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NEBRASKA OFFICIALS CAUTIOUSLY OPTIMISTIC ABOUT SUSPENSION OF CHINESE TARIFFS

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Nebraska officials expressed cautious optimism Friday about a report that China will suspend plans for further tariffs on pork and soybeans from the U.S. China's Xinhua News Agency reported the plan, citing the Cabinet planning agency and the Commerce Ministry. Beijing "supports domestic companies in purchasing a certain amount of U.S. farm produce," it said, but it gave no details.

Beijing imposed 25% tariffs on American farm goods last year in response to President Donald Trump's tariff hikes on Chinese goods. Importers were ordered to stop buying soybeans, the biggest U.S. export to China. The move follows Trump's decision Wednesday to postpone a planned Oct. 1 tariff hike on Chinese imports to Oct. 15.

China's move may be due in part to problems in the country's pork industry, which is reeling from an epidemic of African Swine Fever that has caused pork prices to soar.

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UNL PLANS NEW $85 MILLION ENGINEERING BUILDING TO HELP TACKLE NEBRASKA'S WORKFORCE SHORTAGE

LINCOLN — Construction of a privately funded, $85 million engineering building will help the state dig its way out of a workforce hole, university and business leaders said Monday. The University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Engineering announced its plan to erect the new building, called Kiewit Hall, at 17th and Vine Streets.

The facility, boosted by a $20 million donation from Omaha construction giant Peter Kiewit Sons’ Inc., is one of several elements in the College of Engineering’s plan to supply more highly skilled technical workers to the state.

NEBRASKA PROPERTY TAX BALLOT DRIVE GAINS STEAM, DONATIONS

LINCOLN - A petition drive that seeks to lower Nebraska property taxes by sharply cutting state revenue is gaining steam and donations despite concerns from some groups that it would force lawmakers to raise other taxes and cut state services. The group TRUE Nebraskans now has more than 200 volunteers gathering petition signatures throughout the state and is planning to add paid circulators soon.

Organizers have also seen an uptick in contributions, including $10,000 in July from an Omaha couple. Organizers said they expect to report more large donations next month.

NEBRASKA NURSING SHORTAGE EXPECTED TO RISE 34% BY 2025. WHAT HOSPITALS ARE DOING TO KEEP UP

OMAHA - Trying to keep up with the demand for nurses in Nebraska, as in the rest of the nation, involves hitting a moving target. The state’s population continues to age. With that comes a need for more health care — and more nurses to deliver it. Changes in health care — such as performing more complex procedures in outpatient clinics — are also driving demand for more nurses.

“The supply has increased pretty dramatically, but changes in people’s health and health care are resulting in more demand,” said Juliann Sebastian, dean of the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s College of Nursing.

To better track current demand and forecast future demand, the Nebraska Center for Nursing developed a new workforce supply and demand model. It factors in variables that affect demand — such as residents’ age, disease prevalence, available hospital beds — and projects it for nine economic regions of the state.

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