Hello Neighbor,

We have finished up all committee hearings for the session. There were many interesting bills brought before the Education and Health and Human Services Committees, and I got to see and hear from hundreds of testifiers from across the state. We heard 56 bills in the Education Committee and 64 in the Health and Human Services Committee.

Now that committee hearings are over, we will move into all-day debate on the floor. We will be in session from 9 am until noon, recess for lunch, and resume session from 1:30 to 5 pm. After a few weeks, we will then work late a few nights a week, sometimes as late as midnight.

I introduced LB 347 to the Health and Human Services Committee. This is a bill that would exempt the ancient practice of reflexology from massage licensing. Currently, if someone wants to practice reflexology, they must get a massage therapy license, which requires at least one thousand hours of school that can cost thousands of dollars. Exempting reflexology from massage licensing would allow reflexologists to practice in Nebraska without a meddlesome restriction. The committee had a quick turn around and voted to send the bill to the full legislature. While it is probably too late this year to be debated on the floor, it will be brought up next year during the short session.

Each senator is allowed to select one bill to prioritize for floor debate. This session I prioritized Senator Friesen’s LB 585 which would create the Renewable Fuel Infrastructure Program. The program is designed to assist retail operators or fueling stations in the conversion of their equipment to allow for the expanded use of renewable fuels. The program would distribute up to $1 million in grants throughout a year to gas stations to install, replace, or convert infrastructure for ethanol. These grants can be used to install blender pumps that offer the fuel consumer a push-button selection of gasoline-ethanol blends. I believe this bill would help bolster economic development and promote ethanol across the state.

Cleanup continues across the state after the devastating flood. I am thankful for Governor Ricketts and President Trump expediting the state’s request and approval for Federal disaster relief. If you or anyone you know has been affected, make sure to take plenty of pictures of the damage before you start cleaning up. This documentation will be extremely helpful when filing your claim with FEMA.

If I or my staff can assist with any questions you may have, feel free to email me at dmurman@leg.ne.gov, call my office at 402-471-2732, or visit my Facebook page.