NATIONAL WILDLIFE FEDERATION JOINS GOP GOVERNORS CALLING FOR RENEWABLE FUEL WAIVERS

WASHINGTON - The National Wildlife Federation believes EPA's Andrew Wheeler should use the agency's waiver authority to reduce blending requirements under the Renewable Fuel Standard. According to the NWF, because the environmental destruction due to the program has been so great, the Renewable Volume Obligation should be lowered.

NWF stated, “Higher blends of ethanol necessitated by unrealistic RVOs diminish public health. In light of the clear and present danger to the environment, we join with the Governors of six states in asking for a waiver to the RVO."

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OMAHA PASTORS WALK OUT ON MEETING WITH GOVERNOR RICKETTS AFTER OFFENSIVE COMMENT; LEAKED AUDIO SHOWS DIFFERENT EXCHANGE

OMAHA – A group of Omaha pastors walked out of a meeting with Governor Ricketts concerning the protests held in Omaha the last few nights. One of the pastors took to Facebook to chronicle why the pastors decided to walk out. The pastor stated, “Pete Ricketts said, 'The problem I have with you people.' Did you hear what I just said? 'The problem I have with you people.' Ladies and gentlemen, I walked out of the Police Chief's office. I walked out on Gov. Pete Ricketts as he said — he called us 'you people.’”

The Governor stated that he chose his words poorly and that he apologized after it became apparent that his diction caused offense. Preston Love Jr. of Black Votes Matter said that the Governor apologized immediately and probably meant “you guys” instead of “you people.” After a release of an leaked audio recording of the meeting shows Ricketts did not use the specific term "you people" during a heated exchange. Instead, the Governor used the phrase, “you guys.”

Nonetheless, the Governor said, “But the point being that I said, you know, 'you guys.' That was not the sensitive way to be able to say it. That was the wrong way to say it.” Ricketts said Pastor Tony Sanders took him aside after the conversation and told him what he said was a trigger for African Americans.

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WILL PROTESTS SET OFF A SECOND VIRAL WAVE?

LOS ANGELES- Mass protests against police brutality that have brought thousands of people out of their homes and onto the streets in cities across America are raising the specter of new coronavirus outbreaks, prompting political leaders, physicians and public health experts to warn that the crowds could cause a surge in cases.

While many political leaders affirmed the right of protesters to express themselves, they urged the demonstrators to wear face masks and maintain social distancing, both to protect themselves and to prevent further community spread of the virus. The spontaneous outpouring of protests are occurring as many states have warily begun reopening after weeks of stay-at-home orders with millions of American unemployed. Restaurants, schools, beaches and parks are under scrutiny as the public tentatively practices new forms of social distancing.

In Los Angeles, where demonstrations led to the closing of virus testing sites on Saturday, Mayor Eric Garcetti warned that the protests could become “super-spreader events,” referring to the types of gatherings, usually held in indoor settings, that can lead to an explosion of secondary infections.

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NEW TELEHEALTH STATS SHOW WIDE SUPPORT

WASHINGTON - A post from McKinsey estimates that up to $250 billion of the country's current health care spending could be done virtually, considering patients' rapid adoption of telehealth.

About 76 percent of consumers were highly or moderately likely to use telehealth in the future, according to the consulting firm's recent surveys. Seventy-four percent of people who had used telehealth reported high satisfaction.

Providers are getting on board too. About 57 percent of providers said they viewed virtual care more favorably than they did before the pandemic, and 64 percent said they're more comfortable using it.

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MIDWEST AND PLAINS BUSINESS LEADERS OPTIMISTIC DESPITE CORONAVIRUS, SURVEY SHOWS

OMAHA - The overall index for the Midwest improved in May to 43.5 from April's 35.1, but it remained in negative territory. The survey results are compiled into a collection of indexes ranging from zero to 100. Survey organizers say any score below 50 suggests decline. A score above 50 suggests growth.

Creighton University economist Ernie Goss said the survey shows that the coronavirus outbreak has had a greater impact on businesses tied directly to the consumer and a smaller impact on manufacturers. The monthly survey covers Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and South Dakota.

Nebraska’s overall index for May rose to 43.9 from 36 in April. Components of the index: new orders at 32.9, production or sales at 34.1; delivery lead time at 61.2; inventories at 49.9; and employment at 41.3. Goss said the state’s unemployment rate increased from 4.2% in March to 8.6% in April. The state lost 86,000 jobs in that period.

