108th Nebraska Legislature reconvenes

LINCOLN, Neb. (KSNB) - The first morning of the 108th session of the Nebraska Legislature was full of elections for spots on committees.

Both the Chair and the Vice Chairman of the executive committee (Sen. Ray Aguilar, Sen. Tom Breise) represent part of Grand Island, along with senators Steve Halloran and John Lowe also filling spots on various committees.

Grand Island Senator Ray Aguilar has one particular goal in mind for this session of the legislature.

“My priority is trying to get another judge established in Hall County,” Senator Aguilar said. “Hopefully it will be a magistrate type where he can specialize in juvenile cases. That’s something we are getting overwhelmed within Hall County is back up of juvenile cases.”

This session of the legislature could prove to be a big one for the state, ever since the United States Supreme Court overturned Roe versus Wade all eyes have been watching the legislature for what it means for Nebraska.

Senator Steve Halloran said the issue should have been dealt with before now.

“That’s a contentious issue we should have dealt with it in a special session so it was isolated as a single-issue subject. We didn’t do that. We can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube on that one,” Senator Halloran said. “So we kicked the can down the road and we are going to have to deal with it in the legislature. You can’t have life, liberty, and happiness if you don’t first recognize and protect life.”

Property tax reform could also show up during the session, which Senator Halloran said has been a challenge for decades.

“We don’t look at the fundamental issue dealing with property taxes, and we just kind of tinker around the edges,” Halloran said. “Last year we claimed to have done some property tax relief and it was quite a sizable dollar figure. But, honestly, property taxes went up more than the relief we provided.”

According to Rocket Mortgage, Nebraska has one of the highest property tax rates in the country.

Copyright 2023 KSNB. All rights reserved.