LB605 makes extensive revisions to Nebraska's corrections system. Many of the changes were based on recommendations from a Council of State Governments study of prison overcrowding. The bill requires regular reporting and increased planning by parole and probation offices to address post-release supervision issues. It addresses minimum and maximum sentences and calculations under indeterminate sentencing. The bill revises felony penalties so that all sentences for maximum terms of less than one year will be served in county jails. In response to concerns that this provision will lead to increased county jail populations, the Legislature appropriated $500,000 through the County Justice Reinvestment Grant Program to help offset new costs. The Crime Commission will establish the regulations and funding formula for the grants based upon the total number per county of individuals incarcerated in jails and the total capacity of jails. In addition, the bill contains concepts from LB12 to ensure that medical assistance programs are suspended, rather than terminated, when an individual enters a public institution.

 

LB598 codifies the results of a special investigation into the segregation of inmates by the Department of Corrections. The bill creates the position of Inspector General of the Nebraska Correctional Systems within the Office of Public Counsel to conduct investigations, audits, inspections and other reviews of the Nebraska Correctional system.

 

LB504 requires prosecutors and defense attorneys to be given electronic access to presentence reports, evaluations and examinations by July 1, 2016. The prosecutor or defense counsel may ask the court to order the redaction of victim or witness contact information.

 

LB265 requires development of a data system funded through 10 percent of the Community-based Juvenile Services Program allocation. The data system will help evaluate whether the program is working. LB265 makes technical changes to juvenile court jurisdiction, particularly related to seventeen year olds. It expands the scope of the Foster Care Review Office to include children in out-of-home placements. Concepts from LB13 and LB25 were amended into LB265.

 

LB347 expands the jurisdiction of the Office of Inspector General of Nebraska Child Welfare to investigate juvenile detention, staff secure juvenile facilities, and other state agencies. Courts and probation offices must provide confidential record information to the Inspector General and Foster Care Review office.

 

LB482 clarifies that certain factors must exist before juveniles can be fingerprinted or placed in a juvenile detention facility for status offenses, such as truancy. All available community-based resources must be exhausted and there must be significant risk of harm to the juvenile or the community if he or she is placed outside of his or her home. The bill also prohibits the use of restraints on juveniles during court proceedings without a finding of probable cause.

 

LB439 eliminates minor in possession penalties for some underage drinkers who seek medical help for themselves or intoxicated friends. The requestor must remain on the scene and cooperate with medical assistance and law enforcement personnel.

 

LB15 requires the Nebraska Supreme Court to develop court rules for guardians ad litem for juveniles in juvenile court proceedings by July 1, 2015. Guardians must meet in person with the juvenile. Whether the guardian is compensated through a per-case appointment system or a multi-case contract, he or she must provide itemized billing statements.

 

LB422 provides for the reasonable fees for an attorney, guardian ad litem, and physician to be paid by the county when a minor does not possess an estate.

 

LB268 eliminates the death penalty in Nebraska. Governor Ricketts vetoed the bill and the Legislature overrode the veto. 

 

LB245 allows a person in custody to request DNA testing of previously tested material if current technology could provide more accurate or probative results.

 

LB294 increases penalties for solicitation of prostitution and related offenses. Property used for human trafficking may be subject to seizure. It enacts the Human Trafficking Victims Civil Remedy Act to allow victims to bring civil claims against perpetrators. A plaintiff can ask to use a pseudonym rather than his or her legal name.

 

LB292 prohibits youth aged 11 and younger from being placed on the child abuse offender registry. Concepts incorporated from LB290 remove requirements for registered sex offenders to report information such as their email lists, domain names, blogs, and other electronic communications.

 

LB330 updates the Liquor Control Act and prohibits the possession or sale of powdered alcohol in Nebraska. The Liquor Control Commission is given authority to regulate pedal-pubs.

 

LB360 sets out the process for judicial determination of disposition of seized non-livestock animals and the financial responsibility to care for seized animals.

 

LB390 authorizes the University of Nebraska and Nebraska Medicine to produce or possess cannabidiol for research of treatment for intractable seizures and treatment resistant seizures under the Medical Cannabidiol Pilot Study. A second bill to allow the limited use of medical marijuana, LB643, remains on Select File.

 

LB118 creates an exemption from the Clean Air Act for cigar shops.

