Government & Politics
Nebraska state troopers endorse Herbster, saying he has offered them higher pay
LINCOLN — The union representing Nebraska State Patrol troopers sent a message Tuesday to Gov. Pete Ricketts and his preferred replacement: They’re tired of waiting on the state to pay them more. The State Troopers Association of Nebraska endorsed Conklin Co. CEO Charles Herbster in the Republican governor’s primary race, a candidate Ricketts has said […]
Missouri House bill would cut down on poisonous lead in school drinking water
Missouri children would be better protected from lead poisoning under a state legislative bill to require schools to nearly rid their drinking water of the dangerous toxin. The bill, heard Monday by the House Conservation and Natural Resources Committee, would require schools to test drinking water, remove old coolers and filter water where lead is […]
A growing ACLU Nebraska sees change in top spots
A civil rights attorney who led a Lincoln human rights agency and earlier was a prison librarian has been named the new legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska. Mostly recently, Mindy Rush Chipman led the Lincoln Commission on Human Rights, a city agency that works to prevent and respond to illegal […]
Nebraska lawmakers pledge work to improve handling of workplace harassment complaints
LINCOLN — The Nebraska Legislature appears headed for a review of how it handles workplace harassment complaints by employees and how it handles senators who breach ethical standards. State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh of Omaha said Monday that a recent complaint filed against then-Sen. Mike Groene pointed up the “inadequacies” in the current complaint process. She […]
State’s $1 billion ARPA budget moves forward but faces uncertain future
LINCOLN — A group of state lawmakers worked into the night Monday in hopes of crafting a grand compromise among three major issues in the 2022 session. Amid that work, legislators gave second-round approval to the bill outlining proposed spending of the state’s $1 billion allocation from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). But […]
School officials say ‘furries’ talk is ridiculous after Nebraska lawmaker raises the issue
LINCOLN — Officials with the Seward and Adams Central school districts on Monday labeled as “ridiculous” and “an ugly rumor” talk that students have dressed up as cats and dogs and have requested litter boxes to handle their bathroom needs. Officials with both the Millard and Omaha public schools also said they were unaware of […]
Ex-running mate, former staffers call Herbster unfit to be Nebraska governor
OMAHA — A former running mate, a former political mentor and more than a dozen former campaign staffers who helped get Charles Herbster’s Nebraska governor’s race off the ground no longer stand by his side. Herbster, the CEO of Conklin Co., still holds the endorsement of President Donald Trump, which might be enough to get […]
Fortenberry resignation sets up unique situation with special election
LINCOLN — Nebraska’s voters, and election officials, are about to enter new territory. Because of the impending resignation of U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, voters in eastern Nebraska’s 1st Congressional District will be asked to vote in three elections in 2022 concerning the post Fortenberry is vacating. The three are the May primary, a special election […]
Carol Blood picks former State Sen. Al Davis as her running mate in Nebraska governor race
LINCOLN— Former State Sen. Al Davis, a Sandhills rancher with a second home in Lincoln, was picked Sunday by Democratic gubernatorial candidate State Sen. Carol Blood as her running mate. Blood, of Bellevue, said she was seeking a lieutenant governor who would be “servant-hearted, hard working,” who had past political experience and who had “the […]
Fortenberry resigns two days after jury finds him guilty of lying to federal investigators
LINCOLN — U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry on Saturday announced his resignation, stating that due to his conviction on three federal felonies, “I can no longer serve you effectively.” “I will resign from Congress shortly,” he said, in a three-paragraph statement. In a letter to his congressional colleagues, in which he quotes from a poem posted […]
Nebraska Legislature to explore expanded abortion ban
LINCOLN – A rarely employed “pull motion” in the Nebraska Legislature on Friday revived an impassioned debate on abortion. Lawmakers Friday voted 28-13 to bring Legislative Bill 933 to a full floor discussion after the bill had failed to advance from the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee. Introduced by State Sen. Joni Albrecht of Thurston, LB 933 […]
Attempt to create super-sized tax break bill falls one vote short in Nebraska Legislature
LINCOLN — An attempt to add a major package of income and property tax cuts to a bill providing a tax break on Social Security checks ran into a logjam Friday in the Nebraska Legislature. In the end, the attempt to create a super-sized collection of tax relief proposals failed, with a vote to stop […]