Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
Reliable, Trustworthy Reporting, Capturing The Heartbeat Of Our Community
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Last year, I highlighted several ballot initiatives that have been approved by the Secretary of State for circulation ahead of this year's November General Election. This week, I would like to provide another overview of those measures that may still be seeking signatures. Although I provide information about these initiative petitions, this newsletter series is meant to be informative and neither represents an endorsement FOR nor AGAINST any particular measure. The Choose Life Now Amendment...
Rumors are as common around the State Capitol as brome grass in a roadside ditch. It's not called "The Hall of Hot Winds" for nothing, And that rumor mill gets cranked up big time during election season, when there's speculation aplenty about who is running and who is not, and who can win and who cannot. By the time you've read this, you've probably already voted in the May 12 primary. The rumor mill had Falls City businessman Charles Herbster as a likely primary challenger to incumbent Jim...
PROCEEDINGS SPECIAL MEETING VILLAGE OF PAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES April 23, 2026 A special meeting of the Village Board of Page was held Thursday, April 23, 2026, at the village office. Notice was posted at three public places within the Village of Page. This meeting was conducted in compliance with the Nebraska Open Meetings Act and Open Meeting Laws posted at the Village Office. Linquist opened the meeting at 6 p.m. Trustees Sobotka, Tyrrell, Cunningham and Leichleiter were present. Also present: Dennis VanEvery and Cora Calkins. Absent: None....
The Nebraska Legislature began talking about "exterrestrials" the other day, and well, who could pass up writing about that? I have a buddy who insists that an alien craft hovered over his acreage outside of Ashland. There's another buddy who is convinced that he was followed by an alien ship while driving down a remote western Nebraska highway. So I've heard some stories. Thanks to these new-fangled "prediction markets" like Kalshi and Polymarket, we can actually place bets on the chances that...
The text popped up on my phone on a Saturday morning. The message warned about unresolved traffic violations in my name and threatened a barrage of legal penalties and fines if I didn't reply within a specified time frame. Luckily, I didn't click on the link provided in the text. Unfortunately, it is likely that more than 1,000 individuals will click and make a payment. Scams like these generally originate from outside Nebraska, utilizing spoofed numbers, making it difficult to track down those...
One of my favorite political slogans of all time is “a solution in search of a problem.” It’s used frequently in debates at the Nebraska Legislature to describe a proposal or idea that imposes new rules and restrictions to address a problem that doesn’t exist. You might call it “government overreach,” too. Anyway, the “solution in search of a problem” line is being used often today to describe President Trump’s efforts to change election laws via the dramatically labeled “SAVE America Act...
Valmont represents a home-grown Nebraska success story, the 80-year-old company that pioneered the center pivot that helps corn grow in the Cornhusker State. The Fortune 1000 company still operates facilities in its Valley birthplace as well as in Columbus, West Point, Grand Island and McCook. It oversees global operations spanning five continents from a gleaming $50 million headquarters in west Omaha. But under a new law Gov. Jim Pillen pushed to passage last year, that stalwart Nebraska...
Funeral services for Frances E. Brummels, 103, of Ewing were 10:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 9, at Concordia Lutheran Church in Clearwater. Burial was in Ewing Cemetery at Ewing. Snider Memorial Funeral Home handled the arrangements. Frances died Jan. 4, 2026, at Accura Care Center, Neligh. Condolences may be directed to the family at www.snidermemorial.com. ~~~~~ Frances Elizabeth (Weyhrich) Brummels, the oldest child of Edward and Anna (Scheuttler) Weyhrich, was born at home near Randolph on Nov. 18,... Full story
Funeral services for Frances E. Brummels, 103, of Ewing, will be 10:30 a.m., Friday, Jan. 9, at Concordia Lutheran Church in Clearwater. Visitation will be 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 8, at Snider Memorial Funeral Home in Clearwater. Burial will be in Ewing Cemetery at Ewing. Snider Memorial Funeral Home is handling the arrangements. Frances Brummels died Jan. 4, 2026, at Accura Care Center in Neligh. Condolences may be directed to the family at www.snidermemorial.com Frances Elizabeth... Full story
Three thoughts ... Among the tasks waiting for the Nebraska Legislature when it reassembles after the first of the year will be a budget shortfall, the perennial pitch for lower property taxes and a roster of issues from education to fulfilling the wishes of the electorate ... finally. State senators also will be dealing with a couple personnel issues during the 60-day session, a pair of stinkers that have already occupied a considerable amount of time not simply for lawmakers but for the...
When Nebraska's Department of Health and Human Services announced its plan to divvy up millions in opioid settlement money, one recipient stood out: The Central Wyoming Counseling Center. The Wyoming nonprofit is the only out-of-state organization slated to receive some of Nebraska's Opioid Treatment Infrastructure Cash Fund, receiving $3.4 million to build a crisis stabilization center in Kimball County, which borders Wyoming. The Central Wyoming Counseling Center's former acting CEO: Steve...
PROCEEDINGS VILLAGE OF PAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES December 8, 2025 The regular monthly meeting of the Village Board of Page was held Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, at the village office. Notice was published in the Summerland Advocate and was also posted at three public places within the Village of Page. This meeting was conducted in compliance with the Nebraska Open Meetings Act and Open Meeting Laws posted at the Village Office. Tyrrell opened the meeting at 7 p.m. Trustees Sobotka and Leichleiter were present. Also present: Mike Scott, Dennis VanEvery,...