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BARS ACROSS SOME NEBRASKA COMMUNITIES ALLOWED TO REOPEN STARTING THIS WEEK

OMAHA - People who get off work early in the morning could have a beer and unwind starting at 6 a.m. Monday when bars reopened for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic led to their closure. Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts announced last week that bars could reopen at 50% capacity.

In early May, restaurants, gyms and fitness centers, hair and nail salons, barbershops, tattoo businesses and massage studios reopened in 89 of the state's 93 counties. And in all the counties, churches were allowed to hold group services again, dentist offices could reopen for regular visits and elective surgeries could restart.

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CORONAVIRUS CASES HIT 4,300 IN DOUGLAS COUNTY, 14,1010 IN NEBRASKA

OMAHA - Douglas County’s number of coronavirus cases reached 4,300, the county reported Sunday, but there were no additional deaths. The number of cases increased by 127, or 3%, over the 4,173 reported by the county Friday.

Statewide, 14,101 cases and 170 deaths were reported as of Sunday. The state reported that 103,813 people have been tested and in 89,564 instances — 86% — the disease wasn’t detected. Under half of the 376 ventilators available to area hospitals were in use, and only about one-third of those in use were for COVID-19 patients.

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HISPANICS AND ASIAN AMERICANS HIT HARDEST BY CORONAVIRUS IN NEBRASKA, NEW DATA SHOWS

OMAHA - Only 11% of the state’s population is Latino. But those Nebraskans account for half of the coronavirus cases for which ethnic information was collected, as well as 40% of the hospitalizations and one in every five deaths.

Dannette Smith, CEO of Nebraska’s Department of Health and Human Services, acknowledged that the state’s information is incomplete. No racial or ethnic information was collected on about 30% of coronavirus cases. In another 10% or so, race or ethnicity was listed as unknown. Smith stated, “This is the first time, to my knowledge, we have concentrated on making sure that we are collecting racial and ethnic data.”

Nebraska remains one of only two states that do not regularly report statewide data on coronavirus cases broken down by race and ethnicity, although both the Douglas County Health Department and Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department have posted such data.

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NEBRASKA GAME AND PARKS RESTORES ALL CAMPING AND SWIMMING BEGINNING JUNE 4TH

SCOTTSBLUFF - The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission will open more camping opportunities in state parks starting June 4, when previous temporary restrictions on RVs and tent camping will be removed. Designated beaches and swimming areas also will open June 4.

Director Jim Douglas stated, “With high demand for camping and outdoor recreational opportunities, and changes in the state’s Directed Health Measures, we are pleased to restore camping opportunities and allow guests to participate in activities they love – making memories in our parks.”

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WHAT WITHDRAWAL FROM THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION MEANS FOR PANDEMIC RESPONSE

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump's plan to make good on his threat to withdraw from the World Health Organization has sparked worry from health experts, Brianna Ehley and Alice Miranda Ollstein report. Trump has criticized the U.N. agency for failing to quickly sound the alarm when the virus emerged and accused it of helping China cover up the threat. Friday's news follows Trump's temporary freeze last month on U.S. funding to WHO.

The American Medical Association, the nation’s largest physician group, urged Trump in the "strongest terms possible" to reverse the decision. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the head of the chamber's health committee, warned canceling U.S. membership could disrupt clinical trials for vaccines that will be in high demand around the world.

The Senator said, "Certainly there needs to be a good, hard look at mistakes the World Health Organization might have made in connection with coronavirus, but the time to do that is after the crisis has been dealt with, not in the middle of it.”

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IN NEBRASKA AND IOWA, CORONAVIRUS IS NATIONAL GUARD’S BIGGEST EMERGENCY RESPONSE IN YEARS

OMAHA - National Guard soldiers and airmen in the Midlands, and across the country, nose-swabbing is one of many unexpected duties they’re performing in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 600 members in Nebraska have been put to service.

Across the two states, Guard soldiers and airmen have set up and staffed coronavirus testing sites, delivered medical supplies to hard-hit counties, ferried test samples to laboratories and boxed up supplies for food banks. In both states, the Guard response is the largest for a civil emergency in years, larger even than for the massive floods of 2019. The task force’s most visible presence has been the six mobile testing teams that have deployed around the state to collect test samples and bring them to central laboratories.

