We are very close to the mid point of the session, but we certainly are not ‘half done’ with debate on the floor. If you have watched any of the session it might appear that we are not progressing through the agenda very quickly. (Note: you can watch live if your cable station carries it, or you can find a link to watch via the internet on Nebraska Public Media. Click on their blue logo on the right side of the Legislature’s website at www.nebraskalegislature.gov)

As you know, we have already discussed some big issues. There are good reasons not to rush through complicated bills with far reaching effects. A “filibuster”, which can consume eight hours of debate on the first round, is actually when much of the hard work is done. Many times that is when side conversations take place and explanations are made more clear. There are often negotiations and adjustments, resulting in amendments. And that can be the difference between a bill passing or not.

The Appropriations Committee on which I serve, is working through the regular general fund budget adjustments as well as the federal funding requests from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The general budget adjustments are due to be reported out from our committee on day 40. The adjustments to this second year of the budget will rely on the analysis from the Nebraska Economic Forecasting Advisory Board, which meets on February 28th.  We will also use those projections for the budget that impacts our next fiscal year, which starts on July 1st. 

The nearly 100 bills requesting ARPA funds are taking a lot of time to work through. The chairman has grouped similar bills together in hearings, for example Thursday was University of Nebraska day as eight ARPA bills were heard in committee.

I presented several bills in committee again this week. The first was LB 761, heard by the Transportation and Telecommunication Committee, which handles broadband legislation. The bill creates the Precision Agriculture Infrastructure Act, funded by ARPA dollars, to help set up points for wireless infrastructure in rural areas that lack good broadband coverage. Grants would go to broadband providers offering on-farm structures and devices; and to producers, cooperatives, or agronomists to help with practical uses. Today’s farm and irrigation equipment is increasingly dependent on digital applications that require a real-time source of connectivity. We also know this technology will keep expanding in years to come and we need to be ahead of the curve.

LB 968 was brought to me by several non-profit organizations to use ARPA funds to develop affordable housing including accommodations for vulnerable populations like refugees and immigrants. LB 968 also includes funds for job training for refugees. The state of Nebraska has already taken in 5000 people from Afghanistan, who have 90 days to get established, get an address and so on. 

We had a gentleman from Afghanistan testify in support of LB 968 who had worked as an interpreter for the US military there, was in danger because of that, and was removed to the US for the safety of him and his family. We also had two gentlemen come in from Somalia who fled the wars there and resettled in Nebraska.  These people represent the huge need, but also a great opportunity for Nebraska businesses who are really struggling to find employees.

You may remember that just one year ago, we had the coldest temperatures of the season, falling to 30 below. I introduced LB 969 to get ARPA funds to support and improve the reliability and resiliency of the electric grid in Nebraska. Public power agencies across the state are asking for help with maintenance and improvements they haven’t been able to do because of the pandemic and severe weather events, with the hope of preventing failures and “rolling blackouts” in the future. 

The Appropriations committee heard my LB 904 on Thursday as part of that slate of bills related to the University of Nebraska statewide system. LB 904 deals with cybersecurity and  would create a national complex for digital dependability. In the past couple of years we have seen hackers disrupt meat packing and ag cooperatives, schools, hospitals and even the city of Beatrice. We need to be prepared in Nebraska with a facility and experts to get us ahead in cybersecurity; we are all too aware this will continue to become more and more of an issue. 

On the floor this week, I voted to advance LB 906, introduced by Sen. Ben Hansen. The bill would create a way for people to claim a religious or medical exemption for coronavirus vaccinations. I visited extensively with people in the medical field, and heard from many constituents in District 30. The views on this issue are quite divided. As an example, I heard from one parent who said their children would not attend a school with a mandate, and another parent who was happy a mandate was in place or they would not have sent their children to school there. This bill does give people some options. 

