We have reached the half way point in the 90 day legislative session. To date, of the 681 bills introduced, 283 have been advanced from committee, 311 remain in committee and 72 have been killed. A total of 54 have been passed and signed by the Governor and no bills have been vetoed. We will begin full day debate on March 31st and that is when the heavy lifting begins. The budget will be front and center after day seventy and will take a good portion of our remaining session days.

Do you use the Legislature's website to access public documents, view hearings or legislative debate?

Click Here to take survey

The Safe Haven Special Session of 2008 was an event that left a lasting impression on me. At first, it seemed as simple as returning to Lincoln to correct a legislative oversight. However, as daily stories unfolded about parents and guardians dropping off their children at hospitals it became obvious that we had much bigger issues to address. I introduced LB 3 during the Special Session and in good conscience could not leave the Lincoln without an attempt to find some remedy.

Should parents be allowed to smoke in their car while their children are present?

Click Here to take survey

The majority of bills that have been debated in the Legislature so far have been relatively non-controversial. That situation changed last week when we debated LB 403, better known as the Illegal Immigration Bill.