Greetings again from the legislature to all constituents of District 23! I hope everyone had a safe and blessed holiday season. The legislature convened January 3rd for the first day of the 105th Legislature, 2nd Session. As a short 60 day session, the legislature will be very busy working to tackle several key issues.

Over the interim I continued work with constituents, groups and agencies to address the concerns of Nebraskans and the constituents of District 23 as well as participated in several legislative interim study hearings across the state. Since last session I have spoken with numerous groups and individuals regarding the need for real property tax relief and what that may look like in this state. I anticipate several legislative proposals this session aimed to address property tax concerns.
I worked with individuals to address title and licensing concerns and other DMV related issues as well as infrastructure projects and matters within the District. As a member of the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee as well as the Nebraska Information Technology Commission I attended a NCSL Wireless U Conference last September aimed at working on telecommunications updates and policy including information on rural broadband expansion.

I also spent time over the interim working with law enforcement, juvenile justice and human trafficking groups to keep updated on the issues within those areas and better understand what may be done to combat such issues. One of the greatest ways we can combat issues like Human Trafficking is by raising awareness so I wanted to share with you information on the Attorney General’s “Demand an End” public awareness campaign to address minor sex trafficking in our state. The “Demand an End” initiative will be launched on National Human Trafficking Awareness Day on January 11th, 2018 with a press conference at the Capitol. More information can be found at http://www.streetgrace.org/demand-an-end/.

The first 10 days of session are spent introducing new legislation as well as continued debate from 2017 carry over bills. With a short session and budget concerns of approximately $200 million, I believe the legislature will have to focus a majority of its efforts on key issues such as the budget, prison reform, and tax reform. I have introduced several new legislative bills this session and I look forward to sharing more information on those bills with you as the session moves along.

Go to the legislature’s website https://nebraskalegislature.gov/ to keep track of new legislation and I encourage you to reach out to my office with any comments, thoughts or concerns. I look forward to continued work on legislation and issues this year on behalf of the constituents of District 23. Have a safe and Happy New Year!