Nebraska Legislation Affecting Early Childhood

Sponsor: Machaela Cavanaugh
Status: 03/13/2019 Approved by Governor, hearing on 03/12/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Child Safety

This bill changes terminology relating to shaken baby syndrome.

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Sponsor: Matt Hansen
Status: 02/04/2019 Failed to Advance to E and R Initial
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Economic Assistance/Public Benefits

This bill would require cities to assess the supply of quality licensed early childhood education programs and evaluate the availability and utilization of licensed child care providers as part of their comprehensive plans. The comprehensive plans shall also promote early childhood health and education measures that benefit the community LB66 FFN Testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Mike Groene
Status: 05/21/2019 Placed on General File
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education, Child Safety, Physical & Mental Health

This bill would allow teachers or school administrators to physically restrain a student if the student becomes physically violent towards another person or towards school property. The teacher or administrator shall not be subject to any legal or administrative action, so long as they were acting in a reasonable manner. This bill would also give teachers the authority to have a student removed from the classroom if the teacher can show the student has repeatedly interfered with the teacher’s ability to communicate with other students and if the student has shown to have a disruptive or unruly behavior in the classroom.

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Sponsor: Dan Quick et al.
Status: 03/21/2019 Approved by Governor, hearing on 03/21/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Economic Assistance/Public Benefits

This bill would allow communities to direct some of their Local Option Municipal Economic Development funds (LB840) to develop or expand quality early childhood programs. LB160 FFN Testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Megan Hunt
Status: 02/14/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 02/26/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education

This bill would require each school board to adopt a policy that would prohibit the suspension or expulsion of any early childhood education or kindergarten student unless the school principal determines that such student has caused or threatened serious bodily injury to a student or another person while in school, on school grounds, in a school-owned vehicle, or at a school-sponsored activity.

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Sponsor: Kate Bolz
Status: 02/05/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education, Budget/Taxes

This bill would allow the school board of any school district to impose a local option income surtax for property tax reduction or building construction, remodeling, and site acquisition. This bill would also allow the school board, by majority vote, pass a resolution to place the issue of enacting a local option income surtax at any primary, general or special election.

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Sponsor: Brett Lindstrom
Status: 03/13/2019 Placed on General File
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Early Childhood Workforce, Budget/Taxes, Child Care

This bill provides language that fixes interpretation issues that led to self-employed child care providers and certain classifications of child care programs being ineligible for the School Readiness Tax Credit. LB266 testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Lou Ann Linehan et al.
Status: 01/24/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Budget/Taxes

This bill amends sales tax provisions in order to enable the state to collect sales tax from online vendors.

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Sponsor: Speaker Scheer at the request of the Governor
Status: 05/30/2019 Approved by Governor, hearing on 05/27/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Budget/Taxes

This bill is the mainline budget bill

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Sponsor: Brett Lindstrom at the request of the Governor
Status: 04/11/2019 Placed on General File
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Budget/Taxes

Increases the amount of relief granted under the Property Tax Credit Act from $224 M to $275 M for tax year 2019 and each year thereafter.

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Sponsor: Sue Crawford et al.
Status: 03/07/2019 Placed on General File
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Economic Assistance/Public Benefits, Family Support

This bill creates the Paid Family and Medical Leave Insurance Fund to enable employees to take 12 weeks for their child during the first year of birth, adoption, or placement through foster care; 12 weeks due to serious illness of the employee; 6 weeks for weeks to care for a family member with a health condition; 6 weeks to care for a service member; 6 weeks for qualifying exigency leave. The bill also sets levels for the amount of wage replacement to be paid based on income level.

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Sponsor: Kate Bolz
Status: 04/25/2019 Placed on General File
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Child Care, Economic Assistance/Public Benefits, Family Support

Moves family eligibility for the Child Care Subsidy from 130% of the federal poverty level (FPL) up to 165% FPL; removes the 24-month maximum for transitional child care assistance; makes transitional child care assistance available for families between 165% FPL and 200% FPL. Any fee for processing applications or background checks must not exceed the actual cost of processing and administration.

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Sponsor: John Arch
Status: 01/29/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Child Care, Economic Assistance/Public Benefits, Family Support

Removes the 24-month maximum for transitional child care assistance; changes the income level at which you lose transitional child care assistance within an eligibility year from 185% federal poverty level (FPL) to 85% state median income (SMI); at the end of an eligibility period, the family will stay eligible for transitional child care if their income is below 185% FPL. LB341 FFN Testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Lynne Walz et al.
Status: 03/13/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/26/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Education

This bill cleans up language related to TEEOSA and adds the early childhood allowance and community achievement plan allowance to the list of eligible deductions from a school district's general fund operating expenditures for fiscal year 2020-21 and each year thereafter. The bill also changes the state aid calculations related to early childhood students.

