NEBRASKA SEES CORONAVIRUS DEATH TOLL RISE TO 34, FOLLOWING 6 DEATHS ANNOUNCED MONDAY

LINCOLN- COVID-19 has claimed the lives of six more Nebraskans, bringing the state's total to 34.

Seward County reported its first death Monday evening, that of a woman in her 50s who suffered from other health conditions. She was pronounced dead at a hospital after being brought from her home by a rescue squad.

Both men who died in Douglas County had preexisting health conditions, according to the county's public health department. Those deaths were the ninth and 10th in the county related to coronavirus. The Central District Health Department, which monitors three counties in the hard-hit Grand Island area, reported three new deaths Monday. 

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LOST YOUR JOB OR HOURS CUT BACK? LONG WAIT FOR MANY NEBRASKANS FOR GOVERNMENT HELP

LINCOLN- Getting unemployment benefits in Nebraska already was a slow process, with it taking up to three weeks or more to be paid after filing a claim. But with the unprecedented economic shock over the past month, the system has been overloaded.

About 83,000 people in the state have filed unemployment claims in the past four weeks — the equivalent of two years' worth of claims in Nebraska. Nearly 15,000 of those claims have come from Lancaster County residents.

State Labor Commissioner John Albin said last week that his staff of adjudicators — the people who process unemployment claims — has grown from about 30 to 200 in the past few weeks.Still, he said his office's goal now is to get 75% of claims processed within four weeks. That's down from a standard goal of 90% in three weeks.

Even though the state has waived the normal one-week waiting period to file a claim, it still means at least one out of every four unemployed people may be waiting a month or more to get a check.

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'OUR NORMAL ACTIVITIES HAVE CHANGED': GRAND ISLAND COMMUNITY IS TESTED AS CORONAVIRUS CASES SURGE

GRAND ISLAND-  The coronavirus surge has challenged standard practices in Grand Island and Hall County. Seven have now died of COVID-19 in the county. And this part of Nebraska has a virus rate per capita that’s much higher than any other Nebraska county and is similar to that of some of the most intensely hit states in the nation.

The contagious disease has created dread among many in Grand Island. To be cautious, some say, treat everyone as though they carry the virus. Others believe the problem has been exaggerated. The disease also has tested the strings that hold Grand Island together as a community. About one-third of the city’s 51,500 residents are Latino.

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WHITE HOUSE AND DEMOCRATS NEAR DEAL ON AID FOR SMALL BUSINESSES, HOSPITALS

WASHINGTON — The White House and congressional Democrats on Sunday closed in on an agreement for a $450 billion economic relief package to replenish a depleted emergency fund for small businesses and to expand coronavirus testing around the country, with votes on the measure possible early this week. 

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin described the broad outlines of the package in an appearance on CNN on Sunday. The agreement would include $300 billion to replenish the emergency fund, called the Paycheck Protection Program; $50 billion for the Small Business Administration’s disaster relief fund; $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for testing.

The money for hospitals and testing in the package Mr. Mnuchin outlined was a significant concession to Democrats, who were standing in the way of a quick and stand-alone infusion of cash to the Paycheck Protection Program, which offers forgivable loans to small businesses to create incentives for them to keep employees on their payroll.

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THE CORONAVIRUS IN AMERICA: THE YEAR AHEAD

NEW YORK-  Most experts believed that once the crisis was over, the nation and its economy would revive quickly. But there would be no escaping a period of intense pain.The tighter the restrictions, experts say, the fewer the deaths and the longer the periods between lockdowns. Most models assume states will eventually do widespread temperature checks, rapid testing and contact tracing, as is routine in Asia.

Even the “Opening Up America Again” guidelines Mr. Trump issued on Thursday have three levels of social distancing, and recommend that vulnerable Americans stay hidden. The plan endorses testing, isolation and contact tracing — but does not specify how these measures will be paid for, or how long it will take to put them in place.

On Friday, none of that stopped the president from contradicting his own message by sending out tweets encouraging protesters in Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia to fight their states’ shutdowns. China did not allow Wuhan, Nanjing or other cities to reopen until intensive surveillance found zero new cases for 14 straight days, the virus’s incubation period. Compared with China or Italy, the United States is still a playground.

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CORONAVIRUS CASES IN LEXINGTON AREA HAVE MORE THAN DOUBLED IN A WEEK

LEXINGTON- The western Nebraska county that is home to Lexington has seen a surge in coronavirus cases in the past week and now ranks third-highest in the state.

Nebraska had recorded 1,474 cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, as of Sunday evening. That’s an increase of 187 from the day before. So far, 28 deaths have been reported in Nebraska, with no new deaths reported Sunday.

