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Bill would create two state teams to help fight Nebraska wildfires, but at whose cost?
LINCOLN — A legislative bill would create two state wildfire response teams to help the hundreds of local volunteer and paid firefighters who fight Nebraska’s rising number of grassland, ag land and forest fires. But the bill’s hearing Thursday was dogged by questions over whether the state should hire its own wildfire response teams or […]
Nebraska bill would ban access to USF funds for cell providers with Huawei equipment
LINCOLN — A Nebraska state senator is proposing a novel way to shoot down potential surveillance by the Chinese state. His legislative bill would use the power of the purse to encourage cell phone service providers to ditch equipment from Chinese communications firms. Legislative Bill 63, proposed by State Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln, would […]
Civic Nebraska says state’s 2022 general election was ‘safe’ and ‘secure’
OMAHA — A voting rights group that monitors Nebraska’s elections identified a handful of issues during the state’s 2022 general election but deemed the election “safe and secure.” The report from Civic Nebraska cited the observations of 43 volunteers who observed 140 polling sites last year. The group operated an election problems hotline and contacted […]
Frustrated parents seek middle step in treatment of Nebraska youths in juvenile justice
OMAHA — Nebraska’s juvenile court judges would have a new option for struggling teenagers who need mental health treatment, short of sending them to a detention facility, under a pilot proposal being considered by the Legislature. And parents of wayward teens would have an advocate to help them navigate the state’s juvenile justice system, under […]
Marijuana bill palooza in the Unicameral leads with medical push
LINCOLN — Nebraskans who want to legalize medical marijuana testified Thursday for the latest bill by State Sen. Anna Wishart pressing the Legislature to act. Wishart, advocating for Legislative Bill 588, acknowledged the growing public impatience with a process that has stalled previous medical marijuana bills in the Legislature under pressure from former Gov. Pete […]
Noerrlinger named special prosecutor in alleged Nebraska GOP break-in
LINCOLN — A former Otoe and Jefferson County prosecutor, who is now a criminal defense attorney based in Lincoln, has been appointed as a special prosecutor to review a police investigation into last summer’s alleged break-in at the Nebraska Republican Party. Lancaster County District Court Judge Andrew Jacobsen appointed Tim Noerrlinger to the role after […]
Year-round daylight saving time has a chance this year in Nebraska
LINCOLN — After years of trying, the Nebraska Legislature appears poised to pass a first step toward ending the twice-a-year tyranny of changing the clock. State Sen. Tom Briese of Albion again proposed keeping Nebraska on daylight saving time, if Congress and a third neighboring state join Nebraska in passing such a law. Legislative Bill […]
Herbster says he’s thinking about 2024 Senate race, other political options
OMAHA — Multi-state agribusinessman Charles Herbster might want another go at politics after losing the 2022 Republican primary for Nebraska governor to eventual Gov. Jim Pillen. Herbster, in a statement, confirmed that he is considering a 2024 Senate bid against appointed U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb. “I have had a lot of people both within […]
Bacon, already attacked by Trump, now under fire from Lincoln Project
OMAHA — During Nebraska’s raucous 2022 GOP primary election, former President Donald Trump sought a Republican challenger to U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., who represents Nebraska’s most evenly divided congressional district. Now Bacon is being targeted by the Lincoln Project, an outside group that attacked Trump and his allies during the 2020 election cycle. The […]
Pillen proposes $5 million for mentoring, childhood literacy push
LINCOLN — Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen on Monday proposed spending $5 million a year in tax dollars to create a new competitive grant program to help long-established, youth-focused organizations recruit mentors for thousands of kids. The first focus of the new mentoring initiative would be on expanding the number of volunteers who spend time helping […]
Nebraska’s costliest governor’s race left wild numbers in its wake
OMAHA — The costliest election in Nebraska history is over, including a governor’s race with state-record spending in 2022 of $29 million, campaign finance reports show. Even including the general election that University of Nebraska Regent Jim Pillen won over State Sen. Carol Blood, nobody spent more than the second-place finisher in the GOP primary. […]
Fortenberry and Sasse headline unusual year-end campaign finance reports
OMAHA — The departures of a congressman and a U.S. senator spiced up the final campaign finance reports for Nebraska’s congressional races in 2022. In eastern Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District, U.S. Rep. Mike Flood, R-Neb., defeated Democratic State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks in a rare special election. The seat opened when Rep. Jeff Fortenberry resigned […]