Weekly District 30 Update – 2-7-25

State Senator Myron Dorn

The Legislature is in full work mode with legislative bills being debated in the mornings in the Legislative Chamber. Afternoons have senators sitting in various committees, hearing public testimony on various issues.

 In these early days of session, General File floor debate consists mainly of relatively non-controversial and can be considered as clean-up bills or bills that are fairly straight forward. Some bills do create a bit of extended discussion.

 During floor debate this past week, senators debated LB 229 introduced by Senator Bob Hallstrom of Syracuse. The bill would define workers, who use Marketplace Network Platforms such as Uber, Lyft, and DoorDash, as independent contractors. These workers are already considered independent but the bill would codify this into state statute. These workers choose, if and when, and how long they want to work.  Opponents of the bill said companies who use this employment model for these workers don’t provide fair wages or benefits and think LB 229 does not help the employee. Another senator in opposition said this bill would prevent those workers from trying to organize a union and to work to better protect their rights. The bill was advanced to the next stage of debate with a vote of 33 in favor and 12 opposed. I supported this bill.

 The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs committee heard competing proposals on day light saving time. Senator Dave Murman introduced LB 302 to eliminate the observance of daylight-saving time when the same policy would be adopted by the neighboring states of Iowa, Kansas, South Dakota and Wyoming. and go to standard time. The state could make this option without any federal action.  On the opposite end of the spectrum, is LB 34 by Senator Megan Hunt whose bill would see daylight saving time stay year-round and would require three adjacent states to adopt the policy and the federal government would have to allow for permanent daylight-saving time. The committee has not taken action on either bill.

 LB 698 was heard by the Business and Labor Committee to seek narrower provisions of the ballot initiative passed in the November General Election.  The ballot initiative provides Nebraska employees, who work for a business with fewer than 20 employees, the ability to earn 40 hours of sick leave. A person who works for a company with more than 20 employees can earn 56 hours of paid sick leave. Senator Paul Strommen from Sidney, introduced this bill to provide for exemptions for several smaller employers. including businesses that hire temporary and seasonal agricultural workers, employees under 16, and businesses with fewer than 10 employees. The senator said he is not trying to undermine the vote of the people but wants to provide safe guards for smaller employers. Opponents stated the paid sick leave passed by the voters is a better business model. Another opponent said states with similar policies of paid sick leave showed increased business growth and minimal long-term costs to the business. The committee has not taken action on this bill.

Finally, on Thursday, February 6th, the Revenue committee heard hours of testimony on LB 509, introduced by Senator Tony Sorrentino of Elkhorn. This bill is basically a re-run of LB 753 in 2023, which would have allowed a dollar-for-dollar tax credit to individuals who donate money to private scholarship granting organizations. People organized after this bill’s passage to get the repeal of LB 753 placed on the 2024 ballot. The initiative petition received enough signatures and was going to be on the 2024 General Election ballot. In 2024 during the regular session Senator Linehan introduced LB 1402 and instead of the tax credit, she proposed a direct state appropriation to the State Treasurer who would establish a program to provide education scholarships to eligible students. Again, the people ran a petition to repeal LB 1402 and successfully gathered enough signatures to place the issue on the ballot. In November of 2024, voters across the state voted to repeal the bill by 57% in favor of repeal and 43% wanting to retain the bill. Testimony in support of the newly introduced LB 509 spoke of the benefits to students and the ability to choose a school. Opponents spoke about the disregard for the people’s vote and work to see this defeated. They also spoke about the damage this could do to public school funding, that private schools do not have to meet the same standards as public schools, and could be selective on which students they would take. I will not be supporting LB 509, first and foremost the voters were very clear on ‘choice’ regarding state funding for private schools.

The Unicameral website is  www.nebraskalegislature.gov. My contact information is mdorn@leg.ne.gov and 402-471-2620. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

Weekly District 30 Update – 1-31-25

State Senator Myron Dorn

 As the month of January comes to a close, the Legislature is in full swing. Mornings for  senators begin with meetings and then we convene in the Chamber to begin discussion on bills which had their public hearing and the committees moved them on to the first round of debate, referred to as General File. Most of the bills coming forward are relatively non-controversial and do not require a great deal of debate. If there are concerns regarding the bill, this gives other senators the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the issue.

