With the session winding down, the Legislature has approximately six days of debate remaining to work through a significant number of bills.

At this point in the session, most of the remaining bills are priority bills, and there simply is not enough time to give them all the floor debate they deserve before the session closes.

That reality weighs heavily on bills like LB 1187, this year’s “brand committee” bill. LB 1187 was a bill brought to Sen. Barry DeKay at the request of the brand committee, which asks for two primary changes — the ability to charge a flat fee for travel rather than mileage and the ability to increase the fee caps to ensure the committee can keep up with inflationary costs of doing business.

The committee statement reflects 10 proponents and just 1 opponent, but that testimony was on the original bill. Then the Agriculture Committee advanced it with AM 2503 on an 8-to-0 vote, which required a new hearing because the changes brought forward in AM 2503 were significant enough to represent a substantial departure from Sen. DeKay’s original bill.

The March 19 hearing on AM 2503 drew 326 online opponents and only 4 proponents.

After this second hearing, the committee filed yet another new amendment, further complicating the issue, and it is anticipated there will be yet a third amendment offered.

Quite frankly, it’s like nothing else I’ve seen here.

With time running short, and the need for the base bill to pass, a compromise that all parties can live with is not just preferred, it is essential for the original provisions of LB 1187 to pass. One of those options is to simply pass the base bill with no amendments.

As I have said from the beginning, we must protect the integrity of the Brand Law and ensure the committee has the tools and resources needed to continue doing its job effectively.

I will oppose anything that dismantles the inspection system. The core value of our brand committee lies in proof of ownership and deterrence of theft and fraud, and that is what I am fighting for. The most valuable cash commodity in our state demands those protections.

State budget

The Legislature’s biennial budget, LB 1071, required three rounds of debate and two failed cloture votes before finally advancing last week.

Two heavily debated issues stood in the way:

• $3.5 million in proposed gap funding for private school opportunity scholarships.
• A childcare tax credit change that would have reduced the qualifying poverty level from 185% to 130%.

Sen. Robert Clements proposed an amendment to remove both provisions, and within minutes the budget advanced to final reading 34 to 7.

LB 1072, the companion cash funds bill, also advanced. Opportunity scholarships and child-care subsidies were issues too divisive to resolve within the budget.

Thanks, firefighters

I want to take a moment to again extend a sincere thank you to the firefighters, first responders, and the countless volunteers who have stepped up during this wildfire crisis.

The long hours, the dangerous conditions, and the sacrifices made away from family do not go unnoticed. Nebraska is fortunate to have people willing to put others before themselves when it matters most, and the outpouring of support from volunteers across the state is a true testament to the character of our communities.

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