LB194 creates the Supreme Court Attorney Services Cash Fund to use mandatory assessments on lawyers for the regulation of the practice of law in the state.

 

LB301 allows the Supreme Court and Court of Appeals to report opinions in an electronic format.

 

LB314 distinguishes several areas in which the county court has exclusive jurisdiction, such a matters arising under the Nebraska Uniform Custodial Trust Act, from areas of concurrent jurisdiction with the district court.
 

LB610 phases in a gas tax increase of 1.5 cents annually for four years. Currently a fixed fuel tax of 2.8 cents per gallon is distributed to counties and cities through the Highway Allocation Fund. LB610 increases that rate to 3.8 cents beginning on January 1, 2016 and adds one cent each year through 2019. The state currently collects 7.5 cents per gallon, which will increase by one-half cent each year through 2019. Counties, cities, and the state will receive an estimated $74 million per year when the tax is fully implemented. Thirty senators voted in support of counties to successfully override Governor Ricketts's veto of LB610.

 

LB657, the state's mainline budget bill, adds a requirement for counties to report their interest in continuing to receive Highway Allocation Funds. The Department of Roads has begun contacting each county and municipality to request confirmation of continued use of the Fund. The Department will email county clerks to with the annual request.

 

LB312 revises bidding requirements for the Nebraska Department of Roads for projects of $100,000 or less. For these projects, the Department may award the bids through competitive bidding or may request bids from at least three potential bidders. In addition, the Department may permit federal agencies to let contracts for construction projects and related aspects such as preliminary engineering and environmental clearance. The Department may exempt prequalification requirements for certain projects.

 

LB23 modernizes the Engineers and Architects Regulation Act by streamlining definitions and reflecting current licensing procedures.

 

LB138 names the Land Surveyors Regulation Act and adds a code of practice to the rules and regulations of the Nebraska Board of Examiners for Land Surveyors. The code governs the professional conduct of surveyors.

 

LB181 authorizes the use of flashing blue and amber rotating or flashing lights on vehicles owned and operated by public utilities for the construction, maintenance, and repair of utility infrastructure on or near a highway. Currently the Nebraska Department of Roads and local authorities can use these lights when moving snow.

 

 

LB259 enacts the Personal Property Tax Relief Act that grants personal property owners a $10,000 exemption from the valuation of tangible personal property in each taxing district. Counties will be reimbursed for the tax losses in a manner similar to homestead exemptions and the dollars will be treated as state aid for budget purposes. The Legislature appropriated $19.6 for the program. County assessors must prepare an abstract of the property assessment rolls of locally assessed personal property in the county an electronically file the abstract with the Property Tax Administrator on or before July 20 each year. The Act takes effect on January 1, 2016.  

 

LB414 provides a property tax exemption for fraternal benefit societies, such as Woodmen of the World, effective January 1, 2016. The bill exempts $1.2 million of Woodmen's headquarters in downtown Omaha, as well as property across the state that is held by the Knights of Columbus and other groups.

 

LB356 requires assessors to use the income approach to value rent-restricted housing. A committee will meet annually to set a statewide market-derived capitalization rate using a band of investment technique or other generally accepted techniques. The committee will include a representative of county assessors, a representative of the low-income housing industry, the Property Tax Administrator or designee, and an appraiser from the private sector. If the committee determines that a particular county or group of counties requires a different cap rate, it may calculate a specific rate for those counties. A county assessor can appeal the use of the income approach to the county board of equalization, which can ask the Tax Equalization and Review Commission to consider the county assessor's use of another professionally accepted mass appraisal technique.

 

LB139 revises the Real Property Appraiser Act. It enacts a one-year moratorium on enforcement actions by the Real Property Appraiser Board on mass appraisals conducted under the authority of any county assessor, employees, or independent contractors. The moratorium was enacted in response to proposed definitional changes that would limit the ability of counties to hire part-time mass assessment appraisers who do not hold an appraiser's license. An interim study, LR258, will examine this issue over the summer.

 

LB375 revises the Real Estate License Act to allow a broker's price opinion or comparative market analysis to be used for real property tax appeals.

 

LB260 allows the Property Tax Administrator to correct errors on centrally-assessed property for three years. Counties already have this authority for assessments on locally-assessed property.

