VILSACK OFFERS INTEGRATED PLAN FOR DOMESTIC FOOD PRODUCTION

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Biden administration has set aside billions of dollars to help the nation’s food supply chain recover from the coronavirus pandemic — and, more recently, the looming global effects of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine — and on Wednesday, June 1, it announced new funding and a comprehensive overview of how those initiatives mesh.

“A transformed food system is part of how we as a country become more resilient and competitive in the face of these big and future challenges and threats,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack said Wednesday at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

After the pandemic exposed the deficient resilience of the nation's meat processing industry, in part because of the industry's consolidation over the years, the White House said that increasing the processing capability has been a primary focus for the nation. The top four meatpacking companies control 85% of the beef market, 70% of the pork market, and more than 50% of the chicken market.

Livestock producers lost a significant amount of their sales when the coronavirus put a halt to large processing facilities, forcing some to euthanize their animals.

A push for efficiency led to the consolidation of the meatpacking industry, but the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the need for balance and resilience, Vilsack concluded.

In response, the USDA created the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program to provide up to $375 million to aid the creation or expansion of smaller, independent processors. The first phase of the program that recently closed for applications is poised to distribute about $150 million in grants. Funding requests totaled more than $800 million, the USDA reported.

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RICKETTS POINTS TO MENTAL HEALTH CARE NEEDS IN WAKE OF NEW GUN VIOLENCE

LINCOLN — Gov. Pete Ricketts pointed Thursday, May 26 to the need for more mental health services to help identify and assist troubled Americans as a means of addressing gun violence like this week's most recent attack that killed 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas.

"The gun is just a tool," the governor said in answering a question from Jeff Zeleny, chief national affairs correspondent for CNN, during a speaking appearance at the University of Chicago's Institute of Politics.

Ricketts went on to say that depriving Americans of their 2nd Amendment gun ownership rights is not the answer to gun violence. Instead, it is important to "look for signs" of mental illness that may lead to violence and address those needs, he added.

He also said he is "open to ideas to be preventative" in addressing gun violence within the context of protecting the 2nd Amendment.

Ricketts also commented on the sharp political division that's apparent in the country today, especially in the wake of gun violence.

"Politics (in America) has always been divisive," Ricketts said. "We'll get through this ... but it's not going to happen fast."

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ORGANIZERS SAY NEBRASKA MEDICAL MARIJUANA PETITIONS ARE BACK ON TRACK

LINCOLN- Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana said it was nearing the halfway point in its campaign to qualify a pair of petitions that would legalize the use of cannabis for medical treatments for the November ballot.

State Sen. Anna Wishart of Lincoln, a co-sponsor of the petitions, said the group is on track to gather the 87,000 signatures needed before the July 7 deadline, despite several setbacks earlier this year.

“We are really pulling together a campaign,” Wishart said, “and we’ve got a ton of people who have gotten out of the house to come grab a petition and collect signatures.”

At the start of May, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana had collected roughly 20,000 signatures for each of its two petitions. This week, the campaign reported that 40,000 people had signed petitions.

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HERBSTER FIGHTS THE SCOPE OF SUBPOENAS AGAINST "TRUMP WORLD" TRIO WHO HELPED HIM

OMAHA — It’s not a question of if but how deeply “Trump world” will be dragged into dueling lawsuits between Nebraska businessman Charles Herbster and State Sen. Julie Slama.

Recent documents filed in Slama's counter-lawsuit against Herbster show that her lawyers are working to subpoena records from at least three longtime aides of former President Donald Trump.

The three aides included are former Trump spokeswoman Kellyanne Conway, who served as Herbster’s national campaign manager; Corey Lewandowski, a Trump campaign manager and Herbster consultant; and David Bossie with Citizens United, who helped run Trump’s 2016 campaign and also consulted for Herbster.

Herbster's legal team is attempting to narrow the scope of the subpoenas sent, arguing that some records and information reach beyond the scope of Slama's allegations.

His attorneys also objected to the scope of subpoenas sent to two members of Herbster’s former campaign staff: campaign manager Ellen Keast and spokeswoman Emily Novotny.

