Nebraska
Douglas County officials strongly oppose Nebraska bill that would change state’s voting process
OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – According to Douglas County officials, 50 percent of voters now choose to vote by mail, and on average, 75 percent of all ballots are returned in secure drop boxes located across the county.
Election Commissioner Brian Kruse told members of the Douglas County Board that, if passed, LB 541 would change the way Nebraskans vote, eliminating online voter registration, restricting registration by mail, and requiring voters to give a reason for voting early.
“There’s only three state in the nation where you have to have an excuse [to vote early]: Alabama, Mississippi and New Hampshire,” Kruse said. “And Mississippi has some legislation now to eliminate that. I also think it’s worth pointing out that both major candidates from both political parties for president not only embraces early voting, but ran campaigns that they spent millions on to get their voters out to vote early across the nation.”
Kruse also mentioned that reducing the number of early voting days like LB 541 suggests is basically an unfunded mandate.
“If we were to move from 35 [days] to 22, you have to do the same amount of work in a lot less days,” Kruse said. “We estimate that for last fall’s election, we would have had to hire 22 additional employees. It would have been in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
Other provisions in the bill would require hand-counting of ballots to combat voter fraud, which Kruse says is not a serious problem in Nebraska.
“I think the bottom-line to this bill is what problems we are solving, and I don’t think there’s any question that its taking a lot of rights away from voters,” Kruse said.
Members of the Douglas County Board of Commissioners believe the bill and its changes aren’t necessary in Nebraska.
“If I had an opportunity, I could pound the heck out of this bill,” said commissioner Mike Friend. “I could take eight hours to rip this to shreds, and the lawyers better come in and convince me we’re trying to solve a problem, because this is just regulatory restraint.”
Other commissioners echoed Friend’s comments.
“This seem to me to be the latest in a long line of voter suppression efforts by people who aren’t interested in getting the highest vote total we can possibly get, and that should be all of our goals,” said commissioner James Cavanaugh.
Commissioners ultimately voted 7-0 to oppose LB 541.
“The question was asked, ‘Where did this come from?’” said commissioner Mary Ann Borgeson. “Well, look across the country. I mean, seriously, all this is is people throwing out misnomers, untruths about voter fraud.”
Kruse told the Douglas County Board of Commissioners, the Election Law Committee for Commissioners and Clerks Association, and the Nebraska Association of County Officials to oppose LB 541. Lancaster County and Hall County commissioners also voted to send a message opposing the bill.
The hearing for LB 541 is scheduled for March 5.
Copyright 2025 WOWT. All rights reserved.
Nebraska
Nebraska Dept. of Agriculture proposes ban on food and beverages containing any amount of THC
LINCOLN, Neb. — A public hearing Thursday drew strong opposition to proposed rules that would label food adulterated and illegal if it contains any amount of THC and its derivatives, potentially decimating Nebraska’s hemp and CBD industry.
The regulations would affect products like gummies, beverages and oral tinctures. Over 490 people wrote in opposition to the new regulations, while only three supported them.
The rule changes stem from an executive order issued by Gov. Jim Pillen in January requiring state agencies to review laws regarding the use of synthetic THC in food and beverages. The order was made to align with federal law coming in November 2026, which bans synthetic THC products and limits total THC concentrations in hemp products to not exceed 0.4 milligrams per container.
The proposed Nebraska rule goes beyond that federal standard.
“I would say it’d be similar other than it does say no THC. It is zero THC,” said Andrew Bish, chief operating officer of Bish Enterprises. “It’s not we are deferring to the federal government standard and aligning with the federal government standard. It is, in fact, a different standard.”
Fifteen speakers testified during the hearing, with many calling for the Department of Agriculture to regulate the industry rather than enforce outright bans.
“I respectfully urge the department to pursue a balanced science-based approach that protects public safety, targets specific problems, strengths and standards where necessary and holds bad actors accountable without unnecessarily eliminating access to products that may Nebraskans find valuable and beneficial,” said Dr. Andrea Holmes, a professor of chemistry at Doane University.
Many who testified were shop owners who said the regulations would result in major business losses and reduced state revenue.
“In 2025, we pay over $1 million in sales tax. We expect to be over $1.3 million in 2026,” one speaker from The Cannabis Factory said. “We’re not opposed to regulation, or oversight, or even additional taxation.”
The Department of Agriculture will review comments and decide if any changes need to be made. If not, the regulations go to the attorney general and the governor for approval.
The regulations include a carve out for the medical cannabis acts, meaning people with medical cannabis cards could get prescriptions that would not be affected by this proposed regulation change.
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Copyright 2026 KOLN. All rights reserved.
Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen said Thursday that he has asked President Donald Trump to issue a major disaster declaration for damage caused by storms that hit the state May 15-18.
The storms spawned tornadoes and flash flooding across Buffalo, Fillmore, Gage, Howard, Jefferson, Nemaha, Thayer and Thurston counties. There were numerous downed power poles and lines as well as extensive damage to schools, building and roadways. Damage just to public infrastructure is estimated at nearly $5 million.
In addition to the disaster declaration request, Pillen said he also has requested access to the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which provides funding to governments to allow them to rebuild in ways that will reduce or mitigate future disaster losses. Approval would allow the state to apply for such grants.
Thursday’s disaster declaration request is the second in two months. Back in May, Pillen requested one for historic wildfires in March that impacted Arthur, Garden, Grant, Lincoln and Morill counties. At the time of the request, it was estimated there was at least $9.7 million in damage from the fires, which were the worst in Nebraska’s history.
Nebraska
Bandits back in the win column with tournament-opening victory in Nebraska – East Idaho News
OMAHA, Neb. – The Bandits opened the Omaha, Nebraska tournament with a 7-4 win over Fremont.
The Bandits, coming off two losses to Billings at last week’s Bandits Invitational, trailed 4-3 in the fifth, but tied it up on a sac fly by Cole Croft.
They scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth for the win.
Carter Bowen finished 3 for 3 with an RBI and two runs scored. Conner Cannon and Taye Lords each knocked in two runs for Idaho Falls (10-2).
Tyson Christenson picked up the win with four innings of relief.
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