 

LB261 is a clean-up bill from the Department of Revenue that eliminates obsolete statutory language about the transfer of county assessment to the state, among other things.

 

LB424 extends the nameplate capacity tax to additional types of renewable energy sources. Currently only wind energy is taxed in this method. LB424 expands the tax to solar, biomass, and landfill gas energy sources. The bill takes effect on January 1, 2016.

 

LB325 grants rural and suburban fire districts independent levy authority of up to 10.5 cents in limited circumstances. Levy authority is available only if the district is located in a county that had a levy in the previous year of at least 40 cents or if the county board of the county in which the greatest portion of the valuation of the district is located did not authorize any levy authority to the fire district in the previous year. The bill takes effect on July 1, 2016.

 

LB350 and LB293, which would decrease the valuation of agricultural and horticultural land from 75 percent to 65 percent of actual value, remain in committee and will carry over to 2016. 

 

 

LB408 eliminates an antiquated requirement for county treasurers to send notice to corporations or companies with delinquent corporate taxes.

 

LB277 allows special assessments in sanitary and improvements districts survive the issuance of a tax deed. Legislation adopted in 2011 authorized the special assessments to survive the judicial foreclosure method of obtaining title after taxes are delinquent, but the tax deed sections were omitted at that time.

 

LB361 clarifies terminology permitting special assessments to be levied for improvements. The collection process is already in place for natural resource districts, drainage districts, sanitary and improvement districts and other entities to levy such assessments, but they are not specifically called special assessments. The bill was introduced in response to a litigation questioning the priority of such collections if they were not called special assessments.

 

LB123 specifies the order of payment of registered warrants. When money is available in a particular fund, it must be paid in the order of that fund, even if the amount due in other funds is older.  

 

LB200 directs that the first year of collections of the streamlined sales tax to the Property Tax Credit Cash Fund. The funds would be collected if Congress authorizes the Marketplace Fairness Act to allow out-of-state retailers to collect Nebraska sales tax.

 

 

LB575 is an election clean-up bill. Among other provisions, it increases the minimum amount each political subdivision is charged for placing an issue on the ballot to $100 and expands mail elections to allow candidates to be included on the ballot. Existing statutory language requiring vacancies to be filled within 45 days is shifted to a separate section of statute. Poll workers are allowed to choose not to be paid or allocate their pay to an organization contracted with the election commissioner to recruit poll workers. Other sections clarify deadlines and change the time to prepare voter histories. LB575 contains concepts introduced in LB578, LB514, LB319, and LB311.

 

LB149 changes the deadline for county clerks and election commissioners to mail ballots to voters in sanitary and improvement district elections from 75 day to 80 days prior to the election.

 

LB367 allows petition circulators to be paid based upon the number of signatures collected.

 

LB561 codifies the Irrigation District Act and clarifies voting procedures, including authorizing the use of mail-in ballots.

A bill to require voters to present identification, LB111, was debated on General File and bracketed. Measures to require a secrecy sleeve for ballots cast through early voting (LB121) and shift some county elections to a non-partisan basis (LB140, LB273) remain in committee.  

 

LB642 requires applicants for motor vehicle and motor boat registrations to provide their full legal name and driver's license number. The data collection will be phased in as the Department of Motor Vehicles develops a new titling and registration system that links records for all vehicles owned by the same person.

 

LB220 creates Nebraska 150 Sesquicentennial license plates to commemorate the 150th year of Nebraska's statehood. The plates will be issued from October 1, 2015 through December 31, 2022.

 

LB45 outright repeals special motor vehicle provisions for film vehicles. Instead, nonresident owners of film vehicles can operate for up to one year without registering the vehicles in Nebraska.

 

LB94 provides for the issuance of printed, rather than electric, motor vehicle titles for nonresidents. The applicant must indicate that he or she will immediately surrender the title in their place of residence in order to have a title issued by that state.

 

LB95 redefines the term bicycle within motor vehicle laws to include devices powered with an electric motor and a speed not exceeding 20 miles per hour.

 

LB231 creates a definition of autocycles within motor vehicle statutes. Autocycles are three-wheeled vehicles that by definition are not motorcycles. Autocycles must have seat belts, airbags, and license plates.