The first court hearing is scheduled for June 14 in Johnson County District Court. The hearing will be held at the Gage County Courthouse in Beatrice to accommodate the judge, whose assignment covers multiple counties.

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STATE ASKS JUDGE TO KEEP COUNTY REQUIREMENTS FOR PETITIONS IN PLACE

LINCOLN- Lawyers representing the state asked a federal judge to throw out a lawsuit challenging Nebraska’s requirements for qualifying ballot initiatives, saying that doing so would “drastically change” the initiative process in the state.

The lawsuit, filed earlier this month by Crista Eggers, a statewide campaign coordinator for Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana’s pair of petitions now being circulated, asserts the requirements for gathering signatures are unconstitutional.

Nebraska’s state constitution requires petitions to obtain the signature of 5% of voters in 38 of the state’s 93 counties, which Eggers’ lawsuit alleges violates the equal protection and due process clauses of the 14th Amendment, and violates the First Amendment rights of voters.

Replying on behalf of Evnen, the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office said the signature-gathering requirement was integral to the initiative process in the state, and that doing away with it would effectively cut rural Nebraskans out of the qualification process.

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EARLY VOTING HAS BEGUN IN NEBRASKA'S FIRST DISTRICT SPECIAL ELECTION

OMAHA — Nebraska voters can start casting in-person early ballots as of May 31st for the June 28 special election, which will determine who will finish the final six months of former Rep. Jeff Fortenberry’s term, following his resignation in March.

Voters in all of Butler, Cass, Colfax, Cuming, Dodge, Lancaster, Madison, Platte, Seward, and Stanton Counties, as well as voters in parts of Polk and Sarpy Counties, make up Nebraska's 1st Congressional District.

The candidates running to replace Fortenberry are State Sen. Mike Flood of Norfolk, a Republican and former speaker of the Legislature, and State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln, a Democrat.

According to the Nebraska Secretary of State's Office, already-requested early voting ballots will be sent out Tuesday by county election officials.

June 17 is the last day to request a ballot by mail for the special election.

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KEVIN MCCARTHY WILL HEADLINE EVENT IN LINCOLN FOR MIKE FLOOD

LINCOLN - House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy will headline a fundraising luncheon for 1st District GOP congressional candidate Mike Flood at the Country Club of Lincoln on Friday.

The $100-per-person event will include "sponsorship level" donations up to $5,800.

McCarthy will likely become Speaker of the House if Republicans gain majority control following the November elections.

Although, the California Republican has been scrutinized lately for his refusal to cooperate with subpoenas to appear before the House special committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol.

McCarthy had been in contact with former President Donald Trump during the day's events.

"For House Republican leaders to agree to participate in this political stunt would change the House forever," McCarthy wrote in a recent op-ed for the Wall Street Journal shared with Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, who also declined to honor a subpoena to appear before the special committee.

Flood is facing off against Democratic candidate Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln in a June 28 special election to fill the last six months of former Republican Rep. Jeff Fortenberry after he resigned from the House due to his conviction on charges of lying to federal officials about illegal foreign campaign contributions.

Flood and Pansing Brooks will meet again in November in a rematch for election to a new two-year term, beginning in January.

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LINCOLN FIRE UNION BACKS FLOOD OVER PANSING BROOKS IN SPECIAL ELECTION

LINCOLN- State Sen. Mike Flood picked up a union endorsement that gives him new foot soldiers in the door-to-door push to turn out his voters in the June 28 special election that will decide who finishes out the term of former U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry.

The Lincoln Fire Fighters Association endorsed Flood, a former speaker of the Legislature from Norfolk.

The roughly 300-member union picked Flood, a Republican, over his opponent, State Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks of Lincoln, a Democrat. Union president Adam Schrunk said 1st District voters have two good choices in June but said Flood was “the best.”

“We put politicians through a fairly involved process so that when we attach our name to them, we can be sure they’ll be the advocates for public safety that they say they will,” Schrunk said. “He’s proven to be that kind of elected official already.”

Pansing Brooks said she was disappointed by the union’s choice but said she will still “be their champion in Congress, just as I have in the Nebraska Legislature.”