We will continue to discuss LB 939, as introduced by Sen. Linehan in the coming week. This measure would reduce the state Income tax top rate from 6.84 percent to 5.84 percent over 3 years. In general, I agree a tax cut will spur economic activity – when people have money to spend, they will spend it. Sitting on Appropriations, I know the “rainy day fund” has never been higher and the state is in the best financial shape we have been in for years. But I have to ask if we will be in the same positive situation in three to five years when the revenue reductions kick in and the federal money dries up and the economy changes, as it always does. These are crucial considerations and I am listening to the debate and studying this issue. 

Your communication is as important as ever as we go through the session. Please reach out at:  402-471-2620 or mdorn@leg.ne.gov.  Thank you.

The Legislature continued this week with a schedule of morning debate on the floor, and afternoon committee hearings. I had three bills heard in committee this week, LB 759, LB 1090 and LB 1091.

LB 759 addresses the microenterprise loan program, which is part of the Business Innovation Act (BIA).  This program began in 2011 to award loans to small businesses. The original amount back then was $50,000; it was raised to $100,000 in 2015.  My bill would raise that cap to $150,000 in an effort to account for cost of living changes, the current business climate and inflation and get those funds out to the people who really need it and can use it to contribute to our local economy.  This program works well for those who might not fit a typical bank loan. The entrepreneurs and start ups in the program have nearly always been turned down by traditional lenders, and this can fill a financing gap in the community. BIA also provides technical assistance and helps these innovators develop the credit history they will need to become bankable going forward. 

I also introduced LB 1090 to resolve an issue in a positive way with the Business Innovation Act (BIA). This bill increases the annual cap of the amount of funds to be awarded for microlending and technical assistance. Last year, the Legislature passed LB 380 which capped small business investment at 20% of the BIA budget appropriation, amounting to about $2 million for microlending. That created a ‘math problem’ that needs to be remedied. With an appropriation of $13.7 M this year, and $14.7 M for FY 22-23, a cap of just two million dollars would prohibit full use of the intended 20% for small businesses. Increasing the cap from $2M to $3M allows BIA, through the Department of Economic Development, to fully fund small business investment and assistance.

The third bill, LB 1091, was heard by the Health and Human Services Committee. This bill was brought to me by Nebraska nurses and hospitals, as part of a group of bills designed to help with the healthcare staffing crisis in our state. A study done last year shows we will have a shortage of over 5,000 nurses in just three years. We all know how important high quality and readily available health care can be for a community. This bill would allocate $5 million from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to provide scholarships for nursing students. The requirements include being a resident of Nebraska, enrolling in an approved program, and the intent to work in nursing for two years in our state when education is complete. My hope is to keep our healthcare workforce as strong as possible going forward.

Much of the debate on the floor this week has centered around school finance, with a measure to cap spending in LB 986 by Sen. Briese, modifying state school financing in LB 890 introduced by Sen. Walz, and a separate  companion funding bill from Sen. Lindstrom, LB 891.  

Like a similar measure for a 3% cap on school spending in last year’s session, LB 986 didn’t get enough votes for cloture, so will not proceed. While discussion did go the full eight hours allotted, I did appreciate the explanations of how it would affect schools, property tax, and the reasons for the bill. Many of our school districts are controlling spending and those local school boards are doing their job well. That bill had a cap of 2.5% and we have many schools below that.  Generally speaking when a school has a high increase in spending, there is a reason why.  Lincoln Public Schools over the last five years has had a 7% increase in spending; but they also have new school buildings to staff and a growth in student population.

In Nebraska, we have strong support for local control: we have local schools boards and there are local elections for those boards. You have an opportunity at your local level to get involved, to see what is going on. You can ask your elected officials at the local level why they voted a certain way. So right there we have an opportunity to help control spending. I did vote against LB 986. My vote was based on my experience of sitting on the county board. A cap can have an inverse effect, it can actually encourage a board to go up to the maximum allowed by a cap so they don’t risk losing money in future years. Generally, the cap doesn’t do what you want. It rewards those who have spent too much, as they are now starting at a higher level. Those who spend less start at a lower level and lose out. The result is that a cap can have a negative impact on the intent of keeping taxes lower; and in LB 986 it could have increased spending in some school districts.