As of Sunday evening, Dawson County had reported 124 cases, according to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, placing it third behind Hall and Douglas Counties. That is more than double the cases reported a week earlier. Hall County, where Grand Island is located, still has the state’s highest number of coronavirus cases, with 468 cases as of Saturday. 

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ABORTION SURVEY SHOWS SOME NEBRASKA CANDIDATES WOULD NOT MAKE EXCEPTION TO SAVE MOTHER'S LIFE

LINCOLN- A Right to Life survey of candidates for Nebraska offices shows that some state senators facing reelection would not support abortion to save the life of a mother. The question asked: Under what circumstances, if any, do you believe that abortion should be legal? 

Five incumbent senators either answered no to the exception of preventing the mother's death, or left the answer blank after saying they would permit abortion in no cases. Those senators were Julie Slama of Peru, Joni Albrecht of Thurston, Bruce Bostelman of Brainard, Mike Hilgers of Lincoln and Steve Halloran of Hastings. 

Hilgers and Halloran both left the box blank, but Halloran did so after answering that he favored no circumstances that abortion should be legal. Hilgers commented on the survey: "Abortion is never necessary to protect the life of the mother." 

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WE DON'T WANT TO GO RISK OUR LIVES': MANAGERS CONCERNED ABOUT NEBRASKA CROSSING OPENING

GRETNA, Neb. — Some general and store managers who work at Nebraska Crossing said they are concerned for their health and yours when the mall opens April 24.

We are keeping their identities anonymous because they fear they'll lose their jobs for good.

"These people who think that it's okay to go shopping, have they been living under a rock?" said one general manager.

The managers said they found out last week through a text alert from the owner of Nebraska Crossing Rod Yates that he had plans to originally open on April 18 and then changed it to April 24.

"I don't know why we need to jump the gun and go a week early. It doesn't seem right," one store manager said.

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HOW THE KANSAS CITY CHIEFS' SUPER BOWL WIN SLOWED THE SPREAD OF CORONAVIRUS

It’s been a little more than two months since the Kansas City Chiefs came back from a 10-point deficit in Super Bowl LIV to defeat the San Francisco 49ers. It was a huge win for Kansas City. Now, according to one Coronavirus expert, it may have been a victory for the whole country. 

Dr. Niraj Sehgal, a professor of medicine at the University of California San Francisco and co-leader of UCSF’s COVID-19 command center, said that the novel Coronavirus would have likely experienced a widespread transmission if San Francisco had held a Super Bowl parade.

He explained his reasoning in more detail in a Zoom call the school shared on YouTube.

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KEYSTONE XL RULING HAS 'SWEEPING' IMPACTS FOR OTHER PROJECTS (2)

A federal court’s decision striking down a critical Keystone XL permit has broad implications beyond the embattled oil pipeline.

The Wednesday ruling from the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana tossed a nationwide permit the Army Corps of Engineers uses to approve water crossings for projects all over the country, concluding the agency hadn’t properly considered impacts on endangered species.

“This is a sweeping ruling,” said Larry Liebesman, a former Justice Department environmental lawyer now at the water resources consulting firm Dawson & Associates. “This judge used his authority to enjoin it nationwide.”

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ANOTHER SETBACK FOR THE KEYSTONE XL OIL PIPELINE

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A U.S. judge canceled a key permit Wednesday for the Keystone XL oil pipeline that’s expected to stretch from Canada to Nebraska, another setback for the disputed project that got underway less than two weeks ago following years of delays.

Judge Brian Morris said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers failed to adequately consider effects on endangered species such as pallid sturgeon, a massive, dinosaur-like fish that lives in rivers the pipeline would cross.

The ruling, however, does not shut down work that has begun at the U.S.-Canada border crossing in Montana, according to attorneys in the case. Pipeline sponsor TC Energy will need the permit for future construction across hundreds of rivers and streams along Keystone’s 1,200-mile route.

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U.S. WEIGHS PAYING DRILLERS TO LEAVE OIL IN GROUND AMID GLUT

The Trump administration is considering paying U.S. oil producers to leave crude in the ground to help alleviate a glut that has caused prices to plummet and pushed some drillers into bankruptcy.

The Energy Department has drafted a plan to compensate companies for sitting on as much as 365 million barrels worth of oil reserves by effectively making that untapped crude part of the U.S. government’s emergency stockpile, said senior administration officials, who asked not to be identified describing deliberations prior to a decision and announcement.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for May rose about 20 cents to $20.42 a barrel on the news. Earlier Wednesday, crude futures settled below $20 a barrel for the first time in 18 years.