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COMPLAINTS SURFACE OVER NEBRASKA VOTER I.D. PETITION CIRCULATORS

LINCOLN- Secretary of State says it's not uncommon to receive complaints on petitions where signatures are being sought. Although the complaint received earlier this week from Senator Carol Blood is a first.

“The complaint has been that the signature collector has claimed to be a state employee that’s not a complaint we have heard before,” said Secretary of State Bob Evnen.

When the secretary of state receives complaints, they forward them to the petition organizers where they can address them.

“There were two separate complaints, based on what I know. We are investigating, but we believe it’s an extremely isolated incident right now,” said Senator Julie Slama, the spokeswoman for Citizens for Voter I.D.

Carol Blood does not believe the incident is isolated saying, “Emails and messages through social media claim that this has happened all over the state. So we know its not a one or two-time incident we know its happening when they are going door to door."

Senator Carol Blood says she likes when Nebraska voters get to vote on what's important to them but the way this is getting done isn’t the right way.

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TIMING AND ABORTION DECISION COULD INFLUENCE JUNE 28 HOUSE RACE BETWEEN FLOOD, PANSING BROOKS

PLATTSMOUTH- A third of Nebraska gets no summer break from voting this year. The state set a June 28 special election to fill the 1st Congressional District’s open House seat.

Nebraska must select someone to finish the last six months of former Rep. Jeff Fortenberry’s term. He resigned in March after a federal jury convicted him of three felonies.

Two former state senators are in the running to replace him — Republican Mike Flood, a former Speaker of the Legislature from Norfolk, and Democrat Patty Pansing Brooks, a lawmaker from Lincoln.

Both candidates agree that motivating voters to turn out for the special election, just a month after the primary, is one of the most difficult aspects of running. Typically they would expect a breather from political campaigning.

"The critical issue right now is getting people out, recognizing they’re all exhausted,” Pansing Brooks said.

Flood said he intends to focus on "kitchen table issues" like trying to slow the inflationary pressures on food and fuel costs by cutting federal spending.

Pansing Brooks said she wants to curb inflation, too. But she’s seen a change in what voters emphasize since the leak of a potential Supreme Court ruling that could overturn Roe vs. Wade.

Flood advocates outlawing abortion in Nebraska and voted for a late-term abortion ban. Pansing Brooks backs abortion rights and helped to filibuster a bill that Flood co-sponsored to ban abortion if the Supreme Court acts.

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NEBRASKA GOP BLASTED FOR ATTACKING DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE OVER GUN BILL VOTE AFTER SCHOOL SHOOTING

LINCOLN- Jane Kleeb, Chair of the Nebraska Democratic Party, blasted Nebraska Republicans for sending out an email within hours of the Texas elementary school shooting that attacked Democratic gubernatorial candidate Carol Blood over a gun bill vote.

“Their subject line was ‘Carol Blood wants us defenseless,’” party Chair Jane Kleeb said in a tweet. “You mean like the kids and their teacher that was killed? Totally disgusting.”

Blood called the email “hateful and meant to generate fear” and said it was “not an appropriate response” to the killing of 19 children and two adults at a school in Uvalde, Texas.

Blood then spoke on opponent Jim Pillen saying, “Mr. Pillen who claims he will not participate in dirty campaigning continues to show us with his silence he will only keep his head down and pretend that his silence does not make him complicit".

Taylor Gage, the state GOP executive director, said the email was a planned communication “and obviously not a response” to the shooting. He said the party’s actual response was a tweet sent out Wednesday morning that said: “Grieving and praying for everyone impacted by the shooting.”

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OMAHA CITY COUNCIL APPROVES NEARLY $11 MILLION FOR NEW AMBULANCES AND EMERGENCY VEHICLES

OMAHA- Through a nearly $10.98 million purchase agreement unanimously approved by the Omaha City Council this week, 11 new emergency vehicles and seven ambulances will be purchased beginning this year.

The purchases are a part of a plan developed by Fire Chief Dan Olsen that looks to replace the Omaha Fire Department’s entire fleet of emergency vehicles over the next eight years.

By the end of 2024, 18 new vehicles will be purchased for nearly $10.98 million to be paid from the Capital Improvement Program, the City Capital Improvement Fund and the Contingent Liability Fund.

