Constituent Survey

Click here to take the district 8 legislative survey!

Please encourage your friends, neighbors, family, and coworkers to fill out this survey as well. It is essential for your representation to hear from as many constituents as possible.

If you would prefer to have a survey mailed to you, please email your address to cross@leg.ne.gov and one will be sent to you. Thank you in advance for sharing your perspectives with me. I look forward to reading your surveys.

Virtual Town Hall Video

You can watch my full virtual town hall here. It is also posted on my Youtube and Facebook pages. 

I apologize for any inconvenience you may have encountered while trying to watch the event. Our first virtual town hall highlighted some issues for us, but they will all be fixed before our next event! Thank you all for watching and engaging with me.

Join Senator Megan Hunt for her first Virtual Town Hall event! It will take place on October 25th at 2 pm. The event will be live-streamed via Zoom, Youtube, and Facebook on Senator Hunt’s pages.

Everyone is invited to attend the live stream via Facebook and Youtube. If you are a constituent, please register for the event via Zoom here. This will allow you to participate in the live Q&A at the end of the Town Hall. Questions can also be submitted by constituents and the general public by emailing them to cross@leg.ne.gov or calling them in at 402-471-2722 prior to the event.

Today, the Nebraska Legislature passed the Nebraska Fair Pay to Play Act. LB 962, introduced by Senator Megan Hunt, provides a path for college athletes to receive compensation for their name, image, and likeness rights.

“With more than twenty-five state looking at this issue, Nebraska has an opportunity to be a leader in providing economic freedoms to college athletes. College athletes are the only students on campuses across Nebraska that are prevented from earning money from their reputation as an athlete, or from their own skill and talent,” Hunt said. “The vast majority of college athletes, even those with scholarships, struggle to make ends meet because unlike their fellow students, they can’t leverage their skills to earn a living. LB 962 is our chance to align these athletes with the rest of the student population and restore their right to earn a wage for their talent and skills.”

The bill provides for all student-athletes enrolled in public and private four-year colleges and universities in Nebraska to earn money from endorsements, sponsorships, and any other activities related to their athletic skills,” Hunt said. “Under current law, athletes cannot participate in the modern economy and are barred from doing things as simple as posting a sponsored post on social media or coaching private lessons in the off-season.” The delayed implementation date of 2023 provides ample time for colleges and the NCAA to prepare for this change.

Nebraska the third state in the nation to enact name, image, and likeness rights legislation. “We are already leading on this issue, exemplified by the University of Nebraska which is already at the forefront of providing a name, image, and likeness program for athletes,” Hunt said. “By restoring college athletes’ rights, we’re sending a clear message to students across the country: you’re welcome in Nebraska.”

Dear friends and neighbors,

Today brings us historic news from the Supreme Court. In a landmark ruling, our nation’s highest court affirmed the rights of LGBTQ+ workers by finding that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity is a form of sex discrimination prohibited under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. That means that a person cannot be fired because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. This is a big deal.

Today is a victory for LGBTQ+ workers all over our country, especially in Nebraska where we have fought for years at the state level to enshrine these protections into law. We owe our gratitude to Aimee Stephens, Donald Zarda and Gerald Bostock, the LGBTQ+ workers who brought these cases all the way to the top. Sadly, only one of the three plaintiffs is still with us today — Don passed away in 2014 and, just this May, we lost Aimee, too. They deserved to be a part of this moment and we owe them so much thanks.

This much-needed win also comes in the midst of two epidemics: COVID-19, and racial violence, answered by the Black Lives Matter movement. A guarantee of employment protections like these couldn’t come at a better time, but it is not enough. I find myself happy about this Supreme Court decision, but not resting and not even really relieved. This is one long-overdue step in the fight for equality and fight against violence toward the LGBTQ+ community, which disproportionately affects Black people and people of color. We have to recognize and dismantle all policies that embolden those who stand on the side of inequality, and that work is not done.

I am the first openly LGBTQ+ person elected to the Nebraska Legislature in its 165-year history. To me, that is a dubious honor, because that much time should not have passed before we had a single person offering representation to our community at the state level. In 2020, we must elect more people from our LGBTQ+ community and continue to expand the diversity of representation across all intersections of identity and experience at the state and local level. The government doesn’t work for all the people until it reflects all the people.

In Nebraska, we must still pass LB627, Senator Patty Pansing Brooks’s priority bill to enshrine LGBTQ+ workplace protections at the state level and mirror federal law. This will be my expectation of my colleagues in the Nebraska Legislature.