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COVID’S GLOBAL MARCH

WASHINGTON - This week the world hit a new milestone, averaging 100,000 confirmed new infections each day. The pandemic’s epicenter has shifted to Brazil. One in every two people taking a test in Brazil is positive, indicating the virus is more widespread than officially acknowledged. Even so, the country averaged 19,000 confirmed new cases each day this week and deaths frequently top 1,000 each day.

On a brighter note, Spain has had only four deaths since Tuesday, a remarkable turnaround for a country that just eight weeks ago peaked at 961 deaths in a single day.

Trump cited alleged control by China of WHO today as his core reason for withdrawing the U.S. from the body. So far, the world is yawning, with no official reactions from other world leaders. Upon U.S. withdrawal, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will become the organization's biggest funders. The Gates provide around 12 percent of WHO’s budget, compared to just 0.2 percent coming from China.

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GOVERNOR RICKETTS ANNOUNCES PLAN TO UTILIZE FEDERAL C.A.R.E.S. DOLLARS

LINCOLN- During the his daily press conference last Wednesday, Governor Ricketts announced how he intends the state to spend the federal CARES dollars distributed to Nebraska. Please note that below is a general outline of what has been announced, and we are happy to answer any questions. More information can be expected in regards to many of these programs/actions in the coming days and weeks. 

The total package of $1.25 billion in relief to Nebraska, is planned to be distributed  into the following categories below. To view the entire powerpoint presented by the governor, please click HERE.

GOVERNMENTS: $180 MILLION

State Government $80million

Local Governments $100million

   - Dollars will be for reimbursement of direct costs associated with COVID including PPE, overtime, sanitizing spaces, dedicated payroll for COVID public safety employees. 

   - Counties, in order to be eligible, must have 'business as usual' by June 8th (open public offices and services)

COMMUNITY CARES PROGRAM: $85 MILLION

Being established by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services

   - Behavioral Health Regions $5million

   - Community Collaboratives $20million

   - Providers/Non-Profits demonstrating increased demand and lower donations $40million

   - Shelters/Housing $20million

SMALL BUSINESSES/LIVESTOCK STABILIZATION: $392 MILLION 

Distributed in $12K grants to all qualified   

   - Small businesses between 5-49 employees

   - Livestock operations between 1-10 employees

REMOTE ACCESS, WORKFORCE RETRAINING, GALLUP: $62 MILLION

Rural broadband development $40million

   - Impacting 26,285 households in 41 communities of 1K-5K in population

Workforce Retraining $16million

   - $1.1K grants for students (up to 12K total)

   - Career Coaches/Admin/Faculty $2.4million

Gallup Training $1million

UNEMPLOYMENT TRUST FUND: $427 MILLION

COMMON CAUSE NEBRASKA RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT OF LOBBYING IN NEBRASKA

LINCOLN - Common Cause Nebraska, a nonpartisan, non-profit watchdog in Nebraska published its annual report on May 20, 2020.

The report states that lobbyists in the state set a record regarding the amount of earnings that they took in. Lobbying expenditures reached $19.3 million, an increase of $1.5 million when compared with the year prior. In total, Nebraska lobby gross earnings for 2019 equaled $19.4 million. Altria Client Services spend the most on lobbying with a 2019 total of $267,287. The University of Nebraska system spent $732,072 in 2019. Others, like the Nebraska Chamber of Commerce, spent roughly $96,000.

Kissel Kohout ES Associates is proud to be once again named in the top 6 firms over the past 5 years, and to remain in the top 10 for 2019. It is an honor to serve our clients in front of the Nebraska state government. 

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NEBRASKA ECONOMY FARES BETTER THAN MOST STATES AMID PANDEMIC

OMAHA - Nebraska's economy has been devastated by the coronavirus outbreak and unemployment has surged, but the state has fared better than most of the rest of the nation.

Nebraska’s April unemployment rate was 8.3%. While that is not an optimal number, it is still markedly lower than the nation’s average of 14.7%. Nebraska's unemployment rate was the third-lowest in the country. One reason for the low unemployment rate is that Nebraska’s economy is not dependent on tourism or oil.

The Journal Star furthers that the insurance, banking, and government sectors have largely been spared job losses. Unemployment figures show that only about 1 in every 50 workers in those sectors have lost their jobs. In contrast, the downturn from the virus outbreak contributed to the loss of roughly 1 in every 4 service jobs.

