National highway designation expected for US 20

I first want to start this week’s update by expressing my gratitude to our state’s congressional delegation with regards to the recent passage of Senate Bill 1478 in Congress. This bill would designate U.S. Hwy 20 in the states of Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Massachusetts as the “National Medal of Honor Highway.” While then-Governor Ricketts approved the renaming of U.S. Hwy 20 in Nebraska as the “Nebraska Medal of Honor Highway” in 2020, his action did not have the backing of federal legislation. Last year, I joined State Senators Joni Albrecht, Tom Brewer, Bruce Bostelman, Loren Lippincott and Rick Holdcroft in petitioning our state’s congressional delegation to codify the change made in Nebraska at the federal level. As of this writing, S. 1478 awaits the President’s signature but is expected to be signed into law.

I also wanted to outline some of my own possible legislative priorities for next year. Chief among them includes maintaining the strength of the laws passed last regular session relating to foreign adversaries. There will likely be technical updates coming forward on LB1301 dealing with foreign ownership of agricultural land, as well as LB1370 addressing foreign electronic equipment placed near sensitive military installations.

Additionally, my office is currently looking into regulations relating to the sale of nitrous oxide (i.e., laughing gas commonly found in a dentist’s office). In the past two years, there has been a growing national trend of companies selling food-flavored nitrous oxide gas cartridges. While nitrous oxide has become popular among some adults for recreational purposes, the recent adoption of bright packaging by some vendors, combined with the novelty of flavored gas, means nitrous oxide use and abuse is beginning to reach younger groups of people including minors. Nebraska currently has an outdated law from the 1970s pertaining to inhalants such as nitrous oxide, and I am increasingly of the belief the legislature may need to consider updating the statutes to cover recent trends with inhalant substances.

Furthermore, I am currently examining the possible adoption of the Dentist and Dental Hygienist Compact. This proposal, introduced last year as LB824, advanced from the Health and Human Services Committee but failed to receive a floor vote for lack of time due to the filibuster. As of 2019, 43 of Nebraska’s 93 counties and portions of nine additional counties were state-designated shortage areas for general dentistry as determined by the Nebraska Rural Health Advisory Commission and the Nebraska Office of Rural Health. The Dentist and Dental Hygienist Compact would help ease licensure hurdles for licensed dentists and dental hygienists moving to Nebraska so they can practice and enter the workforce in a shorter period of time since background and license information would be more readily shared among Compact member states for background checks.

Finally, as a candidate for chair of the Agriculture Committee, I may be working with committee members next year to decide on actions to bills relating to the sale and labeling of lab-grown meat, plant-based meat and egg alternatives. Earlier this month, Governor Pillen outlined his priorities for the upcoming session to include banning the sale of lab-grown meat. The governor also directed the Nebraska Department of Agriculture to create regulations requiring any meat-like products made from animal cells (i.e., lab-grown meat), plants or insects be labeled as imitations and kept apart from regular meat in stores. I anticipate legislation on either topic to come before the Agriculture Committee next year.

Finally, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I hope everyone has safe travels and has the opportunity to come together around family and enjoy good food.

I look forward to continuing to hear from you about issues that are important to you. It is a privilege to serve as your State Senator and I will continue to give my full effort to make a positive difference for the district and the state. My Capitol office telephone number is 402-471-2801 while my email is [email protected]. My mailing address is: Senator Barry DeKay, District #40, P.O. Box 94604, State Capitol, Lincoln, NE 68509.