Taxes and K-12 school funding debate continued when we took up LB 890. The funding arm to implement this is addressed in LB 891. One good aspect of separating the matter into two bills:  it allowed one to be heard by the Education Committee and the other by the Revenue Committee.  At this time, I cannot support LB 890, there are too many winners and losers without guarantees for the funding of all schools across the state. Since long hours had been spent on this without any consensus, Speaker Hilgers used his authority to put a ‘speaker hold’ on the bill and debate has stopped for the present time. 

In the meantime, make sure you get credit for your property taxes. Under LB 1107 passed last year, property tax payers are eligible for the income tax credit refund for school property tax paid. This year the level is 25.3% of the school property taxes you paid in 2021, so be sure to file for that and get that refund. Last year it didn’t all get used, so be sure to apply that on your income tax return.

Please continue to contact my office if you have any concerns or questions. mdorn@leg.ne.gov  402-471-2620. Send mail to District 30, PO Box 94604, Lincoln, NE 68509-4604. These are the best ways to contact me, and I appreciate hearing from you.

Another legislative week is in the books and we are now finished with one-third of the session. Two of my bills were heard in committee on Monday. 

I introduced LB 762 in the Appropriations Committee, to increase provider rates in behavioral health, developmental disabilities, and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Over the last decade, these provider areas have had minimal increases and the bill asks for an increase of 10%. Funding would come from around $9 million in general funds which would be supplemented by an additional $15 million in federal funds. 

With the current labor shortage there is a significant challenge to keep, or hire, qualified personnel. Several people from District 30 testified in support of LB 762 including Blue Valley Behavioral Health, with data to show both the increase in clients and escalating need for service. Some of the increase can be directly traced to the pandemic, but many of these needs were already there.

In my fourth year at the legislature, I can confirm it isn’t always possible to predict what will happen with a vote. There is certainly recognition of the need for higher provider rates, and there are several other bills like LB 762 that address similar issues . For example, Appropriations Chairman Stinner has a bill concerning long term care providers.  In addition, the Department of Corrections implemented an increase in wages a few months ago to attract and retain the workforce they clearly need. So far, the move has been effective. But it revealed the importance of looking ahead with a long term vision, taking into consideration the current state of the economy.

As another example of that need for forward thinking, we heard a report this week from the Capitol Commission about the amazing structure we have here in Nebraska, our 90 plus year old Capitol building. In a building of this size and age, there are maintenance costs all the time. The problems do not go away, and we must plan ahead. In the current HVAC project, costs on phases 1 and 2 were on target but the expense of Phases 3-5 has increased greatly due to supply issues and pandemic related obstacles. None of this comes as any surprise, we have all dealt with comparable shortages and rising prices over the past couple of years.

The second bill I had this week was LB 811. This concern was brought to me by the association of county officials and deals with auctioneers from other states. The bill amends our state statutes to reaffirm that auctioneers of any state shall comply with the requirements of the Nebraska Real Estate License Act before conducting a sale of real estate in this state. Even if neighboring states, for example, have a slightly different process, they must meet the requirements in Nebraska.  There was no opposition and this bill was unanimously supported by the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee. As a result, the bill is eligible for the Consent Calendar, which is a slate of non-controversial bills grouped together for brief debate and advancement.

Discussion on LB 986, brought by Sen. Briese of Albion, consumed a couple of days of floor debate this week. The bill would prohibit school districts from raising property taxes beyond: the greatest of 2.5%, Consumer Price Index inflation, 40% of student enrollment growth, 25% of LEP student growth, or, 25% of poverty student growth. Property tax requests would have to decrease commensurate with increases in state funding, and could increase commensurate with decreases in state funding. A school board could act to exceed the limit, and alternatively, carry forward unused tax increase authority, with some restrictions. 