Every person should have the freedom to work hard, earn a decent living, and provide for their families. Those aren’t just Nebraska values – they are American values.

As always, please let me know if I can be of any more assistance. Email is the best way to get in touch with me, at mhunt@leg.ne.gov.

Keep safe,
Meg

Dear friends and neighbors,

It’s hard to believe that we are now in our fourth month of social distancing. It is extremely important that we continue to follow the guidelines put forth by public health experts as we slowly begin to re-open parts of our state. By following these health directives with continued social distancing and the wearing of masks in public, we can prevent more infections and death.

Nebraska is currently in Phase II of reopening. Is that great? No, but it is what it is, and that’s the Governor’s choice. I’m emailing you today to update you with the most current directives and guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services and the Governor for COVID-19 in Nebraska. Please feel free to share this email and any of these resources with caregivers, business owners, workers, and anyone else who may benefit.

• Understanding Directed Health Measures – Includes an explanation of Phase II and reopening guidelines
• Douglas County Reopening Guidance – Includes information about youth sports, livestock shows, barbers and salons, restaurants and bars, and more
• Travel Recommendations
• A list of the Governor’s COVID-Related Executive Orders
• Statewide COVID Case Dashboard
• Douglas County COVID Case Dashboard

Besides the health impacts of the Coronavirus, we know that the economic devastation will not only be lasting, but it will affect the health of Nebraskans as well. Omaha has record unemployment, nearly 50,000 people without healthcare, and families and workers are facing hardship like our community has never seen. There are resources available for workers, families and small businesses to help deal with the financial insecurity that has impacted so many Nebraskans.  Below are links to resources available to help people in need of assistance.

• Children Nutrition Sites for Grab & Go Breakfast and Lunch
• Food Bank COVID-19 Resources
• Economic Security Resources
• Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
• Mental Health Resources

The Speaker announced that we will be returning to complete the final 17 days of our Legislative Session on July 20. The Lancaster County Public Health Department has worked with capitol staff to make the Chamber as safe as possible for our return, including spreading out our seating arrangement, plastic dividers, and masks.

My colleagues and I have spent a lot of time over this legislative suspension discussing how to move policy concerns forward when we return, especially given the drop we expect in revenue for the year and the likelihood that we will experience at least two years of economic downturn from this pandemic. I am learning a lot from the experience of my senior colleagues and doing everything I can to make sure we do not forget about marginalized groups and how they will be impacted.

While we are not in session, the Governor has addressed several issues related to the pandemic through executive orders. He also has broad discretion to spend CARES Act dollars. Consequently, much of our efforts to directly address pandemic concerns in the immediate term have been through advocating the Governor to act. Ongoing conversations have also been occurring over how CARES Act funding could be used including helping to fund front line services in our cities and counties and provide relief to small business owners and families who have been hardest hit economically. I signed onto a letter sent by Senator Kate Bolz recommending more public input and transparency with how CARES Act dollars will be spent. There will be opportunities for legislative oversight when we return to session.

When we return, the same bills will be up for discussion. New legislation cannot be introduced unless we suspend the rules (which is unlikely, but possible). Nebraskans can expect several amendments to be introduced addressing new needs brought to us by both COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement.

I know that working together we will get through this pandemic and be stronger for it.

As always, please let me know if I can be of any more assistance. Email is the best way to get in touch with me, at mhunt@leg.ne.gov.

Keep safe,
Meg

Dear friends and neighbors,

“It’s up to you to talk to your brothers and your sisters and persuade them that they have a responsibility. We’ve assumed ours for over four hundred years and we’re tired of this kind of stuff now. We’re not going to suffer patiently anymore.”
-Senator Ernie Chambers, 1966

The iconic clip of Senator Chambers speaking about racial injustice as he barbers in North Omaha, in the Oscar-nominated 1966 documentary A Time for Burning, has gone viral over the last few days. It’s been shared hundreds of thousands of times on Twitter by famous writers and producers and professors all over the world, including Chuck D of Public Enemy, actress Yvette Nicole Brown, and Jarrett Hill of NBC.

Film Streams currently has A Time For Burning available to stream for free online. If you haven’t seen this film, watch it soon with your family. Its message is important, because until we acknowledge and understand our history, we will continue to repeat it.

As always, please let me know if I can be of any more assistance. Email is the best way to get in touch with me, at mhunt@leg.ne.gov.

Many thanks,
Meg