Bri is a long-time community advocate in Omaha who believes in a holistic and inclusive approach to the health of a community. She graduated in 2020 with an undergraduate degree in public health and is currently in the second year of a master’s program in public administration at UNO.

As a politics and policy nerd, Bri has a passion for empowering community members to engage with their local forms of government to influence what goes on in their neighborhoods. She hopes to aid in the development of policy that will create lasting change to keep Nebraska communities healthy and thriving.

We are thrilled to welcome Bri to Team Blood!

I wanted to provide some information to you regarding an issue that is generating a number of calls and e-mails from retirement plan members to senators’ offices and the Nebraska Public Employees Retirement System (NPERS). Members are requesting loans from their retirement accounts, as authorized under the federal CARES Act. As described in the memo, the granting of loans is optional and only available to members if loans have been authorized by the plan sponsor, i.e. the State of Nebraska. Unfortunately, these loans are not available to Nebraska plan members because Nebraska has not enacted legislation authorizing such loans.

I’ve attached a memo from the Legislature’s Retirement Committee that explains the background of what was expected from the CARES Act and why employees won’t be able to take advantage of one provision. Don’t hesitate to contact my office for any more information on this issue.

Nebraska State Senator Carol Blood who represents District 3 encourages Sarpy county residents to pursue appointment to any of the dozens of openings on the Governor’s Board and Commission Openings list.

“Public participation in government is at the heart of democracy, stated Senator Blood.” “I encourage those who have a desire to shape policy, to be involved and give something back to our communities, would like to donate ones professional skills or would like to fulfill their civic responsibility to consider serving.”

The full list, including past unfilled positions, as well as new openings for July to December 2019 can be found on Governor Ricketts’ website at https://governor.nebraska.gov/board-comm-req.
Applying for one of these positions is easier than ever as it can be done online, printed and mailed or a PDF version of the application can be downloaded, filled out and emailed.

For additional information, please contact Senator Carol Blood’s office at 402-471-2627 or via email at cblood@leg.ne.gov.