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THREE SCENARIOS FOR THE NOVEMBER ELECTION

The coronavirus is paralyzing — from the fear of the physical toll, to the economy, to the end (at least for now) of normal everyday life. There’s also a temptation to put a pause on political analysis. If the country is in the middle, or even beginning, of a once-in-a-generation (or two) event, how can we even think about elections or know what the political fallout might be?
That’s not an unreasonable approach. But the fall elections are going to happen whether the country is ready or not, and the results are arguably more important than ever as voters choose politicians to lead the country into an unprecedented chapter.

And even though there is significant uncertainty, particularly in the physical and economic impact, it’s possible to identify some potential scenarios that could play out.

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MIDLANDS VOICES: FEDERAL AID CAN HELP WITH LOCAL INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS

OMAHA - The latest federal efforts to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic are focusing on how to best help states and municipalities. I would urge consideration for a path that could have a dramatic impact on every community in the nation while driving economic growth and rebuilding our country’s infrastructure.

If proposed stimulus legislation or other programs included help for municipalities financing or refinancing bonds, we could substantially impact the fiscal condition of American communities while stimulating the economy. It is a great solution for all municipalities.

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CITIES, COUNTIES FEAR LOSING OUT ON U.S. VIRUS RESCUE FUNDING

WASHINGTON (AP) — The $2.2 trillion federal rescue package could fail to deliver badly needed financial aid to thousands of smaller cities and counties where a majority of Americans live, according to documents and interviews with local officials.

The coronavirus outbreak has blown holes in the budgets of communities as the costs of battling it skyrocket and critical sources of revenue like sales and income taxes plummet.

The Coronavirus Relief Fund uses a formula based on population to parcel out tens of billions of dollars to the states while allowing cities and counties with more than 500,000 residents to apply directly to the Treasury Department for cash infusions. But localities below that population threshold are in limbo.

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THE STRUGGLE TO COPE WITH DEPRESSION AMID CORONAVIRUS

WASHINGTON - During the two weeks after Minnesota issued its stay-at-home order in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Jane Egerdal cried every day.

Ms. Egerdal, 62, has a history of depression. Almost overnight, the things she had been doing to successfully cope with her condition—going to the gym, meeting friends at coffee shops, her job as a school nurse—disappeared.

“I lost that network of people and sense of job and purpose,” says Ms. Egerdal, who lives alone in Faribault, Minn. “The loneliness is unbearable.”

The pandemic is upending everyone’s lives. But it has been particularly destabilizing for the millions of people who deal with depression and anxiety.

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THEY CAN'T MEET AT THE CAPITOL, BUT TECHNOLOGY IS KEEPING STATE SENATORS TOGETHER

LINCOLN - While Nebraska state senators wait to find out when and if they will reconvene this year to finish up the final 17 days of the 2020 session, some have been communicating via Zoom and other technology.

One Omaha political observer, Ricky Fulton, noticed the Zoom activity among senators and was prompted to send a letter to Speaker Jim Scheer asking if meeting on Zoom was any kind of open-meetings violation.

He also wanted to know how many senators could legally meet on a Zoom chat. And whether those who don't use Zoom or other type of video conferencing would be left out of such meetings.

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HOW WILL NEBRASKA SCHOOLS SPEND $128 MILLION AID PACKAGE? COLLEGE STUDENTS TO GET HELP

LINCOLN - Nebraska K-12 school districts, colleges and universities will split a $128 million federal care package to deal with the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak, with a good chunk of the money aimed at helping college students.

How the money for students will be allocated is uncertain.

The law gives local and state education leaders latitude on allocating and spending the aid.

One Nebraska state official has cautioned school district leaders against using the extra money for pay raises during the crisis.

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GOV. RICKETTS, ELECTION CHIEF CONFIDENT NEBRASKA PRIMARY WON'T BE REPEAT OF WISCONSIN

LINCOLN - This week, the world watched as Wisconsin voters stood for hours in long lines to cast ballots during a pandemic.

Nebraska is next in line May 12, when polling places open for the state’s primary election. Officials are pressing Nebraskans to vote early by mail, but they still expect thousands to head to the polls on Election Day.

The Cornhusker State remains an outlier by proceeding as scheduled with in-person voting. At last count, 16 states had postponed primaries due to COVID-19.

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HAMMEL: NEBRASKA STATE CAPITOL IS STILL OPEN FOR TOURS, BUT THERE AREN'T MANY TAKERS

LINCOLN — Kirk Woita is a lot like a Maytag repairman these days.

Woita, a tour guide at the Nebraska State Capitol, is still on duty, willing to lead anyone on an educational trek through the unique and historic building. But he’s had no takers for at least the last week and only a few before that.

The U.S. Capitol quit public tours a month ago because of the coronavirus. And the Iowa State Capitol, like many state capitols, is closed, so no tours.

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