Number of state senators could increase

Currently, forty-nine state senators serve in the Nebraska Legislature. Under the Nebraska Constitution, this number could be increased to 50 senators, but an even number of senators could result in a vote ending in a tie, requiring the lieutenant governor to cast the deciding vote. Speaker of the Legislature, Sen. Jim Scheer, introduced LR 279, a constitutional amendment authorizing the Legislature to increase the number of state senators up to fifty-five. If LR 279 is passed by the Legislature, the proposed constitutional amendment would be placed on the November 2020 ballot for voters to de...