The equipment includes seven ambulances, five pumper trucks, four ladder trucks, one hazmat vehicle and one rescue pumper.

OFD expects to purchase a total of 54 new vehicles through 2029, completely replacing the current fleet. The total cost of the eight-year replacement program is $29.35 million. Those additional purchases will require City Council approval.

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DAVE PTAK OUT AS HASTINGS CITY ADMINISTRATOR, SEARCH FOR REPLACEMENT STARTS

HASTINGS- The City of Hastings is searching for a new city administrator.

Mayor Corey Stutte says Dave Ptak no longer works for the city. Ptak had served as city administrator since 2019 and was city attorney before that. A city email from April 11 said Ptak was going on leave for an unspecified personnel issue.

Stutte said he couldn’t comment on any details because it was a personnel matter.

Manager of Hastings Utilities Kevin Johnson has been acting as city administrator since Ptak went on leave and will continue in that role until a new administrator is hired. Stutte says the city will engage with a recruiter in the hiring process and expects it to take two-three months to make a hire.

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SENATOR, FORMER LAWMAKER SAY SOME VOTER ID PETITION CIRCULATORS CLAIM TO BE STATE EMPLOYEES

LINCOLN- Some petition circulators seeking signatures for a voter ID initiative are falsely claiming they are state employees, a current and a former state senator said earlier this week.

Impersonating someone else to gain something of value — in this case, payment for collecting a petition signature - is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to six months in jail or a $1,000 fine. The crime would rise to a felony if repeated more than twice.

State Sen. Julie Slama, the director of Citizens for Voter ID, which is seeking to place a voter identification initiative on the November ballot, said in a text that her organization is looking into the complaints.

If they proved to be true, Slama said, it would result in “corrective action up to and including termination of the circulators.”

The voter ID initiative is using a company, Vanguard Field Strategies of Kansas City, Missouri, to collect signatures using paid circulators.

One came from former State Sen. Shelley Kiel, who lives in the Dundee area of Omaha. Kiel said a young woman came to her door and began the conversation by claiming, “I’m from the State of Nebraska,” and asking Kiel to sign the vote ID petition.

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CENTRAL CITY CELEBRATES ITS NEW $27M HOSPITAL

CENTRAL CITY- A larger operating room, a cafeteria, and more spacious patient rooms are some of the advantages the new health care facility in Central City will offer Merrick County residents.

Officials marked the completion of the new Merrick Medical Center, located on the west side of Central City on May 25th.

The new facility, part of Bryan Health, will open June 13. The $27 million structure totals 51,307 square feet, and replaces the current Merrick Medical Center, which was built in 1959.

Health care has changed a lot in that time, said Patrick Avila, the facility’s chief executive officer, including how staff focuses on patients, how a patient moves through a facility and in the type of equipment hospitals use.

The focus of Merrick Medical Center and Bryan Health “is to keep health care local,” Avila said. “So we want to do as much as we can here for our community.”

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NEBRASKA POLITICAL LEADERS CALL FOR SEMI-AUTOMATIC GUN BANAND CREATE TASK FORCE TO REVIEW STATE PRACTICES

LINCOLN- Nebraska political leaders called for everything from a semi-automatic weapons ban to the restoration of prayer in schools after this week's shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Jim Pillen called for action on “unaddressed mental health and school safety challenges” and promised to work with current Gov. Pete Ricketts, law enforcement and the Legislature to keep children safe in their classrooms.

State Sen. Carol Blood, the Democratic gubernatorial candidate, called for federal action on gun laws, rather than a patchwork of state laws. She said there are changes most Americans can agree upon that would improve safety without taking away guns from responsible gun owners.

Sen. John Cavanaugh of Omaha, who was among the leaders in blocking permitless concealed carry this year, said Nebraska needs laws to regulate and restrict the sale of semi-automatic weapons.

Nebraska education leaders announced they are forming a task force to review best practices and identify ways that classrooms throughout the state can have access to the highest standard of safety possible.

State Education Commissioner Matt Blomstedt said he expects that proposed legislation could come from the task force, although the scope of the group and its work is still being finalized. The task force was prompted by Senator Lynne Walz and leaders have already convened to begin the work.