 

LB570 expands the ability to use golf cars in areas not adjacent to golf courses, subject to approval and regulation by counties and cities. The bill establishes baseline county ordinances, including limiting the hours to between sunrise and sunset and on roads posted at 35 mile per hour or less. Drives must have a Class O operator's license and the owner must carry liability insurance. Counties may also regulate the crossing of a federal highway subject to certain limitations.

 

LB122 permits utility-type vehicles to cross four-lane roads at intersections with a stop light with permission from the appropriate county or city.

 

LB641 grants persons operating a manual or motorized wheelchair on a sidewalk or across a road or in the crosswalk the same rights and duties as a pedestrian in the same circumstances.

 

LB142 enacts fees on motorboat registrations and renewals to help fund a new Aquatic Invasive Species Program administered by the Game and Parks Commission. The program will fight non-native organisms that pose a significant threat to water resources or water supplies.

 

LB313 updates federal regulations referring to motor vehicles and motor carriers.

 

LB498, which would have revised the sales tax collection process for all-terrain and utility-type vehicles, was vetoed at the request of the introducer due to a technical error in drafting.

 

 

 

LB241 clarifies that when a cemetery lot is conveyed by certificate, the certificate does not need to be recorded with the register of deeds. Senator John Stinner introduced the bill on behalf of NACO to clean up antiquated statutes.

 

LB253 allows a purchase agreement or contract for a sale of property that is signed by both spouses to be enforceable without an acknowledgement of the signatures. The property is called a homestead under this section of law but is not related to the homestead exemption program for tax purposes.

 

LB464 strikes references to social security numbers on effective financing statements and insures that statements that were filed with a social security number retain their validity. The Secretary of State has adopted unique identifiers to replace social security numbers on these documents.

LB492, which would eliminate a 2018 sunset on fees collected by registers of deeds for records preservation and modernization, remains in committee.

 

 

LB41 increases the size of counties that can participate in the state-administered retirement plan from 200,000 to 250,000 to allow Sarpy County to continue to use the state plan as its population grows. Existing law requires counties over 200,000 to have their own plans.

 

LB126 revises contribution and population references related to the Lancaster County retirement plan.

 

LB468 revises judges' retirement contribution and benefit rates. The bill redirects court fees that currently go into the state's General Fund into the judges' retirement plan. As introduced, the bill would have added fees to pre-trial diversion to help fund judges' retirement. This idea was removed from LB468 and will be examined by LR265 during the interim. LB651, which would have prohibited judges from waiving certain court fees, including fees earmarked for judges' retirement, was indefinitely postponed. When these fees are waived in county court, counties must reimburse the state for the loss.  

 

LB40 eliminates unconstitutional provisions related to payment of retirement benefits or annuities for civil damages. The bill increases the powers of the Nebraska Public Employees Retirement System to compel the production of evidence in investigations of overpayments.

 

LB42 changes the date for underfunded pension plans to file a report from November 15 to October 15.

 

 

LB106 requires the Department of Agriculture to develop a matrix to assist county boards in determining whether to approve a conditional use permit or special exception application for a livestock operation. The matrix will consider factors in the application ranging from the size and type of the livestock facility to manure management and the impact on local communities. A panel of 10 experts, including county board members, county zoning administrators, livestock production representatives, and others will develop the matrix and review it annually.

 

LB175 creates a grant program to help livestock friendly counties with livestock development planning and associated public infrastructure improvements. Grants of up to $15,000 could be used to review zoning and land-use regulations, planning, and marketing. Grants for infrastructure are capped at $200,000 or half of the unobligated dollars in the Livestock Growth Cash Fund, whichever is less. The bill also authorizes the state, municipalities, and private parties to create community gardens. Counties are included within the definition of municipalities for this purpose.

 

LB412 expands C-BED (Community-Based Energy Development Act) laws to allow zoning approval in counties that have adopted zoning regulations requiring a planning commission, county board, or county commission approval to count as approval for a C-BED project. Under existing law, a county resolution in support of the project is required. In addition, LB412 requires C-BED project developers to provide notice of incentives for local ownership to property owners and the elected governing body of each political subdivision in which a turbine will be located.

 

LB540 adopts updated International Building Codes.

 

LB266 allows nuisance enforcement authority within the extraterritorial jurisdiction of cites. The issue was raised during an interim study last summer.  

