Senators Discuss U.S. Capitol Riot; Introduce Bills

After several state lawmakers expressed concern about Wednesday’s riot at the U.S. Capitol, Nebraska state senators got down to introducing proposals on everything from the Electoral College to marijuana and windshield wipers.

The day began with two senators talking about their reactions to Wednesday’s riot at the U.S. Capitol. Sen. Carol Blood said it was an attack on democracy, and asked her colleagues to reflect on how to prevent something similar.

“How will you prevent what happened yesterday in DC from happening here in Nebraska?” Blood asked. “We can remember that we must listen first – listen first to truly understand. That we don’t need to always agree but we do need to always hear where the other person is coming from. We owe them that opportunity because it isn’t us versus them.”

Sen. Megan Hunt followed, saying Wednesday’s events represented a fundamental threat to the democratic system. But Hunt found some reason for optimism.

“What does give me optimism is seeing how Nebraskans are activated. Seeing how Nebraskans are watching us, they’re watching their city councils, they’re watching their school boards. And this is all for them. Nebraskans, this is all for you what we’re doing here. As Benjamin Franklin said it’s a republic if you can keep it. This is our democracy and our institution if we can keep it. And we have to improve it, not just for your party, but for everybody,” Hunt said.

Lawmakers then got down to the business of introducing bills and proposed constitutional amendments. Sen. Joni Albrecht introduced a proposal to toughen penalties against people who damage government property or the property of peace officers and other government officials. Albrecht said she’s reacting to demonstrations that got out of hand in Lincoln last summer.

“My motivation was everything that happened down here. What should have been a peaceful protest ended up being a riot. And when you destroy other people’s property, you hurt other people. And we don’t have the tools for law enforcement or our county attorneys to act on this. That’s why I came up with this bill, because we need to let them know that we are behind them as well,” Albrecht said.

Beyond the existing penalties of three to fifty years imprisonment, Albrecht’s bill would impose an additional fine of $5,000 for assaulting officials including police, probation officers, firefighters, emergency care providers, state capitol security personnel, corrections employees, or health and human service employees in certain circumstances.

“We have got to be able to protect them, or we’re going to lose ‘em. What reason would we want them to come to work every day, if we don’t have their backs?” she said.

Sen. Julie Slama introduced the latest effort to repeal Nebraska’s system of awarding some of its Electoral College votes for president based on which candidate wins each congressional district. Her bill would return the state to the winner-take-all system used in 48 other states.

“I believe that the winner-take-all system is more consistent with our founders’ intention to give authority to the states, not segments of states for elections,” Slama said.

Since Nebraska adopted its system in the 1990s, the state as a whole has consistently voted Republican. But twice – in 2008 and last year – the Democratic candidate has picked up one electoral vote by winning the Omaha-area Second Congressional District.

Slama, a registered Republican in the officially nonpartisan Legislature, denied her proposal was motivated by a desire to help her party. And she criticized what she said was a bad incentive the current system creates for redistricting.

“We’re drawing congressional districts with not only congressional seats in mind, but also national, presidential election plans in mind as well,” she said.

Under current law, that redistricting process will be carried out by a process entirely driven by the Legislature itself, which includes 32 Republicans and 17 Democrats.

Also Thursday, Sens. Justin Wayne and Anna Wishart introduced a proposed constitutional amendment to legalize cannabis, or marijuana. The proposal goes beyond one last year that would have legalized only medical cannabis. The Nebraska Supreme Court blocked that from appearing on the ballot, saying it contained more than one subject. The new proposal, if advanced by the Legislature, legalizes all marijuana for people 21 and older, and would appear before voters in November, 2022.

On another subject, Sen. Jen Day proposed giving employers a 50 percent tax credit if they help employees pay student loans. Payments of up to $3,600 a year would earn employers a tax credit of up to $1,800. Day said the idea is to help prevent brain drain from the state.

“I think we’re losing about 3,000 people a year over the age of 25 with a bachelor’s degree right now. So this provides incentives for them to stay, and it provides an incentive for employers to provide some kind of support with the student loans,” Day said.

And Sen. Steve Halloran introduced a proposal that would require drivers to turn on their headlights whenever they’re using their windshield wipers. Halloran said he got the idea from his brother, a semi-truck driver.

“He has expressed concern on numerous occasions about the difficulty for truckers to see the traffic if it approaches from behind, when it’s raining. In other words, when the visibility has declined because of moisture on the highway, tires picking up the moisture, without the headlights on, the truckers can’t see ‘em until they’re right on them – right beside ‘em. So lane changes become an issue,” Halloran said.

In all, some 138 bills and four proposed constitutional amendments were introduced Thursday. Introductions continue for the next nine legislative days. For NET News at the Capitol, I’m Fred Knapp.