LB 224 requires Nebraska state employers to provide paid maternity leave to eligible employees who give birth and assume parental responsibility. Full-time state employees receive 12 weeks of paid leave, while part-time employees get proportional leave based on their regular hours. The bill prohibits retaliation against employees who take leave, mandates return to equivalent positions after leave, and ensures continued benefits during leave - while running concurrently with federal Family and Medical Leave Act protections. It also prohibits using this leave against other accrued leave types like vacation or sick time.
LB 700 protects the privacy of minors in court by requiring all criminal cases involving people under 18 to keep identities confidential throughout proceedings. It extends Nebraska's juvenile court jurisdiction to cover individuals up to age 26 and changes sentencing for those convicted of crimes committed before age 22, setting maximum sentences (e.g., 80 years for serious felonies). The bill also creates new rules for questioning minors during investigations, bars courts from using certain statements, and establishes state-funded reporting centers for juveniles. It prohibits sending minors out of state for court proceedings and updates confidentiality rules for agencies like child welfare and probation.
This bill (LB 244) restates the legislative findings supporting Nebraska's campaign finance disclosure requirements under the Political Accountability and Disclosure Act. It replaces the existing wording in Section 49-1402 with updated language emphasizing the public interest in election transparency, the need for full disclosure of campaign funding sources and spending, and the importance of preventing conflicts of interest for public officials. The bill does not change any existing disclosure rules or requirements; it only revises the stated rationale for these laws. The original findings section is repealed as part of this update.
This bill redefines "habitually truancy" for students aged 13-17 as 20+ unexcused absences in a school year plus documented learning loss. It adds a defense against juvenile court adjudication for these cases, shifting focus from automatic court referrals to restorative justice approaches like truancy mediation. The bill also updates compulsory school attendance rules to align with these new procedures. Currently pending before Nebraska's Judiciary Committee with a hearing scheduled for March 27, 2025.
LB 466 redefines specific terms in Nebraska's juvenile justice law to clarify existing procedures. It specifically revises the definition of "alternative to detention" to exclude physical restraints (like locked facilities), clarifying that electronic monitoring or community programs count, but hardware-based restrictions do not. The bill also adds detailed definitions for "staff secure juvenile facility" to distinguish it from secure detention. This purely definitional bill affects juvenile courts, detention facilities, and legal professionals who apply these terms in cases involving youth. It does not create new programs or change penalties.
LB 367 prohibits licensed medical and mental health professionals (including doctors, psychologists, nurses, and pharmacists) from providing conversion therapy, gender identity conversion therapy, or sexual orientation conversion therapy to individuals under 19 years old. The bill amends Nebraska’s Uniform Credentialing Act to add "providing conversion therapy" as a specific ground for disciplinary action, including license suspension or revocation. It also bans the use of state funds for conversion therapy and defines the prohibited practice as any effort to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. The law directly affects practitioners in the Medicine and Surgery, Mental Health, Nurse, Pharmacy, and Psychology practice acts.
LB 351 changes the priority order for admitting patients to Nebraska's state hospitals for the mentally ill. It establishes five priority categories: (1) patients needed for public safety, (2) defendants in jail deemed incompetent, (3) patients committed under mental health laws, (4) those most likely to benefit from treatment, and (5) indigent patients when other categories are equal. The bill also requires state hospitals to allocate specific bed percentages to each category (e.g., 30% for committed patients) and reserve 30% of beds for flexible allocation to reduce waitlists. Additionally, it mandates weekly public reporting on facility capacity and wait times by the Department of Health and Human Services. This bill directly affects patients seeking mental health hospitalization and state facilities managing admissions.
This bill (LB 689) clarifies rules for school employees in Nebraska's retirement systems when they temporarily return to work after separation. It redefines when a return to work as a temporary, substitute, or volunteer employee counts as a "termination" for retirement benefits, and specifies when employees can restart retirement contributions and accrue service credit. The bill also updates procedures for members who withdraw retirement contributions (taking a refund) and later return to work, allowing them to restore refunded amounts under specific conditions. These changes directly affect current and former school employees participating in Nebraska's School Employees Retirement Act or Class V Retirement Act.
LB 350 amends Nebraska's Mental Health Commitment Act and Sex Offender Commitment Act to streamline competency restoration processes. It requires the Department of Health and Human Services to file treatment plans with courts or tribal officials within 21 days, and mandates regular court hearings every 60 days to review a defendant's progress. The bill also establishes a $100 daily reimbursement rate for counties housing defendants in jail for competency treatment (after 30 days), adjusted annually by the Consumer Price Index. This affects defendants awaiting competency restoration, county courts, tribal officials, and mental health departments handling these cases.
LB 713 amends Nebraska's School Employees Retirement Act by removing the specific definition of "prior service" and harmonizing related provisions. It directly affects current and future Nebraska public school employees covered by this retirement system. The bill updates key definitions for retirement calculations, including how compensation, creditable service, and actuarial equivalency are determined. These changes aim to simplify the system's rules without altering benefit formulas or eligibility for retirees.
LB 340 would require individuals filing asbestos-related lawsuits in Nebraska to submit all available asbestos trust claims and supporting documents (including medical records and exposure history) within 30 days of filing their case. It mandates that defendants can request court orders to compel missing trust claims before trial, and makes all trust-related materials automatically admissible in court without privilege claims. The bill also establishes that defendants can offset damages by amounts already paid or owed by asbestos trusts, with setoffs distributed proportionally among liable parties. This directly affects asbestos plaintiffs, defendants in litigation, and asbestos trusts by standardizing claim transparency and financial accountability. The bill would apply to cases filed after its effective date.
LB 616 allows Nebraska jurisdictions to use automatic license plate reader (ALPR) systems to enforce red light traffic violations, replacing the need for police officers to personally observe such violations. This means cameras would automatically capture license plates of vehicles running red lights, triggering standard traffic citation processes. The bill directly affects drivers who run red lights and local law enforcement agencies managing traffic enforcement. It amends existing statutes to incorporate ALPR technology into the red light enforcement system while maintaining existing requirements for driver safety training programs and traffic point penalties. The key change is the shift from officer-based enforcement to automated detection using license plate readers.