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Sponsor: Mike Groene
Status: 03/01/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/12/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Budget/Taxes

Changes the base limitation and local effort rate, as well as certification dates for distribution of aid, certification of budget limitations, and duties of the Legislature's Appropriations Committee.

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Sponsor: Health and Human Services Committee
Status: 01/29/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Child Care, Child Safety

Requires a person applying to be a licensed child care provider to undergo a national criminal history record information check for themselves and each child care staff member and prospective child care staff member at the applicant's expense. Each child care staff member must undergo a national criminal history record information check not less than once during a 5-year period and must submit a complete set of fingerprints to the Nebraska State Patrol. LB459 FFN Testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Lou Ann Linehan
Status: 05/31/2019 Indefinitely Postponed
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education

This bill would open a 529 savings account for every child in Nebraska. The state of Nebraska would appropriate $100 for every child savings account opened. The purpose of this program is to promote access to postsecondary educational opportunities.

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Sponsor: Justin Wayne
Status: 01/30/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education, Budget/Taxes

This bill amends current statute and would allow employers to contribute to an employee's educational savings plan trust. This bill also states that any government program that provides benefits or aid to an individual based on financial need shall not consider employer contributions

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Sponsor: Kate Bolz
Status: 05/30/2019 Approved by Governor, hearing on 05/29/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Economic Development, Child Care

LB564 revises the definition of facilities eligible to receive grant funding under the Civic and Community Center Financing Fund to include child care, among other things.

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Sponsor: Tom Briese
Status: 04/18/2019 Approved by Governor, hearing on 04/17/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Systems/Governance, Child Care, Early Childhood Workforce

Child care licensing staff will use the Nebraska Early Childhood Professional Record System (NECPRS) to verify training levels for licensed child care providers. Licensed child care programs will maintain provider profiles and employees will report credentials and training levels in NECPRS. LB590 FFN Testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Adam Morfeld
Status: 02/12/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 02/22/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Economic Assistance/Public Benefits, Physical & Mental Health

Creates the Medicaid Expansion Implementation Task Force to facilitate the implementation process.

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Sponsor: Robert Hilkemann et al.
Status: 01/30/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Child Safety

This bill would require vehicles used by schools or edcuation units are required to have a 3-point safety belt system; there are a few restrictions that apply.

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Sponsor: Justin Wayne
Status: 03/13/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/26/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Budget/Taxes

Provides state support for 48% of aggregate general fund operating expenditures of school districts; replaces TEEOSA with a new funding formula.

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Sponsor: Curt Friesen
Status: 02/05/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Budget/Taxes

Terminates the Tax Equity and Educational Opportunities Support Act (TEEOSA) on July 1, 2022.

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Sponsor: Tony Vargas et al.
Status: 03/07/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/18/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education, Early Childhood Workforce

The State Board of Education will issue a teacher certification to individuals in good standing with a teaching certificate from another state. Temporary certificates will be offered to persons with a bachelor's degree that is enrolled in an alternate certification program.

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Sponsor: Mike Groene
Status: 02/05/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Budget/Taxes

Drops maximum levy from $1.05 to 98.7 cents per $100 of taxable valuation of property and changes how property tax relief is allocated to schools.

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Sponsor: Wendy DeBoer et al.
Status: 03/07/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/19/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Budget/Taxes

Creates a 20-member School Financing Review Commission to review and make recommendations on school financing, with reports in even-numbered years for the Governor, State Board of Education, and the Legislature.

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Sponsor: Machaela Cavanaugh et al.
Status: 03/04/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/15/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Family Support

Provides a location within the State Capitol Building to express breast milk, other than a bathroom, and shielded from view and intrusion by the public.

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Sponsor: Machaela Cavanaugh
Status: 02/20/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 02/28/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Budget/Taxes, School Funding

Increases cigarette tax and adds vape products to tobacco products for taxation purposes; changes allocation of funds from cigarette tax, including 2% for the Nebraska Early Childhood Professional Record System, 5% for K-12, and 2.5% for family and medical leave start-up costs.

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Sponsor: Mark Kolterman (Kolterman Priority Bill)
Status: 05/23/2019 Placed on Select File
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Budget/Taxes, Economic Development

This bill would create the ImagiNE Nebraska Act, a new business development tax-incentive program that will eventually replace the Nebraska Advantage Act. LB720 FFN Testimony.pdf

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Sponsor: Lynne Walz et al.
Status: 03/13/2019 Notice of Hearing, hearing on 03/25/2019
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: School Funding, Physical & Mental Health, Education

Schools districts and Educational Service Units (ESUs) that designate an employee to serve as a community-based mental health liason can be reimbursed for 80% of mental health expenditures. Creates and funds the School Mental Health Resources Fund for the purposes of reimbursing school districts and ESUs.

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Sponsor: Tom Brewer
Status: 02/05/2019 Notice of Hearing
FFN Position: Legislation to Watch
Category: Education, Budget/Taxes

This proposed constitutional amendment states that no more than thirty-three percent of school funding shall come from property taxes.

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