News

Hot potato Nebraska prisons are the second most crowded in the country. Right behind Alabama. Ugh! Last year, we housed 5,369 inmates in facilities designed for 3,535. In 2015, the Legislature enacted a host of sentencing reforms to reduce the prison population. They...

A little of this and some of that Nebraska's unemployment rate decreased from 8.7% in April to 5.2% in May. The lowest in the nation. The tax rate on motor fuels will increase from 29.3 cents per gallon (Jan 1 – Jun 30, 2020) to 33.2 cents per gallon (Jul 1 – Dec 31,...

Get Nebraska Growing Governor Pete Ricketts announced he will distribute $387 million in grants from the federal Cares Act for Get Nebraska Growing initiatives as part of the $7.8 billion in federal assistance that has come to Nebraska to aid the state’s coronavirus...

Listen With the deaths of George Floyd in Minnesota and James Scurlock in Nebraska, the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee will hold listening forums in Omaha and Lincoln to hear from members of the public about community policing and racial equity. The forums will...

Federal support, fewer restrictions The Federal COVID-19 Supplemental Appropriations package provides Nebraska $10.8 billion, plus another $1.6 billion in Economic Impact Payments. Last week, Governor Ricketts outlined the plan to distribute these funds under the...

Precautions Speaker, Jim Scheer, believes COVID-19 cases in Lincoln and Nebraska have peaked. He intends to resume the 2020 legislative session on July 20 and adjourn Sine Die, August 13. Many state senators fall into the susceptible old coot category, and they...

Money and politics More rumors on the street. When will senators return for the remaining 16 days in this legislative session? Las week was June 4. This week - late June, early July. Others prefer Octoberish when the economy settles down. Who knows? Mr. Speaker! The...

Cover your mouth and VOTE! One month ago, we predicted the top two vote-getters in each of the 25 Primary Election races for the Nebraska Legislature. Today, we take a big swing and crown the candidates who just might actually win their respective Primaries on...

Gang of Eight As Governor Ricketts and local health departments begin to relax restrictions on social interaction tomorrow, some legislators are eager to wrap-up this legislative session. We know that Speaker Scheer intends to drop the hammer when he does reconvene...

Gang of Eight As Governor Ricketts and local health departments begin to relax restrictions on social interaction tomorrow, some legislators are eager to wrap-up this legislative session. We know that Speaker Scheer intends to drop the hammer when he does reconvene...