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February 23, 2012                                                                             Legislative Report Archive
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NACO Scholarship Available

 

 

 

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voterVoter ID Bill on Monday's Agenda 

A bill to require voters to present a government-issued photo ID in order to vote at the polls will be debated on Monday.  LB 239, which was prioritized by Sen. Ken Schilz, would allow registered voters without identification to cast a provisional ballot and early voters would not need an ID. 

 

Fourteen amendments have been filed in addition to a Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee amendment.  County officials are encouraged to contact their senators to express opposition to the bill, particularly the additional costs related to processing more provisional ballots.

 

You can watch the debate here through videostreaming on the Legislature's website.

 

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speakSpeaker Priorities Named

LB 14, a bill providing for increased filing fees for documents recorded in registers of deeds offices has been selected as one of 25 Speaker priority bills. Existing law sets a $5 per page filing fee for recording deeds, mortgages and other documents. LB 14 would change the fee to $10 for the first page and $6 for each additional page. Under a Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee amendment, $2.50 of the first-page fee and 50 cents of the fee for each additional page would be used exclusively for preserving and maintaining public records in register of deeds offices and modernization and technology needs related to the records. The new fee structure would sunset on January 1, 2018. LB 14 was advanced by the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee on Tuesday.

 

Several other Speaker priority bills that would affect counties include:

* LB 793 - Limit frivolous civil actions filed by prisoners

* LB 908 - Change the disposition of indigent defense court fees

* LB 995 - Change provisions relating to county medical facilities and public hospitals

* LB 1132 - Change the Community Development Law

 

While the designation does not guarantee debate, priority bills generally appear on the Legislature's agenda before bills without a priority designation. You can view the complete list here

 

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snSnapshots of County Issues 

All bills introduced by the Legislature are assigned to a committee for a public hearing. Committee hearings conclude today, the 33rd day of the session, and full days of debate will begin on Monday. 

 

Bills advanced to the floor for debate by the full body of the Legislature go through three levels of debate:  General File, Select File, and Final Reading.  

  

Bills Advanced to General File

 

The timing of elections to fill the office of county assessor in counties that are re-assuming the assessment function would be clarified by LB 1101. The bill was advanced by the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee on a unanimous vote. LB 1101 was introduced by Sen. John Wightman at NACO's request to assure that the offices are filled on the same election cycle as most other county officials.

 

Bills Advanced to Select File

   

More than 30 bills were advanced from Select File today. LB 904 would revise annulment and dissolution reporting requirements to reflect the "unknown" status of personal information about the parties in certain instances.

 

LB 878 was introduced at the request of the Secretary of State to clean-up election laws and move the date for publication of the official election calendar.

 

LB 801 would eliminate outdated references to "designated county official" in motor vehicle titling statutes.

 

LB 985 would codify an existing juvenile justice pilot program.

  

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schNACO Scholarship Available

The children and stepchildren of Nebraska's county officials and employees are eligible for scholarships provided by the Nebraska Association of County Officials. The application deadline is March 1, 2012.  Click here for details.

  

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