LINCOLN — As one state senator said, being against young farmers is like being against God, mother and apple pie.
That might explain why Nebraska lawmakers advanced a bill Wednesday to help beginning farmers and small business owners, even though it would cost the state money.
Other bills that would increase state spending have hit a wall of resistance this year — none has made it past first-round debate.
But Legislative Bill 297 cleared first-round consideration on a 34-2 vote after State Sen. Annette Dubas of Fullerton made a plea to keep the bill alive. She promised to work on the bill's cost.
The bill represents an investment in the state's future and in the important industry of agriculture, Dubas said.
LB 297 would set aside state money to provide low-interest loans for qualifying farmers and business owners. The bill's cost would equal the difference between interest on the loans and what the state could earn on its money elsewhere.
Legislative fiscal staff estimated the loss to the state at $574,000 on $20 million worth of loans, the amount originally proposed.
Lawmakers amended the bill to build the loan pool gradually, starting with $2 million a year for two years, up to a total of $10 million. No new fiscal estimate was available.
Sen. Tom Hansen of North Platte, who voted against the bill, said he supports the idea but can't support the expenditure in a tight budget year.
Other legislative action:
• Lawmakers gave 36-1 first-round approval to LB 235, to let the Nebraska Board of Educational Lands and Funds issue leases for solar or wind energy projects on its properties. The board leases 1.3 million acres of land to farmers and ranchers. LB 235 would provide a new revenue stream, possibly hundreds of thousands of dollars, to benefit schools beyond the current farming and grazing leases.
• Juvenile court records could be sealed from the public if a child reaches age 17 and is judged to be satisfactorily rehabilitated under LB 923, introduced by Sen. Brad Ashford of Omaha. Employers would not be allowed to ask whether a person had a sealed juvenile record.
World-Herald staff writer Paul Hammel contributed to this report.
Contact the writer:
402-473-9583, martha.stoddard@owh.com
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