13 Passed Bills Outlined
This week, I would like to outline my legislative accomplishments for this year. Bills passed this session include 13 of the 15 bills that I introduced in January. My legislation that made it across to the Governor’s desk includes: LB7 which updates legislation I passed last year, LB1301 the Foreignowned Real Estate National Security Act. LB7 clarifies that (1) Native American tribes are not foreign governments and are not barred from purchasing and owning real property in the state, (2) updates federal regulations in Nebraska statute which clarifies that the Chinese Special Administrative Region of Macau is a restricted entity, and (3) adds a requirement that the Legislature be notified of a successful divestment action by the court; LB43 which updates legislation passed last year, LB1370, to help safeguard electric facilities located near sensitive military installations, such as the panhandle missile silos.
LB43 better ensures that equipment made by a foreign adversary cannot be installed during initial construction, maintenance or upgrades; LB50 which reinstates the community colleges’ nameplate capacity tax revenue that was unintentionally lost as a result of removing community colleges from levying property taxes which was done by the Legislature in 2023.
Nameplate capacity taxes are paid by the owners of renewable energy facilities. The state’s community colleges received over $500,000 in nameplate capacity taxes in 2023, the majority of which went to Northeast Community College. Northeast Community College’s service area includes all six counties in my legislative district; LB91 and LB396 which remove redundant language in statute relating to Nebraska’s public power utilities; LB184 which restricts the retail sale of flavored nitrous oxide products. These products are currently available in some vape stores, kratom dispensaries, and smoke shops in this state. These products have flavors and marketing that are aimed towards minors. No one is safe engaging in long-term inhalational abuse of nitrous oxide because it results in permanent nerve or brain damage.
LB184 helps bring Nebraska more in line with the 44 other states that have enacted laws regulating nitrous oxide and other similar inhalants; LB245 and LB394 which updates the Nebraska Pure Food Act and the Weights and Measures Act to align state statutes with recent changes made in federal law; LB246 which prohibits the commercial sale and distribution of cultured protein products to consumers, would ban these synthetic proteins from being sold in Nebraska.
Cultured protein products, sometimes called lab-grown meat or synthetic protein, are made by combining animal stem cells and other ingredients in bioreactors. LB246 would not impact the sale and distribution of plant-based protein alternative products. My intent with this bill is to address public safety concerns and help preserve Nebraska’s cultural identity as an agricultural state. I appreciated the collaboration of my colleagues and the Governor's office and am pleased this measure passed this year; and LB395 which closes a loophole which allowed prohibited juveniles with sealed records from being able to purchase firearms or firearm-related permits; Meanwhile, my priority bill for this year was LB437, a bill introduced by Senator Merv Riepe to repeal the certificate of need requirement for nursing homes. Certificate of Need, or CON, laws are state regulations requiring healthcare providers to obtain permission before opening or expanding services or facilities.
I was spurred to prioritize this bill after I was contacted by the Village of Butte in Boyd County which faced obstacles in obtaining the required licensed beds necessary to try and keep their nursing home facility open under Nebraska’s existing CON law. Prioritizing LB437 was helpful in getting the key stakeholders to the table, and thankfully Butte now has a path forward after the City of Laurel generously transferred 36 licensed nursing home beds to Butte.
Nonetheless, the obstacles Butte initially faced when encountering Nebraska’s CON law would still exist for other places in this state, so I have an interim study LR180 to look at the reforms needed to help open new and retain existing nursing home facilities in rural parts of the state.
Finally, I worked with my colleagues to preserve $55 million for the projects proposed by the Legislature’s STARWARS initiative. Relevant to Northeast Nebraska, $37 million will be allocated to expand the Weigand Marina at Lewis and Clark Lake.
My bill LB480 that also passed this year will allow any remaining funds to be potentially spent at Niobrara State Park for various improvements, such as potentially moving the office closer to the park entrance. STAR WARS is set to be a transformational investment into the recreational and economic development opportunities in Northeast Nebraska.
Now that the Legislature is adjourned, I will be spending more time back in Niobrara. During the interim, I will try to get around the district as much as possible. I will still travel to Lincoln periodically for meetings and office work. If I am not in Lincoln, my staff will be able to assist you. Feel free to call my Capitol office anytime at (402) 471-2801 or email me at [email protected]. My mailing address is: Senator Barry DeKay, District #40, P.O. Box 94604, State Capitol, Lincoln, NE 68509.
