It’s Day 23 of the Nebraska Legislature’s 2024 session! We’re at the Capitol every day, continuing to fight for justice and opportunity for all Nebraskans. Check out last week’s highlights and this week’s key hearings below:
Last Week’s Highlights
Last week, we testified in SUPPORT of several bills:
- LB845 (Senator Megan Hunt) would protect students, legal custodians of students, and employees of schools and daycares from facing eviction during the school year.
- LB1115 (Senator George Dungan) ensures that tenant rights are protected in the case of eviction. This bill would enforce the recognition of Nebraskans’ Constitutional right to a trial by jury for eviction cases – and would also make sure that tenants are informed of their rights and not forced to give them up when entering into a lease.
- LB952 (Senator Jen Day) would provide summer grocery-buying benefits to low-income families with school-aged children by requiring the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services to implement the federal Summer Electronic Benefits Transfer (Summer EBT) Program. Summer EBT would help feed over 150,000 Nebraska kids while school is out for the summer!
- LB913 (Senator Megan Hunt) seeks to eliminate the gaps that pregnant Nebraskans face in their postpartum coverage under 599 CHIP. This bill would help Nebraska take a major step forward in ensuring that postpartum health care is available to all women and people who need it, which is critical for keeping babies, families, and our communities healthy.
Click here to see all of the legislative priorities that Appleseed is supporting during the 2024 session.
This Week’s Hearings
There are hearings this week that you can attend in person, stream online, or submit a comment. Here are a few hearings Appleseed will be showing up for and supporting this week:
LB1139 (M. Cavanaugh) – Adopt the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Act
- All Nebraskans deserve to take the time they need to care for their families. Yesterday, we testified in SUPPORT of LB1139, which would create a 10-week paid leave program for Nebraskans to care for themselves or a family member experiencing a serious illness or to care for a new child.
LB857 (Dungan) – Create the Nebraska Prenatal Plus Program
- Wednesday, February 7 in the afternoon in Room 1510 in front of the Health and Human Services Committee
- This bill would provide additional prenatal services to mothers in the Medicaid program who are at risk of an adverse birth outcome.
- Take action: Appleseed SUPPORTS this bill – submit a comment here by tomorrow, Wednesday, February 7 at 8:00 AM CST
LB918 (Wayne) – Allow individuals with Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status to receive law enforcement officer training and certification
- Wednesday, February 7 in the afternoon in Room 1113 in front of the Judiciary Committee
- This bill would ensure that longtime community members with DACA who grew up in Nebraska can pursue careers in law enforcement.
- Take action: Appleseed SUPPORTS this bill – submit a comment here by tomorrow, Wednesday, February 7 at 8:00 AM CST
LB1315 (Linehan) – Change the sales tax rate
- Wednesday, February 7 in the afternoon in Room 1524 in front of the Revenue Committee
- This bill would increase Nebraska’s sales tax to 6.5% by October 2024. This is a regressive tax proposal, meaning that it would take a proportionally greater amount of money from those on lower incomes. Increased sales taxes result in lower income taxpayers absorbing a greater share of tax burden than those with higher incomes.
- Take action: Appleseed OPPOSES this bill – submit a comment here by tomorrow, Wednesday, February 7 at 8:00 AM CST
LB1182 (Bostar) – Increase the earned income tax credit
- Thursday, February 8 in the afternoon in Room 1524 in front of the Revenue Committee
- This bill would increase Nebraska’s Earned Income Tax Credit from 10% of the federal credit to 20%. The Earned Income Tax Credit is a powerful tool to prevent poverty, and helps working families make ends meet.
- Take action: Appleseed SUPPORTS this bill – submit a comment here by Thursday, February 8 at 8:00 AM CST
Stay Up to Date
You can keep up with all the happenings at the Legislature by following Appleseed online:
- Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
- Don’t miss out on our live updates on legislative hearings on Twitter.
- We’ll let you know how you can take action to get involved and make your voice heard throughout the session!
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