The larger schools in District 30 (Beatrice, Norris and LPS) are opposed to this.  Charts distributed on the floor during the debate showed many schools that kept their property tax rates down and I want to commend those districts. There was also a list of schools that had an increase of 7 or 8%. The perception is that every district is at a high rate, but many schools are doing a good job. Those with increases may have had a new building or large growth in student population, and so on. When you see that magnitude of increase it doesn’t mean strictly school operations, it could have been due to extenuating circumstances. When you have served several years in the Legislature, it becomes apparent that crafting a bill which treats every school district In Nebraska fairly, just isn’t that easy but we will not give up. 

Another major school funding measure is LB 890, which Sen. Walz of Fremont, chair of the Education Committee, has prioritized. In its current form, it will have challenges. There are several amendments being discussed, which might give it some traction. Parts of her bill have merit; but it needs LB 891, heard by the Revenue Committee, to have funding; so we will need to see how all that flows together. We must protect the property tax credit enacted in past years, and these two companion bills do not have the protection I want to see yet.  

Starting next week, the Appropriations committee will meet over the noon hour to discuss funding bills, agency requests and the bills we will need to bring to the floor for the general fund budget. We will also be briefed by the Attorney General about the Perkins County canal and water disputes with the state of Colorado; and also get more information about the proposed “Star Wars” lake between Lincoln and Omaha.  We will be doing our homework before we finalize the budget and submit it to the full legislative body for debate.

As always, my email and phone are available 24 hours a day. mdorn@leg.ne.gov  402-471-2620. Send mail to District 30, State Capitol, PO Box 94604, Lincoln NE 68509-4604. Website:  www.nebraskalegislature.gov

We are a quarter of the way through this short session, but the days have been long.  Mornings are used for floor debate and afternoons for committee hearings. Since our first day of floor debate, we have focused on priority bills, some carried over from last year, and some newly designated by senators as their 2022 priorities. While most of our conversations have been lengthy, they have been mainly cordial, and I hope to see it stay that way.

Committee hearings have generated a lot of interest and testimony. The Judiciary Committee typically has the most bills and that has not changed in this session, with increased urgency to act on Corrections issues.  This session, due to the federal funds known as the American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA), the Appropriations Committee has followed suit with a large number of bills. 

The Legislative Fiscal Office released a list of the 86 bills requesting ARPA funds, along with 14 requests sent to other committees. A quick toting up of those 100 bills shows just over $3.7 billion in requests, out of the $1.4 billion available. Some of the larger bills include one by Sen. Ben Hansen of Blair, which would direct $520M to go out in debit cards to people in the state of Nebraska.  Senators Wayne and McKinney have proposed around $420M for north Omaha neighborhoods which really struggled during covid. Sen. McDonnell’s “shovel ready” bill would grow with $100M in assistance in the Governor’s ARPA’s proposal. One item that caught my eye in the Governor’s plan was to fund the law enforcement training facilities in Grand Island with $47.7M. I have heard from a few of the local law enforcement agencies regarding the difficulty in hiring officers only to see delays in their ability to receive training at the training facilities.

Which brings me to a couple of important considerations as we look at ways to distribute ARPA funds.  There are strict guidelines for how the money is to be spent. Use of the funds must be related to Covid-19 prevention and mitigation of its effects, medical services, behavioral health care, and preventing and responding to violence.  Some of the entities which can be considered include households, small businesses with less than 500 employees, non profits, impacted industries such as travel, tourism, hospitality and similar industries, and public sector capacity  –  broadband and internet access, and vital services such as water and sewer projects. 

There are also some budgetary stipulations. First, the dollars have to be allocated by the end of 2024; and they must be used by the end of 2026. Secondly, if the federal government questions the proper and timely use of the funds, they must be repaid within 120 days and then an appeals process can take place. 

