Legislature set to be back in session July 20

On Monday of this week, Speaker Scheer announced the legislature would return from our extended adjournment on July 20. I believe that this is an appropriate time to allow the curve in Nebraska to flatten and to give senators and staff time to prepare to finish our session for this year. I am grateful for the time laid out before us to work on how the legislature can best set up the state for success as we emerge from the conditions we have been under.

The top item on my list of priorities remains achieving real, significant and timely property tax relief for Nebraskans. The economic pressures from the COVID-19 pandemic have made this only more important, as farmers, ranchers, homeowners and commercial business owners who were already struggling to pay ever-increasing property tax bills will now be facing even tighter budgets. With pressures on the agricultural industry across the country, lowered income for businesses and families seeing their employment impacted, it is the right thing to do from both an economic and moral standpoint. The more dollars people can keep in their pockets, the better they can support our economy, and the less strain the government can put on them, the better.

I look forward to working with my colleagues again to achieve this relief, alongside other important goals. I hope to see us pass legislation to keep our state economy strong across all sectors, response measures to deal with the problems stemming from COVID-19 and finish work on the remaining bills from this session which have not yet passed.

On the subject of COVID-19, changes to directed health measures and the state of cases across Nebraska continue to change on a rapid basis. For information on these topics, please consult your local public health departments for the most up-to-date information.

On another topic, this upcoming Monday is Memorial Day. Although we may not be able to gather for parades and other celebrations as we would like to, the importance of this day cannot, and will not, be ignored by patriotic Nebraskans. We should be grateful every day for the sacrifices of those Americans who gave what Abraham Lincoln called “the last full measure of devotion” to keep us all safe and free.

I would encourage you to think and pray on those sacrifices with your family Monday, as I will be doing with mine.

Lastly, I don’t anticipate too much news to come from the legislature until closer to when we reconvene on July 20, so unless things change or I have a major update to inform you about, look for my column again around that time.

As always, do not hesitate to reach out to me on issues regarding state government. My staff and I have been continuing to do the work of the people of the 41st district while working outside of the office and practicing social distancing. We check voicemails at (402)471-2631 at least once a day, although emailing me directly at [email protected] is often the fastest and most convenient way to get in touch. I always enjoy hearing from and working for the people I am fortunate to represent.