Calm Before The Storm

This is the calm before the storm. The second session of the 107th Legislature is about to convene. This year the legislative session will start on January 5 and will go into the month of April. This year’s legislative session will be the shorter 60-day session. Because there will be fewer days on the legislative calendar, it will be even more difficult to get bills passed into law.

Many of you would like to know what I have been working on for next year, so now I will tell you. The bills that I will introduce next year will cover a wide variety of topics and address many of the most urgent and pressing concerns Nebraskans have about our State.

As you may have guessed, the consumption tax has been my highest priority this past year and it will continue to be my highest priority throughout the upcoming legislative session. I will reintroduce a new resolution for a constitutional amendment with even better ballot language than the one before. This resolution for a constitutional amendment is needed to fix our broken tax system and to give Nebraskans the kind of meaningful tax relief they really need. The beauty of the consumption tax is that it can never over-tax the taxpayer and it puts the taxpayer in charge of how much he or she pays in taxes throughout the year. It does this because it operates on a pay-as-you-go basis.

I will also introduce legislation to protect unvaccinated persons from the unconstitutional Biden mandates. Getting vaccinated is a personal choice, which should never be mandated by any branch of the government. The Biden vaccine mandates constitute a gross infringement upon our basic rights and liberties as human beings. What goes into a person’s body, including medicine, ought to be an individual’s decision, not that of the government.

As I mentioned during the summer, K-12 public schools in Nebraska should not begin holding classes until after Labor Day. The teacher training and in-service days may be held in August, so that the weekly school calendar does not get interrupted during the academic school year. Therefore, my legislation will set the K-12 academic school year from after Labor Day to before Memorial Day.

I will also introduce legislation to put some controls on the Brand Committee. The Brand Committee has been acting out of control for quite some time and so it is time to rein them in. Once my legislation becomes law, the Brand Committee will no longer be able to hold their subcommittee meetings in secret nor will they be able to make decisions about the electronic identification of cattle.

This past year I have done much to investigate our Natural Resources Districts (NRD). LR23 was a resolution for an interim study that I introduced earlier this year which investigates whether the NRDs are abiding by their statutory purposes. This has been an ongoing investigation which has uncovered a wealth of information. I intend to continue investigating the NRDs throughout the second session of the 107th Legislature. These investigations will likely conclude with impending legislation.

Finally, I have not forgotten about the many problems that the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission has failed to address. Although they now have new leadership, the same problems still exist. Ignoring these problems is not an answer that I will accept. Therefore, I will continue to introduce bills that will address these problems. Problems with over-populations of antelope, deer and elk are better solved with competent leadership than with legislation, but when the Game and Parks Commission fails to take appropriate actions, they effectively kick these problems to the Legislature.

As you can see, the second session of the 107th Legislature promises to be full of lively debate. Hopefully, though, our State Senators will work for the good of the people. Please feel free to contact my office any time with your questions, comments, or concerns at (402) 471-2616.