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PROSECUTORS URGE JUDGE TO REJECT APPEAL BY FORMER REP. JEFF FORTENBERRY

LINCOLN- Federal prosecutors urged a judge this week to reject the latest appeal by former U.S. Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, saying that it “largely raises previously rejected” arguments and raises claims that are improper.

A month ago, Fortenberry’s lawyers asked that the congressman’s convictions following a seven-day trial be thrown out, arguing that his false statements were not “material” to the overall federal investigation into illegal “conduit” political contributions.

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Central District of California, in their response brief, said two FBI agents testified “extensively” during the trial about how Fortenberry’s false statements impacted their investigation.

Fortenberry, who was convicted of three felonies, faces up to five years in prison on each of the counts. He would be the only person caught up in the investigation, called “Operation Titan’s Grip,” who would serve time in behind bars if he is sentenced to prison.

A special election has been set for June 28 to fill the vacancy. That is the same day that Fortenberry is scheduled to be sentenced in Los Angeles.

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SHORTAGE OF EXAMINERS MEANS CLOSURE, CUTBACKS AT NEBRASKA DMV'S

LINCOLN- Due to a shortage of driver examiners at the Nebraska Department of Motor Vehicles, about 30 DMV offices across the state, mostly in rural areas, have closed temporarily or seen hours cut back. The closures have prompted frustration and disappointment and have forced customers to drive to other counties to take tests.

The state employee’s union thinks the problem is low pay, and the Nebraska Association of Public Employees recently asked the state to renegotiate the starting wage for driver's license examiners, which is now $16.48 an hour.

Rhonda Lahm, the director of DMV, said it’s more complicated than just salary.

To deal with the staff shortages, Lahm said the DMV has tried to maintain normal hours at its five-day-a-week locations, which are in larger counties like Douglas and Lancaster. Closing of rural offices, she said, is rotated so there is some availability of the tests.

According to the DMV website, no driving tests were scheduled in Antelope, Knox and Cedar Counties during the months of April and May.

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TRANSITION FROM PRIVATIZATION OF OMAHA-AREA CHILD WELFARE GOING SMOOTHLY

OMAHA — Only a few back-office details remain before Nebraska wraps up its last contract with a private agency to oversee the care of abused and neglected children in the Omaha area.

Nebraska's previous contract with the Kansas-based Saint Francis Ministries finishes June 30. The date signifies both the end of the contract and the conclusion of Nebraska's 12-year experiment with having private entities manage child welfare cases.

The transition back to the Department of Health and Human Services' management of child welfare cases has reportedly gone smoothly. Sen. John Arch, who chairs the Legislature's Health and Human Services Committee and an investigative committee looking into the Saint Francis contact, said he has been hearing good reports.

Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh, who led the push for the legislative investigation, said she has not received any update about the transition but considers that a good sign when it comes to HHS.

“No news is usually good news,” she said, contrasting the silence to the flood of calls, emails, and other contacts about problems during the contract.

All of the cases handled by Saint Francis made the switch been Jan. 1 and the end of March, but some of the problems that plagued the private contractor will take time to correct.

“We haven’t seen any kind of miraculous turnaround in the cases,” said Monika Gross, director of the state Foster Care Review Office. “I guess the good news is there’s nothing horrible, but there’s still significant struggles going on.”

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ELEVEN INDICTED IN NEBRASKA IN SCHEME TO DEFUND FEDERAL COVID-19 AID PROGRAM

LINCOLN- Eleven people were indicted this week by a federal grand jury in Nebraska in a scheme to fraudulently claim $7.6 million in benefits from the federal Payroll Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans program.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Omaha said in a press release that one of those indicted, Ramel Thompson, had coached the others on how to file fraudulent applications on behalf of 14 businesses.

None of the businesses had the employees claimed on the applications, the indictment alleged, and none of the money was used for expenses allowed under the programs, such as payroll, rent, utilities and mortgage interest.

The 11 were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.

In addition to Thompson, those indicted were: Carl Estwick, Jackie Harper, Tarysh G. Hogue, Richard L. Kelly, Lenfield Kendrick, Henry T. Lewis, Trevor A. McNeil, Michael A. Perkins, Michael A. Perkins Jr. and Shawn Prater.

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