 

LB34 creates the Carbon Monoxide Safety Act to require certain dwellings to have carbon monoxide detectors. Counties, cities, and villages can adopt or enforce more stringent requirements for the installation and maintenance of carbon monoxide detectors.

 

 

LB219 enacts the Uniform Deployed Parents Custody and Visitation Act. The Act creates a legal framework for parents and judges to use when a military parent with parenting time is deployed.

 

LB109 changes residency provisions for veterans, their spouses and children for purposes of in-state tuition at Nebraska's public colleges and universities. Veterans who have served at least 90 days less in the period than three years before the date of initial enrollment are considered residents if they register to vote and show objective evidence of intent to be a resident of Nebraska.

 

LB264 allows military education, training, or service to count toward the minimum standards for credentialing for health professions.

 

LB272 creates a voluntary veterans preference in private employment.

 

LB305 allows state veterans aid funds to be used for transportation of veterans, in addition to food, shelter, fuel, medical and other expenses.

 

LB479 strikes language limiting military memorials on public lands or in public places to service related to the Civil, Spanish-American, World Wars, Korean, or Vietnam conflicts. Instead, counties, townships, cities, and villages can commemorate the service of members of the armed forces in any conflict.

 

LB146 provides for the disposition of the unclaimed cremated remains of veterans in veterans cemeteries.

 

LB640 provides for retrocession of the land on which the Omaha National Veterans' Cemetery is located. If the cemetery stops using the land, it would revert back to the State of Nebraska.

 

 

The state's $8.7 billion FY15-16 and FY16-17 budget includes an additional $64 million in funding for property tax relief through the Property Tax Credit program and $19.6 million in FY16-17 for the Personal Property Tax Relief Act. State aid to schools, corrections and inmate medical costs, and Medicaid funding received significant General Fund appropriation increases. The budget package includes LB656, LB657, LB658, LB659, LB660, LB661, and LB662. A "Budget in Brief" summary of the session is available here on the Legislature's website.  

 

In anticipation of the next biennial budget discussion, LB33 requires the Legislative Fiscal Analyst to prepare a revenue volatility report on November 15, 2016 and every two years thereafter. The report will evaluate revenue streams, federal funding, and the Cash Reserve, among other things. In addition, LB33 also requires the Department of Corrections to develop a strategic plan with verifiable and auditable key goals for each of the next two bienniums. The Department must report progress toward the goals each year.

 

LB633, which would have appropriated $20 million each for counties and cities for public infrastructure projects, remains in committee.

 

 

LB55 gives flexibility to last year's legislation authorizing the Adjutant General to spend up to $25,000 before an emergency proclamation is issued by the Governor. The bill strikes language limiting the expenditures to aerial fire suppression or hazardous materials responses and expands it to other types of disasters or emergencies.

  

LB207 caps the civil penalties under the Nebraska Chemigation Act.

 

LB240 extends the Behavioral Health Screening and Referral Pilot Program at the University of Nebraska Medical Center for another two years.

 

LB320 enacts the Aging and Disability Resource Center Demonstration Project Act to evaluate the feasibility of establishing aging and disability resource centers statewide to provide information about long-term care services and support available in the home and community for older Nebraskans or persons with disabilities, family caregivers, and others. Area agencies on aging can submit proposals to provide services and receive grant funding. The Department of Health will contract with an independent entity to evaluate the proposals and provide annual reports to the Legislature.

 

LB469 requires the Department of Environmental Quality to prepare an assessment and conduct a public hearing before developing a state plan that may be required under federal EPA carbon dioxide admissions regulations. The assessment must show the effects of the state plan on stakeholders including state and local governments. The bill also contains language from LB205 that requires visibility marking of meteorlogical towers that are located outside of the boundaries of a city or village.

 

LB480 prohibits benefits under the Worker's Compensation Act if an employee knowingly made false representations about his or her physical or mental conditions when entering into employments. This concept was introduced at LB158. The bill also revises the interest rate applicable to workers' comp benefits when attorney's fees are permitted to reflect the judgement interest rate. The current rate is 14 percent, which is the same rate applied to delinquent property taxes.

 

LB539 clarifies the authority of the State Auditor to request records and specifies a response time of three days.

 

LB623 allows young immigrants to obtain a Nebraska driver's license or state identification card. Governor Ricketts vetoed the bill but an override effort was successful.

