Legislator outlines upcoming bills for discussion

With the end of the darkest days of the year and the anticipation of Christmas, we, in the legislature, are making final preparations for the session in January.

Sen, Kauth's LB575, the Sports and Spaces Act, remains poised to be the topic of contention during the next session. This bill would require sports participation and access to bathrooms in schools to align with one's biological gender. With the attention Nebraska received this year from an historic filibuster, state senators were presented with an opportunity to hear from Riley Gaines in La Vist. Gaines is a former competitive swimmer for the University of Kentucky who competed against Lia Thomas, a biological male who now identifies as a woman. Several of my colleagues and I heard Gaines' personal experience competing against Thomas and the competitive advantages biological males have competing in biological female sports.

I remain concerned with allowing biological males to compete in women's athletics. I also view the notion of people of the opposite sex going into the same bathroom as inappropriate. Mrs. Gaines explained the discomfort that came with sharing her locker room space with Thomas and wishes that no other women and girls have to be subjected to such circumstances. Passing LB575 would ensure that sports remain fair for all student-athletes given their intrinsic differences and that locker rooms would remain spaces separated by said intrinsic differences.

Both the debate over the rules and LB575 could stalemate the legislature again this next session, but the rules need updating to avoid some of the political games with the filibuster. Despite these potential roadblocks, my office and I have been working to introduce new legislation for next year with the hope that, if not this upcoming session, we will be able to address these issues in the future.

Most important, as a matter of national security, I am examining proposals that would restrict the acquisition of agricultural land by foreign adversaries. Currently, federal law does not restrict foreigners' ownership of United States agricultural land. The federal government primarily monitors foreign investments in United States agricultural land through the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978.

I am weighing options, such as creating a commission to oversee any acquisitions by foreign adversaries, monitoring current foreign adversaries' existing landholdings, and creating enforcement mechanisms to deter bad actors. As a complement to this proposal, I am considering a resolution which would urge Congress to work to address the current lack of federal legislation on foreign land holding and acquisition.

Earlier this year, a 26-year-old Nebraska man successfully enrolled at a high school and was later charged with one count of sex trafficking of a minor. Resultingly, I am considering a proposal which would require the State Board of Education to work with the attorney general and the Nebraska Human Trafficking Task Force to develop and provide a list of approved training materials relating to human trafficking in a school environment. Schools would have the option to provide the training developed by the board to teachers and all school personnel who interact with students. Other states, such as Florida, Tennessee, and Utah, have enacted similar legislation in recent years.

Another proposal I am considering would help combat sex trafficking by imposing a $5 fee on live adult entertainment establishments for each entry by each customer admitted. The proceeds of the fee and penalties would go to both (a) the Sexual Assault Payment Program Cash Fund, which facilitates programs that reduce or prevent the crimes of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, stalking, child abuse, child sexual assault, human trafficking, labor trafficking, or sex trafficking, and (b) the Human Trafficking Victim Assistance Fund, which provides support care, treatment, and other services for victims of human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of a child.

I am also considering enhancing Nebraska's domestic violence, sexual assault, and harassment protection order statutes. This proposal would extend the initial time period of a protection order, which is currently one year unless dismissed or modified by a court, as well as revise the types of protection orders which can be renewed. There is also a need to clean up and standardize this subset of law to ease its use for judges, lawyers, and victims.

Unfortunately, I do not have the space to discuss all the proposals I am working on. Final plans for my proposals, including bill introduction next year, remain subject to change. Once my legislation has been introduced, I plan to give more specifics about them as they are heard and considered in the upcoming session.

You can contact me at any time; I always appreciate hearing from you. Call my Capitol office telephone number at 402-471-2801 or send email to [email protected]. My mailing address is: Senator Barry DeKay, District #40, P.O. Box 94604, State Capitol, Lincoln, NE 68509.