Nebraska lawmakers clear path for priority bills as contentious floor fights loom
LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - Personal passion is often the catalyst for which bill a Nebraska state senator decides to prioritize, and at this point in the 90-day session, bills with that special mark of priority are really the only ones left that stand a chance to get through three rounds on the Unicameral chamber floor.
For Sen. Danielle Conrad, it’s a solemn vow: to push a bill that withered under a veto from Gov. Jim Pillen last year. It would allow survivors of sexual assault in school settings to sue the political subdivisions for failing to exercise reasonable care in order to pay for subsequent treatment. Loree Woods, the mother of a child who was sexually abused, was the long-time proponent of the bill, but she died last year.
“Since Loree won’t be here to fight for Taylor, and other kids that are similarly situated, I made a promise, mom-to-mom, to keep fighting,” Conrad said.
Sen. Beau Ballard, moved by the apparent and tragic rise in domestic violence cases, prioritized a bill aimed to ease the process of filing protection orders.
“This was not on my radar beginning of session, but the stories that came out in Seward in Lancaster County have made an impact on not only me, but the senators in this body,” Ballard said. “We want to use our priorities to help as many people as possible.”
Some of the priorities are sure to lead to contentious floor fights, and with all day debate set to start next week, it will be a long haul for lawmakers.
Sen. Merv Riepe may be the crucial swing vote standing in the way of two controversial prioritized bills, both backed with the weight of Pillen’s office. On Sen. Kathleen Kauth’s ‘Stand with Women’ Act, Riepe has described himself as a “doubting Thomas” in the past.
“If I had to vote today, I would probably be a no vote,” Riepe said on Wednesday.
Riepe also opposes Sen. Loren Lippincott’s renewed attempt to make Nebraska a winner-take-all state, saying it’s not something that needs attention in 2025.
Riepe’s own priority bill would drop the age when a minor can be charged as an adult, from 14 to 12, and allow detention of minors as young as 11. That’s drawn fire and will likely face a battle on the Unicameral floor if it makes it out of the Judiciary Committee.
Another controversial bill, prioritized by Sen. Jane Raybould, could hit the floor for debate next week and would change the state’s minimum wage laws. That issue was settled on by voters in 2022, and some say the bill waters down the will of Nebraskans. But Sen. Jane Raybould argues that her plan—to, in part, create a separate “youth wage” and use a flat 1.5% increase instead of the higher but more capricious Consumer Price Index—would help incentivize companies to hire young people and keep prices down. Raybould said businesses like child care facilities are already running on very tight margins as it is.
“We can’t absorb these cost increases for the minimum wage increases going forward,” Raybould said. “So they have to pass that cost on to the families who need childcare.”
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