 

LB627 prohibits employment discrimination against individuals who are pregnant, who have given birth, or have a related medical condition.

 

LB629 allows transportation network companies such as Uber and Lyft to operate in Nebraska.

 

LB324 provides additional regulatory authority to sanitary and improvement districts (SIDs) that are unable to be annexed or incorporated, subject to approval of the county board and city council. The authority is limited to SIDs in counties of less than 100,000 that are located predominantly in a county different from the county of the municipality within whose zoning jurisdiction the district is located. Other provisions allow SIDs to contract for solid waste disposal and require acknowledgements from purchasers that SIDs have limited services.

 

 

What follows is a partial listing of interim study resolutions that were introduced for examination during the summer and fall months. This listing represents only those studies determined to be of significant interest and importance to county government. Listed here are the resolution numbers, the introducer, a brief description of the issue, and the committee that will conduct the hearing. A complete list of the studies is available here. The public hearing schedule for selected interim studies will be posted on the Legislature's website as it becomes available.  

   

LR38 (Seiler) Interim study to examine statutes governing prisons and parole to ensure the Board of Parole is independent from the Dept. of Correctional Services. Judiciary

 

LR39 (Seiler) Interim study to examine certain acts to ensure the evaluation procedures regarding potentially mentally ill and dangerous inmates and potentially dangerous sex offenders are clear and consistent. Judiciary

 

LR154 (Stinner) Interim study regarding the authority of the Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission and its role in decisions regarding the disposal of salt wastewater into dry wells. Natural Resources 

 

LR155 (Urban Affairs Committee) Interim study to examine current and potential economic development tools available to municipalities in Nebraska. Urban Affairs 

 

LR196 (Hansen) Interim study to examine current state statutes governing population thresholds for Nebraska counties. Government, Military and Veterans Affairs 

 

LR215 (Johnson) Interim study to examine implementation of the recommendations of a report produced as a result of LR309, 2013, relating to the feasibility of creating a buffer strip program. Agriculture 

 

LR216 (Johnson) Interim study to examine implementation of recommendations of LR309, 2013, investigating whether alternative models for compensating specialty or sensitive crop growers incurring herbicide drift are feasible. Agriculture   

 

LR217 (Johnson) Interim study to complete the work of LR309, 2013, investigating ways to avoid and mitigate conflicts arising from herbicide and drift damage to sensitive crops. Agriculture 

 

LR222 (Crawford) Interim study to examine issues relating to family and medical leave. Business and Labor

 

LR228 (Harr) Interim study to examine the Commission of Industrial Relations.  Business and Labor

 

LR229 (Harr) Interim study to examine Nebraska's unemployment insurance laws and unemployment insurance program. Business and Labor 

 

LR232 (Howard) Interim study to examine the process by which a person changes his or her name. Judiciary

 

LR239 (Mello) Interim study to examine issues surrounding the implementation of the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in Nebraska. Business and Labor

 

LR243 (Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee) Interim study to examine the public employees retirement systems administered by the Public Employees Retirement Board. Nebraska Retirement Systems

 

LR247 (Haar) Interim study to examine the process of eliminating the Nebraska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.  Natural Resources

 

LR248 (Campbell) Interim study to examine the federal Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act and its implementation in Nebraska. Health and Human Services

 

LR252 (Judiciary Committee) Interim study to examine court costs and fees in Nebraska. Judiciary

 

LR257 (Kuehn) Interim study to examine how to create a sustainable and adequate stream of state funds to local public health departments to ensure the departments are able to meet their core responsibilities and functions. Appropriations

 

LR258 (Johnson) Interim study to determine whether the Real Property Appraiser Act should be amended. Banking, Commerce and Insurance

 

LR261 (Mello) Interim study to examine implementing the use of body cameras for state and local law enforcement in Nebraska. Judiciary

 

LR265 (Davis) Interim study to examine minor traffic violation, adult, and juvenile pretrial diversion programs authorized by counties and municipalities. Judiciary 

 

LR266 (Larson) Interim study to examine state law as it relates to weight limits for a single axle and a group of axles and the maximum load limits for motor vehicles carrying agricultural products or commodities. Transportation and Telecommunications

 

