Appropriations Committee Chair Mello sees tremendous opportunity for policymakers to improve the lives of Nebraska's children and families while continuing to build on our state’s overall economic momentum.
Balancing a wide variety of public interests and with great bipartisan support, the Nebraska Legislature again recognized the critical importance of children’s early years prior to adjourning the 2015 legislative session on May 29. Of preeminent importance to First Five Nebraska is public policy that recognizes the development of the brain in the early years literally shapes the learning capacity for the rest of a child’s life. Here's a summary of our highest priority bills from the 2015 legislative session.
LB489 allows child care providers to partner with school districts to receive Sixpence Early Learning Fund grants, making them critical partners in local efforts to close the achievement gap for Nebraska's youngest, most at-risk children.
As a County Attorney, it’s my job to do everything possible to protect the public. Putting people behind bars who commit crimes is one way I do that. But I know from my personal experiences in the courtroom that we can’t simply arrest, prosecute and incarcerate our way out of our crime problems. We have to implement strategies that keep people from turning to crime in the first place.
Nebraska's 2014 legislative session adjourned Sine Die on April 17. During the short session, the Legislature reviewed hundreds of bills, many of them dealing with contentious issues like Medicaid expansion, prison reform and tax reform.
Nebraska would save $25,419 in victim, court and incarceration costs for every child enrolled in full-day, center-based early childhood education programs, says the University of Nebraska‒Lincoln’s Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families and Schools (CYFS).
Taking turns, following instructions, getting along with others and dealing with distractions—all of these are components of an important set of skills that help children succeed in school and later become independent, self-sufficient adults.
It is in Nebraska’s best interest to ensure that our children enter kindergarten with the experience they need to become successful students. A child’s first five years are critically important for healthy brain and social/emotional development, and First Five Nebraska is committed to supporting legislation that helps children get the start they need to grow into confident, capable, productive citizens.