LINCOLN — The Nebraska Department of Economic Development (DED) and Gov. Jim Pillen’s administration are under renewed scrutiny from State Auditor Mike Foley over a $2.5 million emergency no-bid contract awarded in 2024 to a firm recommended by Pillen and run by a lobbyist he knew. The administration has argued the expedited contract was necessary because the Legislature’s timeline left too little time for a competitive bidding process and that without the emergency designation the state couldn’t meet a deadline to report bioeconomy progress to lawmakers.

Foley now says the argument falls apart because DED failed to file the required report by the June 30, 2025 deadline, instead submitting it days later, undermining the claim that time pressure justified bypassing competitive bidding. According to people familiar with the process, the report wasn’t even drafted until Foley requested it, after the state had already ended the contract with the governor’s preferred contractor. Pillen and his office continue to defend the contract and timeline, saying they acted within the law and that the consultant helped secure federal funding for Nebrask

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