The legislative session began last Wednesday with some extra twists. The hearing regarding Senator McKeon’s possible expulsion is scheduled for Monday, January 12, at 9:00 a.m. During the hearing, members of the Executive Board and the public will hear from Senator McKeon and the Legislature’s external counsel. They will each present their cases and take questions from the Executive Board. Following the hearing, I expect the Board will go into executive session to decide whether to forward the Legislative Resolution calling for expulsion to the floor. Should they do so, the Speaker would schedule the issue, and the full legislature would vote if he does not choose to leave on his own.

It is important to remember that this issue concerns whether Senator McKeon violated the Legislature’s Code of Conduct policy (essentially a human resources policy) and is not a legal proceeding or issue. The legal ramifications would not be part of the Legislature’s purview.

As many of you are aware, another Senator’s conduct also came under scrutiny during the Legislature’s first week back. Senator Machaela Cavenaugh removed posters placed on the Capitol walls by the Capitol Commission at the request of PragerU in celebration of the country’s 250^th anniversary. Capitol security footage captured the incident. Senator Jared Storm has called for a reprimand from the Executive Board, and Senator Cavanaugh has apologized for how she handled the exhibit, which she believed was in violation of the Capitol Commission’s display policies. I expect that the Executive Board will take steps to formally respond to her actions. However, although her actions were clearly inappropriate, they did not violate specific legislative policy. I will follow up on both these issues next week.

In terms of regular business, almost 250 bills or resolutions were introduced in the first three days of the session. Given the short session, the anticipated budget debate, and all the carryover bills from last year, there will be limited time available for debate. Any bill not passed this year will be indefinitely postponed at the end of the session, and we will start fresh in the new biennium. Senators will need to reintroduce any bills they wish to revisit when the 110^th Legislative Session convenes.

I personally introduced seven bills this week. Two bills deal with routine updates to the Department of Banking’s rules and fees charged, one deals with fee adjustments for the Secretary of State, and one deals with insurance updates. I also introduced a bill specifically to support the Hershey Rail Park. It would amend the existing program rules to allow grant funds to be used to extend rail track on leased land, which I believe will enable inland ports to better utilize grant funding.

Another bill updates laws to increase the ability to stop the financial exploitation of vulnerable adults, and a bill was introduced to increase regulations on non-bank financial institutions to better disclose finance charges. Finally, I introduced a bill to allow retailers to round cash transactions up or down to account for the elimination of pennies, since the federal government will no longer be issuing pennies going forward.

It is a privilege to represent you in the Nebraska Legislature, and I look forward to hearing from you regarding issues that are important to you. I can be reached at 402-471-2729 or by emailing me at mjacobson@leg.ne.gov.