Some companies in the state have said that they may end up increasing the number of employees by the year’s end.

Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts was one of only seven governors who never issued a statewide stay-at-home order shutting down all nonessential businesses. Instead, he imposed restrictions on a regional basis throughout the state based on the number of infections and hospitalizations in each area.

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HALLORAN URGES FEDERAL ACTION TO ADDRESS MEAT SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTION

HASTINGS - Sen. Steve Halloran of Hastings and 42 colleagues in the Nebraska Legislature are urging the federal government to let small-scale processors play a larger role in connecting the public with meat products.

Sen. Halloran is the chairman of the Legislature’s Agriculture Committee. In a letter that he wrote to the state’s congressional delegation, Sen. Halloran asked the members to consider amending the Federal Meat Inspection Act to remove restrictions on custom processors to prepare meats for distribution through public and private charitable food assistance programs during meat processing emergencies. The letter included other suggestions such as shifting funding so USDA inspectors can spend more time in small inspected plants, thereby allowing those plants to ramp up their processing capacity by expanding hours of operation or adding employees.

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STATE OWNS LAND IN SOUTHWEST LINCOLN THAT COULD BE USED FOR A NEW PRISON

LINCOLN - Corrections Director Scott Frakes announced in February the state is considering a public-private partnership to build a new, 1,600-bed prison, possibly between Lincoln and Omaha, to help deal with overcrowding and staffing issues. It could have potential to expand by hundreds of beds, Frakes said. Corrections Director Scott Frakes announced in February the state is considering a public-private partnership to build a new, 1,600-bed prison, possibly between Lincoln and Omaha, to help deal with overcrowding and staffing issues. It could have the potential to expand by hundreds of beds, Frakes said.

Nebraska's prison population is at about 5,430, and the department employs about 2,200 staff. The system has hovered around 158% of design capacity, and the Legislature has set a deadline of July 1 to reduce capacity to 140%.

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TESTNEBRASKA INITIATIVE IS STILL FAR FROM HITTING ITS DAILY CORONAVIRUS TESTING GOAL

OMAHA - 1,694 samples were taken from people on Wednesday according to state officials. That's just over halfway to the target announced when Nebraska signed a contract with a group of Utah high-tech firms in April. The goal was to reach 500 tests at each of six mobile sites, or 3,000 tests in total, each day.

Governor Ricketts has maintained that TestNebraska has been a real help. The Governor said, "That's a good thing for the state that we've got more tests.”

Dr. Gary Anthone, Nebraska's chief medical officer, also expressed optimism about the TestNebraska numbers. Dr. Anthone stated that the state is very getting closer to achieving its goal.

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NEBRASKA IN LINE FOR ABOUT $10.8 BILLION IN FEDERAL CORONAVIRUS RELIEF MONEY, RICKETTS SAYS

KEARNEY - Gov. Pete Ricketts announced Wednesday that Nebraska is in line to get $10.8 billion in federal coronavirus relief money this year. The total includes about $1.6 billion of stimulus payments that were sent directly to Nebraska households. Nearly two-thirds of the rest — some $6.4 billion — is going out through the Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses keep employees on their payroll.

Governor Ricketts stated that, “I think it’s appropriate when we have an emergency like this pandemic, which we haven’t had in over 100 years, the federal government takes steps to make sure that we can protect ourselves and recover.”

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COLLEAGUES EXPRESS CARE, CONCERN FOR NEBRASKA STATE SENATOR HOSPITALIZED WITH COVID-19.

LINCOLN - Gov. Pete Ricketts expressed hope Tuesday that State Sen. Mike Moser of Columbus would have a “full and complete” recovery from his hospitalization with coronavirus.

His illness prompted messages of care and concern from colleagues in the Legislature and in Columbus.

Senator Adam Morfeld tweeted “All of my thoughts are with my colleague Senator Mike Moser and his family for a quick and speedy recovery from COVID” on Tuesday.

Senator Dan Hughes, chair of the Natural Resources Committee, said that he was very concerned.

Moser, a moderate Republican, was elected to the Legislature two years ago with the support of his predecessor, Paul Schumacher. The two have been friends since being on the same the debate team at Platte Junior College, now Central Community College, in Columbus.

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