Gov. Jim Pillen and the Nebraska Department of Banking and Finance gave final approval Nov. 12 to the final charter for the launch of Telcoin Digital Asset Bank in Norfolk. As a result, Telcoin will manage the first regulated digital asset depository in the United States, with leadership expecting operations to begin in December. State experts said the burgeoning market of digital assets means more economic opportunities for entrepreneurs and developers of fintech and crypto in Nebraska. It...
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER Storm sewer replacement under Main St. The Village of Clearwater is requesting proposals from experienced and well-qualified contractors to remove existing 36”x100’ storm sewer at the intersection of Main St. and First St. and construct linear feet of 36” arch RCP storm sewer. Proposal shall include all labor, materials and machinery, including replacement of street paving, inlets and all other incidental work. Work shall be completed by Feb. 28, 2026. A qualified professional contractor shall...
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER Storm sewer replacement under Main St. The Village of Clearwater is requesting proposals from experienced and well-qualified contractors to remove existing 36”x100’ storm sewer at the intersection of Main St. and First St. and construct linear feet of 36” arch RCP storm sewer. Proposal shall include all labor, materials and machinery, including replacement of street paving, inlets and all other incidental work. Work shall be completed by Feb. 28, 2026. A qualified professional contractor shall...
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL FOR VILLAGE OF CLEARWATER Storm sewer replacement under Main St. The Village of Clearwater is requesting proposals from experienced and well-qualified contractors to remove existing 36”x100’ storm sewer at the intersection of Main St. and First St. and construct linear feet of 36” arch RCP storm sewer. Proposal shall include all labor, materials and machinery, including replacement of street paving, inlets and all other incidental work. Work shall be completed by Feb. 28, 2026. A qualified professional contractor shall...
PROCEEDINGS VILLAGE OF PAGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES The regular monthly meeting of the Village Board of Page was held Monday, Oct. 13, 2025, at the village office. Notice was published in the Summerland Advocate and was also posted at three public places within the Village of Page. This meeting was conducted in compliance with the Nebraska Open Meetings Act and Open Meeting Laws posted at the Village Office. Linquist opened the meeting at 7:02 pm. Trustees Sobotka, Tyrrell, Cunningham, and Leichleiter present. Also present: Dennis VanEvery and Cora...
Distracted driving and speeding are endangering and killing Nebraskans. So, here's a challenge to everyone who gets behind the wheel: Let's make our roads the safest in America. "I'm issuing this challenge because of the troubling trends in traffic safety. In June, over a two-week span, three Nebraska State Patrol cruisers were hit while parked on I-80," Pillen said. In late July, a Nebraska Department of Transportation worker was injured while assisting at the scene of a crash on the...
This past week, more than 100 new laws took effect. Under Article III, Section 27 of the Nebraska Constitution, no law shall take effect until three calendar months after the adjournment of the legislative session at which it passed, though the Legislature can move up the effective date of a law by a two-thirds of all the members elected. Since this year’s legislative session adjourned on June 3, this means over 100 new laws took effect on Wednesday, Sept. 3, in accordance with our state’s con...
Updated traffic rules and heavier fines for breaking them go into effect Sept. 3. The move-over law previously applied only to emergency and roadside assistance vehicles. With the Nebraska Legislature's passage of LB 530, an omnibus public safety bill introduced by Omaha Sen. Kathleen Kauth, state law will require drivers to slow down or move over when approaching any stopped vehicle or "vulnerable road users" on the side of the highway. "This includes pedestrians, bicyclists, people in...
In the hours after federal immigration officers descended on Glenn Valley Foods, company officials and elected leaders made one point clear: Glenn Valley had worked to avoid the exact situation it found itself in. As proof, they pointed to the Omaha meatpacking plant’s use of E-Verify, a federal system meant to help employers confirm a person’s ability to work legally in the U.S. “We’ve done everything we’re supposed to do as a company,” Glenn Valley Foods President Chad Hartmann said at the time. A spokesperson for Immigration and Customs Enf...
Today, agriculture, food, and related trades employ more than one in 10 American workers and contribute over $1.5 trillion to our annual Gross Domestic Product. In Nebraska, one in four jobs are related to agriculture. According to the latest data from the Nebraska Department of Agriculture, our state is ranked first in total beef exports, second in ethanol production, and fifth in overall agricultural exports among the 50 states. We live in a time when agriculture security is emerging as a key...
The Legislature has officially entered an interim period between the first and second regular sessions of the 109th Legislature. The interim provides time for senators and their staff to begin preparing for the next regular session, which is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Yet, Senators also remain busy with interim studies to research topics of interest in hopes of bringing stakeholders to the table. This year, I introduced three interim studies: LR178, LR179, and LR180. LR178...
This week, I would like to outline my legislative accomplishments for this year. Bills passed this session include 13 of the 15 bills that I introduced in January. My legislation that made it across to the governor’s desk includes: LB7, which updates legislation I passed last year, LB1301, the Foreign-owned Real Estate National Security Act. LB7 clarifies that (1) Native American tribes are not foreign governments and are not barred from purchasing and owning real property in the state, (2) upda...
Let's get this straight – 71% of Nebraskans voted in November to legalize the use of marijuana as medicine. But when the State Legislature got around to adopting regulations to dole it out, lawmakers decided "whoa," let's not get too hasty about this. It's a crazy world, right? But how crazy is it when the state's voters, by not just a slim margin but a landslide, approve new laws and the State Legislature decides 'nope.' Medical marijuana is now legal in 47 states. Nebraska, Kansas and Idaho t...