The Appropriations Committee heard nearly eight hours of testimony on Tuesday on just one bill, LB 1014, the Governor’s proposals for the ARPA money. More than 80 people testified and we finished up about 9:30 pm that night. We haven’t even started putting the puzzle together yet. Eventually, when the remaining hearings are finished, things will start to fall into place. Some issues will rise to the top. Others will be weeded out.

Two important bills were heard by the Education and Revenue Committees this week. LB 890 and LB 891, introduced by Senators Walz and Lindstrom respectively, which work hand in hand to make changes to public school funding. There was significant support from the schools for the formula portion of the bill. However the superintendent for Omaha Public Schools testified in opposition to both bills. I have been in conversation with senators on both the Education and Revenue committees to learn more. If the bills stay in current form, they will face challenges to get out of committee or to go on to have success on the floor. However, there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes, as with most higher level bills like this. It will be interesting to see what amendments or changes come out in the future on this major and recurring issue.

I encourage you to read through the funding bills or any other topics of legislation that concern you. You can contact me at mdorn@leg.ne.gov, call 402-471-2620, or send mail to District 30, PO Box 94604, Lincoln, NE 68509-4604.  The text of all bills and a complete schedule can be found at www.nebraskalegislature.gov

Bill introduction is complete, and public hearings have begun at the Legislature. The total number of bills introduced from the previous session and this current one (which comprise one biennium) is 1277. Each bill will be heard by a committee. However, with our limited time in this 60 day session, I predict that only the easiest bills with minimal impact, and the biggest bills which affect the most people or the budget, will make it to the floor for debate.

There are quite a few “big” issues before us, and I admire and appreciate the passion and support constituents have, both pro and con. I would like to suggest a few tips for communicating your views to senators and staff, and perhaps anyone with whom you interact on a “hot topic” for that matter.  I know we can all benefit from these ideas, myself included.

First, tell your personal story and try to avoid form letters, forwarded emails, or pre-printed postcards.  Secondly, while frustration is normal, try to discuss the matter at hand and remember it is just another human being taking your call, reading your letter, or listening to your committee presentation.  Be calm. Be honest, share as many facts as you can. And be as patient as possible, because sometimes the wheels turn slow, whether we like it or not. For our part, my staff and I will listen and read and respond to the best of our abilities.

The Appropriations Committee on which I serve, has already begun the process of reviewing agency budgets and requests for adjustments. The main budget was passed last year, so this second year of a session is typically for small modifications.  Of course, all of that went out the door with American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds coming into Nebraska.  Nearly every bill that requests assistance from this fund will pass through the Appropriations Committee process, including the Governor’s plan. We will begin hearing those bills on the 24th and continue to mid February.

One of my own bills had a public hearing on Friday before the Judiciary committee. LB 763 would add private airstrips or runways and noncommercial aviation activities to the protections provided under the recreation liability statutes. The next step will be for the committee to decide whether to send the bill to the floor for first round debate, hold it, or indefinitely postpone (kill) the bill.

Another of my bills, LB 1091 is The Nebraska Nursing Incentive Act bill. Our state’s hospitals struggle to attract and retain healthcare professionals, which affects both our physical and economic health.  Lack of care ripples out through communities across the state as they work to draw and retain residents and the businesses that employ them. As we all know, this issue has only become more crucial during the pandemic. LB 1091 appropriates $5 million from ARPA for scholarships to public or private postsecondary institutions for approved nursing programs.

So far, our morning debates on the floor have focused on just a few bills. LR 14, introduced by Sen. Halloran, would include Nebraska in a constitutional convention. In the second round debate this bill was amended to sunset by 2027 and I support this bill.  LB 496, brought by Sen. Hilkeman, allows for collection of DNA when someone is placed under arrest for certain felonies. I support this bill as well. LB 310 is carried by Sen. Clements and makes adjustments to the categories and amount of the inheritance tax. My position is that these are tax dollars that go directly to counties, and are not the state’s tax dollars in the first place. I also know from my time on the county board how important these funds can be to a county. For those reasons, I did not support the bill in the first round; however it has advanced to final reading. I would support any elimination of the inheritance tax if the state would replace the funding. 

