Speed limits could be raised; pipelines, fantasy leagues, Airbnb discussed

Jan. 16, 2018, 5:08 a.m. ·

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Sen. Adam Morfeld discusses Airbnb regulations (Photo by Fred Knapp, NET News)

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Speed limits could be raised to 70 miles an hour on some Nebraska highways, and up to 80 miles an hour on the Interstate, under a proposal supported by Gov. Pete Ricketts. And senators Tuesday discussed pipelines, sports fantasy leagues, and Airbnb regulations.


Ricketts said he is supporting a bill, introduced by Sens. John Murante and Curt Friesen, chairman of the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee, that would allow higher speed limits. In a news conference, the governor said the proposal would generally allow speed limits about 5 miles an hour above what they are now. “So, for example, if the engineering and so forth would determine we could between Lincoln and Omaha, we could raise it to 80 miles an hour. We’ve got a number of rural highways where the speed limit changes periodically between 60 to 65 miles an hour, and in some cases we may be able to take those up to 70 miles an hour,” he explained.

The governor said the proposal reflects feedback he’s gotten from Nebraskans. “It allows us to be able to streamline how people are travelling around our state, allow quicker delivery of business goods, (allow) tourists to be able to get around our state more quickly, people get to work faster. All that to really help us become more efficient in our state, more effective in the way we run our operations, and more customer-focused,” Ricketts said.

The proposal will now be subject to a public hearing.

Also Tuesday, Sen. Bob Krist introduced a bill to tighten regulations on pipelines like the proposed Keystone XL. Krist’s bill would, among other things, require pipeline companies to make ongoing lease payments to landowners whose land they pass through, as opposed to one-time payments for an easement. Krist said it would also impose requirements for eventual removal of pipelines. “It would stipulate that ‘he who builds will take it down’ in the case of having an issue and will clean up in that area as well,” Krist said.

Tuesday morning, senators debated a proposal by Sen. Tyson Larson to regulate fantasy sports leagues, by requiring companies that run them to register with and be regulated by the Department of Revenue. Larson said fantasy leagues, where people pay an entry fee, pick players, and get prizes if their combination of players does well, are considered games of skill. And he rejected criticism that his proposal amounts to expanded gambling. “Fantasy sports happen in Nebraska right now. These operators are currently operating. What this is doing is adding rules and regulations,” he said.

Larson said the department could limit the number of entries into a particular fantasy contest, to prevent players from submitting thousands of entries using computer algorithms that would prevent ordinary fans from having a chance to win. Sen. Dan Quick, who said he used to participate in a fantasy football league, said that would help. “I think this bill actually would help regulate, so if there was an operator who you had keep track of your scores, and you paid them to provide that service, and they didn’t hold up their end of the bargain, you could maybe actually do something about it,” Quick said.

Sen. Ernie Chambers, a gambling opponent, issued a thinly-veiled filibuster threat, signaling that getting the bill passed would not be easy. “We’re going to have a chance to discuss this gambling, because I like to talk about it. And we’re going to discuss it for a long time,” Chambers said.

The Legislature adjourned for the day before reaching a vote.

Tuesday afternoon, the Urban Affairs Committee held a public hearing on a proposal by Sen. Adam Morfeld that would prohibit Nebraska cities from preventing short-term rentals, like those arranged through Airbnb. Elaine Selig Polzien, an Airbnb host, said it is a good source of income. “At first it was kind of a supplement. But as my husband and I get more retired – he is totally retired, I’m sort of half-retired – that income is becoming more and more critical to us,” she said.

Last year, the Nebraska Hotel and Lodging Association opposed a similar bill. But with the bill introduced this year clarifying that Airbnb operators would pay sales and occupation taxes, the Association’s Scott Merritt said the organization now supports it.