 In the afternoons, senators are in committee hearings. Every senator has a five day schedule of committees on which he or she serves. The Appropriations committee is a five day committee so this is the only Standing Committee on which I serve. Our committee has been going through the Governor’s proposed budget, we are hearing from our legislative fiscal analysts and reviewing each agency. Soon, we will hear from agencies directors and begin hearing appropriation bills seeking funding.

 Other committees are hearing issues referred to their jurisdictional subject area. On Wednesday, the Judiciary Committee heard six bills relating to controlled substances (LB 6), regulating Kratom (LB 230) a leaf that can increase a person’s energy, and hemp regulations, and a consumable hemp product act (LB 16). Hemp farming was made legal in 2019 and products derived from hemp could not contain more than 0.3% of THC in Delta 9 products. However, there are other products now being sold with higher levels that the 2019 did not address. Attorney General Mike Hilgers wants to see these products made illegal in LB 316. On the other side, Store owners who sell these products would rather see the products remain available with regulations on labeling, packaging and sales restrictions to minors. This hearing went from 1:30 to 9 pm. The Judiciary committee has the largest number of bills referred to it for hearings and also tends to have some of the most controversial issues.

 LB 645 has been generating much concern on the part of teachers. In 2013 the state made an agreement with the teachers’ union to contribute 2%, up from the previous 1% contribution, every year to the teachers’ retirement fund to reach 100% and the retirement is fully funded. LB 645 states that once the plan is at 100%, the state can relax its 2% contribution. An important part of the bill states that no changes can be implemented until an actuarial study is conducted to show that with those changes, the plan’s funding will continue to be healthy and sustainable. So, if the plan’s funding level drops and it needs the 2% contribution from the state, it will continue to receive full state support.

 LB 645 has not been set for hearing yet but I will certainly watch as this bill is discussed in the hearing. It is my understanding Senator Ballard, who introduced the bill on behalf of the Governor, is working with the Nebraska State Education Association to address their concerns.

 The Government, Military and Veterans Affairs committee heard testimony on LB 135, introduced by Senator Holdcroft of Bellevue. The bill would prohibit schools and educational service units from conducting special elections for a bond issue, property tax levy or exceeding a property tax levy limitation. The bill would require such questions to only be on regularly scheduled elections or on traditional election dates like the primary, general and municipal elections, since these elections tend to have a higher voter turnout.

 Concerns were raised by the opposition that this could increase the cost of the project by having to wait a year to two for those elections to come around. It could also impede a schools ability to keep pace with the needs of a district when there may be enrollment growth or building maintenance which may not align with the election calendar. The committee has not taken any action on this bill.

 Unicameral’s website at  www.nebraskalegislature.gov. My contact information is mdorn@leg.ne.gov and 402-471-2620. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

Sen. Myron Dorn invites students to youth legislature

High school students are invited to take on the role of state senators at the Unicameral Youth Legislature June 13-16. At the State Capitol, student senators will sponsor bills, conduct committee hearings, debate legislation and discover the unique process of the nation’s only unicameral.

The Unicameral Youth Legislature gives behind-the-scenes access to students who have an interest in public office, government, politics, law, public policy, debate or public speaking. Students will learn about the inner workings of the Legislature directly from senators and staff.

“Unicameral Camp is a great way to get an in-depth look at our state’s one-house legislative system,” Dorn said. “As a voter, a citizen, a tax payer, or perhaps as a future office holder, it is so important to be as informed as possible about how our government works.”

The Office of the Clerk of the Nebraska Legislature coordinates the Unicameral Youth Legislature. The University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Extension 4-H Youth Development Office coordinates housing and recreational activities as part of the Big Red Summer Camps program.

To learn more about the program, go to www.NebraskaLegislature.gov/uyl or call (402) 471-2788. The deadline for registration is May 28.

http://update.legislature.ne.gov/?p=25077