For hearing and debate schedules, text and status of all bills and contact information for all senators, go to www.nebraskalegislature.gov.  Contact me directly at 402-471-2620  mdorn@leg.ne.gov  District 30, State Capitol, PO Box 94604, Lincoln NE  68509-4606

The second session of the 107th Legislature is off and running. This is the “short” 60 day session and the second half of a two-year biennium. The first ten days are used for new bill introduction, and all of those bills will have a public hearing in coming weeks. But we also began right away debating bills that were carried over from the first session in 2021. 

Earlier this week, discussion was held on LR 14 by Sen. Halloran, which would include Nebraska in a convention of the states. That bill advanced to the second round of debate.  We also took up Sen. Linehan’s bill LB364 to give tax credits for charitable contributions to private school scholarships. That bill did not advance. LB364 was taken to eight hours of debate and consumed a good part of the week.

The Legislature will convene in the mornings starting on the 18th for floor debate; and will hold committee hearings on new bills each afternoon. We will continue with the bill introduction until the 20th.

At this point, I have a couple of bills that carried over from last year, and have introduced several new bills.  My carry over legislation includes LB102, which would provide for the transfer of duties of clerks of the district court to clerk magistrates to streamline this part of the court system as well as save some money.

Another carry over bill is LB361 which deals with funding for our Educational Service Units. In the past ten years, funding for ESUs has decreased. The bill attempts to restore core service funds to the ESUs.

Many of my new proposals deal with the way we allocate the federal funds known as ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) available to Nebrakans as a result of the pandemic. A couple of other bills make minor changes to existing law to allow full access to appropriated grant fund dollars. We need to take advantage of this one-time influx of cash to our state, and stretch those dollars as far as possible, for as many as possible.

I introduced LB759 to change a limitation relating to microloans under the Business Innovation Act. The cap was last raised in 2015. With inflation, the cap should be closer to $150,000. LB760 requests $5 million in ARPA funds for grants to licensed emergency medical services programs to replace old ambulances and medical equipment. This concept is also a part of the Governor’s proposal.

My bill, LB761 would create the Precision Agriculture Infrastructure Grant Act with $10 million in ARPA funds to provide broadband to ag producers for precision agriculture connectivity, sustainability, traceability and autonomy to accelerate rural economic development.

Provider rates are always of concern in District 30, and I introduced LB762 to appropriate funds for a 10% provider rate increase for behavioral health services through the Department of Health and Human Services. 

A couple of my bills deal with liability and licensing. LB763 would place private airstrips or runways and noncommercial aviation activities under the protection of the recreational liability act.  LB811 would require  out-of-state auctioneers to comply with the Nebraska Real Estate License Act before selling property here in our state.

We have all seen the increase in threats to the grids and networks we rely on. I introduced LB904 to use ARPA funds for an artificial Intelligence, cybersecurity and computer center facility, with a focus on agriculture.  My bill LB969 asks for ARPA funds for the Department of Environment and Energy to improve reliability and resiliency of the electric grid.

Another ARPA fund request is in my bill LB968, allocating federal funds to the Department of Economic Development for affordable housing and job training including housing for refugees, and $2 million for job training. The Governor also has workforce housing development and job training in his proposed budget package.

LB996 is my bill to send federal funds to the Department of Health and Human Services for assisted-living facilities impacted by COVID, incentives for staff recruitment and retention, and assistance with cost of supplies and equipment.

I have two more bills which I will introduce next week (bill numbers have not yet been assigned). The first would direct $5 million in ARPA for scholarships to students entering into nursing programs because of severe nursing shortages now and into the future; and the second one would change the cap in the existing microenterprise program from the current $2 million dollar cap to $3 million and allow access to funds already there.

This will be an extremely busy session, thanks in large part to those federal funds. As a result, I have introduced more bills than I had anticipated. But as I said, we need to take advantage of this significant and rare opportunity, nearly all of them will have a beneficial multiplier effect on our local economy.

