Free Republic

The Nebraska Legislature will once again look at a bill on the Right to Repair. Introduced by Senator Tom Brandt of the 32nd District on Jan. 19, LB543, entitled the Agricultural Equipment Right-To-Repair Act, will, if passed, offer farmers a way to repair their equipment without having to wait on a dealer. A similar bill had been introduced in 2017. Lydia Brasch of the 16th District introduced LB67, “Adopt the Fair Repair Act,” but the bill was indefinitely postponed in 2018. Brandt said he spoke with other senators and decided the previous bill had been too broad. “The opposition it...

We Nebraskans shall have a momentous task, before the Nebraska Unicameral, tomorrow at the state capital in Lincoln. Several Legislative Bills will be proposed to the Judiciary Committee, and each of these bills is a travesty against the natural law. I have contacted the Committee Chair - Senator Steve Lathrop, to state my objections, and have them entered into the public record for each hearing on each of the proposed bills. I would appreciate that any Nebraskan, who is so inclined, either send their own testimony to Chairman Lathrop, or else appear at the hearings in Lincoln, which are scheduled...

Today I announced the formation of Nebraskans for Justice, standing-up for the vast majority of Nebraskans who believe the death penalty is appropriate for the most heinous of crimes. Nebraskans for Justice is an organization that will explore the possibility of a citizen-driven ballot initiative to give Nebraska citizens the option of reinstating Nebraska’s death penalty.

A senate, a house of representatives, majority and minority caucuses and partisanship leadership structures — these are some of the common features of state legislatures across the country. (SNIP) Candidates for the Legislature run in open primaries without party affiliations listed on the ballot. Legislative officers and committee chairs are elected by members themselves instead of appointed by partisan caucus leaders, and minority party members still do get elected to serve as committee chairs. O’Donnell says that policy debates frequently tend to be less partisan in tone because of the unique nature of the Nebraska Unicameral and that final decisions...

LINCOLN, Neb. — State Sen. Sen. Ernie Chambers isn’t backing down. The state lawmaker from Omaha defiantly stood Thursday on the floor of the Nebraska Legislature and rejected many of his colleagues’ calls for him to apologize — or even resign — for comparing cops to ISIS terrorists and suggesting he’d shoot a cop if he weren’t nonviolent and had a gun. “I meant what I said and I said what I meant,” Chambers said. He said the irony is that lawmakers were discussing freedom of expression on Wednesday, and said it was ignorant and “idle talk” to suggest taking...

LINCOLN — State Sen. Ernie Chambers touched off a firestorm of criticism Wednesday after comments surfaced in which he compared police officers to the terrorist group that has beheaded American journalists and other captives during its violent takeover of parts of Syria and Iraq. During a public hearing Friday about a bill involving concealed handguns, Chambers said residents of his north Omaha district were more in fear of police than of extremist groups such as the Islamic State. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . “My ISIS is the police. Nobody...

Nebraska has now joined states like Florida, Arizona, Idaho, Missouri, Kansas, and Alaska in standing up for the Second Amendment -- and telling Barack Obama what he can do with his unconstitutional gun bans and gun registration schemes. L.B. 1030 would prohibit any Nebraska state or local official from "restrict[ing] the carrying, possession, transfer, purchase, sale, or ownership of or otherwise regulat[ing] any firearm, ammunition, or component of any firearm or ammunition to a greater extent than state law." This is particularly important in view of the Obama administration's efforts to ban and register guns unlawfully, by executive fiat. Hence,...

HELP SPREAD THE WORD...STOP AGENDA 21 IN NEBRASKA!!!! Senator Bill Kintner from Papillion has submitted a bill modeled after Alabama's state law to ban Agenda 21 in Nebraska! He needs our support to know that the conservatives are behind him - if you haven't yet emailed, called, or written him a personal note, would you please take a minute to do that? He needs to hear from ALL of us by Friday to know that we are out there and are grateful for his interest in this issue! THANKS A BUNCH!!! :) Senator Bill Kintner 402-471-2613 email: wkintner@leg.ne.gov address: State...

Nebraska lawmakers are set to again consider repealing a law that offers tuition breaks to some illegal immigrants, and the looming debate is already drawing support. A majority of lawmakers participating in an Associated Press pre-session survey say they support rescinding the offer made after lawmakers fought to override Gov. Dave Heineman's veto to pass the law in 2006. Of the 33 senators responding to the survey, 18 said they support repealing the measure, while six said they don't. Eight said they're unsure. One senator, Amanda McGill of Lincoln, didn't check an answer, but offered a comment asking for more...

Forty senators gave their blessing Friday to a bill that Nebraska Right to Life hailed as one of the strongest abortion ultrasound bills in the country, and one that could reduce abortions in the state. The bill (LB675), introduced by Lincoln Sen. Tony Fulton, requires providers of abortions to tell women of the medical risks of the procedure they are seeking, and that they cannot be forced to have an abortion. They also can request and be provided a list, compiled by the state Department of Health and Human Services, of healthcare providers and clinics that offer free ultrasounds performed...

Mark Christensen, the senator with the boyish face from the far corner of southwestern Nebraska, has drawn attention and a good share of barbs from Nebraskans who disagree with his morality-loaded and conservative-minded bills. He has pursued topics of marriage, tobacco, adult sex businesses, concealed handguns and wildlife trapping this session, and in other years human cloning and reverse discrimination. When a story about his bills that would regulate sex-related businesses — strip clubs and escort services — was posted on JournalStar.com, indignant readers thanked him for bringing his “moral crusade roadshow” to eastern Nebraska. He would describe his three...

The state’s Latino community turned out in force Wednesday at the state Capitol to show its opposition to two bills that would require verification of legal status to access jobs and public benefits. Supporters of the bills turned out, too, to testify before the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee at the sixth hearing addressing immigration within the past year. Omaha Sen. Brad Ashford, who introduced a bill (LB34) that would require employers to verify legal status through the E-Verify system, said the federal government has failed to address immigration laws for two decades. It has led to discrimination against Latinos who are...

(English-language translation) [Puerto Rico] Senate President Kenneth McClintock expressed hope yesterday that, before the next legislative session ends, a measure that will change the legislative system to a unicameral one will be drafted. Yesterday, McClintock attended the Senate Government Committee hearings on the bills that include the unicamerality proposals. He reiterated then that he believes in bicamerality, but that, given popular support for unicamerality, he will look into having the best legislation to create a single chamber. In addition, he expects that the next consultation on changes to the legislative system will be celebrated in May of next year and...

Tuition Bill Proves Nebraska Unicameral is Dysfunctional By Doug Patton April 17, 2006 In 1937, the state of Nebraska initiated a legislative experiment. Convinced of the idealistic notion that voters would act as the “second house” of the Nebraska Legislature through the ballot initiative process, the state amended its constitution to institute a nonpartisan, one house legislature. Seven decades later, there are very sound reasons why no other state in the union has followed Nebraska’s lead. The Nebraska Unicameral in the 21st century is a dysfunctional mess. It is a single legislative chamber consisting of 49 state senators. No house...