rose above the projected forecast, while gross corporate income fell 12.4% below the forecast. According to the Governor, the report provides great hope for Nebraska’s position to work on “a few key initiatives, including property tax relief.”

On Friday, July 17, the Governor held a briefing that included remarks by Matthew Blomstedt, Commissioner of Education for Nebraska. They discussed the work that local school districts are doing to get Nebraska children back in school. The Governor reiterated that the State is not suggesting masks must be worn by students, but did articulate a couple of reasons why wearing a mask in school may be helpful. Included in his reasoning, was the plan for utilizing contact tracing should a child test positive for COVID-19. The wearing of masks in school may reduce the necessity of so many people being tested as a result of one child’s positive test. School districts throughout Nebraska are working towards individualized plans to get children back to school as soon as practicable.

Monday, July 20 marks the first day that state senators return to the Capitol for purposes of debating and acting on legislation introduced at the beginning of the 2020 Session in January. Speaker Jim Scheer has spoken candidly about his intention to see the large number of Priority Bills make it to floor debate. He reinforced this commitment by placing over 40 Bills on Monday’s agenda alone.The Speaker has also made it clear that he is committed to the Legislature exercising fiscal responsibility in the wake of the impact COVID-19 has had on the economy. Even with good numbers coming out for June, what the impact will be during the 2020-2021 budget year is uncertain. He, therefore, identified bills with a fiscal note and suggested that Senators introducing those bills look for ways to amend them. In other words, if there is a fiscal note identifying costs associated with a bill, it is less likely that the bill will make it any further through the process unless it is amended. With that in mind, it is important for residents in Nebraska to know that even though I, or my colleagues, voted in favor of advancing a Bill to Select File (2nd reading), it is entirely possible that those votes may change or the bill comes out different form if costs are involved. I will be paying close attention to bills and amendments that come up for debate.

It is likely the Legislature will also be considering the Property Tax Relief Bill LB1106 at some point this first week. The bill, in its current form, grants property tax relief to every property owner whether residential, commercial, or agricultural property is involved. It works to reduce school district reliance on property taxes to fund education by having the State pick up a larger share of education expenses. It also works to ensure a common-sense approach to limiting increases in school spending in a manner consistent with increased population and economic growth of the State and individual communities. My research continues to show that the taxpayers AND school districts in District 17 will benefit from the proposed changes LB1106 contains. I understand that the larger school districts are concerned about releasing some of their taxing authority and a number of State Senators from urban areas are resistant to be facilitators of the changes needed. However, LB1106 makes certain that school districts do not experience funding gaps, regardless of size. As lawmakers, we must consider the best interests of our State and property tax relief that benefits property owners across the board is in the best interest of everyone in the State. I again urge my colleagues to put aside differences, reach across the aisle, and pass LB1106 to give much needed property tax relief to taxpayers. It is the right thing to do and it is in the best interest of the children and taxpayers of Nebraska.

There will also be a number of bills that have already been designated as Priority Bills coming out of Committees. One of those is LB992, dealing with Broadband. LB992 was designated a priority by the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee of which I am a member. The goal is to expand Broadband service into more unserved and underserved areas of Nebraska. LB992 is a vehicle designed to help facilitate the expansion by addressing issues surrounding leasing fiber owned by telephone and power companies to broadband providers. LB992 will be placed on General File (1st reading) a short time after we reconvene, with an amendment designed to address concerns by those in the telecommunications industry.

As always, it is of great importance that I hear from my constituents to effectively do my job as your voice in the Legislature. I encourage you to contact me and I look forward to hearing from you.
You can reach me by phone at 402-471-2716 or by email at jalbrecht@leg.ne.gov. When calling or emailing my office, please include your name and phone number. The office has received messages with requests for a return call where a number was not left. If you have previously requested a return call and have not received a response, please contact the office this next week.