The text of every bill introduced, a schedule for hearings, and a means to submit your own written testimony, can all be found at the Legislature’s website:  nebraskalegislature.gov.  I encourage you to weigh in on any issue that concerns you as we progress through the session.  mdorn@leg.ne.gov  402-471-2620 District 30, PO Box 94604, Lincoln, NE 68509-4604

Former U.S. Ambassador to China/former Governor of Iowa, Terry Branstad with Gov. Pete Ricketts at the Governor’s Ag Conference in Kearney, NE on August 4th.

For several years running, Sen. Dorn has been voted Gage County’s Most Popular Politician in a contest held by the Beatrice Daily Sun newspaper.
Congrats, Sen. Dorn!

It is a real pleasure to report that LB 103 has been signed into law by the Governor. This was my priority bill, and it appropriates $2M in each of the next two years to counties that meet certain criteria in paying off a federal judgement.  This statute will allow Gage county to receive funds from the state’s general fund and apply the entire amount to the “Beatrice Six” case payment. 

I want to thank the senators, the Board of Supervisors, organizations and constituents who supported LB 103. Your letters and phone calls explaining the burden on the county and the need for this legislation were vital and much appreciated. 

I was appointed to a special committee, outlined in LR 141, to look at school financing. Senators Bostar, Brandt, DeBoer, Flood, Friesen, Groene, McKinney, Pahls, Wishart and Education Committee Chair Walz are the other members charged with reviewing how revenue is collected and distributed to our K-12 public schools. I look forward to diving into the nuts and bolts of school finance and hope we can develop some sorely needed recommendations for reform, no small task.

With final action on a large number of bills, the Legislature has adjourned “sine die” for this session. On Wednesday morning, the body debated LR 134, the resolution which outlines the way we will take up redistricting later this year. The complete list of guidelines can be found on the website at www.nebraskalegislature.gov. Watch for a schedule of public hearings on the calendar tab of the website.

Veto overrides were taken up in the afternoon. Three bills were returned with a veto by the Governor, LB 108, 147 and 306. I supported LBs 108 and 306 which would provide assistance to some of the lowest income earners in our state. Food, shelter and heat are not luxuries but are essential to the health and well being of every person. I supported both of these bills and voted to override the vetoes.

LB 147 would transfer duties and responsibilities for management of the Class V retirement system (Omaha Public Schools) to the Public Employees Retirement Board effective September 1, 2024. The bill specifies accounting and audits that must be completed to accomplish the transition, and identifies the Omaha school district as the party responsible to pay all related costs related to the transfer of management. The bill clarifies that the school district remains solely financially responsible and liable during the transition and after the transfer of management to the Public Employees Retirement Board occurs; and specifies that the State of Nebraska, the Public Employees Retirement Board and the Nebraska Public Employees Retirement System are not liable for any of the funding obligations of the Class V retirement system. I also supported this override motion.

Thursday was largely centered around clean up and bookkeeping procedures that allow the official records of the session to be completed. Governor Ricketts addressed the Legislature, and then the motion to adjourn was approved.  Now the focus will turn to interim studies and special committee work for the next few months. 

The past year has reminded us we can never know the future with any certainty, but conditions definitely look brighter than a year ago. During the interim months when we are not in session, my staff will still be in the office to handle your communications. I will be in the office as needed, and attending events in District 30.  Contact me at mdorn@leg.ne.gov, 402-471-2620, or send your mail to PO Box 94604, Lincoln, NE 68509-4604. Wishing you a safe and productive summer.

Priority Bill

On Thursday, my priority bill, LB 103, was passed on final reading by a vote of 44 to 3. Now we wait to see if the bill is signed into law.  It is my fervent hope that the bill will help the Beatrice 6 receive their funds a little faster and ease the tax burden on the citizens of Gage County. LB 103  would allow the state to appropriate $2 million to Gage County in July of this year and again in 2022, to be used towards paying off the federal judgment.