LR272 (Haar) Interim study to examine the Niobrara Council and its current statutory authority outlined in the Niobrara Scenic River Act. Natural Resources

 

LR273 (Davis) Interim study to examine the current practices of municipalities using tax increment financing under the Community Development Law. Urban Affairs

 

LR279 (Seiler) Interim study to examine issues under the jurisdiction of the Judiciary Committee.  Judiciary

 

LR282 (Mello) Interim study to examine the reasons for the higher cost of juvenile services under the Office of Probation Administration. Appropriations

 

LR286 (Garrett) Interim study to examine the effectiveness of civil forfeiture under the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. Judiciary 

 

LR293 (Morfeld) Interim study to examine the funding distribution for the community college areas. Education 

 

LR294 (Murante) Interim study to examine issues under the jurisdiction of the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee. Government, Military and Veterans Affairs 

 

LR295 (Bolz) Interim study to examine how to improve behavioral health and mental health services in Nebraska in order to prevent crime and reduce costs associated with the incarceration of people who have heightened behavioral and mental health needs. Judiciary

 

LR301 (Nebraska Retirement Systems Committee) Interim study to examine the practice of "double dipping" which occurs when public employees retire with a public pension and become reemployed by the same or different public employer and earn a second public pension benefit. Nebraska Retirement Systems

 

LR302 (Schumacher) Interim study to examine whether imposition of a sales or income tax upon the sale of agricultural land may provide funding for a targeted property tax relief fund for agricultural property owners. Revenue

 

LR305 (Mello) Interim study to examine issues under the jurisdiction of the Appropriations Committee. Appropriations

 

LR306 (McCollister) Interim study to examine ways in which medicaid expansion could be implemented in Nebraska under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act for medical assistance for newly eligible individuals. Health and Human Services

 

LR310 (Harr) Interim study to examine services provided by community paramedics. Health and Human Services

 

LR311 (Harr) Interim study to examine Second Chances, the operating while intoxicated jail diversion program in Iowa, to determine whether the program would be workable in Nebraska. Judiciary

 

LR313 (Scheer) Interim study to examine the process utilized by the Dept. of Roads in the design and construction of the Nebraska expressway system. Transportation and Telecommunications

 

LR317 (Smith) Interim study to review the Nebraska Rules of the Road and provisions which establish maximum weight limits. Transportation and Telecommunications

 

LR318 (Smith) Interim study to conduct a comprehensive study of Nebraska's state and local roads system. Transportation and Telecommunications

 

LR319 (Smith) Interim study to examine certain issues under the jurisdiction of the Public Service Commission. Transportation and Telecommunications

 

LR320 (Murante) Interim study to examine the membership, role, and duties of the Nebraska Police Standards Advisory Council. Judiciary

 

LR325 (Davis) Interim study to examine the current method of using adjusted property valuation as the primary measurement of local resources in Nebraska's public education funding formula. Revenue

 

LR326 (Davis) Interim study to examine the procedure for and use of like-kind exchanges under section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code and their impact on the taxable value of agricultural and horticultural land. Revenue

 

LR327 (Davis) Interim study to examine the procedures and categories used by county assessors to classify types of land for valuation and taxation purposes. Revenue

 

LR328 (Davis) Interim study to examine options for implementing a "circuit breaker" tax credit to protect agricultural property owners from a property tax overload. Revenue

 

LR329  (Gloor) Interim study to examine the structure of, compliance with, and administration of the state and local sales and use taxes. Revenue

 

LR330 (Gloor) Interim study to examine the structure of, compliance with, and administration of real and personal property taxes. Revenue

 

LR331 (Gloor) Interim study to examine the structure of, compliance with, and administration of Nebraska individual and corporate income taxes. Revenue

 

LR332 (Gloor) Interim study to examine the tax revenues for public schools. Revenue

 

LR333 (Watermeier) Interim study to examine methods to improve government efficiency. Appropriations

 

LR335 (Hansen) Interim study to examine the most recent report published by the Presidential Commission on Election Administration. Government, Military and Veterans Affairs

 

LR337 (Riepe) Interim study to examine issues surrounding distracted driving due to texting or using a hand-held device while operating a motor vehicle. Transportation and Telecommunications

 

LR339 (Garrett) Interim study to examine the current statutory requirements governing the removal of roadside vegetation. Transportation and Telecommunications