The session is winding down, but the pace of work has been anything but slower. Around 50 bills have been on the agenda each of the last two days on final reading, interspersed with several hours of filibusters. We will recess for the next four days, necessary for the Governor to sign or veto the bills. Then we will come back next week to take up motions to override, if any, and adjourn “sine die” on Thursday, which becomes the last day of the session. 

Redistricting

Since we already know we will be back in late September to work on redistricting, we will be adjourning just a few days earlier than the allotted time for this session. The pandemic delayed the census numbers, which are required before we draw district maps, so redistricting could not be accomplished inside our sessions’ 90 day time frame. There will be maps for the 49 legislative districts, our three congressional districts, the Supreme Court, Public Service Commission, Board of Regents and State Board of Education. Each of these will have a separate bill with a hearing and debate during the special session this fall. Before we convene, there will also be public hearings in each congressional district during the summer. The dates will be publicized on the legislative website at www.nebraskalegislature.gov. We will be debating LR 134 on Wednesday, the 26th, the resolution that outlines the substantive criteria to be used during the 2021 redistricting process. Note, this is an LR, legislative resolution, not a bill (LB), which can affect your search on the webpage. As with all sessions and hearings, you can watch live on Nebraska Public Media, by clicking on the link on the right side of the webpage noted above. 

Key Legislation

Many important bills were acted on this week, including LB 2 as introduced by Sen. Briese of Albion. Right now, agricultural land is valued at 75% of its actual value for purposes of property taxation. This bill would reduce that further, to 50% of valuation, only when a school district levies taxes to pay for bonds passed by the school district. The bill applies only to new bonds going forward and none already in progress. Some school districts in Nebraska have 90% farm land; the Lincoln and Omaha districts are at less than ½ of 1%. This bill will have a very minimal impact on the two large cities, but will help schools like Beatrice, where you are closer to 30-50% in farms. Ag land has been paying off a greater share of bonds than what they represent as voters. This bill puts the paying of the bond financing on a more even playing field.

A concealed carry bill introduced by Sen. Brewer was scaled back after the State Attorney General advised that it could be unconstitutional in its current form. LB 236 would have allowed counties to authorize residents to carry without a state issued permit. Sen. Brewer offered an amendment on his bill to remove that section and include three other provisions. The bill now allows transportation of firearms in vehicles for lawful purposes  when unloaded, stored in a case. and kept separate from ammunition; permit holders would be notified four months before a permit expires; and given a 30 day grace period to renew after expiration. 

LB 542, a bill introduced by Sen. Walz to allow the state highway commission to issue bonds was discussed on the floor, but is being held over until next session. Working with the Governor and the Nebraska Department of Transportation,  Sen. Walz will come back with the issue in January. In present form, it would allow for $450M in bonds to be paid over 10 years for road construction; 75% of it for an expressway system and federally designated high priority corridors. With talk at the federal level about infrastructure, it is probably best to wait and see how that plays out, especially since road projects for this year are already all bid out, and there are not enough crews available to add much more work this year. 

Sen.Vargas had introduced a bill concerning employee conditions in the meatpacking industry after holding hearings last summer. With improvements in the pandemic, some of the restrictions in the bill were loosened up, and remaining provisions would help ensure sick leave, testing and so on. But senators who opposed the bill did not think it would be necessary in light of increased vaccination rates and lower covid hospitalization cases. The bill was bracketed, which means it will not be taken up again during the session.

It is great to hear about events like the upcoming College World Series expecting to be at full capacity.  We constantly think about those who have lost loved ones and the economic challenges of the past 18 months. But finally we are going in a good direction. Hopefully vaccines continue to be effective and allow people to return to normal. 

Please remember you can contact me at any time at mdorn@leg.ne.gov, call 402-471-2620, or send mail to PO Box 94604, Lincoln NE 68509-4604. Thank you.